--- description: He made a special request to have lunch with inmates title: Pope Francis to Dine With Gay, Transexual Prisoners image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9fae28a1e459bc21/6987848bf887dc4b04e8ab45/pope-francis5.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Pope Francis to Dine with Gay and Transgender Inmates in Naples Prison ## Video: Person of the Year 2013: Why TIME Chose Pope Francis [Watch (HLS stream): Person of the Year 2013: Why TIME Chose Pope Francis](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/zqtsa2U6.m3u8) (2:55)  _Published 2013-12-11. TIME's Howard Chua-Eoan explains why Pope Francis is the Person of the Year._ by [Elizabeth Dias](/author/elizabeth-dias/) ## Elizabeth Dias Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 20, 2015 3:24 PM CUT  Pope Francis leads the weekly general audience on March 18, 2015 at the Vatican. Pope Francis leads the weekly general audience on March 18, 2015 at the Vatican.M. Migliorato—Empics Entertainment/Landov by [Elizabeth Dias](/author/elizabeth-dias/) ## Elizabeth Dias Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 20, 2015 3:24 PM CUT Pope Francis will have lunch on Saturday with some 90 inmates at a prison near Naples, including some that reportedly come from a ward housing gay, transgender and HIV-infected inmates. Tv2000, a television network operated by Italy’s Catholic bishops, [reports](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbHSCNbabAQ&feature=youtu.be "undefined") that lunch at the Giuseppe Salvia Detention Center was originally not on the schedule, but Pope Francis made a special request to dine with the inmates. A number of the estimated 100 prisoners are gay, transgender and/or infected with HIV, the report said. The prisoners were chosen via raffle from the facility’s 1900 inmates, [writes David Gibson](http://www.religionnews.com/2015/03/19/gay-transgender-inmates-invited-lunch-pope-francis-prison-visit/ "undefined"), a top Vatican watcher at Religion News Service. Pope Francis intends to greet each prisoner after a short and simple meal, [Vatican Radio reports](http://it.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/03/18/i%5Fcarcerati%5Fpoggioreale%5Fil%5Fpapa%5Fsi%5Ffaccia%5Fnostro%5Fportavoce/1130137 "undefined"). Pope Francis has made caring for inmates a priority of his papacy. He washed the feet of Muslim and women prisoners weeks after his election as pope, and is planning to wash inmates feet again this upcoming Holy Thursday. Pope Francis on Friday also reiterated the Catholic Church’s position that [no crime deserves the death penalty](http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/03/20/pope%5Ffrancis%5Fno%5Fcrime%5Fever%5Fdeserves%5Fthe%5Fdeath%5Fpenalty/1130871 "undefined"). Capital punishment, he said, is “inadmissible, however serious the crime.” The report of the lunch is also a reminder of the new tone and signature phrase of the Pope Francis papacy–“Who am I to judge?”–which was the Holy Father’s response to a question about homosexuality months after his election. \[[Religion News Service](http://www.religionnews.com/2015/03/19/gay-transgender-inmates-invited-lunch-pope-francis-prison-visit/ "undefined")\] _Read next:_ [_I’m Proud To Be a Transgender Catholic_](http://time.com/3744270/catholic-church-pope-francis-transgender-community/?iid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article "undefined") ### The Most Surprising Photos of Pope Francis  The wind lifts Pope Francis' mantle as he delivers his speech in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, on Sept. 26, 2015. Tony Gentile—AP  Pope Francis looks at the Statue of Liberty from the window of a helicopter on his way to the John F. Kennedy International Airport, in New York City, on Sept. 26, 2015. L'Osservatore Romano/AP  A Pope Francis mannequin rides around in a car in Times Square as New York City waits for the arrival of the Pope to the city, on Sept. 24, 2015. Timothy A. Clary—AFP/Getty Images  Kaydn Dorsey, 4, and Lionel Perkins, 4, draw on a coloring sheet bearing the image of Pope Francis as they wait for him to arrive on a visit to Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington