Courage Conference Weekend

The Conference is closed.

I haven't followed Courage Apostolate all that closely for quite awhile, although I still support it and agree with its fundamental proposals for living a chaste and celibate life when one's sexuality doe not conform to Catholic moral teaching.  As much as I have promoted Courage spirituality, I've never been part of a chapter much less a conference.  Something which wouldn't surprise anyone who knows me.  Once Benedict Groeschel told me that my friend and I pretty much make up our own Courage chapter.

A week or so ago I got my haircut, from a guy I have been going to for 20+ years.  he is Catholic and was actively gay, attended pride events and going on gay cruises, and so on.  He met a guy, fell in love, and bought a house together.  I think they have been together at least 20 years.  I started seeing him at Mass a year or so ago.

He always went on Christmas and Easter, now he goes every Sunday.  His niece goes to the same church.  His niece is a hairdresser as well, so whenever I was in the shop we'd talk about parish stuff.  I mentioned I go to confession regularly, and that my friend and I live chastely and celibately.  This is how they know me.

So when I saw my friend at Mass and going to communion I was so grateful.  Last time I got my haircut he told me how after a time the sex fades away - that he and his friend are more like brothers or best friends now - and so he's free to go to communion.  I laughed to myself, because that is what I used to tell him - and others - if you embrace chastity and live together celibately, there is nothing to stop you from returning to the sacraments.  I never ever said they had to do this or that - I just proposed a change in life.  I never said they can't say gay or that they have to seek conversion therapy or identify differently - they never would have understood that.  In short, they never would have understood Courage.  They wanted to return to the Lord, to the sacraments, and Christ welcomed them.

"He knows us. He knows you. He sees you. He speaks to you face to face." - Fr Bochanski

If I were to attend Courage - a conference that is - these days I would expect some candid admissions as to how and why the hierarchy deceived us.  Some monsignori blocking Courage, others endorsing it, yet unwilling to acknowledge the extent of homosexuality in the priesthood, and so on.  Especially since there have been age long policies against admitting homosexuals to seminary, but always and nearly everywhere, those rules are dispensed with?

I was reading up on Archbishop Nienstedt and the scandals that brought him down, including his protective relationship with a genuinely screwed up former priest, Curtis Wehmeyer.  Former vicars of the archdiocese, McDonough and Laird dismissed reports on Wehmeyer and attributed it to his being gay. It wasn't until his activities involved minor that they considered his acts a grave offense.  I never got that.  So Catholic teaching condemns homosexual acts, but looks the other way because it's consensual, until it happens with a minor?  Then it's paedophilia?  Fr. Gallatin's offence was ruled a boundary issue, but the kid was 17 and Gallatin was sexually aroused.  Where is Gallatin today?

I could go on and on, all the documentation is online, but no one addresses the 'pastoral' dilemma.  No one explains McCarrick and his cronies, which so many knew about.  No one speaks clearly.  Certainly they do so to condemn the Pope, but these guys preaching from pulpit, telling people they can't say gay, that they can't live with another guy, that in some cases they need to seek therapy to change and so on, they never tell you what's the matter.

Obviously, I digress.