Sr. Jeannine Gramick and Bishop Thomas Paprocki Present Two Different Catholic Views on Marriage Equality

Sr. Jeannine Gramick speaking with Bishop Thomas Paprocki

An event last Friday that included Sr. Jeannine Gramick, the co-founder of New Ways Ministry, highlighted just how supportive Catholics are of marriage equality as the bishops play defense to support their position.

For over two hours at an event hosted by Robert Blair Kaiser and the Jesuit Alumni of Arizona, Sr. Gramick exchanged views with Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield, Illinois, in front of an audience.

The National Catholic Reporter reported on the event, where Bishop Paprocki attacked  the “gay activist lobby” in his opening remarks and denigrated the attention given to the murder of Matthew Shepard in 1998 as evidence of media bias. He posited that if marriage equality passes, then “everything should be OK” in regard to any sexual practice or activity.

Sister Jeannine Gramick

Alternatively, Sr. Gramick spoke of the positive changes occurring around LGBT issues, including her personal conversion that has led to nearly four decades of ministry with gay and lesbian people. The article continues:

“Gramick reflected on changes in her own attitudes, attitudes of the public and attitudes of the church hierarchy. She said more and more church leaders are moving toward support of at least civil unions.

“Referring to Paprocki’s remark that morality cannot be based on polls, she said, ‘We may not legislate on the basis of polls, but they tell us what people are thinking.’

“She said polls show Catholics’ opinions have moved from opposition to same-sex marriage to approval in a short time because nearly everyone has a gay friend, family member or business associate.”

Indicative of these shifting views, the question period was solely aimed at Bishop Paprocki’s opposition to LGBT rights. During remarks by the bishop, a member of the audience, Anne Gray, even yelled out, “That’s insulting” and followed-up with a question:

Bishop Thomas Paprocki

“In response to a question from Kaiser, Paprocki said the church would love to welcome gay people but is forced into a defensive position by ‘activists pushing an agenda.’ That set off Gray, who has a gay son, again.

“‘Here I am,’ she said. ‘The big scary gay agenda…My son is a perfect human being. There is nothing intrinsically disordered about him. I know because I am his mother.’…

” ‘You need to listen to mothers,’ she said.”

Another questioner offered her personal experience of supporting lesbian family members and Paprocki made the suggestion that she leave the church to do so:

“One of the youngest people in the room said she was a devout Catholic, but when her aunt and sister told her they were gay, she was put on the spot. She asked Paprocki if she could remain a good Catholic and still support her family members in their desires to form lifelong relationships.

” ‘It is a struggle to be a good Catholic while supporting gay marriage,’ the bishop said. ‘It strains your relationship with the church.’

“He said those who oppose the church on the issue should become Protestants. ‘They do a lot of good things too,’ he said.

This is the latest instance where Catholics supportive of LGBT equality are making their voices heard to the Church’s hierarchy, including Sr. Gramick who recently confronted the famously anti-gay Cardinal Turkson of Ghana. We applaud the many people whose efforts contributed to making American Catholics the leading religious group advocating for equal marriage rights!

–Bob Shine, New Ways Ministry

Sr. Jeannine Gramick & Bishop Paprocki Present Catholic Views on Marriage

Sister Jeannine Gramick

Bishop Thomas Paprocki

Sister Jeannine Gramick, SL,  co-founder of New Ways Ministry and longtime Catholic advocate for LGBT equality, will engage in a conversation about marriage equality with Bishop Thomas Paprocki, of Springfield, Illinois, on Friday, May 31, 2013, in Phoenix, Arizona.

Entitled “Two Catholic Views on Marriage,” the event is sponsored by the Jesuit Alumni of Arizona organization, and will be moderated by journalist and author Robert Blair Kaiser.  The program is scheduled for 6:00 p.m., at Shadow Rock United Church of Christ Church, 12861 North 8th Street Phoenix, Arizona 85029.

New Ways Ministry encourages all who are able to attend this event.  You can purchase tickets for the event here.   It promises to be an evening of serious education and reflection.

