Live Twitter Chat: Changing Perspectives within the Catholic Church

PBS NewsHour holds live Twitter chats each Thursday from 1 to 2 p.m. EDT. Join us @NewsHour using the hashtag #NewsHourChats. Photo by Servizio Fotografico L’Osservatore Romano via Getty Images.

On the way home from his seven-day papal tour of Brazil, Pope Francis took unfiltered, no limits questions from reporters aboard his plane. His responses to the questions, especially about gay priests and women in the church, made headlines and sparked debate about whether his comments suggest a shift within the Catholic Church.

PBS NewsHour hosted a live Twitter chat on the pope’s remarks and changing perspectives within the Catholic Church on Thursday, Aug. 1. During the chat we asked if the pope’s comments about gays and women have an impact beyond the Catholic Church and if his remarks signal a change in attitude regarding gays within the Catholic Church.

You can read a transcript below. We will be hosting live chats regularly on Thursdays. Follow @NewsHour for details and use the hashtag #NewsHourChats.