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Catholic legal group makes curious choice for moderator of forum on women’s ordination
The St. Thomas More Society of San Francisco has invited a priest well known for challenging Church teaching on human sexuality and with ties to the city’s notoriously ‘gay-friendly’ Most Holy Redeemer Church to moderate a discussion next month on “the Role of Women in the Church, including the Debate over the Ordination of Women.”
The Society picked Jesuit Fr. Donal Godfrey to “moderate a fair and balanced discussion” on the subject scheduled for May 1 and billed as a “Half Day of Reflection Wine and Cheese Reception On the Role of Women in the Church.”
Fr. Godfrey is the author of Gays and Grays: The Story of the Gay Community at Most Holy Redeemer Catholic Parish, which, according to an Amazon.com book description, “shows how this parish became prophetic and compassionate, through conflict and compromise at times; despite opposition from many sources, including the institutionalized homophobia of the church and society. Rather than becoming embittered, the parish opened up to be a place of healing and indeed sanctuary for many.”
Fr. Godfrey has a long history of championing a less than orthodox view of human sexuality. As recently as March of 2008, he delivered a homily at Most Holy Redeemer entitled, “The Call to Come Out.” The homily likened Jesus’ calling Lazarus to come out of the tomb to same-sex attracted persons “coming out of the closet.” The homily was re-published on the “Gay Catholic Forum.” In 2006, Fr. Godfrey delivered another homily at MHR entitled, “Finding God in the Erotic.”
In April 2007, Fr. Godfrey celebrated a now famous “Gay Service” at Most Holy Redeemer, which was broadcast worldwide on BBC Radio4.
On July 18, 2008, Fr. Godfrey visited World Youth Day in Australia, where he attended an “Acceptance forum,” the Australian counterpart of DignityUSA. The Australian Church did not allow Acceptance to attend official World Youth Day events.
On Dec. 12, 2011, Fr. Godfrey joined a fellow University of San Francisco faculty member and a member of the Roman Catholic Womenpriests movement in an hour-long program broadcast on KALW radio in the Bay Area. The topic was “Far from Rome: Being Gay and Catholic in the Bay Area.”
The Catholic Church is an anti-woman and homophobic institution requiring theological transformation, Godfrey and his co-panelists agreed. He was joined on the program by the Rev. Vincent Pizzuto, associate professor in USF’s Department of Theology and Religious Studies and an ordained priest in the Celtic Christian Church; and Christine Fahrenbach, an “ordained deacon” who once co-led a gay and lesbian ministry at a Santa Cruz parish.
During the broadcast, Godfrey said that “pastoral practice” within the Church is frequently at odds with magisterial teaching, agreeing with Pizzuto that the hierarchy has yet to catch up with shifting attitudes in the pews. He compared attitudes regarding homosexuality at parishes like Most Holy Redeemer to women who use artificial contraception. Ultimately, he said, such issues are a matter of individual conscience.
Fr. Godfrey is currently associate director of University Ministry at the University of San Francisco. He served as executive director of University Ministry at USF from 2007-2010.
The St. Thomas More Society of San Francisco was founded in 1937 and describes itself as “the oldest fellowship of Catholic lawyers and judges in the West.”
“Please join us to meet other members of the society informally, enjoy a glass of wine, and take part in discussion of a topic that is sure to generate a lively and thoughtful discussion,” says an invitation to St. Thomas More Society members.
calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=d78973f9-5231-467a-adf5-76e02988f53b
http://calcatholic.com/newsimages/FrGodrey041012.jpg
The St. Thomas More Society of San Francisco has invited a priest well known for challenging Church teaching on human sexuality and with ties to the city’s notoriously ‘gay-friendly’ Most Holy Redeemer Church to moderate a discussion next month on “the Role of Women in the Church, including the Debate over the Ordination of Women.”
The Society picked Jesuit Fr. Donal Godfrey to “moderate a fair and balanced discussion” on the subject scheduled for May 1 and billed as a “Half Day of Reflection Wine and Cheese Reception On the Role of Women in the Church.”
Fr. Godfrey is the author of Gays and Grays: The Story of the Gay Community at Most Holy Redeemer Catholic Parish, which, according to an Amazon.com book description, “shows how this parish became prophetic and compassionate, through conflict and compromise at times; despite opposition from many sources, including the institutionalized homophobia of the church and society. Rather than becoming embittered, the parish opened up to be a place of healing and indeed sanctuary for many.”
Fr. Godfrey has a long history of championing a less than orthodox view of human sexuality. As recently as March of 2008, he delivered a homily at Most Holy Redeemer entitled, “The Call to Come Out.” The homily likened Jesus’ calling Lazarus to come out of the tomb to same-sex attracted persons “coming out of the closet.” The homily was re-published on the “Gay Catholic Forum.” In 2006, Fr. Godfrey delivered another homily at MHR entitled, “Finding God in the Erotic.”
In April 2007, Fr. Godfrey celebrated a now famous “Gay Service” at Most Holy Redeemer, which was broadcast worldwide on BBC Radio4.
On July 18, 2008, Fr. Godfrey visited World Youth Day in Australia, where he attended an “Acceptance forum,” the Australian counterpart of DignityUSA. The Australian Church did not allow Acceptance to attend official World Youth Day events.
On Dec. 12, 2011, Fr. Godfrey joined a fellow University of San Francisco faculty member and a member of the Roman Catholic Womenpriests movement in an hour-long program broadcast on KALW radio in the Bay Area. The topic was “Far from Rome: Being Gay and Catholic in the Bay Area.”
The Catholic Church is an anti-woman and homophobic institution requiring theological transformation, Godfrey and his co-panelists agreed. He was joined on the program by the Rev. Vincent Pizzuto, associate professor in USF’s Department of Theology and Religious Studies and an ordained priest in the Celtic Christian Church; and Christine Fahrenbach, an “ordained deacon” who once co-led a gay and lesbian ministry at a Santa Cruz parish.
During the broadcast, Godfrey said that “pastoral practice” within the Church is frequently at odds with magisterial teaching, agreeing with Pizzuto that the hierarchy has yet to catch up with shifting attitudes in the pews. He compared attitudes regarding homosexuality at parishes like Most Holy Redeemer to women who use artificial contraception. Ultimately, he said, such issues are a matter of individual conscience.
Fr. Godfrey is currently associate director of University Ministry at the University of San Francisco. He served as executive director of University Ministry at USF from 2007-2010.
The St. Thomas More Society of San Francisco was founded in 1937 and describes itself as “the oldest fellowship of Catholic lawyers and judges in the West.”
“Please join us to meet other members of the society informally, enjoy a glass of wine, and take part in discussion of a topic that is sure to generate a lively and thoughtful discussion,” says an invitation to St. Thomas More Society members.
calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=d78973f9-5231-467a-adf5-76e02988f53b
http://calcatholic.com/newsimages/FrGodrey041012.jpg
