By Kaitlin Sinclair, staff writer
I feel for you. The news on March 15 shocked me too. I can’t say I’m entirely surprised because of the history of unacceptance that has been within the Catholic Church.
As a junior, I have done activities in university ministries for three years. Sexuality and religion have been a struggle for me since I was around 15 years old.
I was raised Catholic, went to church on Sundays and was put through religious education all the way up to my confirmation. I had the opportunity to spend two summers at the University of Notre Dame where I participated in a week-long program that connected me with other high school students from around the country. I was 16 and 17 at this time and had already become aware of who I was.
While no one in the church had ever told me that being gay was a sin, it still is in the back of my mind. That belief is the “norm” in the Catholic Church and it can make people like me feel like outsiders.
Same-sex marriage has only been legal in the United States for six years. This is in no way a long time. People in the community still face discrimination and hatred on a daily basis. Sometimes people use religion as a justification for prejudice.
Since the Vatican came out with the statement that the Catholic Church cannot bless same-sex couples, it feels like there is a hole in my chest.
While I know the ministry center and the Friars on campus are nothing less than accepting of all people, it still makes it hard to continue to participate in religious activities when the Vatican has made this statement.
People in the Catholic faith view the Vatican and the Pope as the highest in power under God, and for them to make this statement in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic when there are other issues they should be focusing on, seems to be furthering unacceptance.
As someone who is gay and Catholic, my heart is torn. I love the role I play in the ministries center. I work for Alice Miller Nation, the director of the Franciscan Center for Social Concern, as the grant assistant, I am a small group leader in the fellowship of Christian athletes and I am also involved in the liturgy committee.
Something I love about Bona’s is that we are a Franciscan university. After sitting through a few theology classes, I feel that I have a Franciscan heart.
I think if St. Francis was still alive, he would condemn the Vatican for coming out with such a harsh statement. It is the belief that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ, period. But now, if I wanted to get married in the church, I might be turned away just because I would be marrying someone of the same gender.
The Vatican says, “they cannot bless sin.” This wording right here is damaging, and it still hangs on to me anytime I walk into a church or go to the ministry building.
sinclak18@bonaventure.edu.
