Catholic Spain Under Attack

If one needed proof that socialism is one of the perennial opponents of Christianity and the Catholic Church specifically, one need only look what socialists have been doing in Spain.

Spain’s Socialist prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has done all he can to undermine what used to be one of the most Catholic countries in Europe. Since 2004 he has introduced legalized gay marriage and no-fault, fast-track divorce.

Yet now Mr. Zapatero, like most who toy with nefarious policies, has become brazen: he now wishes that 16-year-old Spanish girls be able to get abortions without parental consent.

Think of it, Spanish girls can’t legally drink, but they can decide to end the life of a baby in their womb, and they can do it without their parents knowing – that’s a direct, unapologetic subversion of the Spanish family and society.

Make no mistake, while this kind of outrage is consistent with atheistic socialism, it is also a direct assault on the Catholic Church, which Spanish socialists correctly understand as the last barrier to a human-centric view of the universe, where each person decides for himself what is moral, and what isn’t.

Just recently in Spain, there was a so-called “Madrid Gay Pride” march; According to Lifesitenews.com the gay march in Spain featured:

“The parade featured a wide array of men dressed in sadomasochistic leather outfits, while others wore bikinis, covered their bodies with makeup and paint, and sported elaborate and colorful headgear.”

And as usual, when it comes to the militant gay agenda in Europe or in America, it’s ordinary people who must get out of the way, to make room for this public display of hedonism and immorality; Lifesite reports:

“For the last several years, area residents have repeatedly complained of assaults against them, open prostitution, drug dealing, fighting, loud noise, trash in the streets, and other offenses committed during the march. Large numbers leave their homes and take up residence elsewhere during the event, and some say they are preparing to leave permanently.”

Catholics all over the world must rely on the sacraments, the Rosary, devotion to the Blessed Mother, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and daily prayer if they are to survive the cultural attacks that are coming, and will continue to come.

The Catholic people in Spain, it should be noted, are no strangers to attacks on their Christian faith. Historian Warrren Carroll in his book on the Spanish Civil War, “The Last Crusade,” writes:

“For more than a thousand years Spain had been the sword of Christendom; Her sons had fought and won the longest war in the history of the world, the 770-year struggle against the Moors who invaded and conquered Spain from Arabia and North Africa bringing their Muslim faith–conquered it all but a tiny mountain area in the far north where embattled King Pelayo proclaimed in 722: ‘Our Hope is Christ! This little mountain will be the Salvation of Spain.’”

Spain succeeded against the Moors, and if it relies on Christ, it shall certainly prevail against a brand of socialism that seeks to attack the Catholic Church – just at the communists did in Poland – by striking at the very heart of the family.

St. Ignatius of Loyola, pray for Spain!

Another Catholic Dissent Group

Catholics should be ready to call out yet another ‘Catholic’ group, which seeks to foment dissent and heresy. The group is called the American Catholic Council and it may be a new coalition of heretical groups or perhaps a rebranding of Voice of the Faithful. We’ll soon know more.

It’s worth noting that links on their site include Catholics for Choice (pro death catholics), Voice of the Faithful and a group that promotes women’s ordination. More on this new Catholic dissent from California Catholic Daily.

Gay Catholic Convention in S.F.

The self-declared Catholic group DignityUSA recently held a convention for its gay Catholic members in San Francisco.

Speakers at the convention included the openly gay catholic Richard Rodriguez, who is a well-known writer, and also the former Catholic priest Geoff Farrow who has made a name for himself by opposing the Catholic Church on a number of moral issues.

The president of DignityUSA, Mark Matson, gave an address at the Catholic LGBT convention. I have pulled out some of the highlights. Mr. Matson said:

“It is time to shift our focus from protesting Church to being church for all who seek full inclusion.”

For DignityUSA and other LGBT activists, this means the Catholic Church must ignore Christian revelation and not only tolerate homosexual acts, but celebrate them.

Mr. Matson soon gets to DignityUSA’s main mission, agitation and heresy:

“The seedbed for homophobia is misogyny. We must challenge it at every opportunity. If we want women to come and to stay, we must make room for them at the altar, at the pulpit, and in our language. Although we have largely freed ourselves from limiting dogmas on human sexuality, we continue to deprive ourselves of abundant access to the feminine dimensions of the Divine. We will not reach the Promised Land until we change that fact.”

