

ELIOT'S STORY
If I'm honest, I hate it when I share something emotional with someone, and their immediate response is, “I know how you feel.” I get what they’re trying to say, but it still leaves a bad taste in my mouth. If you’re reading this: I don’t know how you feel. I don’t have any clue about the vast majority of people who will read this. You might love your life. You might be a day away from ending your life. I can only know what I have been through and what I feel. If you’re strug


JANE'S STORY
I was sitting on the chapel floor, staring at the tabernacle, in tears. I was supposed to be happy. That was the promise, right? If I followed Christ and the teachings of His Church, then I was supposed to find joy, freedom, fulfilment…but I was so unhappy. I thought of my non-Catholic queer friends who were so full of laughter, and I couldn’t square my experience of them with how I thought I was supposed to feel. In my anger with God, I finally broke down and told Him all th


WHY DO CATHOLICS USE THE WORD "DISORDERED"?
This blog was originally published at Courage International's Truth & Love website. Any high school teacher both loves and loathes the team-based review game. They’re fun and functional, but often bring a streak of chaos to your classroom. When my former students selected team names, I would refuse to let them incorporate a word I didn’t understand. Either that, or I would look it up on “Urban Dictionary” - a collaborative online lexicon for all things trendy and possibly ina


"IT'S A HOMOSEXUALITY PROBLEM"
The explanations in the post-Boston Globe early 2000s came fast and furious. We were quick to quote statistics based on pre- and post-pubescent minors. The problem was clear, wasn’t it? “It’s a homosexuality problem.” As a self-righteously devout teenager, I was quick to say it too, and with gusto. After all, didn’t we need an explanation for a world that would call our entire Church corrupt? As Caiaphas said, “it is better for you that one man should die instead of the peopl


PRIDE, GUILT, & LIFE UNASHAMED
This blog was originally posted at Courage International's Truth and Love website. Explaining the Church’s teaching on same-sex desires in today’s world isn’t easy. We feel hesitation, embarrassment…shame. Living the Church’s teaching on same sex desires poses it’s own challenges. Internal confusion, hiding…shame. June’s Pride Month offers a compelling alternative for many. Why not simply reject a “repressive” Christian sexual ethic? Why not shrug off shame once and for