LGBTQ+ Advocates React to Trump’s Victory, Chastize Cardinal Dolan; And More News

Cardinal Timothy Dolan with Donald Trump

The following items may be of interest:

1. In October, New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan hosted the Al Smith Dinner, a fundraiser at which U.S. presidential candidates usually speak. This year, however, only Donald Trump attended. Afterwards, Maureen Dowd, a columnist for The New York Times, criticized Dolan sharply for allowing Trump’s nasty and crass remarks to go unchallenged. Dowd wrote that, “The cardinal should go to confession.” Quoting several of Trump’s misogynistic, anti-transgender, and insulting comments, Dowd continued:

“Dolan could have stood up and told Trump ‘Enough!’ We have been longing for that voice of authority who could deliver the Joseph Welch line — ‘Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?’ — to our modern Joe McCarthy. It is the church’s job, after all, to teach right from wrong.

“Instead of telling Trump he was over the line, Dolan enabled him in his blasphemous effort to cast his campaign as a quasi-religious crusade and himself as a saintly martyr saved by God. The conservative cardinal didn’t care about soiling the legacy of the great Democratic patriot Al Smith. . .

“Certainly, Dolan is happy with Trump’s abortion crackdown. But can’t he see that Trump is corroding our country’s moral core? Trying to steal an election violates the Eighth Commandment. And Trump has broken the commandments about cheating and lying and coveting.”

2. After the election, the National Catholic Reporter covered Catholic reactions to Trump’s victory, especially given roughly 55% of the faithful voted for him. Among those interviewed were Maxwell Kuzma, a transgender Catholic advocate and Bondings 2.0 contributor, who told NCR that a Trump administration “is a threat not only to vital health services but also to personal safety” for LGBTQ people. He added:

“‘Trump has spread lies about trans youth and encouraged violence against those he views as enemies. In this political landscape, trans youth especially are terrified of becoming victims of hate crimes. . .I am deeply worried for the next generation of trans people.'”

JR Zerkowski, executive director of Fortunate Families, said a “staggering” number of LGBTQ+ people “have reached out to me because they are scared and anxious, depressed and suicidal.” Jeanné Lewis, the CEO of Faith in Public Life who is Catholic, commented:

“‘[Project 2025] poses a grave threat to the hard-won rights and protections of the most vulnerable among us — people living in poverty, racial and ethnic minorities, LGBTQIA+ people, religious minorities, and others who have historically faced systemic discrimination and oppression. . .[People of faith must] use our collective moral power to resist violence and to pursue nonviolent action to build a future of freedom and dignity for all.'”

3. In an op-ed for Contém Amor, Fr. Luís Corrêa Lima, SJ, a leader in Brazil’s LGBTQ+ ministries, reflected on Dignitas Infinita, both affirming the Vatican document’s defense of human rights while challenging some of its claims about gender. He said the declaration shows “there is an important history of change and evolution of doctrine within the Church,” such as its affirmation of religious liberty, which the church once condemned. Noting that, despite church leaders’ claims, there is no unified and comprehensive explanation akin to a theory” on gender, the priest rejects “a simplistic binary model.” He comments further:

“From this perspective, therefore, [transgender inclusion] is not a question of canceling out human and sexual differences, nor of disposing of oneself without considering human life as a divine gift. On the contrary, it’s about duly recognizing these differences that are constitutive of every human being. For those who believe in God, this is part of his creation. Sex reassignment does threaten human dignity. However, the procedure of [transition] in a transgender person, aimed at sexual reassignment to correct an existing gender dysphoria, is something different. It may be as necessary as intervention on intersex people. . .

“It’s very positive that all of this has changed and that this process can continue. A thought that arises from the Gospel should not be immutable like a fossil, but rather reread the Gospel itself in light of contemporary culture and the world, attentive to its opportunities and limitations. Gender and human dignity need to be related in such a way as to shine forth the face of God, who is a Father and does not disown any of His LGBT+ children.”

4. The Diocese of Rockville Centre settled a civil rights lawsuit filed by Michael Califano, a gay teacher at Maria Regina School, Seaford, New York, who was fired in 2022 after administrators became aware of photos of Califano with his boyfriend. The late October settlement, the details of which are not public, comes after a federal district court judge refused the diocese’s and school’s request to dismiss the case. Judge James Wicks affirmed that there was sufficient evidence Califano was discriminated against based on his sexual orientation for the case to proceed. In 2022, Califano’s firing prompted community protests for a teacher many at Maria Regina School described as beloved and faithful.

5. In New Hampshire, the Bishop Brady High School girls’ soccer team refused to compete against Kearsarge Regional High School because the latter included a transgender athlete. The boycott was supported by right wing groups, including Moms for Liberty. However, The Daily Mail reported that when Manchester’s Bishop Peter Libasci “learned that parents and students may take action against the Kearsarge players, he and his legal team crafted a statement opposing the boycott.” The diocese’s superintendent of schools, Dave Thibault, said “Christian charity”meant the athletes should play, adding, “We don’t believe it’s right to just forfeit a game when playing a team with a transgender athlete because we have an issue that is not being handled properly by another party.” The issue of trans student athletes is contentious in New Hampshire, where legislators passed a law banning trans athletes from women’s sports in July, but a federal judge blocked its enforcement on the grounds that it is “not even a close call” that it is clearly discriminatory, and “the stigma and humiliation that comes from such treatment of a child at the hands of the State is substantial and irreparable.”

—Robert Shine (he/him), New Ways Ministry, November 23, 2024