Pope Francis has called for the Catholic Church to be more accepting of LGBT people in a new book

The Pope says in the new book, ‘The Name of God is Mercy’, that the Church needs to be more compassionate to a “wounded humanity”.

In the book, due to be released tomorrow, the Pope says of gay people, “who am I to judge”. He writes: “People should not be defined only by their sexual identities.”

The release of the book coincides with the Jubilee Year of Mercy. This is a year when Catholics are called on to seek forgiveness for themselves and to forgive others.

“The Church does not exist to condemn people but to bring about an encounter with the visceral love of God’s mercy,” he writes.

Pope Francis goes on to criticised those in the Church “who are only used to having things fit into their pre-conceived notions and ritual purity instead of letting themselves be surprised by reality, by a greater love or a higher standard.”

Pope Francis has previously been praised by LGBT groups for being progressive on LGBT issues. Last year he met with Gay and trans prisoners.

However, Pope Francis has also been reluctant to call homosexuality anything other than a sin.