Catholic bishops sign a statement to young LGBT people: “God created you, God loves you”.

0

A group of US Catholic bishops, including a cardinal and an archbishop, have signed a statement of support for LGBT youth, telling them, “God made you, God loves you, and God is with you.”

“As we see in the Gospels, Jesus Christ taught love, mercy and acceptance for all, especially for those who felt persecuted or marginalized in any way; and the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that LGBT people should be treated with ‘respect, compassion and sensitivity’,” reads the statement released by the Tyler Clementi Foundation, an organization that fights LGBT bullying in schools, workplaces and religious communities.

Among the signers of the statement were Cardinal Joseph Tobin, Archbishop of Newark, and Archbishop John Wester, who leads the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.

“All people of good will must help, support and defend young LGBT people; who attempt suicide at much higher rates than their straight counterparts; who are often homeless because of families who reject them; who are rejected, bullied and harassed; and who are being targeted by acts of violence at an alarming rate,” the statement continued.

A group of US Catholic bishops, including a cardinal and an archbishop, have signed a statement of support for LGBT youth, telling them, “God made you, God loves you, and God is with you.”

“The Catholic Church values ​​the God-given dignity of all human life and we take this opportunity to tell our LGBT friends, especially young people, that we stand with you and oppose all forms of violence, bullying or harassing you.”

Archbishop Wester said in a telephone interview with America that he signed the declaration because he wanted young LGBT people to know “you are valuable, you are worthy and you are a child of God”.

A former high school teacher, Archbishop Wester, said bullying can be particularly toxic for young people trying to come to terms with their sexual orientation, especially when they or others misinterpret the teaching of the church on homosexuality to convey the idea that being gay itself is a sin. .

The Catholic Church teaches that homosexuality is “objectively disordered” and condemns same-sex sexual acts as sinful. But at the same time, he says that homosexuals “must be accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity. Any signs of unjust discrimination against them should be avoided.

Archbishop Wester said young LGBT people can sometimes misinterpret church teaching on homosexuality and mistakenly think they are somehow cut off from God’s love.

Archbishop Wester said he signed the statement because he wanted young LGBT people to know “you are valuable, you are worthy and you are a child of God.”

“We have our teachings, which we appreciate and cherish, but those teachings must be understood in the proper context of love and mercy,” he said. “Sometimes people can misunderstand, ‘Well, if it’s a sin to engage in a homosexual act, then I must be a terrible person.’ The church does not teach this and it is important [young people] don’t get that wrong impression.

He added: ‘I think it’s tragic that young people in the LGBT community are being bullied and laughed at,’ calling it ‘another form of bigotry and prejudice that we see in our country today. ‘today’.

Bishop John Stowe, who leads the Diocese of Lexington, Ken., said America he signed the statement because he has heard from former students and students of Catholic schools in his diocese that bullying LGBT students can be a serious challenge.

“Sometimes offensive remarks went unchallenged or even laughed at by teachers,” Bishop Stowe said in an email. “I have heard from other LGBT Catholics that what other students experienced as the best years of their lives was often a traumatic experience for them as they were shunned by society and worried about love God for them and whether they had any hope of salvation Too often these students felt isolated, sometimes even afraid to get support from their parents and family.

Last year, Bishop Stowe and Bishop Wester appeared in a video offering support to the LGBT community. They were scheduled to attend a conference on pastoral care and LGBT people, hosted by James Martin, SJ, which was postponed due to the pandemic. (Father Martin, editor-in-chief at America, helped the Tyler Clementi Foundation contact bishops who might be interested in signing the statement.)

“I think it is tragic that young people in the LGBT community are being bullied and made fun of,” Bishop Wester said, calling it “another form of bigotry and prejudice that we see in our country today.” today”.

Other bishops who also signed the statement have previously expressed support for LGBT Catholics, including Cardinal Tobin. In 2017, he addressed a group of about 100 LGBT Catholics who gathered at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, and in 2019, he told NBC News that he found the church’s language around homosexuality to be “very unfortunate” and “hurtful”.

Bishop Robert McElroy, who leads the Diocese of San Diego, also signed the statement. In 2016, he supported the idea that the church should apologize to LGBT people for historical mistreatment and called for church teaching on the subject to use “inclusive, embracing language [and] pastoral.”

Bishop Steven Biegler of Cheyenne and Bishop Edward Weisenberger of Tucson, as well as two retired auxiliary bishops, Bishop Thomas Gumbleton of Detroit and Bishop Dennis J. Madden of Baltimore, also signed the statement.

The Tyler Clementi Foundation is named after the Rutgers University student who committed suicide in 2010 following an act of online bullying. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, young lesbian, gay and bisexual people are bullied and attempt suicide at higher rates than their heterosexual peers. Trans students report higher rates of bullying, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts than non-transgender students. The CDC says schools can help fight suicide by encouraging respect in students and working to reduce bullying and harassment.

Jane Clementi, Tyler’s mother and co-founder of the foundation, said America the foundation seeks affirmative statements from religious leaders to LGBT youth because it has “seen firsthand how important it is to have positive messages in faith communities to influence people.”

“I hope a young LGBT person reads this statement and feels supported, knows they are not alone, and knows there are members of their faith community who support them,” Jane Clementi said.

“I hope a young LGBT person reads this statement and feels supported, knows they are not alone, and knows there are members of their faith community who support them,” Ms Clementi said, adding that she hopes that parents of LGBT children will not feel isolated if they belong to religious traditions that historically do not support LGBT people.

This isn’t the Tyler Clementi Foundation’s first religious outreach effort. He organizes a campaign aimed at leaders of the Southern Baptist tradition and has tried to fight faith-based conversion therapy programs. On its website, the foundation states, “Treating LGBTQ people as less valued, preaching to LGBTQ people, and calling LGBTQ people’s sexual orientation or gender identity a ‘sin’ are all potential examples of grounded bullying. on religion.”

There are around 430 bishops in the United States, and with just eight signatories to the statement, Ms Clementi, who was raised Catholic and now attends a Protestant church, said she hopes to others would also sign.

“We are trying to start a conversation,” she said, noting that the statement “does not go against any Catholic teaching, which I have come to know as a message of love, of mercy and inclusion”.

“It’s so important for the church to shine in the world,” she added.

More of America

watch next

Share.

Comments are closed.