There were many striking moments last week, when I joined Father James Martin, S.J., the rest of the Outreach team and about 50 pilgrims who traveled to Rome to participate in the international gathering of LGBTQ Catholics for a Jubilee Year celebration.
One was during Mass on Thur., Sept. 4, inside the Oratory of St. Francis Xavier. A small group of pilgrims from Europe, Latin America and Australia, joined us. We sat in simple wooden chairs and prayed together. Though my mind raced about everything that had to get done over the coming days, I forced myself to slow down, take a deep breath and reflect on the reality of what I was experiencing: LGBTQ people, gathered together from around the world, to celebrate our faith. It was a moving moment, one that the smiles on the crowd during the final hymn suggested meant a lot to everyone there.
Another arrived on Saturday, as we assembled with our groups in the staging area next to Castel Sant’Angelo, preparing to process down the Via della Conciliazione and through the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica. Large crowds can be chaotic, all the more so in Rome. But our group, identified by the white-and-blue umbrellas we used to protect ourselves from the blazing sun, eventually found each other and we walked to find our spot. Along the way, pilgrim groups from other countries greeted us and we waved to new friends. Though we were gathering for prayer, there was something of a festival atmosphere. As the procession began, a more reverent tone took over. But in those early moments, joy abounded.
LGBTQ Catholic joy emerged as a key theme for much of our time in Rome, including on Friday, when about 200 people gathered for a dialogue featuring LGBTQ Catholic voices from around the world. We assembled inside the headquarters of the Society of Jesus. We prayed together and shared stories about what it means to be LGBTQ and Catholic.
Gonzalo Vilchis, a gay Catholic from Mexico, said that he finds hope and inspiration in the fact that the LGBTQ community brings a different perspective to the church, all the while believing in the same God and trusting in God’s love.
“Every person is different,” Mr. Vilchis said of the gifts each LGBTQ person brings to the church. Sharing personal stories is essential for LGBTQ Catholics, he continued, in order to make the church more welcoming and to help them know they are valued members of the church.
Others spoke of the sense of welcome they were initially surprised to have found in the church.
When Ruby Almedia came out to her parish priest, the India-born resident of the United Kingdom braced for rejection. But she encountered the opposite, which “helped me understand completely that I was loved for who I was.”
Ms. Almeida, who works with the LGBTQ Catholic community in London, and who is also involved with the Global Network of Rainbow Catholics, said the sense of community the church can offer LGBTQ Catholics can be a powerful force, provided it is rooted in love.
“Positive things can happen,” Ms. Almeida said. “Christ is the perfect role model, honestly.”
Christine Zuba, a transgender Catholic woman from the United States, joined the discussion via Zoom, at home in Michigan awaiting the birth of a grandchild. Ms. Zuba, who helped run several LGBTQ ministries, recounted moments when she felt fully welcome in the church, including one time when she was able to help provide solace to the mother of an LGBTQ child. That ministry to LGBTQ Catholics, and their families, she said, instilled in her a positive sense of self.
“I am proud to be who God made me, I’m proud to be Catholic and transgender,” Ms. Zuba said.
The dialogue was held during a wider Jubilee Year pilgrimage, organized by the Italian LGBTQ group, La Tenda di Gionata. One of the organizers, Alessandro Previti, spoke at the Outreach panel.
Mr. Previti said he is drawn to the image of the church and the LGBTQ community walking together, because it carries with it the notion of respecting the effort it takes to move toward a common direction, including the understanding that one party may not move as briskly as the other.
“Walking together means sharing the pace, and I believe that is a key thing,” Mr. Previti said.
The larger LGBTQ pilgrimage included a prayer vigil inside the Church of the Gesù, as well as a Mass the next day. Both were standing room only and organizers said about 1,300 people had registered. During the Mass on Sept. 6, Bishop Francesco Savino reflected on the history of the Jubilee Year and he noted how one function is to restore dignity to those who had been robbed of it.
“Brothers and sisters, I say this with emotion,” the bishop said, “It is time to restore dignity to everyone, especially those who have been denied it.”
The congregation applauded for what felt like several minutes. Once again, even with a serious topic—restoring dignity to a marginalized group is not light work—I felt another emotion taking hold inside the church, and my mind called back to something Ms. Almeida had said during our dialogue.
When LGBTQ Catholics gather in spaces where they feel fully welcome to be themselves and to celebrate their faith, she had said, “there is joy to be had.”
