The Roman Catholic Church in Germany faced new calls to protect the rights of LGBT people and stop discrimination against such people.
Over the past few days, 125 people — former and current priests and church administrators — have admitted that they belong to the LGBT community.
"We identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and non-binary people," the statement says.
Members of the church community published seven demands on social networks, namely:
- an opportunity for LGBT people to live openly and work in the church without fear;
- access of people with non-traditional orientation to all spheres of activity and activities in the church without discrimination;
- changes in church employment rules aimed at preventing LGBT membership from being a reason for dismissal;
- false and outdated statements of church doctrine on sexuality and gender must be reviewed;
- the church should not deny God's blessing and access to LGBT people and couples;
In support of the manifesto with the mentioned demands, the priests also launched a petition.
They also launched the hashtag #OutInChurch to draw attention to the action and encourage other Catholics to come out.
