Brazilian priest Father Nascimento faces transphobia complaint for reaffirming Church teaching on male and female creation in a homily.
Newsroom (17/02/2026 Gaudium Press ) In the city of Quixadá, in Brazil’s northeastern state of Ceará, Father Francisco Wilson Ferreira da Silva Nascimento has come under legal scrutiny following a Sunday homily in which he reaffirmed traditional Christian teaching on the nature of men and women as created by God. The case, filed with the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Ceará, has ignited a national conversation about the boundaries between religious freedom and contemporary debates over gender identity.
The Ceará Association for Diversity and Inclusion (ACEDI) lodged the complaint at the beginning of February, asserting that Father Nascimento’s statements “exceed the limits of religious freedom and freedom of expression” and “could constitute discriminatory and hate speech,” targeting transgender individuals—a group the organization describes as historically vulnerable. ACEDI added that “even when embedded in a religious context, words that deny identities, reinforce stigmas and delegitimize rights can contribute to the normalization of violence, prejudice, and social exclusion,” particularly when spoken from the pulpit.
At the heart of the controversy lies the priest’s reaffirmation that “man is man and woman is woman,” a line he delivered while criticizing what he described as “gender ideology.” Father Nascimento noted that this view, which separates gender from biological sex, contradicts both reason and Sacred Scripture. Referring to the Book of Genesis, he recalled: “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them” (Gen 1:27). The priest further cited the Catechism of the Catholic Church (§369), which teaches that being male or female is “a reality that is good and willed by God,” reflecting both the wisdom and goodness of the Creator.
Expanding his remarks, the priest warned that this ideological vision “is what those in power today want to teach to children in school.” His comments, delivered in what one witness described as a calm and pastoral tone, nonetheless have been seized upon as grounds for prosecution.
Legal expert Maurício Romano, a lawyer with the Union of Catholic Jurists of São Paulo, defended Father Nascimento’s right to preach Church doctrine. In an interview responding to the case, Romano emphasized that “the priest was in his church, preaching to the faithful in a moderate tone, without disparaging any group and pedagogically explaining the official doctrine of the Catholic Church.” He characterized such preaching as “religious proselytism,” which he noted is a “regular exercise of a right” protected by both the Brazil–Holy See Agreement and established jurisprudence from Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court and Superior Court of Justice.
Romano went further, describing the complaint as an act of harassment and “a clear attempt at religious persecution.” He lamented that Brazil finds itself “adrift in a judicial storm,” with numerous priests across the country facing legal proceedings merely for proclaiming Catholic doctrine in homilies. The jurist cited several relevant precedents—Direct Action of Unconstitutionality No. 2566 and Ordinary Appeals in Habeas Corpus Nos. 13468 and 117539—which have upheld the right of religious expression in Brazil.
While acknowledging that local judges have sometimes authorized investigations against priests, Romano insisted that “the imprisonment of priests for expounding the official doctrine of the Catholic Church is illegal and tends to be overturned in higher courts.” He nonetheless recognized that such cases bring “initial suffering for the priest and his flock,” placing a pastoral burden on communities that seek to remain faithful to their beliefs.
In closing, Romano offered priests practical guidance: to root their preaching firmly in official Church texts. “If possible,” he said, “cite the passage from the Catechism, the encyclical, the book, etc., on which they base their arguments.” Doing so, he added, is both a sound catechetical method and a prudent legal measure for those who may face future accusations.
The case of Father Nascimento, still under preliminary review, has become emblematic of a wider tension in modern Brazil—between the constitutional right to religious freedom and the expanding legal definitions of speech deemed discriminatory. For Catholics who continue to uphold the teachings of Genesis and the Catechism, it raises questions not only of theology but of conscience: whether the simple affirmation that “male and female He created them” may soon require a legal defense.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Infocatholica
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