Gen Z Catholics Model Resilience and Faith, Including for LGBTQ+ Inclusion, Writes Essayist
(Phoebe Carstens. New Ways Ministry
Gen Z Catholics, born between roughly 1997 and 2021, are responding with “courage, resilience, and faith” to so many of the world’s major threats, including threats to LGBTQ+ rights, according to a recent essay in U.S. Catholic
Outreach Conference Is a Place of True Welcome, Writes Transgender Panelist
(Ariell Watson Simon. New Ways Ministry)
“God’s love for the LGBTQ community is abundantly visible at a place like the Outreach conference,” wrote Maxwell Kuzma, reflecting on the LGBTQ Catholic Ministry conference held at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. in early August
(Susan Abraham. New Ways Ministry)
Just the other day, a student in my class said that they had been told, even as a young child, that being the Queer, same-gender loving person that they were would lead them straight to hell.
English Diocese Bans Pride Celebrations in Restrictive Gender Policy for Catholic Schools
(Robert Shine. New Ways Ministry)
Catholic LGBTQ+ news was once much less frequent, but these days, it is hard to keep up with it all! This week, Bondings 2.0 is publishing stories from this summer (or winter for our Southern hemisphere readers) that have not yet been covered, but are notable and worthwhile covering in detail. Today’s post covers news from England.
LGBT movement is getting away with blatant indecent exposure
(Jonathon Van Maren. Life Site)
I’m old enough to remember when liberals insisted that the LGBT movement was merely about ensuring that LGBT-identifying people could be treated precisely the same way as everyone else. It was a civil rights movement, not a sexual movement, we were told. Anyone who suggested otherwise suffered from paranoia and a plethora of phobias.
Why is a “Transgender” Identity Even Plausible?
(Mary Rice Hasson. The Catholic World Report)
Gender ideology is a false anthropology and preposterous belief system that is being “baked into” our assumptions, judgments, and relationships. Inevitably, it will make Christians less receptive to the truth.
The Plot to Queer Evangelical Churches
(Megan Basham. First Things)
In September 2019, in Mesa, Arizona, pastor Ryan Visconti was thrilled to find himself at a private dinner with Andy Stanley, pastor of what was then the largest church in the United States.
California high school pulls its ‘LGBTQ resources’ webpage for students after facing backlash
(Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell. Life Site)
A California high school took down its “LGBTQ Resources” webpage shortly following The Daily Signal’s report exposing it.
Jesus Would Eat with Drag Queens. Bishops Criticizing the Olympics Should Do So, Too
(Robert Shine. New Ways Ministry)
There is no Gospel account of Jesus’ attending a drag brunch. But eating in community was a hallmark of Jesus’ ministry
Church of the Nazarene expels LGBTQ-affirming theologian
(Yonat Shimron. Religion News Service)
A Church of the Nazarene court has found one of its most prominent theologians guilty of affirming and advocating for the inclusion of LGBTQ+ members, contrary to the church’s teachings.
“Imago Dei” Conference Sparks Memories of Catholic LGBTQ+ Movement’s Early Days
(Phoebe Carstens. New Ways Ministry)
Memories of the Catholic LGBTQ+ movement’s early days were sparked at a recent conference, which was reported by one of the movement’s pioneers in OutSFL.
LGBTQ+ Catholics’ Unions “Are Life-Giving and Blessings,” Including to the Church, Writes Author
(Robert Shine. New Ways Ministry)
he love and participation of LGBTQ+ people not only is holy in itself, but it greatly enriches the church. This is the message that pastoral minister and author Yunuen Trujillo continues to emphasize in her LGBTQ+ ministry work, including in two essays for U.S. Catholic.
Shulamith Firestone Was a Prophet
(Carl R. Trueman. First Things)
This week, while preparing for a talk on what it means to be human, I revisited the work of the brilliant and influential feminist Shulamith Firestone
History Shows Church Leaders’ Rigid Sex Binary Is “Theological Choice,” Argues Scholar
(Phoebe Carstens. New Ways Ministry)
Gender fluidity was once recognized within the Catholic Church, and today’s rigid adherence to a sex binary by some church leaders is a “theological choice,” not an absolute truth, argues one scholar
U.S. Bishops’ New Sexuality Website Fails to Account for LGBTQ+ Perspectives, Advocates Say
(Robert Shine, Managing. New Ways Ministry)
What do LGBTQ+ Catholics and allies think about the U.S. bishops’ conference new website defending marriage as an exclusively heterosexual institution?
Pro-LGBTQ+ Theologians, Pastoral Ministers React to New Synod Document
(New Ways Ministry).
Last week, the Vatican issued the latest working document for the Synod on Synodality, known as the Instrumentum Laboris, that will guide conversations at this October’s second General Assembly in Rome. The document omits any direct mention of LGBTQ+ issues, and reactions to it have been varied. For instance, Bondings 2.0 has published both New Ways Ministry’s statement that it opens the door for greater inclusion and an essay from Mary McAleese, the former president of Ireland, who believes the document offers only “crumbs of comfort” to LGBTQ+ people.
It’s about time the US joins other countries and move away from ‘gender transitions’ for children
(Jonathon Van Maren. Life Site).
As I have been consistently documenting in this space, hairline cracks have been slowly widening in the mainstream media’s once rock-sold commitment to transgender ideology for several years now. The New York Times, despite furious backlash from LGBT groups, has published a string of investigations on the impact of puberty blockers, the stories of detransitioners, and the controversy surrounding child sex changes. The latest salvo, published on July 12 and running to nearly 3,000 words, signals the end of the transgender movement’s iron grip on the Gray Lady. The headline alone would have been unthinkable a few years ago, and takes direct aim at one of the transgender movement’s central premises: “Why Is the U.S. Still Pretending We Know Gender-Affirming Care Works?” The column — published, it must be noted, in the Opinion section — was penned by Pamela Paul, and begins with this broadside:
Portuguese abuse survivors tell bishops to stop ‘revictimization’
(Eduardo Campos Lima. Crux).
An association of survivors abuse in Portugal has complained to the bishops’ conference earlier this week about the way how the Portuguese Church has been handling reporting and compensation of victims, and asked the prelates to stop “revictimization.” The meeting between the Portuguese Episcopal Conference (known by the acronym CEP) and the Associação Coração Silenciado (“Silenced Heart Association”), which brings together dozens of victims, occurred in Coimbra on July 10.
States, doctors sue Biden administration over transgender medical mandate
(Tyler Arnold. CNA).
Seven states and a group of pediatricians are suing President Joe Biden’s administration over a rule that would force doctors to provide sex-change procedures and require health insurers to cover them. “Joe Biden is once again exceeding his legal authority in order to force his radical transgender ideology onto the American people,” Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who led the seven-state coalition, said in a statement on Wednesday. The lawsuit argues that HHS did not have the authority to create the rule and that it is not a legitimate interpretation of the Affordable Care Act’s prohibition on sex discrimination. It also argues that the rule violates the First Amendment and Fifth Amendment rights of health care providers.
LGBTQ+ Ministry Book Wins Catholic Publishing Award
(Robert Shine. New Ways Ministry).
The Association of Catholic Publishers recognized a book on LGBTQ+ ministry as part of its 2024 Excellence in Publishing Awards. The book, New Ways and Next Steps: Developing Parish LGBTQ+ Ministry, authored by New Ways Ministry’s executive director, Francis DeBernardo, and published by Liturgical Press, tied for second place in the”Resources for Ministry” category.