Instead of the Catholic faith, Mr. Matson gives us an eclectic tour through leftist political thought, once again illustrating that DignityUSA is about political agitation, and not about serving our Lord Jesus Christ.

Also notice the “We have” and “We continue”, instead of “The Church teaches” or “Our Lord said.” DignityUSA, like many dissident Catholic groups, can only view the Catholic Church as some democratic political body that “the people” can seize power from when it is no longer compliant.

Also take note of one common tactic of the gay agenda, which is to undermine the reality that men and women are different; ignoring the fact that God has made them equal, yet given them different gifts and roles.

If obvious and innate differences between the sexes are rejected, then it is much easier to muddy the waters around the the union of one man and one woman in marriage, for example.

Regarding women priests, John Paul II made it clear that the Church doesn’t have the authority to ordain women to the priesthood. Jesus Christ, who didn’t cow to any social pressure, chose 12 men to be the first Bishops.

Priests (given authority by a Bishop) stand “in the person of Christ,” and we know that Jesus was a man. The successor to St. Peter has spoken, and faithful Catholics must assent to this teaching.

Mr. Matson continues; notice again we must “challenge” male/female differences:

“Along the way, we will be called on to challenge dualistic categories that separate laity/clergy, male/female, GLBT/straight, celibate/married, the sacred and the profane, thus embodying the notion of the priesthood of all believers.”

So we see that, instead of being faithful to Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church (or even using reason), Mr. Matson is “called on” to oppose the natural law, Sacred Tradition, Scripture, Papal teachings, morality and common sense all at once. At the end of the day, what is actually Catholic about Mr. Matson and the members of DignityUSA?

As he does many times in the address, Mr. Matson refers to the “the Spirit” who is apparently guiding these gay and lesbian Catholics as they challenge the Church:

“So now what? My sense is that Dignity is being called by the Spirit to one of many midwives in the birthing and rising of a new Church.”

The spirit? It might be a spirit, but it’s not the Holy Spirit. How do I know that? Any spirit that “calls” on one to be disobedient to Catholic Church teaching is not of God. Here is what St. John wrote:

“Beloved, do not trust every spirit but test the spirits to see whether they belong to God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can know the Spirit of God: every spirit that acknowledges Jesus Christ come in the flesh belongs to God…”(1 John: 4:1).”

The “Catholics” in DignityUSA should test the spirits that are leading them, because rebellion, celebration of sin and heresy are not Catholic beliefs.

Finally he gets to his “demands,” all the while couching them in ’60s Civil Rights language:

“It will be the Church where ALL are welcome to the table of Eucharist. It is that Promised Land we seek.”

The Eucharist is the body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. To receive our Lord is not “a right,” but a privilege. The Church is clear that those in a state of mortal sin should refrain from communion (the Eucharist):

The Catechism of the Catholic Church:

1457“… Anyone who is aware of having committed a mortal sin must not receive Holy Communion, even if he experiences deep contrition, without having first received sacramental absolution, unless he has a grave reason for receiving Communion and there is no possibility of going to confession…”

When a person receives the Eucharist at Mass, they are saying publicly: “I am in communion with this Church,” and that “I believe that what the Church believes.”

Catholic Evangelization

Catholics who live their faith in full obedience to the Magisterium of the Church – should be on fire. This doesn’t mean that they preach on street corners or knock on doors handing out fliers, but that they make Jesus Christ present in their daily lives. This is Catholic evangelization, and the world needs much more of it.

Catholics should admire the manner in which evangelical Christians talk openly about the Bible and their faith in Jesus Christ (some even try to evangelize Catholics!); this kind of witness is important, particularly in our neo-pagan culture, yet talk has to be backed up by a Christian life.

Catholic evangelization isn't typically about preaching in the streets (photo by meaduva).

We must also consider the fact that many Americans have been scandalized by Christian televangelists who don’t practice what they preach, Christian politicians who invoke God while doing un-Christian things, as well as the countless cases of Catholics who publicly identify as Catholic, yet don’t live lives that conform to the gospel.

So how can a Catholic who is on fire with the love of the Roman Catholic Church of Jesus Christ, reach those men and women who don’t know about our Lord? How can one be a “Catholic evangelical,” if we could coin such a phrase?

