Ripples in the pond of LGBT Ministry

A well - known story about how Sr Jeannine Gramick came to found New Ways Ministry, tells of how she was once chatting with a young gay friend, who asked here “What is your church doing for my gay brothers and sisters?” Realizing that the honest answer was “Nothing”, and that she was part of that church, she set about doing something, herself. Together with Fr Bob Nugent, she then formed News Ways Ministry, persevering with her work, even in the face of strenuous opposition from the Vatican, and specifically from Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, in his capacity as head of the CDF. When directly ordered to cease her ministry, she refused in good conscience. When Vatican pressure forced her to choose between her work and the religious order that had attempted to protect her but was ultimately unable to do so, she left that community and found refuge in another. When eventually she had no choice but to cease working directly for New Ways, she found other routes to continue working in the same field – and handed over the running of New Ways to other hands. Today, New Ways is well – established, with a global reputation, a wide range of important programs in direct ministry, a respected voice for LGBT Catholics in the US, and an impressive network of influential contacts to promote issues of importance to LGBT equality and inclusion.

And it all began when somebody asked Sr Jeannine, “What is your church doing for my gay brothers and sisters?” , and she applied the question directly to herself.

We can’t all be Sister Jeannine, nor should we aspire to be, but we could all ask ourselves the same question: “What are we doing to help our gay brothers and sisters?” If we are honest with ourselves, each of us could find at least something we could contribute to the work.

Last Sunday evening, at the Soho Mass in London, one member of the congregation told us of how, althought brought up in a solidly Catholic family, he had left the church for a while over its stance on homosexuality. When he eventually returned to the church, it was not to the Catholics, but to a conservative, evangelical Anglican congregation. Even so, he found it possible to come out as gay to others in the congregation – then, the only openly gay person in a large and vibrant parish community. His honesty and openness later encouraged other members of the congregation to do the same, and also encouraged still others who approached him and identified as straight allies.

Small pebbles cast into a pond have a way of creating ripples, that may reach the furthest shore.

One of the programs that New Ways regularly runs, is a “Next Steps in Ministry” workshop, usually conducted over a weekend, but sometimes abridged to a single day. When I was fortunate enough last June to attend a truncated version in London, I was impressed by the simplicity and power of the day’s primary objective: to lead each of the participants along a path to committing themselves to three specific, realistic actions that they could achieve, within the limits and constraints of their personal circumstances and talents, to extend LGBT ministry in their own faith communities, within the next twelve months.

Let me repeat that:

• Not what should be done;
• Not what could I do;
• Not what could I do, sometime;
• But what will I do, during the next year.

What could be more focused, specific?

As we each shared at the end of the day one of the three commitments we had made, I was struck by the variety and ingenuity of the responses (appropriately, as we each approached the issue from a wide variety of personal circumstances, talents, and even faith communities). I was also impressed by how many of those commitments had the potential to spread, still further, the process of LGBT ministry.

Small pebbles, making ripples in a pond.

And so, I ask, each of you, “What Are YOU Doing, to Promote LGBT Ministry?”

Before we answer though, we need to reflect a little deeper on the words in the question, which are less straightforward than they seem.

What do we mean by “Ministry”?

My thoughts have been running constantly along this theme ever since the news broke over New Year, of the plans to shut down the “Soho Masses” as we have known and loved them, and to transfer the Soho Masses Community to a new base, integrating with the parish at Farm St. From that perspective, “ministry” can be seen as simply the provision of LGBT – friendly worship, as our community has traditionally known it – in Warwick Street, St Anne’s Dean Street or King’s Cross, or in its earliest form, as a small house Mass in Camden. Or, we may see it in terms of more extended pastoral provision within that Eucharistic provision – a task that Archbishop Nichols has entrusted to the existing leadership team of the Soho Masses community. But that begs it own question – what is meant by “pastoral provision”?

The limitation of this sense of ministry, within a specific congregation, is that it does nothing for those LGBT Catholics who for whatever reason, will not enter a Catholic church as openly gay, lesbian or trans – or even at all. What about them? And what about all those others, who simply do not have the opportunity to benefit from “Soho Masses” (or similar), because of simply geography?

In the UK, Quest provides one model, with a network of local groups around the country, offering a range of activities, according to local need and circumstances – and focussing especially on the need for mutual support and fellowship.

Another model, working strictly within the limits of orthodox Vatican doctrine, is Encourage – again, operating primarily on the basis of mutual support and encouragement (hence the name).

Encourage is often criticized by some LGBT Catholics for its insistence on adherence to what they see as unrealistic and flawed Vatican teaching. Another model, widely criticized for completely different reasons, is that Rainbow Sash. It is not immediately obvious that this group, with its practice of presenting themselves for communion while wearing a large rainbow sash to identify as LGBT, is engaging in ministry, rather than political grandstanding. It could be argued though, that from an outsider’s perspective, they may be seen as providing a different form of ministry, by sending a message of hope and solidarity to those presently outside of the Church. As I know very well from my experience of church in apartheid South Africa, there are times where the pastoral is political – and vice versa.

