SINGAPORE — Comments made by Pope Francis in a documentary endorsing same-sex civil unions have not “changed Catholic teaching” on marriage, said the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore on Thursday (Oct 22).

The clarification comes in response to media coverage following the Pope’s comments in the film Francesco that premiered on Wednesday, where he said that a civil union law should be created to ensure that same-sex couples are legally covered.

"Homosexual people have a right to be in a family. They are children of God and have a right to a family. Nobody should be thrown out or be made miserable over it," he said.

In its statement, the Catholic Church said the Pope’s remarks are “not considered or admissible as an official papal teaching”.

It added that its “constant teaching on marriage remains unchanged regardless of a civil union between two persons of the same sex approved by the State”.

The Church also defined the Catholic understanding of marriage as “the sacrament by which a baptised man and a baptised woman bind themselves for life in lawful marriage”.

The Pope's quote in question was taken from an interview in May 2019, which was never broadcast in its entirety. The documentary’s director Evgeny Afineevsky is said to have been granted access to it via Vatican video archives. 

The Catholic Church added that it has not received an official statement or communication from the Vatican and that what the Pope actually said — as well as the context of it — is not known.

“What is legal in society is not necessarily moral or licit for Catholics in the teaching of the Church,” the statement said.