#last part applies less to nuns as they literally have their lifelong bestie life partners that we're all pretending is not in a gay way

[fastcarlesbian]

The gay implications of Conclave are not about the old many yaoi-ification of the movie but instead about a community where so many people's decision to join was in part because of the lack of any kind of allowable gay public life and the implications of continuing to live that life in an institution that doesn't allow this when the western world now for the most part allows gay people to exist in public and live their lives.

Up until very recently (80s or so) religious life existed as a haven outside the confines of heterosexual marriage and for all its sins and faults and the issues with mandated celibacy is an environment that encourages fulfilling and loving friendships between men and men and between women and women.

I feel like I can't word this eloquently and its now honestly beyond Conclave but I feel like a lot of people don't know about this dynamic and how it still exists today. Obviously there are the priests who are fire and brimstone homophobes and though I hate the stereotype about this for some it really does come from a place of self loathing. But for all of those priests there are also many who are gay and fine with it even if they don't talk about it and are living in with the tensions of all these things. And I think examining the sexuality of Conclave is more interesting in this lense.