Next Generation of Church Thinkers Is Strong on LGBTQ+ Equality

In a recent virtual conversation entitled “The Spirit Still Speaks:  New Voices for Reform,” four young Catholic thinkers and activists discussed their ongoing hope for a more just, inclusive, and Spirit-led Church, including for LGBTQ+ people.

Katie Gordon

Sponsored by FutureChurch, a national Catholic an organization oriented towards the opportunity for all Catholics to participate fully in Church life, ministry, and governance, the panel brought together representatives ferom a wide range of backgrounds, experiences of Catholicism, and areas of ministry.:

• Katie Gordon, the Coordinator of Monasteries of the Heart, an online movement that translates Benedictine wisdom for contemporary seekers
• Maxwell Kuzma, a writer, advocate, and podcast host exploring what it means to be transgender, Catholic, and committed to justice.
• Medene Presley, a convert to Catholicism who is a graduate student researching researches the integration of psychology and theology, moral/practical theology, and pastoral counseling. 
• Yunuen Trujillo, alay minister active in LGBTQ+ ministry, an immigration attorney, and a board member of New Ways Ministry

Shannon Evans, the spirituality and culture editor at National Catholic Reporter, moderated the virtual discussion.

Over the course of the conversation, each panelist discussed what led them to their work of seeking reform in the Church and how they believe the Church can and must respond to the needs of the marginalized. For many panelists, witnessing the experiences of LGBTQ+ Catholics, or navigating the world as queer Catholics themselves, factored heavily into their desire to work towards reform.

Maxwell Kuzma

Maxwell Kuzma  identified his gender transition as the central experience that fueled his desire to work for reform in the Church, noting:

“My transition didn’t take me away from Catholicism. It actually finally allowed me to fully embrace it. It allowed me to show up with honesty. And in that honesty, my spiritual life grew deeper. 

“A huge part of that process…was thinking about the younger version of me- the kid who desperately needed to see an adult who was living a full, joyful, faithful Catholic life while also being transgender. And it was in that reflection that I first recognized a call to this work: to help build a church that welcomes everyone, even those who have been historically marginalized.”

In a similar way, Yunuen Trujillo lifted up her years-long journey of coming out, returning to the closet, then coming out again as a foundational and motivating experience for her own ministry:

“By the time I came out the second time I realized a big part of my role was going to be to continue in these religious formation circles where I can share my experience…and challenge those ideas that exclude some of us. Also, I realized that we didn’t have enough people that were doing LGBTQ+ ministry work…I realized part of my role was going to be to put resources together so that others could have a basic guide as to how to do this work.”

Yunuen Trujillo

Recognizing  queer leaders, mentors, and “ancestors” in Church life is  a key necessity for the Church moving forward, said Kuzma.It is vital not only for LGBTQ+ Catholics to have these examples, but also for all Catholics to recognize how these queer ancestors follow in the footsteps of early Christians. He continued:

“[Generational discernment] is the deep historical, intergenerational solidarity shared among queer and trans people who have survived, resisted, and loved one another through generations of marginalization. Long before I even had language for my own experience, I was 16 and found videos on YouTube of transgender men who were talking about their transition,” Kuzma shared. 

“Their reflections hit on all these themes of embodiment, joy, freedom, honesty, and in many ways became a kind of sacred text for me. They were passing down a lineage of survival, the same way marginalized Christians always have through testimony, hope, and through the promise that ‘we were here before you and we made it- so you can make it too.’”

This sense of communal and generational discernment, if it is truly rooted in and aimed towards justice, must be intersectional in nature, as Trujillo highlighted:

“We have to be better at understanding each other’s lived experiences and opening up the spaces for those intersectional stories to be shared so that every person that arrives in any of these groups feels that they can be fully themselves. And most importantly, we have to realize that our full liberation only comes when we are all liberated.”

Panelist Medene J.R. Presley outlined three main necessities for the Church to effectively move forward into a more inclusive reality:

“The Church first has to repent of its sins- show humility, genuine selflessness and consistent action. [That commitment] needs to be felt. It needs to be felt by communities that are most oppressed. And in my experience, it has not been…It feels more performative…The church has to become a better listener, a better spiritual community that listens. Lastly, the Church has to be ready and committed to playing the long game.”

While all of the panelists acknowledged the substantial harm that so many have experienced in the name of the Church, and while many noted that this process of reform and repair will likely be a slow journey, each ended on a note of hope, professing faith in the fact that a truly inclusive Catholic Church is not merely a hoped-for future but a present reality that emerges more and more each day. 

—Phoebe Carstens, New Ways Ministry, January 20, 2026