–Francis DeBernardo, New Ways Ministry

Illinois Catholics Stand Up to Bishops As Marriage Equality Progresses

Illinois Senate

The Illinois Senate passed a marriage equality bill on Valentine’s Day,moving that state closer to equality for every committed couple.  The Chicago Tribune reported:

“The Democratic-led Senate delivered a Valentine’s Day victory to gay and lesbian couples today, passing legislation for the first time that would allow same-sex marriage in Illinois.

“The gay marriage measure now goes to the House, where the fight is expected to be tougher. [Catholic] Gov. Pat Quinn is expected to sign the bill if it reaches his desk.”

 As expected, the state’s Catholic bishops’ efforts to deny LGBT couples their rights has been strong, but so have been those of pro-equality Catholics.

Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield wrote a message for Valentine’s Day condemning equal marriage rights. Think Progress summarizes the bishop’s message:

“Catholics who support their LGBT friends and family are destroying society, and gay people have a ‘condition’ that can be addressed by living a life of chastity. In other words, Catholics aren’t allowed to love gays and gays aren’t allowed to even experience love. Perhaps it’s not surprising that a man committed to a life of celibacy defines a ‘more authentic understanding’ of love as no love at all.”

Catholic laywomen directly challenged the bishop’s comments in a piece at The Huffington Post, arguing their case for Catholic support of marriage equality. Citing the bishops’ support for social justice as an extension of the Catholic call to hospitality, Cristina Traina and Karen Allen write:

“In any of those [anti-LGBT] positions, the bishops’ words sound cold rather than hospitable.

“They are distressing, too, because they imply that same-sex marriage destroys fidelity, commitment and family rather than affirming their value for individuals and society. Gay and lesbian couples who seek the full rights (and responsibilities) of marriage are far from the enemies of the ‘common good of society.’ In an era of cohabitation and serial monogamy, they and their allies may be marriage’s biggest champions.

“Despite our leaders’ profound ambivalence about us, gay and lesbian–and bisexual and transgender–Catholics and their allies contribute joyfully and faithfully to the life of the Church. We hope that our leaders will think twice before labeling us destructive, disordered, and unnatural. And we hope that they will reconsider their opposition to same-sex civil marriage, which puts them in a position of inhospitality rather than welcome.”

Cardinal Francis George of Chicago continued his long history as an outspoken anti-LGBT activist. Medill Reports describes the Cardinal’s efforts and how increasingly removed he is from mainstream Catholic thought.  They quoted Andy Thayer, the co-founder of the Gay Liberation Network, who led a protest recently at Chicago’s Holy Name Cathedral:

“‘Cardinal George has rarely let an opportunity to vilify our community go by, and so we are really angry with his opposition to our legal equality.’

“Many LGBT activists say they believe Cardinal George’s positions do not reflect the views of the majority of Catholics in Illinois…

“A majority of Illinois Catholics approve of gay and lesbian unions, according to polling data released in October 2012 by The Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University, as reported by Capitol Fax, a news organization covering state government.”

In the Chicaago Archdiocese, faithful Catholic laity used their Catholic faith as the basis for challenging Cardinal George’s actions. Parishioners of St. Nicholas Catholic Church in Evanston, which hosts a Gay and Lesbian, Family and Friends Ministry, wrote a letter to George inviting him to dialogue after harshly toned letters on marriage equality were read at Mass.

They emphasized their shared experiences of the goodness that LGBT relationships and families contribute to Church and society, saying in part:

“It is precisely because of this that we ask you to consider that the gay and lesbian couples who seek the full rights (and responsibilities) of marriage are far from the enemies of the ‘common good of society’ that you identify them to be. Such characterizations run completely contrary to our experience, leaving many of us disappointed, frustrated, and angry. This is not the truth we know, and we are compelled by our commitment out our Church and our society to speak that truth — to you and to our communities.

“In all of this, we have seen the gifts that gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people have to offer our Church and our world. St.. Nicholas, the Archdiocese of Chicago, and the communities of Evanston and Chicago have been well served by the courageous and loving witness of our GLBT brothers and sisters, including those who have chosen to live in partnerships and those who have accepted the awesome responsibility of providing a loving home to children.”