in Washington, on Sept. 24, 2015. David Goldman—Reuters  Nuns with the Hospitaler Sisters of Mercy in Pleasantville, N.J., pose for a selfie with a cutout of Pope Francis, at the World Meeting of Families conference, in Philadelphia, on Sept. 22, 2015. Matt Rourke—AP  Pope Francis blows out the candles of a birthday cake to celebrate his 78th birthday during a general audience at the Vatican on Dec. 17, 2014. Osservatore Romano/AFP/Getty Images  Paying the bill at Rome's Domus Internationalis Paulus VI hotel, where Pope Francis stayed as a cardinal before entering the conclave and being elected pope. Osservatore Romano/AP  Welcoming Pope emeritus Benedict XVI as he returns to the Vatican from the pontifical summer residence of Castel Gandolfo. Osservatore Romano/AP  Holding a disabled child after celebrating Easter Mass. Alessandro di Meo—ANSA/Zuma Press  Pope Francis masks in a factory in Brazil, where the Pontiff took his first overseas trip. Christophe Simon—AFP/Getty Images  Leading the Worldwide Eucharistic adoration at the Vatican. Alessandra Benedetti—Corbis  A gust of wind blows the pope's mantle. Alessandra Tarantino—AP  Attending the opening of the Pastoral Convention of the Diocese of Rome. Stefano Rellandini—Reuters  Leaving a welcoming ceremony at Guanabara Palace in Rio de Janeiro. Ricardo Moraes—Reuters  Greeting the weekly General Audience. Stefano Rellandini—Reuters  Pointing to the statue of Our Lady of Aparecida from the balcony of the Aparecida basilica in Brazil. Domenico Stinellis—AP  A Catholic faithful in Brazil bears a sticker of Pope Francis on his forehead. Ueslei Marcelino—Reuters  Images of Pope Francis projected onto screens at Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro. Paulo Whitaker— Reuters  Departing Rio de Janeiro. Ricardo Moraes—Reuters  A stray dog walks across the stage near the altar where Pope Francis celebrates the World Youth Day's closing Mass on the Copacabana beachfront. Victor R. Caivano—AP  Listening to confessions of young people in a park in Rio de Janeiro. L'Osservatore Romano—EPA  Posing with youths in Saint Peter's Basilica. L'Osservatore Romano—EPA  Greeting the faithful on a rainy day during the General Audience. Fabio Frustaci—Eidon Press/Zuma Press  Arriving to lead his General Audience in a firefighter's helmet. Stefano Rellandini—Reuters  A quiet moment after meeting with Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo at the Vatican. Max Rossi—Reuters  Marking the 110th anniversary UNITALSI, a Catholic organization dedicated to helping the sick. Francesco Zizola—NOOR for TIME  A private Audience with Russian President Vladimir Putin. L'Osservatore Romano/AP  Keeping warm during a General Audience. Alessandra Tarantino—AP  Comforting a disfigured man at the end of his General Audience. Claudio Peri—EPA  Blessing a sick man with deformed facial features. Evandro Inetti—Zuma Press  Visiting the parish of the Sant'Alfonso Maria de Liguori during the Epiphany day. L'Osservatore Romano—AFP/Getty Images  Reacting to devotees at a weekly General Audience. Alessandro Bianchi—Reuters  A seagull attacks a dove released during a prayer conducted by Pope Francis. Alessandro Bianchi—Reuters  A scarf is tossed at Pope Francis by a faithful. Tony Gentile—Reuters  Italian artist Mauro Pallotta's superhero rendering of Pope Francis in a street near St. Peter's Basilica. Alessandra Benedetti—Corbis  Blowing a kiss to pilgrims gathered at Saint Peter's Square. Vincenzo Pinto—AFP/Getty Images  Meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama in the private library of the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City. Vatican Pool/Contrasto/Redux  With Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip at the Vatican. Alessandra Benedetti—Vatican Pool/Corbis  A wind gust lifts Pope Francis's mantle as he arrives at the traditional Washing of the Feet during Holy Thursday. Alberto Pizzoli—AFP/Getty Images  Kissing a man's at the traditional Washing of the Feet. Alberto Pizzoli—AFP/Getty Images  Visitors take photos of Pope Francis as he speaks from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. 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