An open letter to Pope Francis has been published by Catholic students, theologians, pastoral ministers, educators, and others that expresses their “concern” with portions of the Vatican’s new declaration on human dignity, Dignitas Infinita. The open letter responding to the declaration, particularly its sections on “gender theory” and “sex change, was published in the National Catholic Reporter. It was also addressed to Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. While the signatories were grateful that Dignitas Infinita affirms the dignity o ..read more

A Rhode Island Catholic college’s former diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) director has filed a discrimination complaint against the school amid ongoing campus controversy about LGBTQ+ inclusion. E. Corry Kole (they/them), who served as Providence College’s director of DEI education and professional development until early March, filed the complaint with the State Commission for Human Rights, claiming that “[Kole] experienced direct, repeated, patterned and systemic discrimination on the basis of their sexual orientation and gender identity,” reported the Providence Journal. Kole resigned ..read more

Pope Francis and Sister Jeannine Gramick at their meeting in the Vatican on October 17, 2023. The following reflection is from Sister Jeannine Gramick, SL, co-founder of New Ways Ministry. I have been very sad since April 8, 2024 when the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith promulgated Dignitas Infinita, the Declaration on Human Dignity. I have felt the immense grief among LGBTQ people and their families and friends. This document states many beautiful and essential truths, but the section on Gender Theory, which condemns “gender ideology,” is harming the transgender people I l ..read more

Reiner Teuber A leader of Germany’s #OutInChurch initiative has evaluated the church’s response to the movement in the past two years quite negatively. At the same time, another member of the initiative affirmed the presence of gay men in religious life. Elsewhere in the country, a Catholic men’s group criticized some of Pope Francis anti-transgender rhetoric. #OutInChurch Co-Founder Critical of Church’s Response Rainer Teuber helped launch #OutInChurch, in which more than 125 LGBTQ+ church workers in Germany publicly came out in early 2022 and appealed for reforms. The initiative had seven ..read more

Bishop Alfred Agyenta At a time when many church leaders, including Pope Francis, have decried laws that criminalize LGBTQ+ people, bishops in Ghana persist in their support for such a new law, and even advocate forced conversion therapy. In late February, Ghanian legislators unanimously passed a law, the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Act, making even support for LGBTQ+ rights illegal with prison terms up to five years, punishing people who fail to report LGBTQ+ advocacy, and enhancing punishments for same-gender sexual activity, which is already criminalized. Reuters reported that P ..read more

Ruby Almeida Today’s post is from guest contributor Ruby Almeida, who is involved with advocacy for LGBTQIA Catholics around the world for the past two decades, including leadership in Quest, Bridge and Embrace India, and the Global Network of Rainbow Catholics. She also helps manage a programme for people wishing to return to their Catholic faith practice.  In today’s gospel reading, Jesus entreats each and everyone of us to, “Remain in me, as I remain in you.” This yearning has been expressed by many marginalised and estranged people whom I have come across over my several decades of ..read more

St. Joseph the Worker Church, Beal City A Michigan priest has resigned after a controversy erupted when he apologized for allowing an openly gay author to read to students. Fr. Thomas Held, pastor of St. Joseph the Worker Church, Beal City, started a controversy after Dominic Thrasher, a gay man and author of children’s books, was invited to read to preschool students the parish school. After the reading, Held apologized in a Facebook post for allowing Thrasher to read to students, stating that the author “does not represent the values of our Catholic faith.” This initial apology gained publ ..read more

Episcopalian bishops in New York have expressed their opposition to a proposed long-term lease of seminary space to a Catholic group over concerns the group has anti-LGBTQ+ associations, as well as issues around transparency in funding. According to the Episcopal News Service (ENS), the General Theological Seminary, Manhattan, has been negotiating since November with the School of Sacred Music, a Roman Catholic group, over a long-term lease agreement that would allow the Catholic group to lease and renovate buildings on the Episcopalian seminary’s campus. The agreement was sought by the G ..read more

In the two weeks since Dignitas Infinita, the Vatican’s declaration on human dignity that included negative sections on gender identity and transitions, was released, numerous commentaries about it have been published. Today’s post contains summaries of additional observations. For all of Bondings 2.0’s coverage of the declaration and its reception, click here. Ursula Wollasch, a German Catholic theologian and former diocesan pastoral contact person for the trans community, critiqued the declaration as depriving trans people “of the medical, social and pastoral infrastructure that they ne ..read more

It has been two weeks since the Vatican released Dignitas Infinita, its declaration on human dignity that included negative sections on gender identity and transitions. In that time, commentaries about what the document means for the LGBTQ+ community, especially transgender and nonbinary people, have abounded. Posts today and tomorrow feature some of these commentaries. For all of Bondings 2.0’s coverage of the declaration and its reception, click here. Archbishop Christopher Coyne, coadjutor of Hartford, emphasized in an interview both the church’s broad welcome, but also its teachi ..read more