But no matter how broadly we define “ministry”, my guess is that between all the organized LGBT ministry groups engaged in it in the UK, there are probably no more than a few hundred people that we regularly reach. In round terms, let’s say, 500. Compare that with the total number of LGBT Catholics in Britain. We cannot know with any precision, but combining the total number of Catholics with the usual estimates of the percentage of any population that are “gay”, I come up with a ball park estimate of about 500 000.

Organised groups are reaching no more than about one in a thousand.

To do more, we need to harness the power of individual, personal efforts, casting pebbles in the pond. Ministry furthermore, is not necessarily to those inside the Church, or even concerned directly with worship and matters of faith. One prominent and respected member of the Soho Masses community once told me that although he finds much personal satisfaction from the Masses, and was glad to assist wherever he could, he did not see that as his major ministry: for him, what was far more important was to make his presence felt in the wider LGBT world – taking ministry right out of existing faith communities. and into the secular world. Another example of this kind comes from Liverpool in the UK, where a Catholic priest, Fr Gerry Proctor, was honoured this year for his extensive and valuable work with a range of charities: and one of the most prominent of these, is one which provides services to LGBT young people on the streets.

I ask again, each of you - “What Are YOU Doing, to Promote LGBT Ministry?”

My thoughts here were prompted by the situation of Catholics in the UK, but there is no real reason to believe that the proportions I have estimated are radically better in other countries, or even in other denominations. My question, I suggest, is relevant (even if details differ), whether you are a Catholic in Britain, or the US, or elsewhere – or in any other denomination.

What do we mean by “Faith Community?”

The key question put in the Next Steps Workshop, was “What can you do - in your own faith community”. As I thought about it, I struggled to identify my own faith community. At first glance, it seemed obvious. The workshop had been organized primarily for and by members of the Soho Masses community, based in London. But my local parish in South West Surrey also represented an increasingly important faith community. Then there’s this blog, with its many readers: that’s another faith community. So, the question I ended up working on, was “What can I do - in my own faith communities?” Since then, I’ve realized that there are in fact many more I could add: Quest, where I now try to contribute in different ways at both national and local level, my small faith - sharing group, and the particular Mass I attend in my local parish, and the Call to Action people of Arundel and Brighton diocese. Then there’s the Christian Life Community (small groups based on Ignatian spirituality), which was so crucially important to me in South Africa, has had an enduring influence in my life ever since, and which I plan to rejoin, soon. The degree to which they can be called my “community” differs, but they all matter to some degree.

What are your own faith communities.

What’s to be done, to boost LGBT Ministry?

Reflecting alone may bring you to some useful ideas, but doing so together with others, in fellowship and prayer, is likely to be more productive. If you are fortunate enough to have the opportunity to attend one of New Ways “Next Steps” workshops in the USA, I urge you to do so. If you are in the UK, then sadly, you do not (yet) have that opportunity.

That is about to change. Early in this post, and in previous posts, I referred to the Next Steps workshop that I attended in London last June. Together with all other participants, I too came up with some personal commitments. I will soon be sharing with my readers what they were, and the progress I have made. This was the key one, relevant to this post: I will soon be launching a regular series of Next Steps workshops, in London and elsewhere, for a wide range of faith groups – laity or clergy, LGBT or str8 allies, Catholic or other.

Details of how I propose to do this, I will disclose over the next week or two.

But here’s the catch:

To do this, and also to work fully at the other commitments I made, something in my life has to give: I cannot continue indefinitely to burn the candle at both ends.

What will have to give – is my current evening job, which yields the bulk of my severely limited income. To do what I believe I have to do, I will be in time be dispensing with reliable income. I will need help and support, from a wide range of sources – including my readers.

So – if you still have not worked out what you can do, personally, to extend LGBT ministry, here are some suggestiions:

• Sign up for a New Ways Workshop, with New Ways Ministry in the USA, or with me, once I release more details).
• Promote and publicize the work I am already doing, by sharing blog posts or links on your social networks
• Helping me to find groups to sponsor Next Steps workshops.

OR

• help most directly, with hard cash (and small amounts are also valuable, alongside the larger amounts, for the emotional help, support and encouragement they represent).

 

 

 

Related articles

• Soho Masses: Can We Walk and Chew Gum at the Same Time? (questgaycatholic.org.uk)
• What’s “Really Happening” with the Soho Masses? (queeringthechurch.com)
• SMPC Chair, on the Future of “Soho Masses” (news.queerchurch.com)
• The Vatican “Mess” Over Gay Mass (queeringthechurch.com)
• R.I.P. Soho Masses: Long Live Soho Masses! (queeringthechurch.com)
• Congratulations to New Ways Ministry / “Bondings 2.0″ (questgaycatholic.org.uk)
• Congratulations to New Ways Ministry / “Bondings 2.0″ (queeringthechurch.com)
• A Tribute to the (London) Soho Masses Congregation (opentabernacle.wordpress.com)
• We need Gay Masses beyond Soho (queeringthechurch.com)
• “Blessed Are the Queer in Faith” (christianityandsexuality.org)