All of Us Are Called to Something…

One of the things we learned in our elementary math classes was the LCD. Do you remember what that was? It stands for Lowest Common Denominator (LCD). An example of what it is can be found through the use of fractions with two examples found below. To find it one would not look at the top number of the fraction (numerator), but instead look at the bottom number (denominator) in an equation to figure out what the LCD is. 

First, if you try to figure out the LCD between the equation, 1/2 + 3/8, the answer for the LCD is 8. The LCD can be found by multiplying 2 (the denominator) X 4 to equal 8. So the equation is set up to be better read as 4/8 + 3/8. Another example would be to try to find the LCD between 2/3 + 1/4. This is a little more difficult. A short version is to multiply the first denominator of 3 x 4, which equals 12, and multiply the other denominator, 4, and multiply that by 3 to equal 12. Now the denominator, 12, matches both equations, and becomes the LCD. So the equation is better set up and read as 8/12 + 3/12. All you need to do is just finish the problem.

The LCD in the spiritual life binds all of us. All of us are called to do something great with our lives for the glory of God, and all of us are called to something great as it relates to our gift of sexuality. So what are all of us called to??? The correct answer is…(Drum roll, please)…Chastity! No matter if you are married, single, priestly – religious, or if you have same-sex attraction (SSA), the LCD for all of us is chastity. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) chastity is defined as “the moral virtue which, under the cardinal virtue of temperance (moderation), provides for the successful integration of sexuality within the person leading to the inner unity of the bodily and spiritual being (2337). Chastity is called one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit (1832).”  Additional resources on this topic can be found further in the Catechism, #s 2337 – 2359, 2394 – 2396.

Simply put, chastity means being faithful and loyal to God through the vocation you and I are currently living out as well as the vocation that God is eventually calling some to live out in the married life or priestly-religious life. For a married couple, which is only between one man and one woman, this means being faithful and loyal to one’s spouse. For single people it means being chaste in the single life and continuing that if one is called to marriage or priestly-religious life. For those who are single, for example, and have SSA, you too are called to love in a chaste way either through friendship, affection, or charitable service, and which can be applied to the other vocations as well. No matter which vocation you are in or called to live out, all of us are called to put God at the center and at the top.

What if we have fallen into sexual sin? We acknowledge our sin, repent by going to the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and continue back on the road of chastity in communion with Christ and his Church. We can do penance through self-denial, avoid the near occasion of sin by having custody of the eyes, use caution when it comes to media and entertainment, and we can also cultivate a daily prayer life which may include spending time with Jesus in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament to prevent sins against chastity.

While there is information available on the topic of chastity on the Internet and in our churches as it relates to the different vocations of life, the one area I would like to focus on in terms of offering resources, help, and care rooted in love, is for those who have SSA. At the very beginning of this month, Archbishop Allen Vigneron, the Archbishop of Detroit, published a wonderful and compassionate pastoral letter to those who have SSA entitled,  “Imitating Christ’s Charity and Chastity – A Pastoral Note on Ministry to Those Who Experience SSA,” which is only the equivalent of about 3.5 letter pages long. Ministering to those with SSA was originally mentioned in the archbishop’s letter, “Unleash The Gospel” two years ago in 2017. This pastoral letter on SSA is now the 5th in a series of 6 (each with different topics), and the SSA letter can be found by going either to unleashthegospel.org, detroitcatholic.org, or you can just do a Google search.

Below are some additional, Catholic Resources on the topic of SSA as it relates to chastity that were supplemented in a preliminary letter to complement the archbishop’s letter.

Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) #s 2357-2359

Courage >  (or here)  – for those who have SSA

Encourage > – for family and friends of SSA

“Ministry to Persons with A Homosexual Inclination: Guidelines for Pastoral Care,” (or here for the Table of Contents, or here for Pastoral Care) published by the Unites States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB); 25-26 pgs.

What saddens me about the SSA movement is that the people involved have distorted the use and the meaning of the rainbow and transposed it on flags to fit their own agenda, one that is accompanied by an arrogant pride and one that is contrary to the teachings of Sacred Scripture along with the teachings of the Catholic Church. This rainbow, as many of us know, was given as a sign by God to Noah that He would never again destroy the earth by a flood (Gen. 6:5 – 9:17). God is good for his Word. He has kept his promise, and I hope we believe that He always will. While there have been devastating floods throughout the millennia and the centuries since, we also know that God destroyed places like Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19:1-29) that was brought about by the unrepentant sin of homosexuality or same-sex acts that go against the natural order of creation both from the unitive and procreative aspects. We know too that no one brings judgment on an individual or a people. We don’t judge persons or souls. However, we are called to judge acts or actions, offer fraternal correction, pray for the conversion of hearts, and do it by speaking the truth with love knowing in our own hearts that we are sinners redeemed by the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ, and that these actions and lifestyles are sinful and morally wrong as mentioned numerous times throughout the Bible (Lev. 18:22, Lev. 20:13, Ez. 16:48-50, Is. 5:20, Rom. 1:24-27, Rom. 12:2, 1 Cor. 6:9-10, Eph. 5:21-33, Jude 1:7, Mk. 10:2-16, Jn. 8:1-11).

