Pope Francis pushed the boundaries again by agreeing to meet with a transsexual man once called the "devil's daughter" by a local priest, according to media reports on Tuesday.
The 48-year-old, born a woman, had a sexual transplant to become a man and adopted the name Diego Neria Lejárraga.
Diego reportedly wrote to Pope Francis last year complaining about how the Church made him feel like an outcast. He also told the Pope that his fellow parishioners at the church he is attending in Plasencia rejected him.
In an interview with Hoy Spanish Newspaper, Lejarraga was very hopeful that the Pope would listen to his grievance.
"After hearing him speak in many occasions, I felt that he would listen to me," he said.
Pope Francis, who has been unusually undogmatic in his papacy, called Lejarraga on Christmas Eve. The Pope reportedly invited Diego and his fiancée to the Vatican for a private meeting.
The Pope has been known to be tolerant towards homosexuals. According to previous reports, the Pope appeared on the cover of LGBT magazine The Advocate after telling the press that he is not in the position to judge homosexuals.
In another interview with an Italian Jesuit magazine, Pope Francis explained that the Church has been obsessed with gay marriage, abortion, and contraception.
According to Washington Blade, José María Núñez Blanco, president of Fundación Triángulo, described the Pope's meeting with Neria as "a piece of good news."
"It is absolutely absurd that a believer is prevented from living their religious beliefs. Some proclaim the religion of love and dedicate themselves to spreading hate. Hopefully the Catholic Church ceases to be a machine of hate and suffering for the good of believers and non-believers," said Blanco.
