Pope Francis may be cool. But it’s not nearly enough.

Pope Francis has been quizzed on LGBTQ rights, abortion, the porn industry and sex. The 86-year-old pontiff made some interesting comments in Disney's The Pope Answers, which captures a meeting he had last year in Rome with 10 people in their early 20s.

The Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, published the pope's remarks and referred to his conversation with the young people as an "open and sincere dialogue". This statement emphasized that the Pope's desire to engage in discussions on various sensitive topics with the younger generation shows his commitment to their wellbeing and his concern for their futures.

He began by proclaiming that sex is a beautiful gift bestowed upon human beings by God. He expressed that expressing oneself sexually is a great richness, and anything that detracts from this genuine sexual expression is harmful and reduces this wealth, referring to masturbation.

The Pope's comments on sex being a beautiful thing given by God and that anything detracting from "real sexual expression" lessens and depletes the richness, seems hypocritical in the context of the Catholic Church's history of sexual abuse. The Church has been plagued with allegations of sexual abuse by priests, and the Vatican has been accused of covering up these cases. The Pope's comments seem to ignore this reality and paint a rosy picture of sex that does not align with the Church's history.

He was asked if he knew what a "non-binary person" is, and he replied with a resounding yes. He re-emphasized that the Catholic Church must welcome all people, regardless of their sexual orientation, because all people are God's children, and no one should be expelled from the Church.

It's a tad hypocritical to claim that God doesn't reject anybody and that everyone should be welcomed into the Church when the Church itself has a history of rejecting and discriminating against certain groups of people. The Church's stance on LGBTQ issues has caused harm and exclusion to many individuals, and the Pope's words, quite conveniently, do not seem to address this past harm. 

He then addressed the issue of abortion, stating that priests should be "merciful" to women who have had abortions, but that the practice remains unacceptable. He emphasized that it is important to call things by their name, that it is one thing to accompany someone who has had an abortion and quite another to justify the act.

This stance disregards the complexities of abortion and the many reasons why individuals might seek it out. Moreover, the Church's history of punishing individuals who have had abortions, including excommunication, does not align with the Pope's calls for mercy - a classic case of talking out of both sides of one's mouth. It's not enough to claim that you're being merciful while still holding on to outdated and oppressive views on reproductive rights.

It's great that the Pope had an open and sincere dialogue with young people about these important topics. However, it's important to call out the hypocrisies in his statements and challenge the Church to do better when it comes to issues of sexuality, gender, and reproductive rights.

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