The Most Rev. Patrick O’Donoghue has reflected on this situation and he makes these observations. First he gives us an important reality check about western culture circa 2009:

“It is a sad truth that many people are so alienated from the Church, the language of the Bible, and their need for salvation, that they are either indifferent or violently allergic to Christianity. Also, it is heart-breaking to admit that the behaviour of some Catholics, such as paedophile priests and the failure of some in authority in the Church, has damaged the credibility of the Church.”

“Violently allergic to Christianity” is such an apt description. Anyone who has tried to talk about the Gospel or Jesus Christ to non-Christians or former Catholics, has encountered this. The Rev. Patrick O’Donoghue offers this bit of advice on catholic evangelization:

“I am convinced that in order to evangelise this generation we must follow the advice of Newman and de Foucauld and concentrate our missionary efforts on showing the unconditional love of Christ for suffering humanity though practical acts of justice and peace. In particular, we must act in solidarity with the poor and all those on the margins of society, migrants, drug addicts, alcoholics, men and women in the sex industry, those suffering mental illness.”

Catholic evangelism is going to have to go beyond words. We must show in our lives that we are so absorbed in following Jesus that peace, dedication and fidelity to our neighbors is second nature. The Rev. O’Donoghue continues:

“We must do this without any ulterior motives, such as seeking converts. We must only undertake this work to show them the love of Jesus Christ. It is only when or if they ask us why we do this work, that we can gently begin to talk to them about Jesus, and only at the pace that they want. If they reject Jesus, but accept His practical love through our actions, we must be content with that.”

I think this advice on Catholic evangelization is very beautiful and moving. I might add that Catholics must walk as ambassadors of the Catholic Church every day.

They should make it know that their Catholic faith is the center of their life, and then live it with such fidelity that neighbors, family members, coworkers see that Catholics “have something” worth knowing. And that something, of course, is Jesus Christ.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church on Catholic evangelism:

848 “Although in ways known to himself God can lead those who, through no fault of their own, are ignorant of the Gospel, to that faith without which it is impossible to please him, the Church still has the obligation and also the sacred right to evangelize all men.”

An excellent book on Catholic evangelization is titled “Search and Rescue” by Patrick Madrid.

The Virgin Mary Versus Evil

It’s not hard to notice that immorality, violence, impurity and evil of all shapes and sizes is rampant in our civilization. It’s good versus evil day in and day out, and it often seems that evil prevails. Yet, for those who know their Mother in Heaven – the Virgin Mary – evil is on the run, and has been since her purity graced the earth 2,000 years ago.

The Virgin Mary, quite simply is God’s greatest creation. And although the Virgin Mary is the Immaculate Conception, she doesn’t have a trace of arrogance or pride in her entire body.

And it’s this humility and purity before God that makes the Blessed Virgin Mary – by nature – an enemy of the pride, arrogance and dissent of the devil and his minions.

Fear No Evil! For the Virgin Mary Hears Your Prayers!

This knock-down, drag-out fight between the Virgin Mary and Satan, is referenced all the way back in Genesis when God tells Satan:

“I will put enmities between thee and the woman and they seed and her seed; she shall crush thy head, and though shalt lie in wait for her heel (Gen 3:15).”

So right from the beginning, the Holy Virgin Mary was crushing evil and standing up to sin. The great St. Louis De Montfort in his book True Devotion to Mary makes it clear that the Virgin Mary and those who love her, are part of a spiritual battle.

“God has set enmities, antipathies and secret hatreds between the true children and servants of Mary and the children and slaves of the devil.”

Is it any wonder then that it was the the Blessed Virgin Mary (Our Lady of Guadalupe) who confronted the evil of  human sacrifices in the Aztec civilization of present-day Mexico, converting the people to the Catholic faith?

Today the human sacrifices aren’t done on public temples, but in private abortion clinics. And it’s only devotion to the Holy Virgin Mary that will abolish the crime of abortion in America.

St. Luis De Montfort reminds us that Satan, in his pride, can’t stand to be defeated by a humble, pure little woman named the Blessed Virgin Mary:

“Satan, being proud, suffers infinitely more from being beaten and punished by a little and humble handmaid of God, and her humility humbles him more than the divine power.”

