On November 14, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops released a document entitled “Ministry to Persons with a Homosexual Inclination: Guidelines for Pastoral Care.” Widely disseminated through the Catholic Church, the document is “to offer guidance in the face of pervasive confusion …. to provide basic guidelines for pastoral ministry to persons with a homosexual inclination or tendency.”

While the document stresses the innate dignity and value of those with a ‘homosexual inclination or tendency,’ it calls homosexuals ‘objectively disordered’ and clearly delineates the difference between having homosexual tendencies and acting on them. Among other tenants, it stresses that ‘any sexual act that takes place outside the bond of marriage does not fulfill the proper ends of human sexuality.’

Regarding the role of GLBT Catholics being involved in the church, ‘revealing … homosexual tendencies to certain close friends, family members, … may provide some spiritual and emotional help and aid in the growth in the Christian life, in the context of parish life, general public self-disclosures are not helpful and should not be encouraged.”

Response was immediate in the GLBT community: the Board of Directors and staff of the National Association of Catholic Diocesan Lesbian and Gay ministries (NACDLGM), an organization that ‘encourages pastoral care with lesbian and gay persons and their families’  put out a press release that they were ‘saddened by the approval of the USCCB document,’ as ‘while the statement acknowledges the need for ministry with homosexual persons, the guidelines were developed without consultation with bishops and pastoral leaders of existing local diocesan outreach ministries, and without consultation with lesbian and gay Catholics.’ NACDLGM has asked for papal acceptance of openly queer people and their relationships.

The Catholic Bishops have not responded.

Catholics in Houston:

The Catholic Church, with over a billion members, is the largest Christian Church and the largest organized body of any world religion. It is currently led by Pope Benedict XVI, the Bishop of Rome. Pope Benedict XVI is the religious leader of the church, and he also oversees all of its members through a hierarchy to individual churches, or parishes. Pope Benedict XVI has been quoted back to 1986 that ‘the particular inclination of the homosexual person is not a sin, it is a more or less strong tendency ordered to an intrinsic moral evil, and thus the inclination itself must be seen as an objective disorder.”

About 1.5 million Catholics live within the archdiocesan boundaries of Galveston – Houston, the grouping of 149 individual parishes. Among the 1.5 million are members of the GLBT community. The Archdiocese of Galveston – Houston, is headed by Archbishop Daniel DiNardo, who has not spoken out for or against the GLBT community while in office.

A local source within the church explains that the local archdiocese of Galveston – Houston supports the document, but that how it is followed at the individual church level is left up to the individual priest, and therefore varies among places of worship. The source confirmed that there are some priests within the Houston region that are supportive of the GLBT community and their relationships, but they are often not in a position to be able to publicly recognize them.

Alain Flambert, 33 is an openly gay man, feels “very comfortable” with his attendance at St. Anne’s Catholic Church (2140 Westheimer), and knows many publicly “out” GLBT members who attend services there, although it does not explicitly cater to the GLBT. He does not believe there is an issue with being gay and Catholic.

“In a church you’re supposed to behave in a certain way, but you have to be comfortable,” said Flambert. “People do go with their partners, but it’s the same as straight couples in that there are certain things that you don’t do.”

While GLBT members are present in many churches in the region, there is one place in Houston billed for the “community of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Roman Catholics and their friends in Houston, Texas.” Established in 1974, Dignity/Houston is a branch of national DignityUSA, which has chapters all across America.

Dignity/Houston has offered Catholic mass every Saturday night (7:30pm, 2515 Waugh) for three decades. An Easter 2005 newsletter sums up why GLBT Catholics should support Dignity/Houston: “the simple and complicated answer is that Dignity is the only parish in the city where Lesbians and Gays are not considered ‘intrinsically disordered.’”

Although it has a long past, a group of dedicated volunteers and a generous community, there are currently internal discussions as to whether or not Dignity/Houston will continue it in its present form, as it currently has less than thirty supporting members.

The national branch, DignityUSA, released a response to the Catholic Bishop’s document, their “Pastoral Care of LGBT People”, asking for ten things for LGBT Catholics, including being ‘treated with respect.” “welcomed as full and equal participants in the life of the church,” and a revised theology of sexuality that acknowledges that many intimate relationships express unitive love, even in the absence of possible procreation.

Elsewhere in the United States:

While homosexuals are never excommunicated from the church on the basis of sexual orientation, there have been cases where certain privileges within the congregation were taken away. In 2003 a gay couple, were expelled from the choir of St. Benedict’s Church in the Bronx after a very public marriage in Canada. Publicly “out” Catholics may still receive the Eucharist, the transformed blood and flesh of Jesus Christ, but unless they are chaste, they are encouraged during Confession to ask for forgiveness for the physical acts of homosexual relations.

More recently, in November, 2006, the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the South Jersey Shore (UUCSJS) was forced out of their leased space by the Diocese of Camden, New Jersey. The UUCSJS sin: inviting gay author/activist Marc Adams to share his personal story and speak about HeartStrong, a non-profit educational organization providing outreach and support to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered students from religious educational institutions.

At press time, the validity of this eviction is being fought in the judicial arena.

While these events unfold, many Catholic GLBT members continue to play active parts in their respective churches and with their respective beliefs, regardless of what documents the Roman Catholic Church releases.

“A church is a place to pray, to go and be close to God,” said Flambert. “We’re still all God’s children.”

This story is part one of a three story series covering recent developments within communities of faith regarding homosexuality.  Follow up in the following months for stories concerning Jewish and Muslim perspectives.

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