#BorisJohnson, a twice-divorced man, whose girlfriend recently had a baby with him out of wedlock (and who also has another child out of wedlock) was married in a Catholic ceremony in Westminster Cathedral, the seat of English Catholicism. At the same time, a same-sex couple....
...who are both Catholics (unlike Mr. Johnson, who was confirmed as an Anglican) cannot have their civil union blessed even in private by a priest because "God does not and cannot bless sin..."
Mr. and Mrs. Johnson were married within the rules of the Catholic Church. And I wish them well. I also wish that the same mercy and compassion that was offered to them, recognizing their complex lives, could also be extended to same-sex couples who are lifelong Catholics.

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More from @JamesMartinSJ

3 May
In the debate over whether to deny Communion to politicians who publicly support abortion, including President #Biden, two comments from Pope Francis should inform our discussions.

Both may surprise people used to the current discourse in the US church....
The first is a double warning in "Gaudete et Exsultate" against "relativizing" important matters, but also thinking that "the only thing that counts is one particular ethical issue or cause that they themselves defend." Then he uses abortion as an example.

Here's what he says:
"Our defense of the innocent unborn, for example, needs to be clear, firm and passionate, for at stake is the dignity of a human life, which is always sacred and demands love for each person, regardless of his or her stage of development...."

That may not surprise us...
Read 8 tweets
1 May
Dear friends: Registration is now open for the Outreach 2021 LGBTQ Catholic Ministry Conference, to be held online, on June 26, sponsored by @CRCfordham and @americamag.

Register here: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regist…
This year's conference will be a one-day webinar, with several sessions, open to all who minister with LGBTQ Catholics, as well as LGBTQ Catholics and their friends and families. We hope to worship together, share best practices and build community....
Here's our schedule:

11:30 AM: Opening Prayer and Welcome with Bishop John Stowe, O.F.M. Conv., James Martin, S.J., and Meredith Augustin

12:00 PM: "Fifty Years of LGBTQ Catholic Ministry" with Sister Jeannine Gramick, SL
Read 6 tweets
17 Mar
Statement from Belgian Bishops on the CDF "responsum": kerknet.be/bisschoppencon…

Translation by a friend in The Netherlands: "The Belgian bishops have taken note of the 'responsum' of March 15, 2021 with which the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith reiterates that the...
...blessing of the Community of 'same-sex persons' is not possible. They realize that for many homosexual believers their parents and grandparents, their family and friends
comes across as particularly painful....
The Catholic Church community of our country has been working for years in all its ranks (bishops, priests and pastoral workers, theologians, scientists, politicians and social workers) along with other social worker actors, to a climate of respect, recognition and integration...
Read 5 tweets
17 Mar
Dear friends: The Vatican's statement barring the blessing by priests of same-sex unions, in particular the phrase God "does not and can not bless sin," have provoked a strong reaction from many quarters in the church, especially among #LGBTQ Catholics....
...who are almost universally hurt, angry and demoralized.

Several parishes with active LGBTQ outreach programs have written their parishioners open letters about the directive. E.g., from the Catholic Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Atlanta... facebook.com/CatholicShrine…
...and this letter from the Pastor of St. Francis Xavier Church in New York City, which will be posted online tomorrow, and which I share with the permission of the Pastor....
Read 11 tweets
15 Mar
Dear friends: Today I received dozens of messages from #LGBTQ people, as well as their friends, families and allies, who told me they were disappointed, discouraged and disheartened by the Vatican’s latest pronouncement on barring the blessings of same-sex marriages...
For many of them, the document was profoundly discouraging, though it was perhaps not surprising, given the CDF’s longstanding position on this topic....
Many people, encouraged by several German bishops, and other priests in the West who have ventured to give such blessings, were hoping that such blessings might represent a small way that the church might recognize what the CDF’s document called the “positive elements...”
Read 11 tweets
15 Mar
The Vatican's new document on barring blessings for same-sex unions may be a response to recent comments by a few German bishops who had signaled their openness to such blessings, in preparation for the upcoming synod in their country....
A "dubium" is a question that is posed to the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, often coming from an individual bishop or bishops' conference. So the CDF is responding to a question, and their response has been approved by the Holy Father....
The German bishops' comments were widely seen as the first opening to accompanying same-sex Catholic couples who had sought blessings for their unions. In the West, a few priests have done such blessings, sometimes at receptions after the union was legalized, or privately....
Read 5 tweets

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