We should recall Pope John Paul II’s Virgin Mary devotion, and that devotion to the Virgin Mary is a sign that our faith is one with the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, the Holy Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.

St. Padre Pio understood that the Blessed Virgin Mary was a shield against evil. When St. Padre Pio wanted his Rosary, he’d famously say: “Get me my weapon!”

Devotion to the Virgin Mary is so important to the Church and the faithful that the Catechism of the Catholic Church notes:

971 “‘All generations will call me blessed‘: ‘The Church’s devotion to the Blessed Virgin is intrinsic to Christian worship.’ The Church rightly honors ‘the Blessed Virgin with special devotion. From the most ancient times the Blessed Virgin has been honored with the title of ‘Mother of God,’ to whose protection the faithful fly in all their dangers and needs. . . .”

Pray for Freedom in Iran

The greatest gift God gave to us, his children, is freedom. He gave us freedom so that we can freely chose to do good, and to love God with our whole heart. The brave people of Iran have peacefully demanded that the state of Iran respect their rights as the free children of God.

In a demonstration of their love for God, thousands of people in Iran have taken to the rooftops at night to ask for God’s help, yelling “God is great,” to the heavens. We know that our Lord Jesus Christ hears the cries of his children who suffer unjustly.

Catholics and Christians stand with the brave people of Iran. Pray to our Lord that the people of Iran will be able to enjoy the kinds of personal and political freedoms that we enjoy in the United States.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church on freedom:

1738 “Freedom is exercised in relationships between human beings. Every human person, created in the image of God, has the natural right to be recognized as a free and responsible being. All owe to each other this duty of respect. The right to the exercise of freedom, especially in moral and religious matters, is an inalienable requirement of the dignity of the human person. This right must be recognized and protected by civil authority within the limits of the common good and public order.”

Pray for Father Geoff Farrow

Many will remember Father Geoff Farrow, the Fresno, Calif., Catholic priest who came out in 2008 against the Church’s stance regarding Prop. 8. Fr. Farrow now has a blog where he speaks out against, most notably, Catholic doctrine, Catholic organizations and Catholic moral teaching.

While there’s no question that Fr. Geoff Farrow is a sincere, intelligent person, who believes that gay marriage is a civil rights issue, Fr. Farrow’s adamant opposition to Catholic Church teaching should be a wake up call to us.

St. Paul wrote of our faith as a marathon, of how we must persevere until the end. If a Catholic priest can fall so far from the Magisterium of the Church, we should be on the alert for temptations against our own faith.

Previously we noted Fr. Farrow’s support of DignityUSA, the so-called Catholic LGBT group that features activities like the “Leather Ministry.”

Fr. Farrow also encourages Catholic priests to work against Catholic Knights of Columbus, because they supported Prop. 8:

“Borrow the full amount against your Knights of Columbus life insurance policy immediately. Take the check and invest the funds with an LGBT friendly fund. Do not pay back the loan. If every priest and K of C insurance policy holder were to do this, it would create a considerable capital drain on K of C and cripple their ability to write large checks to thwart LGBT legislation and ballot initiatives.”

I’m not making this up. This is Fr. Geoff Farrow’s Knights of Columbus boycott plan in black and white.

It’s odd that Fr. Farrow, a Catholic priest, would fail to understand that the Catholic Church – guided by the Holy Spirit – is not a city council that decides issues based on votes or popularity. He writes on his blog:

“If every priest and bishop in America who is gay were to stand in the pulpit this Sunday and state that in so many words to their congregations, it would be IMPOSSIBLE for Rome to continue to attempt to oppress LGBT people.”

It’s sad to hear a Catholic priest state that the Church’s moral teaching against homosexual acts is tantamount to oppression. God has revealed to us that homosexual acts are immoral and charity demands that we speak the truth.

And as far as Catholic priests with same sex attraction who “come out” and “demand” that the Church change, it’s just a complete misunderstanding of what the Church is.

The Most Rev. Patrick O’Donoghue recently gave a talk to the Cardinal Newman Society in Oxford, England, where he addressed Catholics who want the Church to change its doctrines:

“They also attempt to impose a political model of decision making on the Church, misusing the term ‘Sensus fidelium’ to mean the democratic rule of the majority. The unspoken assumption is that the Church develops doctrine like a secular government, through lobbying, protest, and pressure groups.”

