Malaga cardinal: Homosexuality is a curable ‘defect’

MALAGA cardinal Fernando Sebastian Aguilar has sparked outrage over his remarks about homosexuality in light of the Pope’s recent comments expressing compassion for LGBT people.

Fernando Sebastian, 84, who takes up office in the Vatican in February, also angered gay rights groups by comparing the sexual orientation to his own high blood pressure.

“Homosexuality is a defective manner of expressing sexuality, because this has a structure and a purpose, which is procreation,” he said in an interview to Diario Sur.

“A homosexual who can’t achieve this (procreation) is failing,” he added, before saying, “Our bodies have many defects. I have high blood pressure.”

Sebastian said it was “a defect I have to try and correct in whatever way I can.”

“To say that homosexuality is a defect is not an insult: it helps because in many cases of homosexuality it is possible to recover and become normal with the right treatment.”re

The comments have angered gay rights groups in Spain, and appear to be in direct contrast to Pope Francis’ views after the new pontiff expressed compassion for homosexuals last year.

LGBT campaigners Ojala said his words were “medieval” and “out of place in this time.”

But Sebastian, who lives in the Costa del Sol city of Malaga, remained defiant and stood by his views.

“The Pope is very respectful and holds all people in high esteem, but he doesn’t betray or change the traditional teaching of the church,” Sebastian added to the newspaper.

He claimed it was “one thing” to be compassionate towards homosexuals “and another thing to morally justify the practice of that homosexuality.”

“You can tell a person what their weakness is, but that doesn’t justify a decision to respect them and help them,” he added.