Blowing the Whistle … Personal Foul! Priest should be taken out of the ‘game’.

When Jesus shared the bread and wine with his disciples during the Last Supper and said “Do this in remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19b), he intended for this sacrament to be shared with ALL disciples.   

It has taken me nearly 2 weeks to compose myself and quell my anger enough to write about this matter. In late February, Barbara Johnson lost her 85 year old mother. Barbara was at her mother’s side at the end, reciting Hail Mary’s, in keeping with their Roman Catholic tradition and faith. During the funeral, Father Marcel Guarnizo refused to administer Holy Communion to Barbara because she is gay. Personal Foul! Then, when Barbara, grief-stricken and now traumatized by the priest’s very public denigration, arose to deliver her mother’s eulogy, Father Guarnizo walked out. Technical foul! This is worthy of throwing him out of the ‘game’.

Barbara and her brother are outraged at Father Guarnizo’s conduct, just as I am. The archdiocese of Washington apologized stating that “what should have been a celebration of your mother’s life…was overshadowed by a lack of pastoral sensitivity”. ‘Lack of pastoral sensitivity’ is a gross understatement for what occurred here. Barbara said “This isn’t about gay rights and it isn’t about Catholic bashing, it is simply about the conduct of a reprehensible priest”. Yes and no.

Barbara, you’re right, it is about a reprehensible priest whose conduct makes him unworthy for parish ministry. AND it is also about ‘holier-than-thou’ attitudes that demean lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) persons. Barbara, it IS about gay rights, just as much as it is about your dignity. You know, it is almost understandable for some politicians to make anti-gay comments, “for they know not what they do”. (Luke 23:34) It is not understandable or acceptable for a ‘man of the cloth’ to be so belittling, rude, insensitive, un-Christian and unlawful. That’s right, bullying and hate crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity are illegal in the U.S., since President Obama signed the Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law. Clergy are not immune from the law.

Public policy aside, clergy are not immune from God’s law and commandments. Christian clergy in particular have an obligation to live by and to promote the Gospel of Jesus Christ. “[W]hich commandment in the law is the greatest?” [Jesus] said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all you heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all of the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22:36-40) This means treating EVERYONE with the dignity and respect that God intends for all humanity. This means embracing ALL people, regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation or gender identity, economic status, race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, color, height, weight, disability or any other unique characteristics that diversify humanity. All are created in God’s image. All are loved by God.

Barbara Johnson is really not that different from other Americans. She loves another human being and has been in a committed relationship with her for 19 years. That’s better than many heterosexual marriages. In fact, if LGBT couples were granted equality in marriage across the country, I would predict a drop in the national divorce rate. Any couple, gay or straight, who shares that kind of deep emotional and spiritual bond should be praised not condemned. No individual should be condemned for who they are, simply because the person is different in some way. “Shunning a grieving daughter at her mother’s funeral is a heartless act that violates the great commandment Jesus gave to love God and love our neighbor.” (Rev. Troy Plummer, United Methodist Church)  Intolerance and bullying of anyone, based on their differences, cannot and should not be tolerated, especially bullying and discrimination by Christian clergy.

Homosexuality and Christianity DO go together. There are many Christian denominations that support LGBT persons. The United Church of Christ[1] is a strong advocate for LGBT rights, as are the Episcopal Church[2] and the Unitarian Universalist Church[3]. All three denominations ordain openly gay clergy. The Presbyterian Church, United Methodist Church and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America are moving toward ordination of gay clergy. In the White House[4] the Obama administration affirms the humanity and civil rights of LGBT persons, as do the American Civil Liberties Union[5] and the Human Rights Campaign[6]. Go to their websites to learn more or participate in the promotion of LGBT civil rights. Together, with the help of God, we can live in a world free from discrimination and hatred based on sexual orientation and gender identity. “I have a dream …”[7]

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[1] http://www.ucc.org, http://www.ucc.org/lgbt/  

[2] http://www.episcopalchurch.org

[3] http://www.uua.org, http://www.uua.org/lgbt/witness/index.shtml

[4] http://www.whitehouse.gov, http://www.whitehouse.gov/lgbt

[5] http://www.aclu.org, http://www.aclu.org/lgbt-rights

[6] http://www.hrc.org

[7] I Have a Dream speech by Martin Luther King, Jr., August 28, 1963; http://www.mlkonline.net/dream.html