New Ways Ministry applauds Catholics supporting equality for witnessing to an inclusive Gospel.

–Bob Shine, New Ways Ministry

Catholics Debate Marriage Equality Bill in Illinois

Illinois, which already has a civil union law, signed by Catholic Governor Pat Quinn, will be taking up the issue of marriage equality in the legislature this year.  Catholics have already entered the debate on this topic on both sides of the question.

Cardinal Francis George

At the beginning of this month, Chicago’s Cardinal Francis George wrote a letter to priests asking them to urge parishioners to oppose the marriage bill.

The Chicago Sun-Times  quoted part of the letter:

“ ‘It is physically impossible for two men or two women to consummate a marriage, even when they share a deep friendship or love,’ George writes in the letter, meant for inclusion in parish bulletins to be distributed this upcoming weekend. ‘Does this mean nature is cruel or that God is unfair? No, but it does mean that marriage is what nature tells us it is and that the state cannot change natural marriage.’ ”

In this quote, we see a new trend in statements by Catholic hierarchy: they are starting to acknowledge that the relationship between two people of the same gender can be defined as a love relationship.

Rick Garcia

The cardinal’s argument did not convince Rick Garcia, a longtime Chicago advocate for LGBT issues. The Sun-Times quotes his reaction:

“ ‘How the Church — or any faith — views marriage within its own institution is one thing, but secular society treats marriage as a civil right,’ said Garcia, who described himself as a practicing Catholic. ‘No individual or church, including Cardinal George and the Catholic Church is going to be forced to perform or recognize any marriages they would not find consistent with their own beliefs. . . . What also will not change is the fact that secular society views marriage as a fundamental civil right that should be afforded to all.’ ”

A Chicago Tribune article on George’s letter notes that two prominent Illinois Catholics support the marriage bill:  Governor Pat Quinn and U.S. Senator Dick Durbin.

Chris Pett

Dignity/Chicago President Chris Pett also criticized the cardinal’s statement. Pett noted that

“. . . the cardinal might have had pastoral intentions, but he missed an opportunity to call for dialogue and engage with the gay community. Instead, the cardinal made it clear that the church would fight marriage equality ‘until the bitter end.’ “

David Gibson, a long-time observer of the Catholic Church, notes in a USA Today article that George’s comments may not have the power to stop the bill from becoming law:

“It’s unclear what, if any, influence George may have. Similar attempts by influential cardinals to stop same-sex marriage in Massachusetts, New York, Washington, D.C., and Maryland have all failed.”

Cardinal George is not the only Illinois prelate who has entered the debate.  Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfiled and  Bishop David Malloy of Rockford also issued similar letters to the Catholics in their dioceses.

Robert McClory

But support for the bill is also strong from Catholic lay leaders.  Chicagoan Robert McClory, an astute commentator on Catholic issues wrote a column in The National Catholic Reporter criticizing George’s stand.  After noting the shift in Catholic teaching at Vatican II, which  elevated love and companionship of the couple to an equal status with procreation as primary functions of marriage,  McClory notes that another important shift has also taken place:

“Meanwhile, we are adjusting to an evolutionary shift in society: the recognition that sexual orientation is not exclusively what one chooses but what one is. For centuries, it was assumed (certainly by the church) that all males are sexually oriented to females and all females oriented to males, no exceptions; therefore, homosexual relationships and homosexual activity were seen as contrary to nature, disordered and sinful. Now society, prompted by the research of psychologists, psychiatrists and other scientists vigorously questions those presumptions about orientation. And the questioning increases as LGBT people emerge from their closets. For the first time, straight people are seeing daughters, sons, uncles, co-workers, neighbors, teammates and others who are not only ‘out,’ but living happy lives, contributing to society, even contributing in creative ways to the multiplication of the race. That’s why so many people react angrily and resentfully in the face of unremitting negativity from church leaders.

