Priest delivers powerful message of trans inclusivity and acceptance: ‘We are all God’s children’

A priest has won praise from his followers after he delivered a powerful message of love and solidarity with trans people.

Father Julio Lancellotti, a Catholic priest from Sao Paulo, Brazil, shared photos of himself with transgender women on Thursday (7 January) and spoke out in favour of equality.

Lancellotti, who has more than 340,000 followers on Instagram, captioned one post: “Fighting discrimination and prejudice is an endless fight.”

On a second photo, he said: “We are all children of God,” and urged his followers to “always accept, never discriminate”.

Lancellotti’s support for Brazil’s trans community may come as a surprise to some, given the Catholic church’s regressive stance on trans rights.

However, the priest is well-known in the country as a well-spoken advocate for equality. He has made a name for himself as a strong ally to the LGBT+ community, and he has repeatedly spoken out in favour of queer people’s rights.

Lancellotti, 72, has also worked tirelessly with homeless people throughout his long career. In 2018, he won acclaim on social media when he shared a video of himself asking a homeless trans woman for forgiveness for the appalling treatment she had endured at the hands of Brazilian society.