By Lucas Lelardoux Oliger
They’re celebrating a mass at the Église Saint-Pierre-Apôtre. In practice, the rites and the liturgy are the same as in hundreds of Catholic churches across the province of Québec. During his sermon, the priest talks about the “historic inclusivity” of the parish. Because the church, situated a few steps from Montreal’s Gay Village, has been remarkable in its welcoming of LGBTQ+ parishioners.
This dichotomy might seem surprising at first glance. Numerous LGBTQ+ people have been pushed out of church. The ambivalent approach of the Catholic Church, preceded by a very hostile past, has been the main causes.
Between 1970 and 1990, the Vatican amended its dogma: homosexuals were no longer considered sinners by their very nature. Nonetheless, same-sex sexual relations remained sinful. The Catholic catechism called on gays to adopt chastity and prayer. Marriage and adoption remained out of reach according to Vatican dogma. Nevertheless, many high-up Catholic officials took differing views.
At the end of 2023, Pope Francis promulgated permission under some conditions for the blessing of gay couples. This blessing cannot be considered a Catholic ritual, like the marriage ceremony for example, as the Vatican wanted to disclaim any comparison between a heterosexual couple and a gay couple.
Carole-Ann Joanisse holds a doctorate in sexology and is the author of a study on the self-identity of certain gay men at the parish of Saint-Pierre-Apôtre. Her expertise, which doesn’t generalize the experiences of the whole of the community, is valuable.
Over and above questions of religious doctrine, she underlines that the characteristics of gay studies in Catholic milieus are multidimensional. Their integration into a church setting comes from a negotiation of their own self-identity on several fronts:
Their rapport with the Church;
Their community involvement;
Their self-acceptance of their sexual orientation.
Is the Saint-Pierre-Apôtre Church capable of healing the sufferings inflicted by the words of Catholic higher-ups? “The people I met with can have several reactions” concerning their sexual and religious identity, says Carole-Ann Joanisse.
For those who “entered into religion later in life, they were less confronted by the traditional doctrine, and they don’t see it having a negative impact on their sexual orientation. They began with this parish in the heart of the Gay Village and developed their religious identity here.” Nonetheless, “those who have experienced religion from their early youth look to Saint-Pierre-Apôtre to provide them with a manner of better living with their religious and sexual identity.”
Father Philippe Morinat, priest at the church, prefers to see their policy of acceptance in a more universal manner. The acceptance of LGBTQ+ parishioners is more of a result of “the neighborhood’s reality” than of any “demanding approach.” And it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Father Morinat recalls the case of two trans parishioners who left because they didn’t think the church lived up to their fight for emancipation.
Father Morinat deflected our questions on the Vatican.
Has Morinat’s parish found the recipe for tolerance? Dr. Joanisse says: “We feel an alternative discourse that isn’t named. It’s difficult to explain but the parish, by its inclusivity, proposes alternatives in order to include same-sex couples in traditional ceremonies.” Some rituals are more inclusive at Saint-Pierre-Apôtre than elsewhere. For example, same-sex couples wishing to baptize their child can do so, with the word “father” or “mother” quietly removed from the baptismal certificate.
What comes out of all of this is that if the Catholic Church has had a huge influence on our culture, so has the battle for LGBTQ+ rights. A big city offers an easier way to establish a feeling of unity. Morinat agrees with this. He says the large gay congregation is more a product of their presence in the area than of any specific outreach program.
Yet queer-phobia is still very present among Quebec’s Catholic clergy. For example, Christian Lepine, Archbishop of Montreal, has often featured in homophobic activities. In 2009, the basemen of the church in Repentigny he worked in held meetings inciting the faithful to “develop the heterosexual potential” of teenagers. This discourse was founded on the theory of “conversion therapy” made illegal in Quebec in 2020 and nationally in 2022.
The evolution of the Catholic Church on questions of inclusion remains a polarizing force. Many Catholic organizations still call for Christianity to exclude any tinge of gender or sexual differentiation. If they succeed, such exclusion will liquidate the values of tolerance and love.
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