Ministry to US Catholic LGBTQ Youth: A Call for More Openness and Affirmation

Abstract

This article evaluates the current Catholic youth ministry practice to, with, and for Catholic LGBTQ youth. The methodology utilized is both descriptive and prescriptive, and calls into question the lack of ministerial presence afforded to Catholic LGBTQ youth. The essay briefly examines the official ecclesiastical documents on homosexuality and their relevance for LGBTQ youth. Next it assesses the major US ecclesial youth ministry document, Renewing the Vision, and calls for its renewal and revision. In particular the article offers concrete recommendations for the two areas of Catholic youth ministry—advocacy and pastoral care—that would have the most positive impact for LGBTQ youth and Catholic youth ministry. Finally, the article calls for the US Catholic bishops, youth ministers, and parents to be more open and affirming with LGBTQ youth and provides some practical suggestions.

Coming Up Short: The Catholic Church’s Pastoral Response to the Transgender Crisis in America

“…Official documents produced by the Vatican and USCCB, concerning ministry and pastoral care with TGD people in the Catholic Church, are both scarce in existence and vague in their actual guidance (Ford 2018;Canales 2016;Herriot and Callaghan 2019). 4 The handful of Vatican documents that address gender as it relates to TGD people and an international audience does so mainly in passing within larger conversations centered on family life (see Pope Francis 2016, nos.…”

“…Protocol for pastoral care and actual policy regarding TGD inclusion, accommodation, and tolerance versus advocacy in Catholic schools, parishes, and businesses range from location to location in significant ways (see Ford 2018). Lack of official clarity around best practice leave many pastors, youth ministers, educators, and family members unsure of how to respond to TGD people they encounter and conflicted over discrepancies between what conscience tells them is right and what local leadership dictates (Canales 2016).…”

“…In light of the available data, mental health professionals (APA 2021; American Psychiatric Association 2021), endocrinologists (ES & PES 2020), pediatricians (Rafferty 2018), nurses (Cicero and Wesp 2017;Kelser 2019), and those involved in spiritual care and education with TGD people (Geller and OSB 2017;Herriot and Callaghan 2019;Canales 2016;Rowniak and Ong-Flaherty 2015;and Marshall 2001) oppose GICE, cisheterosexist practices and mentalities, and the pathologization of gender and/or sexual diversity. They recommend instead open and affirming care and policies that increase support for gender minorities and encourage their inclusion and acceptance in society and social spaces (i.e., the home, school, places of employment, and religious communities).…”

“…22 Canales (2016) demonstrates how Renewing the Vision can be revised to include pedagogical and pastoral strategies that help improve Catholic youth ministry and create safe, open, and nonjudgmental environments for LGBTQI+ youth. Ford ( 2018) models a natural theology of exploration that could be utilized in Catholic education and theological settings to create space for TGD people to explore their sexual and gender identities both internally and communally, within a supportive network that encourages human flourishing, well-being, and healthy, loving relationships to self and God.…”

Ministry to Transgender Teenagers (Part One): Pursuing Awareness and Understanding about Trans Youth

“…Catholic pastoral theologian Arthur D. Canales notes, “Young people who describe themselves as transgender are those persons who exhibit ‘gender-non-conforming’ characteristics and actions—that is, those individuals who transcend their typical gender paradigms” (Canales, 2016, p. 62). That is to say, those youth who are non-binary in gender or those who are not exclusively male or female in their gender expression do not always self-identify as transgender.…”