The Archbishop of Atlanta creates a Commission for LGBTQ+ pastoral care

Articolo di Andrew Nelson pubblicato sul sito del The  Georgia Bulletin, media dell’Arcidiocesi cattolica di Atlanta (Stati Uniti) il 18 ottobre 2024, liberamente tradotto da Innocenzo Pontillo 

Marija Pritchard found the strength in her faith to organize food drives, build homes and cook for needy families at the Ronald McDonald House while attending the Newman Catholic Center at her university. Her passion for social justice and faith drove her to major in religious studies and later earn a master's degree in theology.

Despite her commitment to the Catholic community, Pritchard, who at 28, admitted she had doubts about the Catholic community's willingness to invest in her, especially due to her sexual orientation, which she embraced in 2020.

“I love being Catholic and I want to be involved. But I wasn't entirely sure that the Church wanted to involve me.”

Today, Pritchard channels her passion by leading a Bible study for LGBT young adults at St. Thomas More Church in Decatur, providing a space for people like her.

Pritchard found much hope in an initiative initiated by the Archdiocese of Atlanta and announced by Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conventual, during the gathering of diocesan priests in September.

The archbishop has created an advisory group, the Commission for LGBTQ+ Pastoral Affairs, which wants to better listen to the needs of the LGBTQ+ community.

According to the pastoral care of Justice and Reconciliation, who will coordinate the group, the commission aims to better understand the realities and pastoral needs of LGBTQ+ Catholics in the Archdiocese of Atlanta.

The archbishop said he created the commission to “enable broader and ongoing dialogue” with members of the LGBTQ+ community.

He stressed that Church documents consistently affirm the dignity of every individual, including members of the homosexual community. The Church's mission, he said, is to convey "words of faith, hope and love," referring to the 1997 document "Always Our Children" of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

In a statement, the archbishop clarified that the commission does not aim to change the teachings of the Church, but to improve the way the archdiocese deals with people who have same-sex attraction, their families and their friends.

“I hope that through this commission we can better understand and respect each other,” the archbishop said. “After all, we are all children of God, brothers and sisters on this journey.”

The pastoral care of justice and reconciliation will organize the commission in the Office for Life, Dignity and Justice of the archdiocese. The commission will meet quarterly and will be made up of priests, deacons and lay people.

The goal is to promote “synodal listening and reconciliation approaches” to support a welcoming ministry and build “a stronger and more resilient community of faith in which everyone feels a part,” according to the archdiocesan office.

Durante le sessioni di ascolto per il Sinodo sulla Sinodalità del 2022, erano emerse preoccupazioni sul trattamento riservato alla comunità LGBTQ+. Questo è stata la risposta locale a un’iniziativa globale lanciata di Papa Francesco per raccogliere input dalla comunità cattolica.

Il rapporto finale delle sessioni di ascolto sinodole ha identificato che l’11% delle risposte dei partecipanti esprimeva preoccupazioni sull’inclusione di LGBTQ+, sulle donne e le persone con disabilità.

Sondaggi condotti dal Pew Research Center mostrano una crescente accettazione delle persone omosessuali tra i cattolici. Un rapporto del 2020 ha rilevato che sei cattolici statunitensi su dieci accettano i matrimoni gay, contrariamente all’insegnamento della Chiesa.

Il Catechismo della Chiesa Cattolica insegna che “gli atti omosessuali sono intrinsecamente disordinati” e invita le persone omosessuali alla castità, trattandole però con “rispetto, compassione e sensibilità.”

Alcune chiese dell’area di Atlanta offrono ministeri per i bisogni dei membri LGBTQ+. Il Santuario dell’Immacolata Concezione nel centro di Atlanta è da tempo un punto di riferimento per la comunità cattolica LGBTQ+, organizzando cene comunitarie regolari.

“We stayed (in the church) out of love. I think it would be nice to have this recognized,” said Rob McDowell, 63, a lifelong Catholic and assistant professor of geology, who hopes the commission will ensure that gay men and women are no longer discriminated against.

Marija Pritchard, co-leader of the LGBTQ+ ministry Catholics & Friends, said: “If we are not present in the Church, then the Church loses something, because we have a lot to offer.”

Original text: Archbishop Hartmayer forms LGBTQ+ Pastoral Affairs Commission