Pope Francis travelled to the US last week and, in the midst of his many engagements, found time to meet Kim Davis, the Kentucky clerk who has refused to grant same sex couples marriage licences. The Pope apparently asked Davis to “have faith” which can only be read as an expression of open support for her anti-gay stance.

The Catholic Church, on its part, has been sending mixed signals in response to the increasing clamour for gay rights. After the US Supreme Court made gay marriage a nationwide reality, and with the race for the Presidential elections in that country now in full swing, the Church is being watched for its stand on this hot-button issue.

The Pope himself has not been entirely forthright. Since he took over the papacy, he has repeatedly sought to present the Church as a place of refuge and forgiveness, a welcoming abode for all sinners, including gays. That may not be satisfactory to anyone but the most pusillanimous homosexual but at least it’s a start. After questions were raised about the Pope’s meeting with Kim Davis, the Vatican clarified that he had also met an old-time gay friend in Washington DC.

And then the Pope found himself in the eye of a fresh storm. Just days before a synod (a meeting of the bishops) was due to congregate to discuss the status of the modern family, a senior minister came out as gay and quit the Church.

The outing and subsequent firing of Krzysztof Charamsa, a 43-year-old member of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, was especially jarring not only because it happened in the backdrop of the synod but because the Congregation that Charamsa was a part of, is tasked with speaking on deeper aspects of Catholic faith – a fit case for examining gay rights within the Church, if ever there was one.

Charamsa appeared before the press with his partner and excoriated the Church for its stand on gay rights. He hit the nail on the head when he said: “My decision to ‘come out’ is a very personal decision in the homophobic world of the Catholic Church. It has been very difficult and very hard. I ask that you keep in mind this reality that is difficult to understand for anyone who has not lived through an identical passage in their own life.”

Pope Francis hoped to calm rattled nerves by opening the synod on Sunday with a reiteration of the supremacy of the traditional family in the eyes of the Church. “This is God’s dream for his beloved creation: to see it fulfilled in the loving union between a man and a woman, rejoicing in their shared journey, fruitful in their mutual gift of self,” he said.

He added his usual appeal to make the Church a welcoming place for all. But as recent events show, this “we welcome you but don’t ask to be treated as equals” stance may no longer be enough for gay Catholics. If the Catholic Church cannot find a way to grant homosexuals equal rights within its pews, it doubtless faces desertions from its ranks. Interestingly, a recent poll among American Catholics shows a majority in favour of gay marriage.

The debate over LGBT rights has returned with some vigour under the current papacy. This is due, one, to the civil victories that have been handed gay rights advocates. Two, Pope Francis’ avuncular persona has played a role in opening the lines of communication between LGBT persons and the Church. In spite of his formal remarks that have sought to defend the traditional definition of marriage, there is a feeling that this Pope, unlike those before him such as Cardinal Ratzinger, is on our side, and that he may not be able to see this conversation to the end, but no one can deny that he has begun it, and that’s half the work done. The poll cited above also hews to this view.

How this conversation takes shape will be instrumental for not just the LGBT community but the future of the Catholic faith itself. If the Church can change its stance on gay marriage, it would usher one of the most fundamental transformations in its history that will have multiplier effects across entire swathes of society. (In Africa, homophobes have exploited the good offices of the Church for hate mongering.) If not, it would find itself on the wrong side of a social and legal battle that has been brewing for a long time but whose moment seems to have finally arrived.