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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

New gay ministry furthers view of Catholic Church

Yonat Shimron McClatchy

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh, N.C., is starting a new ministry to gays and lesbians – but those who have embraced that identity may not like it.

The ministry is called Courage, and its aim, in the words of its executive director, is to “assist men and women who are afflicted with the thorn of same-sex attraction.”

A 29-year-old international ministry with about 90 U.S. chapters, the Courage Apostolate will serve as a kind of support group – like Alcoholics Anonymous – for men and women who want to remain celibate.

The move is part of a more aggressive push by the dioceses of Raleigh and Charlotte, N.C., to march in step with the Vatican on the issue of homosexuality.

Homosexuality is a hugely divisive issue in many Christian denominations. The ordination of a gay bishop by the Episcopal Church six years ago led several churches and dioceses to bolt from the denomination. Presbyterians, Lutherans and Methodists are also battling over how much standing to give gays and lesbians.

The Catholic Church maintains that same-sex attraction is not sinful, but that homosexual sex is. That has given gays and lesbians wide latitude in finding their place within the Roman Catholic Church.

Nationally, there are several gay and lesbian ministries – some that accept gays and lesbians as they are, others like Courage that view homosexuality as a problem to be overcome.

The late Pope John Paul II endorsed the work of Courage. More recently, Pope Benedict XVI reiterated the implacable opposition of the church to homosexuality. Last year the Vatican urged seminaries to enlist the aid of psychologists in screening candidates for homosexuality and other “psychic disturbances.”

The Rev. James Fukes, pastor of St. Julia Catholic Church in Siler City, N.C., who will serve as the spiritual director for Courage, said the new ministry was added at the request of parishioners.

“There have been some people who asked for some ministry by the Catholic Church to help them deal with the challenges and difficulties they have and remain close to God,” he said.

The Rev. Paul Check, national director of Courage, has written widely on homosexuality, including one article in which he suggests that gay men come from broken homes or grew up alienated from their fathers and overprotected by their mothers.

He has also said homosexuality is treatable and was quoted in the National Catholic Register suggesting that Courage is needed because Catholics are “going to Protestant groups, like Exodus, that do very good work in this spiritual ministry.”

Exodus International, based in Orlando, Fla., advocates “reparative therapy” to make gays straight. Its slogan is “freedom from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ.”

Fukes, the Siler City priest, said there would be no attempt at reparative therapy.

“If people want psychological counseling, I can find someone for that,” said Fukes. “But that’s not the goal of Courage.”

Still, several priests expressed concern about the new ministry.

“I know the Courage move is an effort to include people of gay orientation in the Catholic community,” said the Rev. Joseph Vetter, Catholic chaplain at Duke University. “I’m concerned it may be read by some gay Catholics as not accepting of who they are.”