The church does not allow the use of condoms as a means of birth control and says abstinence and monogamy in heterosexual marriage is the best way to stop the spread of AIDS.
Von Boeselager said he closed two projects in the developing world when he discovered condoms were being distributed but kept a third running for a while because closing it would have abruptly ended all basic medical services to poor people.
Francis has said he wants the 1.2 billion-member church to avoid so-called "culture wars" over moral teachings and show mercy to those who cannot live by all its rules, especially the poor.
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