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The executive director of the international apostolate that serves same-sex-attracted Catholics and their families reflects on the lessons learned during his tenure.
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — Back in 2015, when Father Philip Bochanski joined the staff of Courage International, the Catholic apostolate that helps persons with same-sex attraction live in accordance with Church teaching, the U.S. Supreme Court had just legalized same-sex unions, and he feared the ministry would stall as America embraced a new normal.
“Everything seemed settled in the public mind, and I thought, ‘We probably won’t be expanding,’” Father Bochanski recalled during an interview with the Register.
Instead, the high court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges propelled an unexpected increase in the opening of new Courage chapters across the United States.
Bishops who had remained on the fence during the nation’s contentious debate over “marriage equality” now saw the urgent need for an apostolate that placed the Church’s vision of human sexuality at the heart of its pastoral outreach to Catholics seeking to reconcile their personal struggles with their faith.
The rapid expansion of Courage chapters in the U.S. was the first, but not the only, twist in Father Bochanski’s eight-year tenure, which will come to a close on June 3, when he will leave the Trumbull, Connecticut-based apostolate and return to Philadelphia, where he will take up new duties as the vicar general of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
While serving as the ministry’s executive director for the past six years, Father Bochanski also faced new challenges, from a pandemic lockdown that suspended vital face-to-face chapter meetings to a fast-moving campaign to change Catholic teaching on homosexuality, led by Church leaders in Europe.
Continued below.
www.ncregister.com
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — Back in 2015, when Father Philip Bochanski joined the staff of Courage International, the Catholic apostolate that helps persons with same-sex attraction live in accordance with Church teaching, the U.S. Supreme Court had just legalized same-sex unions, and he feared the ministry would stall as America embraced a new normal.
“Everything seemed settled in the public mind, and I thought, ‘We probably won’t be expanding,’” Father Bochanski recalled during an interview with the Register.
Instead, the high court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges propelled an unexpected increase in the opening of new Courage chapters across the United States.
Bishops who had remained on the fence during the nation’s contentious debate over “marriage equality” now saw the urgent need for an apostolate that placed the Church’s vision of human sexuality at the heart of its pastoral outreach to Catholics seeking to reconcile their personal struggles with their faith.
The rapid expansion of Courage chapters in the U.S. was the first, but not the only, twist in Father Bochanski’s eight-year tenure, which will come to a close on June 3, when he will leave the Trumbull, Connecticut-based apostolate and return to Philadelphia, where he will take up new duties as the vicar general of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
While serving as the ministry’s executive director for the past six years, Father Bochanski also faced new challenges, from a pandemic lockdown that suspended vital face-to-face chapter meetings to a fast-moving campaign to change Catholic teaching on homosexuality, led by Church leaders in Europe.
Continued below.
Father Philip Bochanski’s Departure From Courage Marks an Era of Growth Amid Societal Tumult
The executive director of the international apostolate that serves same-sex-attracted Catholics and their families reflects on the lessons learned during his tenure.
