Homosexuality and the Clergy
Card. O'Malley: LGBT Employees
Should Not Be Fired
Margaret Galitzin
This year has seen a significant rise in Catholic Church employees who have been punished in some way for LGBT related employment disputes. Basically, this means they have been fired, resigned, refused to renew restrictive contracts or had job offers rescinded because it was discovered that they were homosexuals living in an open relationship with a "partner" of the same sex. Reported cases since 2008 total around 40; of these, 17 were reported this year.
I call this good news, because it reveals a reaction among the faithful who do not want to tolerate homosexuals, lesbians and transvestites in Catholic schools teaching their children or on parish boards since their lifestyle openly defies Catholic teaching. Unfortunately, there is also bad news to report. Instead of supporting this healthy reaction in Catholic communities, one of our country's top Prelates recently came out in support of the homosexual and lesbian employees. Boston's Cardinal Sean O'Malley was one of a 6-member panel at an event launching Boston Globe's new website Crux, supposedly for "all things Catholic." The website advertises itself as being "free of ideological bias that colors much religion reporting." It is definitely not that.
For example, its launch event was held at the Jesuit-run Boston College and the first topic was the papacy of Francis, "A Pope for the 21st Century." All there praised Francis extravagantly, evidence of the decidedly progressivist tone of the new website.
'The situation needs to be rectified'
Responding to a "hot" question about the firing of Church employees because of LGBT issues, Cardinal O'Malley said:
O'Malley suggests accepting homosexuals
"I think the Holy Father's notion of mercy and inclusion is going to make a big difference in the way that the Church responds to and ministers to people of homosexual orientation. The Holy Father is talking about reaching out to the periphery and very often this is a group that is on the periphery.
"It is not necessarily that the Church is going to change doctrine, but, as somebody said, the Holy Father hasn't changed the lyrics, but he's changed the melody. I think the context of love and mercy and community is the context in which all of the Church's teachings must be presented, including the more difficult ones.
"The same could be said about abortion and so many others. It is only when people realize that we love them that they will be open to hear the truth we want to share with them."
After the public event, Bob Shine, director of New Ways Ministry – one of the most notorious American organizations pro homosexuals – questioned directly Card. Sean O'Malley whether he will include or not the LGBT community in Church parishes and communities. Parroting the Francis line, the Cardinal told Shine that "we must first convince people we love them before talking about the Ten Commandments."
When Shine responded that it has been hard to convince LGBT Catholics of this love when so many Church workers have had LGBT-related employment disputes with Catholic schools and parishes, Card. O'Malley said this trend was a situation that "needs to be rectified."
The quote is being heralded by homosexuals and their allies as a good sign of change coming in Catholic policy, especially in view of the high position of O'Malley in the U.S. and at the Vatican, where he sits as one of the Council of Eight, the advisors Francis set up to assist him guide the Church.
Disturbing trends
What are some similar cases in other Dioceses that should be "rectified", according to Card. O'Malley? Let us look at a few.
One of the more recent and widely publicized worker firing cases is that of Barbara Webb, a former chemistry teacher at the all-girls Marian High School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. She claims she was fired because she and her lesbian partner announced they were expecting a baby. The school was unwilling to offer her any type of leave or grant her the "rights'" that other teachers in normal marriages had.
Webb has been outspoken about her termination, encouraging public protest rallies outside the school and posting on Facebook urging people to "stand up for change." She and other alumni are also demanding a Gay-Straight Alliance club for the students at Marian High School to have an outlet "to express themselves" and support tolerance of homosexuals.
In short, her public revolt against Catholic Morals is being lauded as a matter of "social justice" and the high school girls she taught are being encouraged to support her action. This is one of the situations Card. 'Malley wants to accept as normal.
Let us go to another case, this one in the State of Kansas, quite conservative in its politics. In September Colleen Simon was fired from her job at a Catholic parish in Kansas City, Missouri, when it became public through a newspaper article that she was married to a woman. Simon coordinated the St. Francis Xavier Church food pantry and supposedly "married" a Lutheran pastor Donna Simon.
Apparently, the Jesuit pastor had been informed of Simon's same-sex marriage and assured her it was acceptable and even met her "wife." What caused the commotion was the public uproar when the Kansas City Star ran a story featuring the "couple." Simon is now suing the Diocese for discrimination, demanding "accountability" as a "mandate of justice" for the wrongs committed against her.
A majority of States still defend the correct position on marriage
In effect, she is saying Catholic Morals should play no part in the criteria for holding jobs in Catholic institutions, which should be required to be "inclusive" and accept homosexuals living in the state of open sin as role models for their communities. This would be the kind of "notion of mercy and inclusion" that Card. O'Malley promotes for the Church of the future, based on the Pope's own vision of love.
Card. O'Malley is the first American high-rank Prelate to acknowledge publicly that these homosexual anomalies happening among school teachers should be accepted.
I would like to expect a strong backlash of protest among the Catholic Hierarchy against O'Malley statement, but I fear this will not happen. Instead, we should expect to see fewer employees being fired for "LGBT issues" and more tolerance being preached from pulpits. All in the name of the love and mercy being preached incessantly by Francis…
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