James martin sj gay
Father James Martin, SJ. / Credit: Shawn&#;s Flickr (CC BY-NC )
ACI Prensa Staff, Oct 2, / pm (CNA).
Jesuit Father James Martin, who will attend the first session of the Synod on Synodality as a participant appointed by Pope Francis, said that “without a doubt, there are many chaste and celibate gay priests in the Church. It’s significant that that be said.”
In an Oct. 1 interview with the Spanish newspaper El Periódico, Martin stressed that “it is essential to point out that these priests lead a chaste and celibate experience, like their heterosexual colleagues, and dedicate their lives to service in the Church. It’s probably always been this way.”
In his opinion, “it is impossible” to know their number “due to the stigma that still exists” for which “many have suffered in silence due to ridicule.”
The priest, known for his pro-LGBTQ activism within the Catholic Church, said that those who prepared the Instrumentum Laboris for the Synod on Synodality have told him that “half of the dioceses around the world hold mentioned the need for greater welcoming and inclusion” of these persons.
“This is not limited to the West,” Martin added, “but is spread throughout the world. However, i
Between Jesus, books and LGBTQ advocacy: Fr. James Martin, SJ
By Fannie Dionne
Prolific author and speaker, America Media’s editor-at-large, consultant for the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication: American Jesuit Fr. James Martin is one of the most well-known Jesuits after Pope Francis. This is due in part from his undeniable talent for making Ignatian spirituality accessible to everyone, but also to his vocal commitment to the inclusion of LGBT people within the Church.
Between his many commitments, he took the time to define his surprising journey as a Jesuit and the reasons for his vow.
Bottom line: Like St. Ignatius, Fr. Martin is aiming to follow in the footsteps and example of Jesus.
What was your childhood like? How did it shape you and perhaps orient you to become a Jesuit?
I grew up in a Catholic family, but not a super-religious Catholic family. I didn’t go to Catholic schools, but I went to Mass most Sundays and believed in God and had all the sacraments that a child would have. But it wasn’t until after college that I started to think about religious experience, and it was seeing a documentary about the Trappist monk Thomas Merton that made me star
At The Advocate, Daniel Reynolds described Fr. James Martin&#;s response to an antigay Facebook comment as &#;an open-minded history lesson.&#;
Fr. James Martin said some Catholic saints were &#;probably gay.&#;The Jesuit priest — who was appointed in April by Pope Francis as a consultant to the Vatican&#;s Secretariat for Communications — gave this history lesson in tolerance on May 5 to an antigay Facebook commenter.
Martin had posted a link to an article about a prayer led by Bishop John Stowe at an LGBT Catholic gathering coordinated by Fresh Ways Ministry. An offended social-media follow responded, &#;Any cannonized Saints would not be impressed.&#; To which Martin replied, &#;Some of them were probably gay.
&#;A certain percentage of humanity is gay, and so were most likely some of the saints,&#; Martin added. &#;You may be surprised when you receive to heaven to be greeted by LGBT men and women.&#;
Source:
For LGBT Catholics, it should be no surprise that some saints were &#;LGBT&#; in modern, anachronistic terminology. I discussed some of them in a brief mention to Quest conference in Chichester, a few years ago, under the heading &#;Some Very Queer Saints and
What Does Fr. James Martin Really Believe?
Fr. Martin, of course, has become a “rock star” through his advocacy for Catholics with same-sex attraction (SSA). Since his appointment by Pope Francis as a consultant to the Vatican’s Secretariat for Communications, his media platform has only grown. And despite repeatedly seeming to approach or even transgress the limits of Catholic moral teaching on sexual matters, he has steadfastly maintained that he does not challenge that teaching. None other than Robert George, with whom he struck up an unlikely friendship in , has gone to bat for him publicly, stating that when Fr. Martin says he’s faithful, we should take him at his word.
Assuming people’s earnestness is a good and noble thing. But Fr. Martin makes it strenuous sometimes, and this latest tweet, in which he refers approvingly to a same-sex “marriage” and parenting arrangement, is just another example to throw on the pile. This leaves many observers with a massive disconnect between his assertions.
But maybe some straightforward followup will fix that. Maybe we can fetch to the bottom of all this by engaging Fr. Martin’s own interest in… Catholic questions. In that spirit, I respectfully
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