Francis DeBernardo on the Pope’s “Early Christmas Gift” to LGBTQ+ Catholics

I share this evening a statement released earlier today by Francis DeBernardo, Executive Director of New Ways Ministry.

This statement is in response to the Vatican announcement of a new declaration approved by Pope Francis that opens the path for LGBTQ+ people’s relationships to be blessed in the Roman Catholic church.

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Pope Francis gave LGBTQ+ Catholics an early Christmas gift this year by approving blessings for same-gender couples. The Vatican doctrinal office’s previous claim that “God does not bless sin” has been uprooted by the new exhortation, “God never turns away anyone who approaches him!”

It cannot be overstated how significant the Vatican’s new declaration is. Approving blessings for same-gender couples is certainly monumental. But Pope Francis goes further than that by stating that people should not be subjected to “an exhaustive moral analysis” to receive a sign of God’s love and mercy. Such a declaration is one more step Pope Francis has taken to overturn the harsh policing of pastoral care all too common under his predecessors, John Paul II and Benedict XVI.

In contrast, Pope Francis desires pastoral care in which, in the declaration’s words, “every brother and every sister will be able to feel that, in the Church, they are always pilgrims, always beggars, always loved, and, despite everything, always blessed.” By opening blessings to same-gender couples, the institutional church now expands the ways that LGBTQ+ Catholics can know God’s love. And this declaration benefits not only the couples blessed, but every queer person and ally who has had a difficult relationship with the church.

This declaration is proof that church teaching can – and does – change. The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith has now overturned in full its 2021 statement prohibiting queer blessings because, it claimed, “God does not bless sin.” And how does change happen? Formal approval in teaching often recognizes what people are already doing pastorally and theologically. Practice precedes teaching. So, too, with LGBTQ+ blessings.

For decades, the laity, joined by some religious and clergy, have called for greater inclusion of same-gender couples. In the past few years, this call has become louder in places like Germany, where the Synodal Way process approved such blessings earlier this year. The question of blessings has been a contentious point in Germany, sparking criticism from the Vatican and even Pope Francis. His decision now to approve blessings shows the pope is willing to listen, learn, and respond meaningfully to God’s people, something every church leader should be doing.

When I had the honor of meeting Pope Francis this past October, one of his statements that most impressed me was that a thing he is most upset about in the church is priests who chastise people in the confessional. That time, he said, should be a time of welcome, love, and mercy, not a punishment. This new declaration about blessing same-gender couples is an example of that kind of pastoral attitude.

LGBTQ+ Catholics worldwide welcome this early Christmas gift, which brings them much closer to being full and equal members of the Church they love so dearly.

– Francis DeBernardo
New Ways Ministry
December 18, 2023

Related Off-site Links:
In Major Doctrinal Shift, Vatican Officially OKs Catholic Blessings for Gay Couples – Christopher White (National Catholic Reporter, December 18, 2023).
Pope Francis Allows Blessings of Couples in Same-sex Relationships – Gerard O’Connell (America, December 18, 2023).
Pope Francis Allows Priests to Bless Same-Sex Couples – Jason Horowitz (The New York Times, December 18, 2023).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• A Church of Both Roots and Branches
• A Church That Can and Cannot Change
• Progressive Catholic Perspectives on the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 Marriage Equality Ruling
• Acknowledging, Celebrating, and Learning from Marriage Equality's “Triumphs of Faith”
• Progressive Catholic Perspectives on the Legacy of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI
• Beyond the Hierarchy: The Blossoming of Liberating Catholic Insights on Sexuality – Part I | II | III | IV | V | VI | VII | VIII
• Joseph O’Leary: Quote of the Day – May 31, 2014
• Knowing What to Do, Knowing Why to Stay
• The Catholic Church and Gays: An Excellent Historical Overview
• Be Not Afraid: You Can Be Happy and Gay
• The Many Manifestationsof God’s Loving Embrace
• Trusting God’s Generous Invitation

Image: Peggy Collins.

Ditching the Crime, Keeping the Sin: Thoughts on the Pope’s Call to Decriminalize Homosexuality

I was heartened to see my friends Brian McNeill and Paula Ruddy quoted in an article in yesterday’s Star Tribune.

Entitled, “Pope’s Support Lifts LGBTQ Community,” this article highlighted the reactions of local reform-minded Catholics to Pope Francis’ recent statement that “homosexuality is not a crime.” The Pope went on to call on Catholic bishops in countries with anti-gay laws to stand against these “unjust” laws and to recognize all people’s dignity.

It seems praise-worthy enough, but let’s just be very clear here: the supreme overlord of a feudal monarchical system to whom the vast majority of his “subjects” (straight and gay) do not listen when he speaks on matters of sex and sexuality, is being roundly applauded for stating that while “homosexual activity” is still a “sin,” it should not be considered a “crime.”


Ditching the crime, keeping the sin

For reasons that I’ll go into shortly, I’m not particularly impressed with the Pope’s attempts to ditch the crime / keep the sin. Others, however, are impressed, and believe the Pope's words are going to make a real difference in the world. My friend Brian McNeill states in yesterday’s Star Tribune article that, “We here in the U.S. can advocate and lobby the church on improving their position on LGBTQ issues without any consequences. In 67 countries in the world, it’s illegal to be LGBTQ and in 11 countries, it merits the death penalty under certain circumstances.” Building on such an observation, James Martin, SJ contends that the Pope’s call to decriminalize homosexuality will save lives.

I have two thoughts about this. First, I question Brian’s assertion that advocating and lobbying the church to “improv[e] their position on LGBTQ issues” is without consequence in the United States. True, no one’s going to be jailed or executed for being gay, but a Catholic high school teacher, for instance, could not do the advocacy work that I did 10 years ago, and which Brian continues to do today, without fear of losing their job.

Second, to Fr. James Martin’s point, one has to ask: How many of the governments that criminalize homosexuality are open to being influenced by the Roman Catholic Church? I also find myself wondering how serious world governments actually take the church on matters of sexuality and justice given the scope, gravity and, yes, criminality of the church’s own clergy sex abuse scandal.

Regardless, Pope Francis urges bishops, other clergy members, and lay Catholics (the entire church, in other words) to actively work for the abolition of laws that criminalize homosexuality. This call is, without doubt, historic. So for that reason alone it is a step forward, and I can understand why many are praising and celebrating it.


Making the connections

Yet in the midst of this celebration, my heart compels me to ask: Why can’t we all get past needing to rely on the words of any type of overlord, including the benevolent Pope Francis, to recognize – and do – the right thing by ourselves and others when it comes to important issues relating to human experience, relating to our experience?

