My Big Gay Blog

One of many, rest assured. So, the Catholic Church set new guidelines for gay outreach last week. Here are the highlights with some commentary by yours truly. It should be noted that I am not actually a scholar of the Catholic Church. I know very little about it and while I respect everyone's right to worship who/what they choose, I obviously have some beefs with the Catholic Church:

• All people are created in the image and likeness of God and thus possess an innate human dignity that must be acknowledged and respected.

Now, does that really mean all people or just the people who believe in your god and your bible? And what about the innate human dignity of the gay community? How acknowledged and respected is that when you won't recognize gay marriage or even gay love?

• In keeping with this conviction, the Church teaches that persons with a homosexual inclination must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity.

Again, a really great notion, if it were actually practiced. I find it hard to buy that the Catholic Church (and yes, I'm speaking in broad generalizations. I'm aware of Catholics who support the LGBT community) treats the gay community with respect, compassion and sensitivity when it refuses to recognize the basic human rights that the gay community deserves.

• By its very nature, the sexual act finds its proper fulfillment in the marital bond. Any sexual act that takes place outside the bond of marriage does not fulfill the proper ends of human sexuality.

Does this mean that once gay marriage is accepted in the Constitution (notice I don't say "if gay marriage is accepted"), then gay sex will be ok with the Catholic Church?

• While the Church teaches that homosexual acts are immoral, she does distinguish between engaging in homosexual acts and having a homosexual inclination. While the former is always objectively sinful, the latter is not. To the extent that a homosexual tendency or inclination is not subject to one’s free will, one is not morally culpable for that tendency. Although one would be morally culpable if one were voluntarily to entertain homosexual temptations or to choose to act on them, simply having the tendency is not a sin. Consequently, the Church does not teach that the experience of homosexual attraction is in itself sinful.

My translation: "It's ok to say that you're gay. You can be attracted to the same sex. That's your free will. You just can't live a life that would be in any way fulfilling and joyful. Happiness is not part of free will."

• A considerable number of people who experience same-sex attraction experience it as an inclination that they did not choose.

Wait, did the Catholic Church just admit that homosexuality isn't a choice?

• The local Church community is also a place where the person with a homosexual inclination should experience friendship. This community can be a rich source of human relationships and friendships, so vital to living a healthy life. In fact, within the Church human friendship is raised to a new order of love, that of brothers and sisters in Christ.

My translation: "You can still be a member of the Catholic Church and give us your money. We're just going to look down on you as a worse sinner than we are."

• In fact, the Church actively asserts and promotes the intrinsic dignity of every person. As human persons, persons with a homosexual inclination have the same basic rights as all people, including the right to be treated with dignity. Nevertheless “‘sexual orientation’ does not constitute a quality comparable to race, ethnic background, etc., in respect to nondiscrimination.

Another translation: "We can discriminate against you all we want even though we just admitted above that you don't have a choice, just like race or ethnic background. But race and ethnic background are not valid reasons for discrimination, even though they don't have a choice. Are we clear?"

• For some persons, revealing their homosexual tendencies to certain close friends, family members, a spiritual director, confessor, or members of a Church support group may provide some spiritual and emotional help and aid them in their growth in the Christian life. In the context of parish life, however, general public self-disclosures are not helpful and should not be encouraged.

Translation: Please live in the closet as best you can. We don't want the whole world knowing that we allow gays in our church.

• Similarly, the Church does not support the adoption of children by same-sex couples since homosexual unions are contrary to the divine plan.
  
• Baptism of children in the care of same-sex couples presents a serious pastoral concern. Nevertheless, the Church does not refuse the Sacrament of Baptism to these children, but there must be a well founded hope that the children will be brought up in the Catholic religion. In those cases where Baptism is permitted, pastoral ministers should exercise prudential judgment when preparing baptismal ceremonies. Also, in preparing the baptismal record, a distinction should be made between natural parents and adoptive parents

A nice double standard: "We don't want you adopting kids. But, if you are to adopt, make sure to baptise them as Catholics so we can teach them all about how their parents' love is wrong and intolerable by our god. It's even worse than all those priests of ours who had those problems back in the day."

I exaggerate, I know. I jump to a few conclusions, sure. But it's hard not to feel enraged. Everyone made such a big deal out of the Catholic Church coming out with a new stance on homosexuals. Um, what is this new stance? Let's see....homosexuality still a sin? Check. Gay marriage still not allowed? Check. The only difference I see here is that now they'll allow mostly closeted gays and their adopted children to be a part of the Church.

I'll save the religion rant for another day. Here's my basic idea: if god made everyone in "his" image, then wouldn't that mean that gays are the same as everyone else? I know, I may be simplifying it too much. Regardless of what I believe now, I grew up learning about a god that was loving of all people; that sin was sin, regardless of what kind of a sin it was.

I think if Christians (again, broad generalization, I know) spent more time practicing the love that they claim their savior died for, maybe things would be a little different.