Pope Francis has added yet another honorary award to his belt for 2013. Not only has he been named Time magazine's person of the year, but Advocate magazine have now the pontiff as their person of the year.

The Advocate which is America’s oldest gay rights magazine, chose the head of the Catholic Church as the “single most influential person of 2013” on the lives of LGBT people.

The magazine acknowledged as a leader to over 1 billion Catholics, he is in a very powerful position and his messages are well received worldwide as the popularity of Pope Francis continues to grow.

The Advocate believes that he changed the course of previous popes with one simple statement

“If someone is gay and seeks the lord with good will, who am I to judge?”

The Advocate believes that this simple statement that generated headlines around the world has changed the thinking in the minds of many Catholics.

The Advocate wrote,

“The brevity of that statement and the outsized attention it got immediately are evidence of the pope’s sway.

His posing a simple question with very Christian roots, when uttered in this context by this man, “Who am I to judge?” became a signal to Catholics and the world that the new pope is not like the old pope.”

This isn’t the first time that Pope Francis has shown support to the LGBT community. In an interview with America Magazine, Pope Francis recalled,

“A person once asked me, in a provocative manner, if I approved of homosexuality. I replied with another question: ‘Tell me: when God looks at a gay person, does he endorse the existence of this person with love, or reject and condemn this person?’ We must always consider the person.”

Francis 'has not yet said the Catholic Church supports civil unions' between same-sex couples, but the comments he has made have 'already caused reflection and consternation within his church.' reports The Daily Mail.