And let’s go even deeper. Regardless of the good and positive things Pope Francis may say about, well, anything, they all could be denounced and reversed by the next pope. That’s the problem with feudal monarchies like the Vatican; everything is dependent on the will of the overlord. Also, while it’s true that Pope Francis chooses not to emphasize troubling terms such as “intrinsically disordered” to describe the homosexual orientation, that language and understanding is still part of official church teaching on morality. It’s there ready to be emphasized and extolled by the next (and less pastorally-sensitive) overlord. Can you see the problem here?

So here’s what I’m waiting to celebrate: the abolition of Roman Catholicism’s clerical caste and the complete transformation of the papacy as we know it. (And, yes, there are non-overlord models of the papacy out there.*). Only with such radical transformation will we see the establishment in the church of a way of talking about sexual matters that is open to and shaped by all people’s experience of God in their sexual lives and relationships.

The Roman Catholic Church does not have such an inclusive and reality-based way of talking about sex and sexuality; it does not have, in other words, an actual sexual theology, i.e., a way of talking about God in relation to human sexuality. It has instead a marriage theology, one that posits that it is only within a church-approved marriage (i.e., one man and one woman, with every sex act open to procreation) where sex is “godly,” not sinful.

Gay people, of course, don’t fit into such an understanding of marriage. How could they when this understanding does not reflect the diversity of human sexuality? Instead, human sexuality and the meaning and sacredness of sex are all narrowly reduced to – and defined by – the church-approved understanding of marriage. Said another way, a definition of marriage is defining acceptable sexuality and its expression. The Pope recently reinforced this when he offered a “clarification” of his remarks on homosexuality and sin. “When I said [homosexuality] is a sin,” the Pope wrote, “I was simply referring to Catholic moral teaching, which says that every sexual act outside of marriage is a sin.”

In an interview I did with him back in 2005, “modern mystic” Chuck Lofy highlighted the problem with this limited way of thinking about sexuality.

Human experience of God within the full range of human sexuality has not been recognized or valued [by the Vatican]. What’s valued is a system of logic. So for the pope it is logical that when you think of the penis and the vagina, the point of sexuality is to procreate within the framework of heterosexual marriage. It’s a logical, intellectually-based paradigm. But it doesn’t align with human experience in the real world.

And speaking of the church’s moral teaching, here’s something else that’s a reality for many LGBTQ Catholics: It is very difficult to separate the anti-gay behavior of individuals and governments from the anti-gay teaching of the Roman Catholic Church. When the church hierarchy labels LGBTQ people’s longing for relational intimacy as “intrinsically evil” and “objectively disordered,” it gives subtle permission for anti-gay behavior. If such behavior – on the part of either individuals or governments – is going to be denounced by the church as “unjust” then so too should the church’s language and theology that fuel and justify it. The church, and, yes, that includes Pope Francis, needs to recognize the connection between its own anti-gay language and how the internalization of this language leads to anti-gay behavior and actions, including the passing of anti-gay laws.


Moving on

For many years I dedicated my time and energy to educating Catholics about the need for radical change within the church. I did so as the executive director of both the Catholic Pastoral Committee on Sexual Minorities (CPCSM) and Catholics for Marriage Equality MN, as editor of The Progressive Catholic Voice, as a board member of the Catholic Coalition for Church Reform (CCCR), and as the author of Creating Safe Environments for LGBT Students: A Catholic Schools Perspective (Haworth Press, 2007).

I don’t regret my time working for church reform, renewal and transformation – nor my reasons at the time for doing so. But after a good twelve years of such work there came a time when I no longer felt called to continue it. I did what I did, and I did it well. I came to a point, however, when I needed to focus on my own transformation and journey, and leave the transformation and journey of the Roman Catholic Church to those who still felt motivated and inspired to engage in such important work.

I realized that, for me, life is way too short to take on, long-term, an institution like Roman Catholicism. Plus, on a practical level, such work was not financially sustaining. Also, we have the ability to walk away from this particular feudal system and not have it impact us in any kind of retaliatory way. We can move on with our lives, and that’s exactly what I did. And I have to say that my life is all the more satisfying and richer for it.

Of course, not everyone has to “move on” from Roman Catholicism to experience a satisfying and rich life. Many have this experience while staying within the church and working for change. I continue to have great admiration and respect for such individuals – locally and nationally. I’m thinking not only of my friends Brian and Paula but also Marianne Duddy-Burke, Mary Hunt, Jeannine Gramick, Francis DeBernardo, Bob Shine, Joan Chittister, Margaret Farley, Jamie Manson, Ilia Delio, Paul Lakeland and many others. May their work help transform the church.


For more on my journey, see the introduction to this Wild Reed post.


* One Catholic theologian who advocates for a team model for the papacy is theologian Mary Hunt. Speaking on Pacific Radio’s Democracy Now! program shortly after the selection of Cardinal Ratzinger as Pope Benedict XVI in April 2005, Hunt said:

I still favor and put out to your listeners, a possibility: the notion of an international team for the papacy. If the papacy is supposed to be a symbol of unity and not a person with authority, then it makes much more sense in a post-modern time to think not about one person . . . but in fact to think about an intergenerational, international team of men and women who could in fact meet and lead a billion people using technology and travel as a way to bring many voices into the discussion. So we’re really pushing for a horizontal model of church, not the vertical one that Cardinal Ratzinger represents.

For more discussion on non-overlord models of the papacy, click here and here.


Related Off-site Links:
The AP Interview: Pope Says Homosexuality Not a Crime – Nicole Winfield (AP News, January 25, 2023).
In Papal First, Francis Backs Decriminalization of Homosexuality – Christopher White (National Catholic Reporter, January 25, 2023).
Pope Francis’s Call to Decriminalize Homosexuality Worldwide Will Save Lives – James Martin, S.J. (Outreach, January 25, 2023).
Pope Francis’ LGBTQ Comments Are Not Surprising But Sincere, Gay Vatican Adviser Says – Leila Fadel and Jan Johnson (National Catholic Reporter, January 26, 2023).
Pope Clarifies Homosexuality and Sin Comments in Note – Nicole Winfield (AP News via ABC News, January 28, 2023).

