SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Jan. 19 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Diverse LGBTI* Association has branded the statements of the Bishop of Tenerife, Bernardo Álvarez, as “dandruff and petty”, in which he points out that homosexual people, who act consciously and freely, commit “a mortal sin”, in addition to comparing it with the alcoholism and crime.
From the entity, which has requested his dismissal, they recall that it is not the first time that the Tenerife bishop has unleashed controversy for his “shameful statements”, since in 2007 he justified the sexual abuse of minors in an interview with the newspaper ‘ La Opinion’, indicating that “there are children who provoke”, in addition to pointing out that “homosexuality harms people and society”.
The president of Diversas, Sergio Siverio, has highlighted in a note that “the Bishop of Tenerife is the reflection of the most rancid and miserable that continues to exist in the Catholic Church, with an enormous demonstration of hatred towards lesbian, gay, trans or bisexuals”, one more than the group has had to “endure”.
In addition, Siverio points out that “statements such as those made by Bernardo Álvarez promote a feeling of guilt that no person from the LGBTI* community deserves to have, for being free and aware of their sexual orientation or gender identity.”
In this sense, it indicates that “there are many people in the group who are believers and are neither sinners nor criminals, they are free to be who they are in an advanced democratic state.”
From Diversas they demand his immediate cessation from the ecclesiastical authorities, because, as they indicate, “his homophobic recidivism is not that it is a sin, but rather a sign of unfortunate hatred that violates Human Rights.”
In Siverio’s opinion, “these statements are directly opposed to the church’s slow and late recognition of diversity, so they should not allow an ultra and homophobic bishop like Bernardo Álvarez to continue to represent them.”
