Category: Gay Catholics

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Priest’s New Book Fires Back at Church’s Intolerance

Few organizations are as militantly anti-homosexual as the Catholic Church. According to the Colorado Independent, in June 2011 the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops “…was ramping up a campaign against same-sex marriage.” These tirades only enhance the message in new book Passionate Holiness: Marginalized Christian Devotions for Distinctive People (published by Trafford Publishing) by Father Dennis O’Neill. Now updated in this second edition, Passionate Holiness offers gay, lesbian and transgender Christians examples from Catholicism’s past.

O’Neill’s exploration of the Byzantine-era construction of three churches in Constantinople dedicated to martyrs who might have been bisexual or gay. Rich with history and extrapolation, Passionate Holiness will provide comfort and provide insight to its readers.

Well-reviewed by other priests, sociologists and novelists, Passionate Holiness offers a ray of tolerance in the increasingly-polarized world of the Church versus homosexuality. Writing in The Advocate, critic Anne Stockwell notes, “Here’s something the antigay modern Roman Catholic Church would like to forget: In the early years of Christianity, homosexual saints were worshipped, too.”

About the Author
Dennis O’Neill was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1947. He received his education in the seminary system of the Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago and was ordained a priest in 1973. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Loyola University in 1969 and a master’s of divinity from St. Mary of the Lake Seminary, Mundelein, Illinois, in 1973. In 1974, he received an S.T.B and an S.T.L. from St. Mary of the Lake Seminary. Since ordination, he has served in four parishes in Chicago and is currently pastor of St. Martha Parish in Morton Grove, Illinois.
O’Neill is the author of Lazarus Interlude: A Story of God’s Love in a Moment of Ministry (Notre Dame, IN: Ave Maria Press, 1982), and has written either the introductions or the text for several books published by British Celtic Artist, Courtney Davis.

http://tinyurl.com/3lnsv5e

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Over 100 Spanish groups call for protest against papal visit

Over 100 Spanish organisations on Friday urged protesters to hit the streets of Madrid on the eve of Pope Benedict XVI’s arrival next week to demonstrate against the public cost of his visit.

The organisations — a mix of groups representing gays and lesbians, feminists as well as leftist political parties — estimate thousands of people will take part in the march on Wednesday evening.

The pope will arrive in Madrid on Thursday to lead the last four days of the Roman Catholic Church’s six-day World Youth Day celebrations.

“We are completely in agreement that they come, but we don’t agree that a private event be financed with everyone’s money,” the president of Madrid Association of Freethinkers and Athiests, Luis Vega, told a news conference.

March organisers estimate World Youth Day will cost the government more than 100 million euros ($140 million) if 500,000 people attend.

Church officials estimate over one million people will take part in the event, which includes religious processions, concerts, outdoor masses and cultural exhibits.

More than 10,000 police are on duty to avoid incidents during the event and public schools and gyms will house thousands of young people who will flock to Madrid for the festivities.

The Madrid metro is also offering pilgrims who come to the city for the event a heavily discounted weekly pass.

“We are not organizing an anti-pope protest, we are defending a secular state that does not use public money to benefit a few,” said Evaristo Villar, the spokesman for Redes Cristianas, an association that groups progressive Catholic organisations.

“The ostentatiousness of this event during such an enormous economic crisis, has no place in a society that has nearly five million unemployed and where so many people are going through tough times.”

Spain is struggling to recover from an 18-month recession that began in late 2008 and left it with a eurozone-high unemployment rate of just over 20 percent and a bloated deficit.

World Youth Day organisers say the event will cost just 50.5 million euros to stage, excluding security expenses, with the bill funded 80 percent by contributions and the rest covered by donations from corporations.

They argue the event will provide Spain with an economic boost of more than 100 million euros and help promote the country as a tourist destination.

http://tinyurl.com/4y4knva

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German Cardinal Criticizes Roman Catholic Church for Negative Tone Toward LGBT People

It seems that the United States is not the only country in which Roman Catholic clergy are speaking out against the church hierarchy’s rhetoric against LGBT people.

On the heels of polls indicating that US Roman Catholics are highly supportive of LGBT equality and a prayer service held in support of LGBT Roman Catholics at St. Cecilia’s in Boston, Mass., a German priest has critical words for the Catholic Church.

Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich says that the Catholic Church has “has not always adopted the right tone” toward LGBT people.

The Cardinal further states that, while he cannot officially bless a union between two people of the same sex, he can (and implicitly will) pray for their relationship if asked.

