The Bishop of Tenerife, Bernardo Álvarez, has decided to meet the controversy generated through his statements on television about homosexuality. “I apologize to everyone I may have offended with my words.especially to people LGBTI, to whom I express my respect and consideration,” says Álvarez.
The person in charge of the Nivariense Diocese, through a concise statement, affirms that he did not want to “promote discrimination, nor compare homosexuality with alcoholism or with any other reality” and acknowledges that it was not “right” in answering some questions “that require more careful reflection and explanation”.
“I’m sorry I misled you and caused you pain,” Bernardo Álvarez insists before concluding: “As bishop, I reiterate my adherence to the teachings of the Church and my will to transmit them faithfully. Likewise, I express my communion with the Pope Francisco and his teaching.”
The bishop’s statements on Canarian Television have caused a great stir in Canarian citizenship. Groups of all kinds have reacted against the words of Bernardo Álvarez and censoring his homophobia.
East social rejection, which has been backed by the president of the Canary Islands Government, Ángel Víctor Torres, has been understood as the LGTBI collective as a support for its fight against discrimination. In fact, this very morning the LGTBI* Association announced that the outcry against the declarations of the bishop from Tenerife was evident in the number of signatures that have already signed his Álvarez’s dismissal request.
Both the collective’s request and Bernardo Álvarez’s apologies occur on the same day that the Bishop of Tenerife is scheduled to be received by Pope Francis.