UPDATE: What Lasting Impact Will Pope Francis’ Condemnation of Criminalization Laws Have? – Robert Shine (NewWaysMinistry.org, February 8, 2023).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Catholic Church Can Overcome Fear of LGBT People
• A Catholic’s Prayer for his Fellow Pilgrim, Benedict XVI
• Vatican Stance on Gay Priests Signals Urgent Need for Renewal and Reform
• It’s Time We Evolved Beyond Theological Imperialism
• Getting It Right
• Astounded
• Progressive Catholic Perspectives on the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 Marriage Equality Ruling
• Progressive Thoughts on Recent Developments in Ireland, El Salvador and the U.S.
• More Progressive Catholic Perspectives on Ireland’s Historic Gay Marriage Vote
• Progressive Catholic Perspectives on the Legacy of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI
• LGBT Catholics Respond to Synod 2014’s Final Report
• Beyond the Hierarchy: The Blossoming of Liberating Catholic Insights on Sexuality – Part I | II | III | IV | V | VI | VII | VIII
• Hans Küng: “The Gospel of Jesus Christ is Stronger Than the Hierarchy”
• Mary Hunt: Quote of the Day – April 17, 2013
• Beyond Papalism
• Progressive Perspectives of the Papacy – Part I | II | III | IV | V
• No Patriarchal Hierarchy, No Rigid Conformity
• Rome Falling
• Re-Forming “the Vatican” Doesn't Mean Destroying the Church
• Pan’s Labyrinth: Critiquing the Cult of Unquestioning Obedience
• What the Vatican Can Learn from the X-Men
• Roger Haight on the Church We Need

Quote of the Day

[T]here must be space for everyone, especially those who have been hurt, excluded or alienated, be they abuse victims, survivors, divorcees, gays, lesbians, women, disaffected members. The church will be less than what Christ intends it to be when issues of inclusion and equality are not fully addressed.

. . . I am guided [in all of this] by the radical vision of Christ [and am] committed to mak[ing] the church [one] where there is less an experience of exclusion but more an encounter of radical love, inclusiveness and solidarity.

– Bishop Vincent Long Van Nguyen
Quoted in Bob Shine's article,
"‘Pope Francis’ Bishop Calls for
Inclusive Church that Lives Out Vatican II"
Bondings 2.0
August 23, 2016

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Beyond Respectful Tolerance to Celebratory Acceptance
• Celebrating Our Sanctifying Truth
• What the Vatican Can Learn from the X-Men
• Jim Smith on the "Tears of Love and Faith" of LGBTI People and Their Families
• LGBT Catholics to Pope Francis: Let Us "Work Together Towards Creating a Church Where All Families Know That We Are Truly Loved and Welcomed"
• Celebrating the Presence of God Within All Families
• "The Church is Better Because of the Presence of LGBT People"
• Quote of the Day – August 19, 2015

Quote of the Day

The pope wants the church to apologize to gay people for marginalizing them, while also upholding the Catechism's teaching on homosexuality. You can't apologize to people and simultaneously reassert the doctrine that harms them. That's just dysfunctional, if not downright abusive.

– Jamie Manson
via Facebook

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Quote of the Day – June 26, 2016
• Stop in the Name of Discriminatory Ideology!
• Oh, Give It a Rest, Papa!
• Catholic Church Can Overcome Fear of LGBT People
• "Trajectory is More Important Than the Current Status"




Related Off-site Links:
Pope Says Christians and the Roman Catholic Church Should Seek Forgiveness from Homosexuals for Past Treatment – Philip Pullella (Reuters via Religion News Service, June 26, 2016).
What Does Pope Francis Mean When He Says "Apologize"? – Kimberly Winston (Religion News Service, June 27, 2016).
Gay Catholic Groups Want the Vatican to Do More Than Apologize – Jim Yardley (New York Times, June 27, 2016).
LGBT Catholics Welcome Statement of Pope Francis That the Catholic Church Must Apologize to Gay People, But Say Apology Must Be Followed by Concrete Actions – DignityUSA (June 26, 2016).
Pope Calls for Church to Apologize to LGBT People and Others Who Have Been Marginalized – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, June 26, 2016).
Keeping Pope Francis' Comments on the LGBT Community in Context – James Martin, SJ (Commonweal, June 27, 2016).
Cardinal Marx: Society Must Create Structures to Respect Gay Rights – Sarah Mac Donald (National Catholic Reporter, June 28, 2016).
Catholic League's Bill Donohue Melts Down on CNN After Pope Tells Him to Apologize to Gays – David Edwards (Raw Story, June 28, 2016).

UPDATE: Catholics Split on the Value of Pope Francis' Call for Apology – Bob Shine (Bondings 2.0, June 29, 2016).

"For Every Sign of Hope, There is a Matching Disappointment"

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The Catholic LGBTQ group Quest responds to Amoris Laetitia

I recently learned about a British organization called Quest, which describes itself as "a pastoral support group for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer Catholics, their friends and families."

Founded in 1973, Quest offers pastoral, spiritual and social ministry through its a network of local groups throughout Britain, and its hosting of retreats, pilgrimages, and an annual conference. The group also maintains an informative website and a Facebook page. In many ways it seems to be the British equivalent of the U.S.-based News Ways Ministry.

I discovered Quest via Terence Weldon's excellent blogsite, Queering the Church. Terence recently shared an excerpt from Quest's well-written and thoughtful response to Pope Francis' Apostolic Exhortation, Amoris Laetitia ("The Joy of Love").

The full text of Quest's response can be found here on the group's website. It's also reprinted in its entirety below.

In attempting to craft his Apostolic Exhortation, Pope Francis was faced with impossibly conflicting demands: intense pressure from the reformists to introduce changes to pastoral practice (if not actual doctrine) on some hot-button topics, competing with equally intense pressure from the conservative side to reaffirm both doctrine and the rules on pastoral practice. We should also remember that any direct change in doctrine was never in fact on the cards: that was not the purpose of the family synods, and is not the nature of an apostolic exhortation, which traditionally, is purely pastoral.

This is why it is very much a compromise, and reading the full text is very much an ambidextrous exercise: any fair assessment of the Exhortation must repeatedly assert, “On the one hand . . ., on the other hand”. For every disappointment, especially for LGBT Catholics, there is a more optimistic qualification. For every sign of hope, there is a matching disappointment.

For example:

• There is a firm restatement of the traditional requirement that “homosexuals” must be treated with respect, and that there must be no violence or aggression. On the other, there is no attempt to apply this to the well-known co-operation of some African bishops in the active persecution of LGBT people.

• There is a notable absence of the offensive terms “intrinsically evil” and “objectively disordered”, which have caused so much hurt to lesbian and gay Catholics. On the other, there is no attempt to reject those terms once and for all.

• There is a repetition of the bizarre term “gender ideology” (albeit in a softened form compared with its earlier use in the Synod’s report), but there is also some recognition for the first time that gender and biological sex do not always perfectly co-incide.

