Pope Francis says Church should apologize to gays

(ANSA) - Rome, June 27 - Pope Francis has said the Roman Catholic Church should seek forgiveness from gays for the way it has treated them in the past.
    Speaking to reporters Sunday aboard the plane taking him back to Rome from Armenia, the pontiff said that the Church should also seek forgiveness from others it has marginalized, mentioning the poor, women and children forced into labor, as well as apologizing for having blessed weapons.
    ''I think that the Church not only should apologize to gays whom it has offended but has to apologize to the poor, to exploited women, to children exploited for labor.
    ''It must apologize for having blessed so many weapons''.
    The pontiff's comments came in response to a question on whether he agreed with German Cardinal Reinhard Marx who has recently said that the Church should seek forgiveness from the gay community.
    Francis first said in 2013 that ''if a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge?'', also addressing a news conference aboard a papal plane.