The good news is that God wants our freedom. He allows us to freely choose, to freely choose Him and the good, to choose his mercy, his forgiveness, his love, and to freely choose chastity through the exemplary examples of His Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, Jesus’ Mother and our spiritual mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and her most chaste spouse, St. Joseph. After Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the Eucharist (usually prayed outside of Mass) and toward the end of the Divine Praises, we respond, “Blessed be St. Joseph, her (Mary’s) most chaste spouse.” We also have help from the Catholic Church to know these truths through the Bible, the Catechism, the Sacraments, Sacred Tradition, the saints, and the ability to know right from wrong that is written on the human heart, called the Natural Law.

Brandon Vogt, who is known as the author of Return: How to Draw Your Child Back to The Church (or here or here), makes some solid yet helpful distinctions through his online, Catholic School known as Claritas University for those who have SSA and are called to live a chaste life. In his interview with Fr. Philip Bochanski, the Director of Courage, an international Catholic apostolate that effectively ministers to those with SSA, Vogt shared (and I’m paraphrasing here), that we need to make careful distinctions between the person, actions, and inclinations; between identity versus action, and between attraction versus behavior. May we not only make those distinctions with careful prudence, but do it always with compassionate love as we pursue and defend the truths of Jesus Christ and his Bride, the Catholic Church. Let us love people enough to tell them the truth. Below are another set of resources to do further study on for this very important but timely, heated, and controversial topic of SSA. 

Enjoy.

– Fr. Jeff

OTHER RESOURCES FOR THOSE WITH SSA:

Blogs:

1. “5 Practical Ways to Address Homosexuality and Marriage in The Church: Part 3 of 3”   – previous blog post

2.“Hundreds Gather In Orlando To Celebrate Jesus Delivering Them From LBGT Lifestyle,” – Freedom in Christ for 400 “Overcomers,” including “Fearless Identity” as Orlando Marchers celebrate liberation from homosexuality, by Amanda Casanova, Christian Headlines,” 3-16-19.

3. “Jakub Baryla: A Fiery Witness of Faith” – previous blog post

4. Spiritual Friendship – Editor Ron Belgau calls men and women to chastity, and he does this by intelligently presenting the Church’s sexual ethic. We’re all called to love and be in relationships, but that does not mean romantic, sexual relationships. As Ron sees it, we need to do a better job of promoting the highest of all love, i.e. friendship.

5. “What Does Our Church Teach About Homosexuality? – Part 2 of 3” – previous blog post

Books:

1. Loving My (LGBT) Neighbor: Being Friends in Grace and Truth, by Glenn T. Stanton

2. Made for Love: Same-Sex Attraction and the Catholic Church, by Fr. Michael Schmitz

3. Made This Way: How to Prepare Kids to Face Today’s Tough Moral Issues, by Leila Miller and Trent Horn

4. Homosexuality and the Catholic Church: Clear Answers to Difficult Questions, by Fr. John F. Harvey (founder of Courage, now deceased)

5. Why I Don’t Call Myself Gay, by Daniel Mattson

Letter to Bishops:

1. Letter to The Bishops of The Catholic Church on The Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons, by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (later Pope Benedict XVI), 1986

Letter to Parents:

1.“Always Our Children: A Pastoral Message to Parents of Homosexual Children and Suggestion for Pastoral Ministers,” by USCCB, 1997

Ministries:

Eden Invitation – retreats, community, and book discussions for those who have same-sex attraction

“Theology of The Body” – given in a series of 129 lectures by St. John Paul II between 1979 – 1984 and translated well by Christopher West (or here); Can also click here, here, and here.

Videos:

1. “Desire of the Everlasting Hills” (or here)

2. “How to Discuss Hard Moral Questions with Kids: Interview with Leila Miller and Trent Horn”

3. “The Third Way” (or here)

Web:

1. Chastity Project > Catholic Couple, Jason and Crystalina Evert on “chastity”