VATICAN CITY
IOL
December 29 2005 at 12:20PM
In the first major ruling of Pope Benedict's reign, the Catholic Church has imposed restrictions on homosexuals becoming priests, saying only men who had overcome "transitory" gay tendencies could be ordained.
The ruling came in a long-awaited eight-page Vatican document that has already sparked controversy after widespread leaks in the past few weeks.
Its strict line on the place of gays in the clergy has won praise from conservatives and condemnation from liberals, and set off heated debates in other churches by confronting an issue that has divided Christian congregations.
The document says practising homosexuals should be barred from entering the priesthood along with men with "deep-seated" homosexual tendencies and those who support gay culture.