• The text begins with the familiar celebration of the family as comprising one man, one woman, and children – but much of the later discussion is a celebration of love and the unitive value of sex, coupled with a condemnation of the traditional obsession with procreation.

• There is also the familiar insistence that same-sex unions cannot be equated with marriage, but NO criticism of same-sex unions themselves. In fact, there are some statements that indirectly appear to accept the value of same-sex unions.

In avoiding directly satisfying either of the two competing factions, he in fact, cleverly dodged the bullet. Instead of either amending or reaffirming existing rules (for both doctrine and pastoral care), he simply downgraded their importance. Moreover, he did this not by ignoring established tradition, but by calling on it, citing extensively from impeccable Catholic authorities such as St Thomas Aquinas, and his immediate predecessors as pope, John Paul II and Benedict XVI.

For LGBT Catholics, this is of fundamental importance. For far too long, we’ve been told in key Vatican documents the grossly offensive and harmful language of “intrinsically evil” and “objectively disordered”. We’ve been accustomed to fierce criticism from some quarters for contravening the Catechism. For living publicly in what is described as objectively sinful lifestyles, but what we ourselves see simply as lives of integrity and honesty in loving, self-giving partnerships, too many have been dismissed from Church employment or from pastoral ministry. Others, unable to reconcile the apparent conflict between what they know deep down to be their personal truth and Catholic teaching, have made a range of unhealthy choices. Some have resorted to suicide, others have left home. Some have made the mistake of contracting inappropriate heterosexual marriage, others have simply left the Church. Many more simply attempt to live their lives in an uneasy tension between what they know in their hearts and what they are told in church

Francis has turned all of this on its head. Widely celebrated for his first ever pronouncement on gay Catholics, “Who am I to judge?” he has now drawn on numerous strands of established and widely accepted doctrine, to reverse the question. He now asks of those who self-righteously criticize us and others in “irregular” situations, “Who are you to judge?” He goes further. In addition to questioning the right to judge others, he has changed the criteria for judgement. Where it is necessary to pass judgement (for example, on one’s own actions, or by a pastor on assessing one’s suitability for communion or parish ministry), the test is no longer is this person living in conformity with the rules, but are they living in accordance with their own well-formed conscience?.

To conclude, we leave Quest members with a single thought, and a challenge.

Everything that Pope Francis has said to change the criteria for moral judgments, and in challenging the competence of others to pass judgement in the first place, our people have been saying, for years. Buried in the lengthy text, are many other details of established but neglected doctrine that too, our people have been saying for years.

The challenge now, is to continue saying these things, louder and more insistently than ever, but for the first time, with authoritative papal backing. Predictably, neither the Bishops’ Synod Assemblies of 2014 and 2015 have changed any element of church doctrine – but the groundwork for change has perhaps been laid. A report on LGBT reaction at Bondings 2.0 notes that this is the beginning of a process, not the end. As the Global Network of Rainbow Catholics stated in their response, “If the door (to change) is still not unlocked, maybe the key is under the mat?”

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• On Eve of Amoris Laetitia's Release, "A Moment of Pause and of Prayer"
• An Erotic Encounter with the Divine
• Quote of the Day – April 11, 2016
• James Alison on the Likely "Really Big Deal" of Synod 2015
• Quote of the Day – October 30, 2015
• Beyond the Hierarchy: The Blossoming of Liberating Catholic Insights on Sexuality (Part 8)
• "Trajectory is More Important Than the Current Status"
• Quote of the Day – October 20, 2014
• LGBT Catholics Respond to Synod 2014's Final Report

Related Off-site Links:
Pope Francis' Love Letter is an Opportunity Lost – Mary E. Hunt (Religion Dispatches, April 11, 2016).
Do the Pope's Latest Words on Marriage and Homosexuality Go Far Enough? Not for Me – Charles P. Pierce (Esquire, April 8, 2016).
Pope Francis' Amoris Laetitia is a Closeted Argument for Gay Marriage – William Saletan (Slate, April 8, 2016).
Seven Notes re: Amoris Laetitia and the Papacy of Pope Francis as a Project to Shore Up Waning Heterosexual Male Power and Privilege – William D. Lindsey (Bilgrimage, April 10, 2016).
Catholic Families Need More from Pope Francis – Michele Weldon (USA Today via Religion News Service, April 11, 2016).
Pope Francis' "The Joy of Love" Falls Short – Gina Messina (Feminism and Religion, April 12, 2016).
LGBT Faith Community Voices Disappointment Over "Joy of Love" – Bill Daley (Chicago Tribune, April 12, 2016).
The New Morality of Pope Francis – James Carroll (The New Yorker, April 8, 2016).

Quote of the Day

[Amoris Laetitia, Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation on Love in the Family] reflects the papal conundrum of pastoring realistically in the contemporary world without changing any church doctrine or major teaching. The result is unequal opportunity ambiguity. Some things can be parsed – as in the communion debate – while other things are off the table, such as same-sex marriage. Rationales for such decisions are lacking other than wan references to previous church teachings. It reminds this reader of Francis’ openness to gay priests (“Who am I to judge?”) and his claim that the ordination of women is a settled matter. Settled by and for whom? Once again the patriarchal power paradigm is shored up by a pope who likes to have it both ways. Certain pastoral decision-making is kicked downstairs to priests and bishops, but that is effectively how things work now. Theology follows practice.

The fundamental problem in this document is methodological: there is only one ideal – heteronormative uncontracepted sex in monogamous marriage – in relation to which everything else is derivative, lesser, lacking, and/or forbidden. At the same time, the Pope wants to welcome and be pastoral to everyone. Catholic market share has slipped precipitously worldwide due in large part to this ‘one, holy, catholic and apostolic’ way of looking at sexuality. Thinking postmodern Catholics simply do not take kindly to such groundless generalities in the face of so much evidence to the contrary. What about Uncles Pat and Bill who love and share so generously?

