Archdiocese of Detroit throws out 2 LGBTQ Catholic groups Published 6:01 a.m. ET Aug. 8, 2020 Vice President of Dignity Detroit Carolyn Shalhoub, 73, left, of Royal Oak poses with President Frank D'Amore, 67, of Dearborn at the Sacred Heart Chapel at Marygrove College as they speak out about the Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit kicking out groups that are open to the LGBTQ community. For more than 45 years, Dignity Detroit has been a haven for LGBTQ Catholics looking to practice their faith in a respectful space for those with different sexual orientations. The group held Masses in Detroit with the help of several Catholic priests, including even some bishops who would preside over their services, first held at Most Holy Trinity Church in Detroit and later at Scared Heart Chapel at Marygrove College. But this year, the Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit kicked them out, saying they are now forbidden from gathering at churches and having priests perform Mass for them. In addition, the Archdiocese also has kicked out another LGBTQ Catholic group, Fortunate Families Detroit. Both groups and clergy received letters earlier this year from Auxiliary Bishop Gerard Battersby warning them they are no longer welcome in the Archdiocese because they advocate policies that he said clash with church doctrine on sexuality. "...a Mass for Dignity Detroit members — one which rejects Church teaching on human sexuality — is not possible in any parish church, chapel, or diocesan facility, and is indeed forbidden everywhere in the Archdiocese of Detroit," Bishop Battersby wrote in a March 9 letter to all priests in the Archdiocese. "Refrain from offering Mass anywhere in the Archdiocese of Detroit for Dignity Detroit, lest we confuse the faithful by seeming to endorse an alternative and contradictory path to sanctity." The expulsion of the groups is part of a broader push by the Archdiocese to make sure that Catholic groups are in alignment with its teachings. In another case, the Archdiocese of Detroit fired in June a music director at an Auburn Hills church who is a lesbian and had married another woman. Conservative Catholics have been pushing the Archdiocese for years to distance themselves from LGBTQ organizations. In August 2019, Archbishop Allen Vigneron, who leads the Archdiocese, released a note titled “Imitating Christ’s Charity and Chastity" that urged those with same-sex attractions to live a chaste life. Click here for the rest of the article: https://www.freep.com/story/news/lo...ese-detroit-lgbtq-catholic-groups/3223393001/
I wonder if a bunch of known-to-be-unrepentant people, living in sin, were being given the Eucharist? That would have been highly problematic, and it's disappointing to think that some RC priests (even bishops) might have facilitated this travesty. Attending mass is one thing, but being led by clergy to think that you're in good communion with God when you're not is really abhorrent, so if this was happening I'm glad the Abp. clamped down.