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From the Washington Blade

Baltimore archbishop's homily offends gays


by Joshua Lynsen
Friday, November 16, 2007

Some gay Catholics said they were frustrated by a local archbishop's homily last month that railed against gay marriage.

The homily, delivered Oct. 25 by Baltimore Archbishop Edwin O'Brien during a special Mass for judges and attorneys, asserted that straight marriage is "radically threatened" by courts and lawmakers intent on legalizing gay marriage.

According to the Catholic Review, O'Brien called on congregants to make the defense of heterosexual marriage "an urgent necessity to ensure the flourishing of persons, the well-being of children and the common good of society."

The homily did not sit well with gay Catholics like Francis DeBernardo, executive director of New Ways Ministries, a Maryland organization that advocates for the inclusion of gays in the Catholic Church.

"It's frustrating that someone like him, in a position of power and authority in the church, has such a misinformed view about sexuality, relationships and marriage," he said. "The church really would do better if he would enter into a dialogue with gay and lesbian people and their families and those who are ministering with them."

DeBernardo also said the homily illustrated how the church lacks an "equal standard" in matters of marital law.

"The Catholic Church doesn't support same-sex marriage, but it doesn't support divorce and it doesn't oppose divorce laws," he said. "The church may not want same-sex marriage as an equal sacrament, but there's no need to oppose it in the civil realm."

The homily followed a September ruling by Maryland's highest court upholding a state law that defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Judges ruled the law does not discriminate on the basis of gender and does not deny any fundamental rights, but left open the possibility that legislators could take action on the issue.

Measures seeking marriage equality, civil unions and a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage are expected to surface when lawmakers reconvene Jan. 9 in Annapolis.