– Mary E. Hunt
Excerpted from "Pope Francis’ Love Letter
is an Opportunity Lost"
Religion Dispatches
April 11, 2016

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• An Erotic Encounter with the Divine
• On Eve of Amoris Laetitia's Release, "A Moment of Pause and of Prayer"
• James Alison on the Likely "Really Big Deal" of Synod 2015
• Quote of the Day – October 30, 2015
• Beyond the Hierarchy: The Blossoming of Liberating Catholic Insights on Sexuality (Part 8)
• "Trajectory is More Important Than the Current Status"
• Quote of the Day – October 20, 2014
• LGBT Catholics Respond to Synod 2014's Final Report

Related Off-site Links:
Do the Pope's Latest Words on Marriage and Homosexuality Go Far Enough? Not for Me – Charles P. Pierce (Esquire, April 8, 2016)
Pope Francis' Amoris Laetitia is a Closeted Argument for Gay Marriage – William Saletan (Slate, April 8, 2016).
Seven Notes re: Amoris Laetitia and the Papacy of Pope Francis as a Project to Shore Up Waning Heterosexual Male Power and Privilege – William D. Lindsey (Bilgrimage, April 10, 2016).
Catholic Families Need More from Pope Francis – Michele Weldon (USA Today via Religion News Service, April 11, 2016).
Pope Francis' "The Joy of Love" Falls Short – Gina Messina (Feminism and Religion, April 12, 2016).
LGBT Faith Community Voices Disappointment Over "Joy of Love" – Bill Daley (Chicago Tribune, April 12, 2016).

Something to Think About (and Embody) . . .

– Source: Call to Action

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• The Vision of Vatican II
• What It Means to Be Catholic
• A Church of Both Roots and Branches
• "Something Joyful and Exciting"
• Many Voices, One Church
• The Holarchical Church: Not a Pyramid But a Web of Relationships
• Paul Lakeland on the Church as a Model of Divine Mutuality
• Catholicism's Future is Up to the Laity
• Our Catholic "Stonewall Moment"
• Tony Flannery in Minneapolis
• Roger Haight on the Church We Need
• A Return to the Spirit

Related Off-site Links:
Richard McBrien on the Church as the People of God – The National Catholic Reporter via The Progressive Catholic Voice (August 13, 2011).
The Call of the Baptized: Be the Church, Live the Mission – Paul Lakeland (The Progressive Catholic Voice, September 19, 2010).
12 Awesome, Radical Catholic Ideas – Nathan Schneider (The Daily Beast via The Progressive Catholic Voice, February 9, 2014).
Creating a Liberating Church (Part 1) – Rosemary Radford Ruether (The Progressive Catholic Voice, July 15, 2010).
Creating a Liberating Church (Part 2) – Rosemary Radford Ruether (The Progressive Catholic Voice, July 19, 2010).
Creating a Liberating Church (Part 3) – Rosemary Radford Ruether (The Progressive Catholic Voice, July 28, 2010).

James Alison on the Likely "Really Big Deal" of Synod 2015

I have to say I really appreciate theologian James Alison's perspective on the issue that the recently-concluded Synod on the Family chose to avoid. This issue is, of course, the place of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Catholics in the church family. A major part of my appreciation stems from Alison's contention that perhaps "for the first time . . . the bishops seem to have faced up to having a genuine problem on their hands that is their problem, not that of LGBT people, and no apparent way out of it without help." If this is indeed the case, says Alison, then it is "a really big deal."

The bishops' "problem" is official church teaching on homosexuality, about which Alison writes: "There is no way to communicate current teaching mercifully, or with less hateful language – maybe because that teaching’s premise of the objectively disordered nature of the 'homosexual inclination' is actually false?"

Yet as appreciative as I am of Alison's perspective, I have to wonder why he chose to express the last part of this powerful statement as a question and not as a fact, not as an observable reality. The Roman Catholic clerical caste's premise for its teaching on homosexuality and, by extension, on human sexuality is false. And I think that as Catholics attuned to the presence of God in the lives and relationships of all, we need to be very clear in saying that there's no "maybe" about it.

The words I use to describe both this premise and the teaching produced by it are erroneous, dysfunctional, and dangerous.* I know Alison would agree, so why the "maybe" and the question-posing strategy? Some might say it's simply a rhetorical question, that Alison is modeling the type of question that members of the hierarchy should be asking and that perhaps, he suggests, Pope Francis is inviting them to ask. Yet I question if we should ever shy away from unequivocally stating that the hierarchy's sexual theology (which is actually a narrow marital theology) is erroneous, dysfunctional, and dangerous. We owe it to ourselves and our experiences as LGBT Catholics, and to the young people and others struggling with and threatened by the homo-negativity produced by the Vatican's stance on sexuality, to make such unequivocal statements, no matter what the forum. Lives are very much at stake, and so I find the reluctance of many LGBT and/or progressive Catholic commentators to unequivocally reject the hierarchy's teaching on sexuality, to take any and every opportunity to declare it erroneous, dysfunctional, and dangerous, to be both disappointing and perplexing.

I should add that equally disappointing and perplexing to my mind is the failure to reject the feudal monarchical system that produces such false and damaging teaching, and the reluctance to identify this system as the antithesis of Jesus' life and message.

Having said all this, I still appreciate and value James Alison's efforts to offer hope with regards to the hierarchy's ongoing journey in understanding of homosexuality. Accordingly, I share the following excerpt from his commentary in the November 7, 2015 issue of The Tablet.

There were two weak-minded “ways out” of the current hierarchical impasse in the Church on matters gay – the first, a bombastic reaffirmation of current teaching as obviously right, the solution of the deluded pure; the second, that the teaching is right, but that there is a problem with the language in which it is communicated – the solution of the ­cowardly cosmeticians. I’m delighted to say we got neither. The low-key reaffirmations of loyalty to current positions in the final ­document have “pro tem” written all over them; and the general dropping from view of matters LGBT towards the end of the synod suggests that something much more interesting may have happened.

It is just conceivable that enough synod participants realised that there is no way to communicate current teaching mercifully, or with less hateful language – maybe because that teaching’s premise of the objectively disordered nature of the “homosexual inclination” is actually false? Teaching others, with however pretty a language, that they must buy into a falsehood about themselves so as to fit into pre-determined schemes of what is right or wrong, is to demand that they indulge a fragile rigidity that is the teachers’ problem, not their own – classic Pharisaism.

I suspect there was enough of a recognition that there is no genuine way out of the impasse without raising a question of doctrine, for it to be better to go quiet on the issue, and punt further study and discussion of the matter to the Holy Father – and quite possibly to the new dicastery he has announced dedicated to laity, family and life. If something like this was what happened, then I’d like to say: this is a really big deal. For the first time in my memory, the bishops seem to have faced up to having a genuine problem on their hands that is their problem, not that of LGBT people, and no apparent way out of it without help.

It is here, I think, that we see something of the genius of Pope Francis. I had feared that his statements about not changing doctrinal matters, but focusing on the pastoral, were a sign of weakness in the face of intransi­gent hardliners and would lead to cosmetic solutions. What a joy to be wrong! It seems rather, that he wanted people to run up against the dead ends of many current positions together so not only would they begin to dare to ask each other, and the Pope, the sort of questions which might lead to a more adult discussion of the matters at hand, but it would actually lead to a consensus of teachers realising that they need to, and want to, think more.