Rev. Patrick O’Donoghue also points out that personal conscience trumps Catholic Church authority among so-called Catholics in groups like DignityUSA and Catholics for Choice:

“Rejection of the moral authority of Church in favour of the authority of conscience…For many, the authority of the autonomous conscience has overthrown the authority of Christ given to Peter and the Apostles.”

Finally to look at one more example from Fr. Farrow’s blog. He writes, in the context of the Catholics in Maine who oppose gay marriage, that “LGBT Catholics” should stop “collaborating” with these faithful Catholics:

“It is time for LGBT Catholics, their families and their friends to stop collaborating with those who actively work to undermine the rights of others and thereby oppress them.”

We need to pray for Fr. Farrow, for it’s clear that he’s gotten far from the truth of Holy Mother Church and our Lord.

We as Catholic people need to care for our priests. For we must never forget that no matter how far they may stray from the truth, our Lord personally called them to be priests, and He is always ready to flood them with mercy when they repent.

We must recall that our Lord at one time chose to work through Fr. Geoff Farrow to bring his sacramental grace to the Catholic people through the Eucharist and Confession. The Catechism of the Catholic Church speaks of the special gift that Catholic priests receive at ordination:

1538 … “the word ‘ordination’ is reserved for the sacramental act which integrates a man into the order of bishops, presbyters, or deacons, and goes beyond a simple election, designation, delegation, or institution by the community, for it confers a gift of the Holy Spirit that permits the exercise of a ’sacred power’ (sacra potestas) which can come only from Christ himself through his Church.”

Dear Blessed Mary, please pray for our priests, and in particular for Fr. Geoff Farrow!

Beware of Catholics for Choice

It’s understandable when non-Catholics view the Church as nothing more than some kind of global-sized NPO. Yet Catholics, of all people, should understand that that the Church isn’t like your local school board – you don’t vote up or down on moral truths. Catholics for Choice, sadly, continues to oppose the Church on abortion.

And when it comes to the basics of the Catholic Church and its teachings, the pro abortion group Catholics for Choice, is not only heretical in its statements, it is just plain ignorant of Catholic teaching.

Catholics for Choice can learn from the Catholic Daughters above (photo by Steve Rhodes).

From the Catholics for Choice website on “Catholicism”:

“While united through sacramental bonds especially through baptism and the Eucharist, these Catholics interpret various teachings of the church in different ways.”

I wonder who “these Catholics” are? Are they the ones who don’t listen to the magisterium of the Church? And while it gets repetitive to keep pointing out such things, it must be stated that Catholics don’t “interpret” Catholic teachings on their own.

If  Catholics for Choice members are having sincere struggles understanding Catholic matters of faith or morals, then they have an obligation to speak to a priest, consult the Catechism of the Catholic Church, ask questions and find out why the Church teaches what it does. One doesn’t simply say: “Oh well, I disagree with that interpretation. I personally feel that abortion is a women’s choice.”

Catholics are obligated to form their conscience with Catholic Church teaching. This doesn’t mean one can’t question, struggle or admit problems understanding something. Yet Catholics know there are absolute truths, and that the Catholic Church – guided by the Holy Spirit – is there to protect us from harm, not shackle us with rules.

The Catholics for Choice website also makes an allusion to Scripture, presumably referring to Galatians 2: 11-14, when St. Paul corrected St. Peter regarding Christian freedom from the Mosaic Law. Sadly, however, Catholics for Choice twists Scripture for to its own ideological ends.

Referring to Catholics who don’t adhere to Church teaching, Catholics for Choice writes:

“In this they are no different than early Christians, such as Peter and Paul, who fought vigorously about many matters of faith and morals.”

Using St. Peter and St. Paul to justify heretical beliefs regarding abortion and birth control is fantasy at best, nefarious at worst. Catholics read the Bible within the tradition of the Church. We understand scripture by “thinking with the Church.”

Far from understanding St. Paul’s correction of St. Peter as a license for future Catholics to be disobedient, the Church sees unity in this Bible passage. From the Catholic Navarre Bible Commentary:

“Far from undermining the holiness and unity of the Church, this episode demonstrated the great spiritual solidarity among the apostles, St. Paul’s regard for the visible head of the Church, and Peter’s humility in correcting his behavior.”

