As a gay Catholic, I'm often asked questions like "How are you gay AND Catholic?", "Aren't those two forces constantly at odds"?, "Do you have to do some sort of mental gymnastics to justify it to yourself?", and "Why don't you just leave the church?" So today I'm going to try to answer those questions and talk about how to reconcile your faith with your sexuality.

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00:00 Intro
00:23 The Church vs. LGBTQ+ People
01:21 Get rid of "All or Nothing" thinking
03:34 Step away from the Church
04:40 Find a more accepting community
05:59 Learn to see God outside the Church
06:32 Conclusion
07:14 The Merton Prayer
08:08 Outro

Helpful Resources:

Catholic LGBT organizations:
New Ways Ministry - https://www.newwaysministry.org
Dignity USA - https://www.dignityusa.org
Vine and Fig - https://vineandfig.com
Fortunate Families - https://fortunatefamilies.com
America Magazine - https://www.americamagazine.org
Equally Blessed - https://www.equallyblessed.org/

Books:
"Queer and Catholic" by Amie Evan - https://www.routledge.com/Queer-and-Catholic/Evans-Healey/p/book/9781560237136
"Gay and Catholic" by Eve Tushet - https://www.amazon.com/Gay-Catholic-Accepting-Sexuality-Community/dp/1594715424
"Building a Bridge" by Fr. James Martin - https://www.harpercollins.com/products/building-a-bridge-james-martin?variant=32117748236322
"God and the Gay Christian" by Matthew Vines - https://www.amazon.com/God-Gay-Christian-Biblical-Relationships/dp/160142518X
"The Velvet Rage" by Alan Downs, Ph. D. - https://www.amazon.com/Velvet-Rage-Overcoming-Growing-Straight/dp/1611746450
"Torn" by Justin Lee - https://www.amazon.com/Torn-Rescuing-Gospel-Gays-vs-Christians-Debate-ebook/dp/B0076DFG5S

YouTube Channels:
It Takes Courage - https://www.youtube.com/ittakescourage
That Theology Teacher - https://www.youtube.com/user/TheKSource2012

Talks:
Spirituality and sexuality. You can have both | Rev. Dr. Brent Hawkes, C.M. | TEDxToronto - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NGB5rQKkpM

Articles:
"Theology of the Closet: A Reflection on the Queer Catholic" by Danny Warwick - https://luccatholicstudies.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/theology-of-the-closet-a-reflection-on-the-queer-catholic/?fbclid=IwAR2TBILVlOeh8R2nZbCMM9lkiDyNdukvBmtTqwZXcNxg1KrB2xCYkJKvyvE
"In Not Supporting LGBTQ Marriages, the Church Preaches a Hospitality It Does Not Practice" by Dr. Cristina Traina - https://www.newwaysministry.org/2021/02/03/in-not-supporting-lgbtq-marriages-the-church-preaches-a-hospitality-it-does-not-practice/

Subreddits:
r/RainbowCatholics - https://www.reddit.com/r/RainbowCatholics/
r/LGBTCatholic - https://www.reddit.com/r/LGBTCatholic/
r/gayChristians - https://www.reddit.com/r/gayChristians/
r/QueerTheology - https://www.reddit.com/r/QueerTheology/
r/Progressive_Catholics - https://www.reddit.com/r/Progressive_Catholics/
r/OpenChristian - https://www.reddit.com/r/OpenChristian/

*Bonus*

Non-denominational org:
Q Christian Fellowship - https://www.qchristian.org

#FaithfullyLGBT #GayAndChristian