For in fact, when it comes to matters LGBT, the theological issues are not difficult to resolve. As a matter of group psychology, however, allowing the synod fathers, more than a few of whom have a personally complicated involvement with the matter at hand, to reach a consensus that the status quo is untenable, and thus that they actually want to find a way forward: that is difficult indeed. Yet something like the beginnings of this can be detected in the synod’s having punted on this issue: ­nothing now, so as to talk better, later.

It has long been noted that the Second Vatican Council opened up a way for an approach to learning what is true, what is of God, that makes room for the inductive – learning by experience of being led to truth – rather than the deductive approach, dedu­cing the logical consequences of doctrinal a prioris and then instructing people that this is what they ought to know, to think and to feel. And it has equally been noted, since Humanae Vitae, that among many areas where the Church is quite at ease with the inductive, experiential approach, there remains a strictly protected island in which the deductive, syllogistic approach is still regarded as synonymous with “doctrine”. It is no surprise, therefore, that it is in this area, touching on every aspect of family intimacy and the ability to talk honestly, that there is the greatest schism between “official doctrine” and “life.”

– James Alison
Excerpted from "Love in a Changing Climate"
The Tablet
November 7, 2015

* When I say the current teaching on LGBT issues is dangerous, I mean it both perpetuates the "blood-soaked thread" of anti-gay violence that's part of Roman Catholicism's history and contributes to the internalized homo-negativity of LGBT people, a homo-negativity that has been shown to predict poor emotional and sexual health.


Related Off-site Links:
Conspiracy of the Faithful: Following the Synod, from Afar – Catherine Wolff (Commonweal, November 2, 2015).
Gay and Catholic: What It’s Like to Be Queer in the Church – Debora Fougere (Aljazeera America, October 31, 2015).
LGBT Catholics Worship and Seek Acceptance Outside the Church – Amanda Guillen (Scripps Howard Foundation Wire, November 5, 2015).
Gay Priest Who Lost Vatican Job Assails the Church in Letter to Pope Francis – Gaia Piaigiani (The New York Times, October 28, 2015).
Ragged Questions After the Synod – Deafening Silence About How the Homosexuals Took Another One Upside the Head to Facilitate Pastoral Breakthrough for Everyone Else – William D. Lindsey (Bilgrimage, October 27, 2015).
How to Be Happy, Catholic and Gay – Terence Weldon (The Queer Church Repository, October 20, 2015).
To Have a Truly Just Church, Pope Francis Must Move Beyond Complementarity – Jamie Manson (National Catholic Reporter, May 6, 2015).
Homosexual Relationships: Another Look – Bill Hunt (The Progressive Catholic Voice, September 8, 2012).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• "Trajectory is More Important Than the Current Status"
• Stop in the Name of Discriminatory Ideology!
• The Non-Negotiables of Human Sex
• Quote of the Day – May 29, 2015
• A "Fruit" Reflects Upon the Meaning of "Fruitfulness"
• What the Vatican Can Learn from the X-Men
• Beyond Respectful Tolerance to Celebratory Acceptance
• The "Ratzinger Letter" of 1986 as "Theological Pornography"
• How the Pope's Recent Remarks on Evolution Highlight a Major Discrepancy in Church Teaching
• The Gifts of Homosexuality
• Remembering and Reclaiming a Wise, Spacious, and Holy Understanding of Homosexuality
• Good News on the Road to Emmaus
• Catholic Hierarchy Can Overcome Fear of LGBT People

Something to Think About . . .

Related Off-site Links:
Who Won? Who Lost? Five Points on the Contentious Vatican Summit – David Gibson (Crux, October 26, 2015).
Pope Francis and the Gospel of Engagement – Maureen Fiedler (National Catholic Reporter, October 27, 2015).
The Pope Has Smoked Out His Opposition – Robert Mickens (National Catholic Reporter, October 26, 2015).
LGBT Advocates and Vatican Observers Respond to Synod on the Family’s Final Report – Bob Shine (Bondings 2.0, October 27, 2015).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• The Real Scandal: Fear of Love
• Synod 2015 Quote of the Day – October 16, 2015
• Quote of the Day – October 3, 2014
• Eucharist: Recognizing and Embodying God's Presence in the World
• Celebrating and Embodying Divine Hospitality
• "Receive What You Are, the Body of Christ"
• Trusting God's Generous Invitation
• Take This Bread
• "Take, All of You, and Eat": Communion and the Rainbow Sash (Part 1)
• "Take, All of You, and Eat": Communion and the Rainbow Sash (Part 2)
• "Take, All of You, and Eat": Communion and the Rainbow Sash (Part 3)
• My Rainbow Sash Experience

Image: Pat Marrin (from "The Francis Chronicles," National Catholic Reporter).

The Real Scandal: Fear of Love

[We must aim] to love unconditionally all families, particularly those experiencing difficulties, since no family should feel alone or excluded from the Church’s loving embrace, and the real scandal is a fear of love and of showing that love concretely.

– Pope Francis
Excerpted from the end of the very last footnote
of the Pope's speech closing the 2015 Synod on the Family

Related Off-site Links:
Pope, Closing Synod, Calls for More Open-Hearted Church – Philip Pullella (Reuters via Yahoo! News, October 25, 2015).
Pope Francis’ Concluding Synod Speech Stresses Mercy Above Law – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 25, 2015).
Catholic Bishops at Synod Call for a More Welcoming Church – Nicole Winfield and Daniela Petroff (Associated Press via Yahoo! News, October 24, 2015).
Bishops End Divisive Synod on Family – BBC World News (October 24 2015).
Pope Criticizes Conservative Bishops with "Closed Hearts" After Synod – Reuters via Aljazeera America (October 24, 2015).
Synod's Final Word to LGBT People: Lord Help Us! Those People Imagine They Should Be Welcome?! And Fa-mi-ly?! – William D. Lindsey (Bilgrimage, October 25, 2015).
Catholic Theologians Condemn Ross Douthat's Recent Piece on the Pope – Jim McDermott (America, October 27, 2015).
Same-sex Parents Invest More Time in Their Children, Study Says – Emily Dugan and Lucy White (The Independent, October 17, 2015).