“The question now is why these people in committed gay relationships should not be eligible for the same benefits society grants to those in committed straight relationships? And why should this relationship not be called marriage — a different kind of marriage, for sure, but a union that serves society’s needs in practical and useful ways? And why should the church be so uptight about what’s happening? Gay Catholic couples are daily fulfilling that central requirement of Christian marriage, love and fidelity. Would it kill the hierarchy to at least acknowledge these facts? George and other prelates and priests who cling to a failing theology and an outmoded anthropology are only further degrading their authority.”

Charles Martel

Similarly, Charles G. Martel, writing in The Windy City Times,  observes that we have already had marriage equality for almost a decade in Massachusetts, and that other states have followed suit, and none of the social disasters predicted have happened:

“There were those who feared that somehow the granting of these rights to same sex couples would diminish our understanding of marriage, or that it would it reduce the specialness of such a pledge, one to another. Some worried that this was a ‘dangerous social experiment,’ that instead of seeing this as a matter of fairness to same-sex couples, it would introduce chaos into the social fabric, creating confusion. This has not happened.

“There were those who were afraid that this legal right would infringe on the rights of religious denominations to decide what constituted for them a sacramental marriage, that somehow they would be forced by the government to officiate at weddings they did not wish to bless.

“None of this has come to pass, but rather the laws in each state protect the rights of each religious denomination to determine whom they choose to marry, as has always been the case. Religious liberty has been preserved. Religious denominations that wish to bless same sex couples are free to do so, and those who choose not to, do not have to.”

Indeed, with each state that passes marriage equality, the fear-based arguments will soon begin to lose any remaining power that they may have.

–Francis DeBernardo, New Ways Ministry

 

Support LCWR with a Christmas Card to the Nuncio and the Bishops!

The Nun Justice Project, a coalition of Catholic church reform and social justice organizations including New Ways Ministry, is urging Catholics to send Christmas cards to leading prelates in support of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR).

Launched after a harsh Vatican critique of LCWR in early 2012, the Nun Justice Project asks the nuns’ supporters to write with gratitude for the prophetic ministry of the American sisters and to request a withdrawal of the Vatican-imposed mandate against LCWR.

The Project is targeting the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganó, and the three bishops charged with implementing Vatican-mandated reforms to LCWR, Archbishop Peter Sartain of Seattle, Bishop Leonard Blair of Toledo, and Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield, IL. You can add your support through this link.

As reported previously on Bondings 2.0, with links provided below, the Vatican’s critique of the nuns partially emerged out of their support for LGBT persons and organizations. Specifically named by the Vatican was New Ways Ministry, which has benefited greatly in its 35 years from the unequivocal and sustained support of communities of women religious.

The women religious of LCWR were one of those things the staff of New Ways Ministry was most thankful for this year and we stand with the sisters in these challenging times. New Ways Ministry strongly encourages Catholics and LGBT advocates to write to the bishops and express your support for the nuns who have adamantly struggled for equality within the Church and society.

–Bob Shine, New Ways Ministry

Previous posts relating to LCWR:

August 11, 2012: LCWR Will Continue to Work Towards Dialogue With Vatican Officials

July 22, 2012: LCWR President Offers “Fresh Air” on Vatican Challenge to Nuns

June 21, 2012: Support the Sisters by Re-Directing Peter’s Pence Donations

June 12, 2012: Report on LCWR Meeting With the CDF at the Vatican

June 1, 2012: LCWR Responds to the Vatican with a Vision of Equality, Hope, and Dialogue

May 28, 2012: Support Our Sisters: Pray at a Vigil!

May 11, 2012: Sister Jeannine, Cardinal Ratzinger, New Ways Ministry, and Solidarity with LCWR

May 1, 2012: Round-up of Actions and Commentary on LCWR

April 23, 2012: Message to Nuns: ‘Be Not Afraid’

April 22, 2012: Comments on LCWR Action from National Catholic LGBT Organizations

April 21, 2012: Support for U.S. Nuns Spreads Quickly Among Catholics and Others

April 20, 2012: Can There Really Be “Collaboration” Between the Vatican and LCWR?

April 19, 2012: Sister Joan Chittister & Sister Simone Campbell Respond to Vatican Action Against U.S. Nuns

April 18, 2012: Vatican Action Against U.S. Nuns; New Ways Ministry’s Response