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There is no way to avoid the conclusion that unlike Courage, Outreach does not believe that the Church’s teachings on homosexuality to be fully true and compassionate.
Portrait of Father John Harvey, founder of Courage International. (photo: Painting of Father Harvey by a Courage member, courtesy of Courage International / EWTN)
Recently two Catholic apostolates to homosexuals both held important conferences promoting their respective organizations. Their starkly differing approaches raise the question of the proper relationship between the truth of doctrine and the mercy we need to show in our pastoral application of those truths.
The first organization is the well-established ministry known as Courage International, founded in 1980 by Father John Harvey (1918-2010), which met July 25-28 at Mundelein Seminary near Chicago. The second is Outreach, the relatively new ministry of Jesuit Father James Martin, which held a conference Aug. 2-4 at Georgetown University.
Those unfamiliar with either of these ministries may wonder why the Church in America needs two national organizations devoted to the same cause. The short answer is that they offer a contrast — often sharp in its differences — in pastoral approaches.
Courage emphasizes the truth of the Catholic Church’s teaching on human sexuality and of the Church’s theological anthropology in general. It therefore has always been a haven for those same-sex attracted Catholics who are seeking to live chaste lives in accord with the Church’s teachings.
Continued below.
www.ncregister.com
Recently two Catholic apostolates to homosexuals both held important conferences promoting their respective organizations. Their starkly differing approaches raise the question of the proper relationship between the truth of doctrine and the mercy we need to show in our pastoral application of those truths.
The first organization is the well-established ministry known as Courage International, founded in 1980 by Father John Harvey (1918-2010), which met July 25-28 at Mundelein Seminary near Chicago. The second is Outreach, the relatively new ministry of Jesuit Father James Martin, which held a conference Aug. 2-4 at Georgetown University.
Those unfamiliar with either of these ministries may wonder why the Church in America needs two national organizations devoted to the same cause. The short answer is that they offer a contrast — often sharp in its differences — in pastoral approaches.
Courage emphasizes the truth of the Catholic Church’s teaching on human sexuality and of the Church’s theological anthropology in general. It therefore has always been a haven for those same-sex attracted Catholics who are seeking to live chaste lives in accord with the Church’s teachings.
Continued below.
Courage and Outreach: Two Apostolates, Two Paths for Same-Sex Attracted Catholics
COMMENTARY: There is no way to avoid the conclusion that unlike Courage, Outreach does not believe that the Church’s teachings on homosexuality to be fully true and compassionate.