UPDATES: At Synod Closing, Pope Stresses Inclusion, Open Hearts, Encounter, and Mercy – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 26, 2015).
Synod on Family Produced Nothing New, Says Former President of Ireland Mary McAleese – Patsy McGarry (The Irish Times, October 26, 2015).
Why Are Some Catholics So Afraid of Change? – James Martin, SJ (CNN, October 26, 2015).
LGBT Advocates and Vatican Observers Respond to Synod on the Family’s Final Report – Bob Shine (Bondings 2.0, October 27, 2015).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Synod 2015 Quote of the Day – October 16, 2015
• Jim Smith on the "Tears of Love and Faith" of LGBTI People and Their Families
• Beyond the Hierarchy: The Blossoming of Liberating Catholic Insights on Sexuality (Part 8)
• "Trajectory is More Important Than the Current Status"
• Quote of the Day – December 10, 2014
• Competent Parenting Doesn't Require "Traditional Marriage"
• One Catholic Gay Parent Who Isn’t Leaving the Church
• "That Utterly Profound In-Loveness"
• Catholic Hierarchy Can Overcome Fear of LGBT People

Image: Source.

Synod 2015: Quote of the Day

The time is now for this synod to propose that the Church re-examine its teaching on marriage and sexuality, and its understanding of responsible parenthood, in a dialogue of laity and bishops together. The response of the [bishops] to [the massive dissent of the laity] has been for better catechesis or to ignore the dissent. This paralyzed status quo cannot continue. The matter must be discussed afresh but lay people will not be content to leave it to clergy alone. Too many in authority responded to clergy sexual abuse in a way which demonstrated that they lacked the expertise in sexuality and psychology to make good decisions, with the result they became complicit in perpetuating enormous harm, harm done to lay people. It will take not more catechesis but rather listening with deep empathy to restore the credibility of the Church in matters of sexual ethics.

– Sharron Cole
Lay Auditor at the Synod on the Family
Quoted in "Synod Hears Call to Re-examine Teachings
on Sexuality and Birth Control"
JohnThavis.com
October 16, 2015

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Beyond the Hierarchy: The Blossoming of Liberating Catholic Insights on Sexuality (Part 8)
• Trajectory is More Important Than the Current Status
• Quote of the Day – December 10, 2014

Related off-site Links:
Pope Francis Seeks to Open Church Doors to All – Gerard O'Connell (America, October 19, 2015).
As LGBT Lives Continue to Be Discussed While the Synod Takes Place, Look at Whose Voice Counts in Catholic Discussion Spaces — And Whose Testimony is Not Invited – William D. Lindsey (Bilgrimage, October 16, 2015).
Archbishop Blase Cupich: Let Gay and Divorced Catholics Take Part – Michael O'Loughlin (Crux, October 16, 2015).
Having the Wrong Discussions . . . – Questions from a Ewe (October 13, 2015).
Synod System Stacks Deck Against Women – Mary E. Hunt (National Catholic Reporter, October 6, 2015).
The Synod, LGBT Catholics, and Women: Meh – William D. Lindsey (Bilgrimage, October 13, 2015).
Synod Fathers on Gay Issues Couldn’t Be Any Further Apart Than They Already Are – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 12, 2015).
The Real Synod Has Yet to Arrive – Robert Mickens (National Catholic Reporter, October 12, 2015).
Synod 2015 News Notes: Keeping Tabs on All the Talk – Bob Shine (Bondings, 2.0, October 11, 2015).
Will the Synod Fathers Be Surprised by the Spirit? – Christopher Lamb (The Tablet, October 6, 2015).

UPDATE: US Sister-Auditor: Synod Shows Cultural Divide Between Bishops and Laypeople – Joshua J. McElwee (National Catholic Reporter, October 19, 2015).

Beyond the Hierarchy: The Blossoming of Liberating Catholic Insights on Sexuality (Part 8)

The Wild Reed's series highlighting the liberating insights on sexuality that are emerging and “blossoming” beyond the Vatican, continues with the recently released statement by the Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII, an international group of theologians from countries ranging from Spain to Cameroon, Venezula to the U.S.

This statement compellingly calls on the bishops at the Synod of the Family, currently taking place in Rome, to give full equality to women and to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in the Church.

Following is the full statement (with thanks to "Rebel Girl" at Iglesia Descalza for the English translation).

Keeping intact a certain model of family, proper to a time and culture, is not part of the Faith of the Church. According to the gospels, Jesus of Nazareth was deeply critical of the family model of his time and culture. Therefore, the Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII deems it necessary to present the following proposals to the Synod of Bishops that is being held in Rome:

1. We believe that the different sexual identities, options, and orientations must be respected as an expression of the diversity of ways of experiencing sexuality among human beings. Consequently, homosexuality and homosexual marriages should be recognized in the Catholic Church on equal terms with heterosexuality and heterosexual marriages. Christian homosexual people should not be excluded from any church task, activity or responsibility, or from participation in the sacraments.

Respect for non-heterosexual people doesn't seem to reconcile with their exclusion from certain church roles, for example being a godparent at a baptism or the priestly and theological ministry. Both exclusions have occured recently – in the Diocese of Cádiz with a transsexual man and in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith with a homosexual priest – and they demonstrate clear discrimination because of sexual orientation and belie the often repeated concept in Church teaching documents of acceptance towards non-heterosexual people.

2. We believe that the indiscriminate condemnation by Church teaching of the voluntary interruption of pregnancy should be reviewed. We consider it necessary to repeal Canon 1398 of the Code of Canon Law decreeing excommunication for anyone who procures the abortion, if it occurs, and that it is contrary to the absolution of the sin of abortion decreed by Pope Francis on the occasion of the Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy. Also the right of women to decide in conscience on this matter should be respected.

3. There are no biblical, theological, historical, pastoral, much less dogmatic reasons, to exclude married men or women from any ecclesial ministries, ordained or unordained. Equality of Christian men and women through baptism must translate into equal conditions for men and women in access to the realm of the sacred, in the development of theological and moral doctrine, as well as in participation in church duties and governing bodies, without any discrimination on the grounds of gender, ethnicity or social class. Therefore we ask that sexist ideological, cultural and normative barriers be removed and that the full incorporation of women in the above areas, including access to the priesthood and episcopate, be implemented.

4. As regards divorce, there is no dogma of faith that prevents it, nor that prohibits the access of separated or divorced and remarried people to the Eucharist. The current exclusionary discipline in this area, perhaps understandable in the past, has no justification today and, far from drawing people in those circumstances to the Christian community, it marginalizes them, drives them away, and stigmatizes them. In addition, it lacks a gospel basis. We therefore believe that the Synod of Bishops should remove that prohibition, currently in force, and facilitate access to Eucharistic communion by separated or divorced and remarried persons without imposing any corrective requirements. We believers are moral agents with the ability to decide freely in conscience in this area. This decision must be respected.