St. Augustine commented on this same passage:

“He who was rebuked was worthier of admiration and more difficult to imitate than he who made the rebuke [...] This episode serves as a fine example of humility, the greatest of Christian teachings, because it is through humility that charity is maintained.”

One of the Spiritual Works of Mercy is to instruct the ignorant. We pray that members of Catholics for Choice look to the example of The Blessed Virgin Mary who, in her humility, obeyed God.

To obey is in the Catholic Catechism:

144 “To obey (from the Latin ob-audire, to ‘hear or listen to’) in faith is to submit freely to the word that has been heard, because its truth is guaranteed by God, who is Truth itself. Abraham is the model of such obedience offered us by Sacred Scripture. The Virgin Mary is its most perfect embodiment.”

Top Ten Myths About Catholics

It’s been said that anti-Catholicism is the last acceptable prejudice in the west. And whenever you hear someone bashing the Pope or the Catholic Church, it’s always the same myths and lies. Let’s dispel the top ten biggest myths about Catholics and the Catholic Church:

1. Catholics are Full of Guilt: I remember a ’90s rock band in Boston named “Big Catholic Guilt,” clever name, but way off the mark. Practicing Catholics who go to Confession on a regular basis know that they have been forgiven by God! And when you’re right with God, the guilt has been washed clean away!
2. Catholic Teaching Caused the Priest Sex Abuse Scandal: Huh? Catholic teaching expressly forbids sex outside marriage and homosexual acts, while also requiring priests to remain celibate. One could safely argue that it was disobedience to Catholic teaching that led to this tragedy.
3. Catholics Worship the Pope: Nope. The Pope is just a man. A sinner like all men and women. Catholics look to the Pope as the successor of St. Peter, and so we follow his teachings on faith and morals.
4. Catholics Worship Mary: Not true either. Catholics are devoted to Mary. Worship is reserved exclusively for God alone.
5. The Catholic Church Opposes Science: This is a real persistent one. I suppose it indicates ignorance that it was the Catholic Church which founded the world’s first universities…You ever heard of the scientist Copernicus? He was a Polish Priest. And you can thank Jesuit priests/scientists for the development of astronomy.
6. The Catholic Church is Rich: Okay…I suppose the Catholic Church is rich in the same way that the British Royal Museum is rich. It’s true that there is a lot of gold, art and expensive real estate in the Vatican, but don’t expect it on eBay anytime soon. When Pope John Paul II died he owned virtually nothing, get the picture?
7. Catholics Think Sex is Dirty: Wrong again. It’s Victorians who think sex is dirty. Catholics understand that God became flesh, which rendered the body sacred. Catholic marriages are elevated to the level of a sacrament as well, and the sexual act is the central unitve expression of marriage.
8. The Church Obsesses on Homosexuality:  It’s actually contemporary American culture that is obsessed with forcing Christians, and the Catholic Church in particular, to abandon their moral stance against homosexual acts and gay marriage. Catholic teaching on homosexuality is 2,000 years old and will not change.
9. Women are Oppressed by the Church: Feminists work overtime on this one. Help me understand how divorce, abortion and the sexual revolution have helped women? One need only look at the breakdown of the African-American family in the last 40 years to see what happens when Christian values are tossed aside. Is it any surprise that it was women in the Roman Empire who first recognized that Christianity offered them respect, protection and a moral code that applied equally to both men and women?
10. Catholics are Religious Fundamentalists: Technically speaking, fundamentalists are Protestant Christians who read the Bible literally. This is not the Catholic approach to Scripture…Yet if one means a fundamental faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and our God, then maybe we are fundamentalists.

DignityUSA is Not Catholic

DignityUSA members do not write much about our Lord Jesus Christ, the Blessed Mother, the Rosary, the Sacraments or the Catechism of the Catholic Church on their website much, which is odd for a group that claims to be Catholic. Instead, DignityUSA members continue to make homosexuality and the LGBT lifestyle the centerpiece of their faith.

Marianne Duddy-Burke recently penned an article called “The Continuing Journey to Wholeness: DignityUSA and LGBT Pride Month” that appeared on the index page of the Dignity/USA website.

