What do LGBTQ+ Catholics and their allies think about the U.S. Conference of Bishops’ new website that defends marriage as an exclusively heterosexual institution? Recently in the National Catholic Reporter, journalist Katie Collins Scott looked at the Conference of Bishops’ “Love Means More” website, presenting the perspectives of a range of Catholics who question the validity of the mission articulated on the website.
“Love Means More” was launched by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Commission on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth. The website, formerly known as “Marriage: Special for a Reason,” launched as marriage equality began becoming legal across the U.S., according to a press release.
“The ‘Love Means More’ initiative is an ongoing campaign anchored by a new website that delves deeper into the meaning of love. It is a versatile resource for Catholic catechists and ‘seekers’ of all religious backgrounds, but also welcomes those with no religious background at all. Bishop Barron is chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth, which is spearheading this effort.”
Additionally, in the press release, Baron said that conversations about love, family and sexuality “can be confusing and polarizing,” so he’s pleased that this new initiative will help “bring clarity and compassion to these questions.”
The initiative is said to “seek to listen to and address questions and concerns raised by people who are uncomfortable with some of the Church’s teachings,” including “those who support the possibility of divorce and remarriage, those who identify as LGBT, and those who defend pornography.”
The Collins-Scott report noted that the website is not as clear and thoughtful as the bishops had hoped, particularly when it is read by people with doubts about Church teachings, a website that was purposefully designed for that very audience.
Bernie Donlon, a queer Catholic and digital communications and programs coordinator for New Ways Ministries, said when she first scrolled through the “Love Means More” website, she was disappointed.
“If I had Googled it when I was younger and stumbled across this, I think it would have taken me a few steps back in my personal journey around gender expression and sexuality,” she said. “In my opinion, it speaks in a superlative way and doesn’t encourage or engage with dialogue or listening.”
Donlon continued, “I understand.[s] “We appreciate that the website is based in Christian anthropology,” he said, but added that it “does not seem to take into account the lived experiences of LGBTQ people.”
Donlon added that the website’s philosophical discussions are sometimes “confusing or use logic and language that only make sense if you already accept the Church’s teachings,” and concluded that he is “hopeful that the bishops might consider revamping the website to better reflect the realities and concerns of LGBTQ people.”
Theologian Jason Steidl-Jacques of St. Joseph’s University in New York told NCR he agrees that the “Love Means More” website is inaccessible to those who don’t embrace a Catholic worldview.
“I would rather have someone read the Catechism of the Catholic Church because the Church’s teaching is stated there very clearly,” he said.
Moreover, Steidl-Jacques said the website’s reference to “hurt people” “is incredibly paternalistic and condescending, as if the only reason people would believe anything other than what the bishops say is because the bishops are hurt people.”
“LGBTQ people, like many other Catholics, go to therapy and confession, but our sexual orientation and gender are not part of the personal wounds that lead to misunderstandings and errors in Church teaching. The LGBTQ community is not broken because of sexual orientation.
“We are not broken because of our gender, gender expression, or gender self-understanding. We are broken because we live in a homophobic and transphobic world.”
Jennifer McNeill, a Catholic mother of a transgender daughter, said after reading “Love Means More”‘s page about gender nonconformity, her family felt the story “uses outdated tropes that have long been rejected by most young people.”
McNeil explained that the website was “insulting and encourages members of my faith community to be aggressive towards transgender people.” She added that the “U.S. bishops’ website contains inaccurate information and is offensive to young people.” She added that “content like this drives people away from the Church, but I will not back down. I can be a Catholic woman with my faith and a transgender child.”
Collins Scott’s article highlights the voices of Catholics who were excluded from the construction of the “Love Means More” website, and argues that Catholics would have benefited if the bishops had consulted in a synodal spirit.
For another perspective on the U.S. Bishops’ website, click here to read theologian Mary Doyle Roche’s Bondings 2.0 article, “Love Can Mean More…Or Less.”
—Robert Schein, New Ways Ministries, July 22, 2024
like this:
Like Loading…
