Pope insists 'marriage is bond for man and woman'

Pope Francis at the Synod

Andrea Vogt
© Telegraph Media Group Limited

Pope Francis defended marriage as "an indissoluble bond between a man and a woman" yesterday as he opened a landmark Catholic synod on the family, hours after the Vatican sacked a senior priest who came out as gay.

In a solemn mass held in St Peter's Basilica, the Pope set a largely merciful tone by urging religious leaders to do more to "seek out and care for" marginalised believers, but reaffirmed Catholic opposition to gay marriage.