Nothing in Cardinal Marx’s statement overtly contradicts Catholic teaching on LGBT people, but his contention that the church has historically addressed LGBT people poorly is a departure from many others in the Catholic hierarchy.

Interestingly, the Cardinal is trained in Catholic social doctrine and has been called both “left of center” and a “moderate conservative,” so perhaps his recent statements are not as surprising as they would first seem.

He has also spoken out against poverty and in support of both job creation and expanded acceptance for refugees in Germany.

Cardinal Marx is the youngest voting member of the College of Cardinals, the highly ranked Roman Catholic body that, as one of its many duties, elects the Pope.

Any step by socially conservative religious figures toward acceptance and understanding of LGBT people is important.

Though the Catholic Church as a whole has a long way to go, GLAAD is pleased to see the rhetoric changing and commends Cardinal Marx for speaking out against the defamatory language that has so often been used in Catholic teaching about the LGBT community.

http://tinyurl.com/3ufjpkt

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Archbishop Urged Md. Gov Against Supporting Marriage Equality

When Maryland governor Martin O’Malley (pictured, left) announced he would sponsor a marriage equality bill, he was bucking pressure from the Roman Catholic archbishop of Baltimore, who said the action amounted to “promoting a goal that so deeply conflicts with your faith.”

The Baltimore Sun reports that Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien (right), in a letter dated July 20 and released Monday by O’Malley’s office, wrote, “I am well aware that the recent events in New York have intensified pressure on you to lend your active support to legislation to redefine marriage,” referring to the enactment of marriage equality in New York State. O’Brien continued, “Maryland is not New York. We urge you not to allow your role as leader of our state to be used in allowing the debate surrounding the definition of marriage to be determined by mere political expediency.”

Two days later, O’Malley, a Catholic, announced that he would introduce a marriage equality bill next year. Similar legislation passed the state Senate this year but was pulled from the House of Delegates because it did not have the support of a majority. O’Malley had said he would sign this year’s bill, but the fact that he is lobbying more actively for such a measure now is likely to help it pass.

In making his announcement, O’Malley said other states had found a way to provide equal marriage rights to gay couples while protecting the rights of those who object on religious grounds, and he was confident Maryland could do so.

Last week he responded to O’Brien, and the letter was made public Monday. “On the public issue of granting equal civil marital rights to same sex couples, you and I disagree,” O’Malley wrote. “As governor, I am sworn to uphold the law without partiality or prejudice. When shortcomings in our laws bring about a result that is unjust, I have a public obligation to try to change that injustice.”

http://tinyurl.com/3bgcogr

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Hundreds of Roman Catholic priests across the United States have died of AIDS-related illnesses

Remarkable series at The Kansas City Star. See the full series HERE!

Catholic priests are dying of AIDS, often in silence
Hundreds of Roman Catholic priests across the United States have died of AIDS-related illnesses, and hundreds more are living with HIV, the virus that causes the disease. It appears priests are dying of AIDS at a rate at least four times that of the general U.S. population.

Priests speak out in national survey
Six of 10 Roman Catholic priests in The Kansas City Star’s survey know at least one priest who died of an AIDS-related illness, and one-third know a priest currently living with AIDS.

• About The Star’s survey
AIDS, gay-related issues trouble many denominations
The Roman Catholic church may be the nation’s largest denomination, but it isn’t the only one grappling with the issues of homosexuality and AIDS. Many denominations have lost clergy to AIDS, and numerous churches are mired in battles over whether to ordain homosexuals or to perform same-sex marriages.

Homosexuality, AIDS and celibacy: the church’s views
The Roman Catholic Church has no national policy on dealing with priests who have HIV or AIDS. Nor does the church have specific guidelines on educating priests about sexuality. Priests and seminarians are expected to rely on church doctrine on homosexuality and celibacy and to follow their bishop’s or superior’s lead in ministering to colleagues afflicted with AIDS.

Florida priest finds acceptance after devastating news
In early 1989, the Rev. Dennis Rausch was thinking about leaving the priesthood. Though ordained for nearly a decade and serving as Catholic chaplain at a Florida university, Rausch felt unfulfilled. Then he tested positive for HIV.

MARK ZIEMAN: EDITOR AND VICE PRESIDENT
Priests’ stories carry crucial messages
The credibility and worth of any newspaper series should rest squarely on the stories themselves, not on columns such as this one. Our series beginning today on AIDS in the Catholic priesthood is no exception. That’s why I urge you to read our coverage for yourself.