Cardinal McElroy Calls for Broader Pastoral Care of LGBTQ+ Catholics at Georgetown

Cardinal Robert McElroy, archbishop of Washington, D.C., called for a new pastoral approach to LGBTQ+ Catholics in a homily delivered in late June at the twice-yearly Outreach conference, held at Georgetown University. "Too often, both in magisterial statements and in the popular realm, sexual sins have been condemned with a fervor that places them, in the eyes of many believers, as the central moral obligation of Christians," he said. "This is utterly false to the Gospel of Jesus Christ."

McElroy said that in a Church that has frequently wounded the LGBTQ+ community through judgment and exclusion, there are grounds for hope in two developments under the pontificate of Pope Leo XIV. He cited a recent statement by the pope that reduces the pastoral weight given to sexual morality, and the report of Study Group 9 of the Vatican synod, which recommends greater pastoral attention to LGBTQ+ Catholics.

McElroy also set out guidelines for pastoral care. "Pastoral practice is not the understanding of how to apply a set of already formed and often reified principles to concrete situations," he said. "It proceeds from the conviction that the concrete situations in which people find themselves are constitutive dimensions of how doctrine must be formed in the light of the kerygma."

Outreach is an LGBTQ+ Catholic ministry founded by Father James Martin, SJ, which works for inclusion within the Church. This edition of the conference drew more than 450 participants, among them clergy, educators, family members, artists and academics, who addressed LGBTQ+ questions through theology, lived experience, parish ministry and the Bible. McElroy pointed to the example of Jesus as a model for pastoral care: "First, the Lord embraced those who came to him for help. Then he helped them with the problem that burdened them. Only afterward did he call them to reform. This pattern must be consistently reflected in the pastoral practice of the Church and in our own pastoral approach to those we encounter in our lives in the context of faith."

Speakers included Kerry Alys Robinson, president and chief executive of Catholic Charities USA, who in her opening address said the Church does not live up to the values it promotes. She encouraged those present to find hope and to work for inclusion and the common good. "When you have moments of doubt, discouragement or disappointment in our Church, I hope you find and focus on your own sources of inspiration and encouragement, your own examples of moral heroism," Robinson said. "It is never too late to become the people we are called to be, and it is never too late to be generous, to serve, to cultivate a disposition of attentiveness toward others and to work for the common good."

Greg Krajewski, a filmmaker and student of pastoral ministry at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, opened a panel titled "LGBTQ Catholics and Chastity: Diverse Lived Experiences" by referring to two paragraphs of the Catechism of the Catholic Church on chastity and sexuality. "The question is, if we are called to fully integrate our sexualities with our spiritual and physical selves, what does that look like?" Krajewski said.

Parish and ministry leaders at the meeting encouraged participants to continue the work and to hold Church leaders accountable. Bill Chapman, of the Catholic Ministry with Lesbian and Gay Persons in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, said people should not give up and should take LGBTQ+ ministry elsewhere if a parish is reluctant. Joseph Schneider, leader of the Affirmed Community at St. Clement Parish in Chicago, emphasized his "say-do ratio" so that smaller ministries remain realistic about what they can accomplish.

Conor J. Reidy, the new executive director of Outreach, said in his welcome message, "do not be afraid," and restated the organization's mission of "fostering a Church where all people know that they belong."