Pope says no to gay marriage, calls for a ‘welcoming’ Church

Vatican City: Pope Francis on Sunday defended marriage and heterosexual couples as he opened a synod on the family overshadowed by a challenge to Vatican orthodoxy by a gay priest.

During a mass to mark the three-week meeting of Roman Catholic bishops, the pope delivered a homily on “solitude, love between man and woman, and the family”.

He referred to Genesis, the first book of the Bible, as a bedrock for understanding human relationships.

“This is God’s dream for his beloved creation: to see it fulfilled in the loving union between a man and a woman, rejoicing in their shared journey, fruitful in their mutual gift of self,” he said.

“God,” the pope said, “joins the hearts of two people who love one another...and joins them together in unity and indissolubility.”