Coinciding with the anniversary of Stonewall, and anticipating next week’s celebration of London Pride, the UK Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement met in Birmingham over the past weekend to celebrate their 35th anniversary. I was invited to lead a workshop on a Catholic perspective, and found the preparation for it occupying much of my thinking over the past few months. The material for the workshop itself was presented in point form, but I do not want to see the product of so many hours work simply disappear. I have expanded my point form notes into a more formal text, which I am publishing here as a series of linked posts.
We’re meeting today to to celebrate 35 years of the Lesbian and Gay Christian movement, and as Catholics, to reflect on 35 years as queer people in the Catholic Church, to consider some possibilities for the next 35, and to look for ways to influence that future. Looking back is easy, so I will do that. Looking ahead is tougher, and knowing what to do is harder still: so I’m going to duck out of those issues, and leave them to you. But first, I will offer some structure, and a strictly personal perspective that I hope will be helpful. Specifically, I will be considering four major headings:
- Where Have We Come From?
- Where Are We Now? Some Irrevocable Transformations of the Church
- Where Are We Now? Internal Contradictions in Church Teaching
- Where Are We Headed, and What Can We Do About It?
The full piece is long, and so I have broken it into four separate posts, published (almost) simultaneously. Follow the links for the full argument.
Related articles
- Stonewall, and the Progress to LGBT Inclusion in Church
- HRC | Human Rights Campaign - Religion Poll 2011
- A Welcoming Relationship Is No Easy Task When Rules Define The Relationship (Enlightened Catholicism)
- Commentary on Role of Catholic Bishops in Marriage Equality Debate: Widespread Recognition of Shoddy Legacy (Bilgrimage)
- New York Victory and Unfinished Business: Catholic Church Still Anything but a Welcoming Place (Bilgrimage)