5. It is necessary to acknowledge the significant advances made by feminism on equality between men and women and in their liberation. In light of these developments, the patriarchal structure of the doctrine and practice on Christian marriage should be revised.

6. The Synod can not be reduced to matters relating to Christian marriage. We believe it a priority for it to do an analysis of the situation of poverty and social exclusion in which millions of families find themselves, to prophetically denounce it, to express its solidarity with the most vulnerable families and contribute to the elimination of the causes of this situation based on the ethical gospel option for poor and marginalized people.

Statement signed by: Xavier Alegre. Asociación de Teólogos y Teólogas Juan XXIII. Spain • José Arregi. Theologian. Spain • Olga Lucía Álvarez. Asociación Presbíteras Católicas Romanas. Colombia • Juan Barreto. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Fernando Bermúdez, Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Leonardo Boff. Ecotheologian, member of the Earth Charter Commission and writer • Ancizar Cadavid Restrepo. Theologian. Colombia • José María Castillo. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • José Centeno. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII, Spain • Juan Antonio Estrada. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Máximo García. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Antonio Gil de Zúñiga. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Ivone Gebara. Theologian and philosopher. Brazil • Axel Hernández Fajardo. Emeritus Professor at the Escuela Ecuménica de las Ciencias de Religiones. Universidad Nacional. Costa Rica • Rosa María Hernández. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Mary Hunt. Theologian. Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual (WATER) • Gabriela Juárez Palacio. Theologian. Co-founder of Teólogas e Investigadoras • Rosa Leiva. Federación Latinoamericana de Presbíteros Casados. Ecuador • Juan Masiá. Theologian. Japan • Federico Mayor Zaragoza. President of the Fundación Cultura de Paz and the Comisión Internacional contra la Pena de Muerte. Spain • Cyprien Melibi. Theologian. Cameroon • Arnoldo Mora Rodríguez. Co-founder of the Departamento Ecuménico de Investigaciones (DEI). Costa Rica • Mario Mullo. Federación Latinoamericana de Sacerdotes Casados. Ecuador • Carmiña Navia. Theologian. Colombia • Marisa Noriega. Theologian. Co-founder of the Asociación Mexicana de Reflexión Teológica Feminista. Mexico • Gladys Parentelli. Auditor at Vatican II. Venezuela • Federico Pastor. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Victorino Pérez Prieto. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Suyapa Pérez Scapini. Theologian. El Salvador • Margarita Maria Pintos. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Javier Omar Ruiz Arroyave. Activist. Masculinidades Liberadoras. Colombia • José Sánchez Suárez. Theologian. Comunidad Teológica de Mexico Santiago • Sánchez Torrado. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Fernando Silva. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos de Juan XXIII. Spain • Aida Soto Bernal. Asociación Presbíteras Católicas Romanas. Colombia • Juan José Tamayo. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Elsa Tamez. Theologian and biblical scholar. Mexico • Andrea Toca. Theologian. Co-founder of the Asociación Mexicana de Reflexión Teológica Feminista. Mexico • Fernando Torres Millán. Theologian. Coordinator of Kairós Educativo. Colombia • Olga Vasquez. Theologian. El Salvador • Evaristo Villar. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain • Juan Yzuel. Asociación de Teólogas y Teólogos Juan XXIII. Spain.

Above: Cardinals and bishops at the end of a morning session of the Synod on the Family – Vatican City, October 9, 2015. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

For Francis DeBernardo's excellent coverage from Rome on the Synod on the Family, see:
On Synod’s First Day, Differing Opinions on What Can Be Expected – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 6, 2015).
Synod Day Two’s Question: Who Is Inside and Who Is Outside the Church? – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 7, 2015).
In Advance of the Synod, Global Network of Rainbow Catholics Launches in Rome – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 8, 2015).
Archbishop Discusses African Bishops’ Silence on Criminalization of LGBT People – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 9, 2015).
Will Language Be the Only Thing That the Synod Updates? – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 10, 2015).
A Synod Discussion Asks the Question: What Is Mercy? – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 11, 2015).
Synod Fathers on Gay Issues Couldn’t Be Any Further Apart Than They Already Are – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 12, 2015).
Trying to Interpret the Language of the Synod – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 13, 2015).
Allowing Local Strategies Sounds Like a Good Idea – Except If You’re in Newark – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 14, 2015).
Should the Church Be a Mother or Father to Families? What’s the Difference? – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 15, 2015).
Challenges of Reporting from the Synod: Homophobic Statements, Leaked Documents, the Rumor Mill, and How to Keep Up With It All – Francis DeBernardo (Bondings 2.0, October 16, 2015).

Recommended Off-site Links and Updates:
Having the Wrong Discussions . . . – Questions from a Ewe (October 13, 2015).
Synod System Stacks Deck Against Women – Mary E. Hunt (National Catholic Reporter, October 6, 2015).
The Synod, LGBT Catholics, and Women: Meh – William D. Lindsey (Bilgrimage, October 13, 2015).
Cardinals’ Secret Letter to Francis Warns of Plot to Rig Reforms – David Gibson (Religion News Service, October 12, 2015).
Christians Have Hurt a Lot of LGBT People. It's Time To Embrace Them Instead – Sr. Simone Campbell (The Huffington Post, October 10, 2015).
Homosexual Relationships: Another Look – Bill hunt (The Progressive Catholic Voice, September 8, 2012).
We’ve Got to Accentuate the Positive, Synod Bishops Say – John L. Allen Jr. (Crux, October 9, 2015).
At the Synod, the Moment of Truth – Rocco Palmo (Whispers in the Loggia, October 9, 2015).
German Group at Synod United: Church Doctrine Has Developed Over Time – Joshua J. McElwee (National Catholic Reporter, October 15, 2015).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Beyond the Hierarchy (Part 1)
• Beyond the Hierarchy (Part 2)
• Beyond the Hierarchy (Part 3)
• Beyond the Hierarchy (Part 4)
• Beyond the Hierarchy (Part 5)
• Beyond the Hierarchy (Part 6)
• Beyond the Hierarchy (Part 7)
• Human Sex: Weird and Silly, Messy and Sublime
• Sex as Mystery, Sex as Light (Part 1)
• Sex as Mystery, Sex as Light (Part 2)
• Making Love, Giving Life
• Intrinsically Sexual
• A "Truly Queer Theory" on Sex
• The Non-Negotiables of Human Sex
• Sons of the Church: The Witnessing of Gay Catholic Men: A Discussion Guide

Blossom images: Michael J. Bayly (Port Macquarie, March 2015).