Ms. Duddy-Burke begins by describing a phone call from a woman who recently left the Courage Apostolate, which is an authentic Roman Catholic group that promotes healing and chastity for Catholic homosexuals dealing with same sex attraction:

“She has recently realized that she deserves a life that is richer than the celibate, shameful existence she has endured up until now.”

Notice right away that celibacy is connected with shamefulness. That’s certainly not a Catholic view. Is Ms. Duddy Burke suggesting that Mother Theresa, Pope John Paul II, St. Francis, as well as the countless Catholic laymen who practiced celibacy over the years have lead shameful lives?

Jesus Christ is the center for Catholics, not sin or one's sexual practices (Photo by Timsamoff).

If Catholic celibacy is so shameful, then why did our Lord Jesus Christ ask those to whom God has called to celibacy to accept it:

“Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so; some, because they were made so by others; some, because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Whoever can accept this ought to accept it.” (Matt 19: 8-9).

I would hope that as Catholics, the members of Dignity/USA would avail themselves to Scripture and the words of our Lord Jesus Christ…(I begin to wonder if DignityUSA lies about the Catholic faith or perhaps they just don’t know any better?)

The DignityUSA article continues with a reflection on gay pride:

“While it is vitally important that we march in public witness and celebrate our blessedness in sacred liturgy, LGBT Pride also re-energizes us to continue the ministry and outreach that brought DignityUSA into being.”

While giving witness is indeed a Catholic way of being, Christians generally give witness to their faith in Jesus Christ and their communion to the Catholic Church. Yet once again, we see that DignityUSA members wish to give witness to their homosexuality first and foremost.

Dignity/USA’s Ms. Duddy-Burke then talks about “celebrating our blessedness in sacred liturgy.”

Catholics don’t celebrate themselves during the sacred liturgy (the Mass), we celebrate our Lord Jesus Christ. You see, Jesus Christ is the focal point of being Catholic, not ourselves or our sins.

This DignityUSA Catholic article then turns its focus toward Church authority:

“Let us revel in the…increasing emergence of Catholics willing to challenge church officials on hateful rhetoric.”

Apparently Ms. Duddy-Burke doesn’t want Catholics to just simply disobey Church teaching, but to actually “revel” in their disobedience to Catholic Church teaching. This is an example of why Catholics who struggle with same sex attraction must separate themselves from DignityUSA ASAP.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church addresses rebellion to God’s teachings:

392 “Scripture speaks of a sin of these angels. This ‘fall’ consists in the free choice of these created spirits, who radically and irrevocably rejected God and his reign. We find a reflection of that rebellion in the tempter’s words to our first parents: ‘You will be like God.’ The devil ‘has sinned from the beginning’; he is ‘a liar and the father of lies’”.

Catholics must bring the compassion of Jesus Christ to our brothers and sisters who struggle with same sex attraction. And we should listen to them when they tell us that they didn’t choose to be gay or lesbian. Many men and women are attracted to the same sex through no fault of their own.

Psychological studies indicate that many gay men and women grew up in broken families, and in many cases, did not bond or identify much with their same sex parent. Many of these gay and lesbian people are now looking for the love they didn’t get from their same sex parent.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that men and women struggling with same sex attraction often require more compassion, more sensitivity and more understanding – not less!

It’s likely that many of the former Catholics in DignityUSA experience same sex attraction as a real cross; many of them have accepted the gay identity as a way to mask years of loneliness and pain. Catholics must listen closely to the stories of men and women who are gay and not pass judgement on them as persons.

We must listen and love with Christ’s heart, while still affirming the Catholic teaching on homosexuality; Charity must always be grounded in truth.

Ms. Duddy-Burke of DignityUSA is – like all of us – both a sinner and a child of God. She naturally wants to love and be loved, and she also wants to have a relationship with God. And while no one would question Ms. Duddy-Burke’s intentions, we cannot ignore the fact that she claims to speak about Catholic truths, when in fact she is speaking about values that are exactly opposite Christianity.

Catholics should pray to the Blessed Mother to help men and women who struggle with same sex attraction, and also to recommend the Courage Apostolate, which encourages Christian healing and chastity for catholic homosexuals.