Pope Francis Is Coming: Help Us Break The Silence

A woman and her two children are posing in front of a cross.

Help us Tell Pope Francis: Our LGBTQ Families Matter As the United States prepares to welcome Pope Francis next week for his historic visit for the World Meeting of Families—the excitement within the Catholic and non-Catholic communities is palpable. Since becoming elected just two years ago, Pope Francis has offered hope to many. Pope Francis…

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Making Trans People The Enemy Was Another Vatican Mistake

Shadows of two people standing in front of a pillar.

The Vatican recently announced that it is “impossible to allow” transgender people to be godparents. In the warped logic of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, identifying as transgender “reveals in a public way an attitude opposite to the moral imperative of solving the problem of sexual identity according to the truth of one’s own…

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Coming Out As A Lesbian Mom

A woman and two children are holding american flags.

Facebook often sends me photos of past events I’ve posted. Kind of like a nostalgic, hey remember all the fun you had 5 years ago?! The last “reminder” really got me. The reminder came just days after what I affectionately call “The Breakdown.”  The day of The Breakdown ended with me sitting on the kitchen floor, holding both my babies (we have twins) as they…

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How My Queer Son Became More Than A Blessing To Me

A woman with a child in front of a christmas tree.

When I was pregnant with my son, my thoughts were muffled with unspeakable joy, of course, coupled with a touch of fear; as well as the sounds of 2am feedings, dirty diapers, fatigue, birthday parties filled with screaming crumb snatchers, 3 meals a day, playing games, lots of questions, and being able, by God’s grace and mercy, to…

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Jesus’ Mother Isn’t Gonna Like That

A priest in a white robe holding a bowl.

One of the things I love most about being Catholic is our unapologetic devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. I’ve always envisioned her to be the ultimate mother—she’d have to be wouldn’t she? God chose her to be the mother of our Savior. And by all accounts in the Bible, Mary was pretty awesome. “Hail…

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Mississippi Adoption Ban For Same-Sex Couples Challenged in Court

Three women and a little girl posing for a photo.

A federal lawsuit challenging Mississippi’s ban on adoption by same-sex couples has just been filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi. Campaign for Southern Equality v. Mississippi Department of Human Services seeks to strike down that ban and to establish that Mississippi same-sex couples have a right to adopt. Mississippi is…

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Now Is The Time To Reflect On “What Makes A Family?”

Two older women standing next to each other in an airport.

With marriage equality now legal across the United States, but yet with so many debates and controversies, particularly Catholic ones, still raging about the issue, it might be good to step back a second and reflect on the question “What makes a family?” New Ways Ministry’s Sister Jeannine Gramick, co-founder, did exactly just that recently…

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God Thinks You Are Absolutely Fabulous

A man holding up a sign that says god you are absolutely fabulous.

A little over a year ago, I took part in my first NYC Pride March, having just moved to the city in August 2013. My initial intent was to simply cheer on friends from the sidelines, as I was already exhausted from a weekend packed of Pride activities. But when my close friend, Amanda Hambrick…

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My Married Life Post Marriage Equality

A wedding ring sits on top of an open book.

For some time now, my spouse and I have been bickering over where we should live in our retirement years. She, being a child from the South, and me, being from the North, well, we have our tensions. I have jokingly dubbed them our “Mason-Dixon line feud.” We are not stretching our imaginations much when…

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