U.S. Bishops’ New Sexuality Website Fails to Account for LGBTQ+ Perspectives, Advocates Say

What do LGBTQ+ Catholics and allies think about the U.S. bishops’ conference new website defending marriage as an exclusively heterosexual institution? Recently in the National Catholic Reporter, journalist Katie Collins Scott provides perspectives of various Catholics on the bishops’ “Love Means More” website, all of whom call into question the effectiveness of the website’s stated mission.

“Love Means More” was initiated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth. The website was formerly  known as “Marriage: Unique for a Reason,” which had been launched when marriage equality began to be accepted legally across the U.S. According to a press release:

“The Love Means More initiative is an ongoing campaign, based around a new website that takes a deep dive into the meanings of love. It is a versatile resource for Catholic catechists, as well as ‘seekers’ from any religious background, but also welcomes those who profess no religious background at all. Bishop Barron is chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth, which is spearheading the initiative.”

Additionally, in the press release, Barron said conversations around love, family and sexuality “can be confusing and polarizing” and that he therefore was pleased the new initiative could help “bring clarity and compassion to those questions.”

The initiative allegedly “heard, and seeks to address, questions and concerns received from people who are uncomfortable with some Church teachings,” including “those who uphold the possibility of divorce and remarriage, LGBT-identifying individuals, and those who defend pornography.”

Collins Scott’s report indicated that the website is not nearly as clear and compassionate as the bishops may have hoped, especially when read by those who question with church teaching–the exact audience this website was intentionally designed to address.

Bernie Donlon, a queer Catholic and New Ways Ministry’s Digital Communications and Programs Coordinator, said that when she initially scrolled through the “Love Means More” website, she was disappointed.

“If I’d done a Google search and stumbled upon this when I was younger, I think it would have had me take a few steps back in my personal journey with gender expression and sexuality,” she said. “In my opinion, it speaks in a superlative way, and doesn’t invite or engage in dialogue or listening.”

Donlon continued by saying she “understand[s] and can appreciate that the website is grounded in Christian anthropology,” but that “it doesn’t seem to take into account LGBTQ people’s real-life experiences.”

Donlon added that the website’s philosophical arguments are at times “confusing or use a logic and language that only makes sense if you already accept church teachings,” She concluded by saying that she “feels hopeful the bishops may consider revamping the website to make it more reflective of LGBTQ individuals’ realities and concerns.”

Jason Steidl Jack, a theologian at St. Joseph’s University, New York, told NCR that he agreed the “Love Means More” website is not accessible to those who do not embrace a Catholic worldview.

“I would rather send someone to the Catechism of the Catholic Church because it lays out church teaching very clearly,” he said.

Further, Steidl Jack said he found the website’s phrasing about ‘woundedness’ to be “incredibly paternalistic and condescending — as if the only reason why people would believe anything other than what the bishops are saying is that they are broken or wounded people.” He continued:

“Like many other Catholics, LGBTQ people go to therapy and to confession, but our sexuality and our gender are not a part of the personal wounding that leads to our misunderstanding of church teaching and error. The LGBTQ community is not broken because of our sexuality.

“We’re not broken because of our gender, gender expression, gender self-understanding. We’re broken because we live in a world that is homophobic and transphobic.”

Jennifer MacNeil, a Catholic mother with a transgender daughter, said that after reading the “Love Means More” page on gender discordance, her family felt the narrative “used outdated tropes that have long been rejected by most young people.”

MacNeil explained that the website “is a slap in the face and emboldens members of my faith community to act out against transgender people.” She continued with the sentiment that “the U.S. bishops’ website contains inaccuracies and is out of touch with young people.” Such content “pushes people further from the church, but I’m not going to back down. I’m allowed to have my faith and to be a Catholic woman with a transgender child.”

Collins Scott’s article raises up the Catholic voices that were left out of the “Love Means More” website’s construction, and to whom it would have been helpful if the bishops consulted in a spirit of synodality.

For another perspective on the U.S. bishops’ website, read theologian Mary Doyle Roche’s piece for Bondings 2.0, “Love Means More…Or Less” by clicking here.

—Robert Shine (he/him), New Ways Ministry, July 22, 2024