Pope Francis has apologised for using an offensive slur during a discussion with bishops about admitting gay men into seminaries, saying he “never intended to offend or express himself in homophobic terms”.
The rare papal apology followed reports in the Italian press on Monday that, during the discussion in Rome last week, the pontiff, 87, had said there was already too much “frociaggine” in some seminaries. The Italian word roughly translates as “faggotness”.
