Russian Publisher Censors LGBTQ Sections in Pope Francis' Autobiography

Russian publisher Alpina Publisher has released Pope Francis’ autobiography “Hope” with censorship. In both print and electronic versions of the book, passages concerning LGBTQ individuals were covered with black bars or removed, according to LGBTQ Nation .

Among the redacted paragraphs are the pontiff’s statements that homosexuality is not a crime, and that the Catholic Church is open to gay and transgender people. Francis’ words about the permissibility of baptizing transgender individuals, the possibility for them to become godparents, and the mention of the Vatican declaration “Fiducia supplicans,” which allows non-liturgical blessings for same-sex couples, were also censored.

The publisher has not yet provided official comments regarding these redactions. The concealment of the text is linked to current Russian legislation prohibiting so-called “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations” and the designation of the “international LGBT movement” as an extremist organization. Russian book publishers have previously resorted to this method of publication, blacking out parts of the text to avoid completely withdrawing books from sale.