The Old Testament is less meaningful because of Jesus. That's pretty basic. It would make no sense, at all, to follow the Law of the Old Testament because the sacrifice was paid when Jesus died. You're confusing nitpicky things with those that matter. The Bible isn't a book of morality, though it does include that. It is an account of God, man, and the relationship between the two. The difference between the OT and the NT wasn't a couple of revisions of rules. Furthermore, and the OT even sets this up, Jesus was the complete fulfillment of the purpose of Abraham, and by extension, Israel. The Old Testament was not just religious, it was political and cultural. The NT is not that at all. God didn't make a mistake. He gave us what we could handle when we could handle it. As to the pope, he is merely taking a Biblical stance. The Church isn't accepting homosexuality, it is accepting people. That's what Christianity is all about. It's in the Bible. He isn't saying it's ok to be homosexual, he's saying that as the Church we should take in all people because we are all in need of God's grace. Even Jesus said that, like a doctor, he came for the sick, not the healthy. It's not a change in doctrine. It's a change in a terrible way cultural issues have been handled.