Pope Francis reaffirmed long-standing Catholic teaching that women cannot be ordained priests and that same-sex unions cannot be blessed as marriages during an in-flight press conference Sunday.

The pope, who spoke while returning to Rome after celebrating World Youth Day in Lisbon, Portugal, said the Catholic Church is "open to everyone" but that Catholics must follow the laws of the church.

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The pope was asked whether or not it was hypocritical to say that the church was open to all people while simultaneously prohibiting the ordination of women to the Catholic priesthood and marriage by same-sex couples.

"The Church is open to everyone but there are laws that regulate life inside the church," the pope said in response, according to Reuters.

"According to the legislation, they cannot partake in (some) sacraments," he said. "This does not mean that it is closed. Each person encounters God in their own way inside the Church."

The Catholic Church believes marriage and holy orders are two of the seven sacraments and that the sacraments are signs instituted by Jesus to assist the church in guiding people toward salvation.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches "homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered" and are sinful. Earlier this year, Pope Francis reaffirmed this teaching, but he added that homosexuality should not be illegal.

The pope has also reaffirmed on multiple occasions that the Catholic priesthood is reserved for men alone and that the institution has no authority to ordain women.

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The Argentine pope, who has led the Catholic Church since March 2013, is widely seen as more liberal than his predecessors and has repeatedly made comments addressing the role of LGBT people in the church.

In 2013, the pope famously remarked, "Who am I to judge?", when he was asked about his view on gay men in the priesthood.