To the shock of many of us LGBTQ people of faith is the Vatican’s recent decision in the document “The Gift of Priestly Vocation,” to ban gays to the priesthood; thus, reaffirming its 2005 stance. Those of us who have “deep-seated homosexual tendencies” or who “support the so-called ‘gay culture’” are categorically denied to serve one of the church’s…
It is now taken for granted that the Catholic Church’s priests sexually abused thousands, if not tens of thousands, of children over the last 50 years and that the Church hierarchy covered it up, quietly settling lawsuits, moving abusers from parish to parish, and doing very little to stop the abuse from happening or occurring…
An ex-convict who hates Catholics has admitted to committing a hate crime against religion when he torched a Spring Valley Catholic church. A prison term of 40 years to life is the maximum sentence for Eugene William Volk, 45, of Spring Valley, who will be sentenced July 17 by El Cajon Superior Court Judge Laura…
Jan. 1, the Boy Scouts of America officially lifted the ban on gay members, although the ban on gay Scout leaders remain. Despite widespread fears that there would be a mass exodus of members the policy change was widely supported, including by religious leaders, and produced few consequences. In fact, according to BSA spokesman Deron…
Voters in one of northern Mexico’s most violent cities have elected the country’s first openly gay mayor. Benjamín Medrano Quezada, of the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI), will become the mayor of Fresnillo, which has a population of 110,000, when he is sworn in. According to Box Turtle Bulletin, Quezada won on a campaign aimed at…
Bremerton, WA (KCPQ/CNN)) — The pastor of a Roman Catholic church in Bremerton has announced that his parish will no longer have any involvement with the Boy Scouts of America in light of the organization’s recent vote to allow gay youths to join. The Rev. Derek Lappe, 41, pastor of the Our Lady Star of…
(CNN) — Are Catholics who support same-sex marriage and take communion like people who commit perjury? That was the stance taken by Detroit’s archibishop on Sunday, after an academic with ties to the church wrote that Catholics in favor of gay marriage should skip communion. In Sunday’s Detroit Free Press, the archibishop said Catholics who…
Francis, rebuild my church Dear Editor, “Francis, rebuild my church,” is a line from a dream, according to legend, Pope Innocent III had before he approved what would come to be known as the Rule of St. Francis, the foundation of the Order of Poor Friars. Innocent had a dream of a crumbling St. John…
Many of us Catholics feel that our church has left us. We have not left the church. The last two popes, especially, have used very hurtful and ugly words when talking about homosexuality, divorce, adoption, women’s rights, etc., etc. I truly believe if Jesus came down to Earth he would weep when he would see…
(CNN) — A Scottish cardinal who had earlier challenged allegations of sexual impropriety — claims that once again shined an international spotlight on alleged sexual abuse involving Roman Catholic clergy — reversed course Sunday and apologized. “I wish to take this opportunity to admit that there have been times that my sexual conduct has fallen…
