A “Pride Mass” took place in Washington, D.C.’s Holy Trinity Catholic Church Wednesday night despite calls for Cardinal Wilton Gregory to cancel it.
Newsroom(17/06/2023 09:00, Gaudium Press) The Holy Trinity’s LGBTQIA+ Ministry organized the third annual Pride Mass in Washington, D.C., which was attended by approximately 250 people. Holy Trinity is a Jesuit-run church in Georgetown that has been frequented by notable figures such as President Joe Biden, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and President John F. Kennedy and his family.
Father Kevin Gillespie, SJ, the parish’s pastor, described the Mass as an expression of the parish’s mission to accompany one another in Christ, celebrate God’s love, and transform lives. During his homily, Gillespie highlighted the heroism of Father Mychal Judge, an openly gay priest and Franciscan chaplain who died while serving during the 9/11 terrorist attack. Gillespie emphasized Judge’s ministry to AIDS victims and his advocacy for gay rights.
During the Mass, prayers were offered in solidarity with LGBTQ+ individuals and the LGBTQ+ community. Some attendees held small “Progress Pride” flags, a symbol of homosexual and transgender pride, while Mass programs distributed by volunteers also featured the flag.
Outside the church, a group of around 20 people, including members of Catholic groups such as “Tradition, Family, and Property America” and “America Needs Fatima,” gathered for a prayer vigil and protest against the Mass. Bagpipes, the recitation of the rosary, and chanting could be heard from outside during the Mass.
After the conclusion of the Mass, Ernest Raskauskas, the leader of Holy Trinity’s LGBTQIA+ ministry, instructed attendees to exit through the side doors due to unspecified activities in the neighbourhood, prompting laughter from the crowd.
Despite online calls for the cancellation of the Pride Mass, it proceeded as planned. One individual, Anna Katherine Howell, who converted to Catholicism and struggles with same-sex attraction, voiced opposition to the event. Howell argued that Pride events sponsored or attended by Catholics contradict Catholic teaching, create scandal, and harm faithful individuals with same-sex attraction who do not wish to celebrate or be identified solely by their impulses or past sins.
Howell emphasized the need for clarity and charity from the Church regarding same-sex attracted individuals. She stated that while love for all human beings should be affirmed, the Church must be clear about its teachings on same-sex attraction and emphasize the call to chastity and holiness.
Although Howell estimated that hundreds joined her call for the Pride Mass to be cancelled, she did not receive a response from Cardinal Archbishop Wilton Gregory or the Archdiocese of Washington.
In a similar event planned as a “Pride Mass” at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, the diocese’s bishop, David Zubik, disavowed the event and requested its cancellation which was duly honoured. Catholics for Change in Our Church, one of the groups organizing the Pittsburgh event, expressed disappointment and disagreement with the bishop’s decision.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from CNA
