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Special Issue on Same-Sex Attraction: An Overview

As a priest who serves full-time in ministry to persons who are experiencing same-sex attraction and to those who love and care for them, I am pleased to be involved with and to present this special issue of The Linacre Quarterly, dedicated to issues associated with homosexuality and transgenderism. It could not be more timely, given the prominence of the discussion of these issues both in the Church and in secular society. The Catholic Church has long welcomed and encouraged the cooperation of professionals, both researchers and clinicians, whose expertise can deepen our understanding of the real-life situations of those for whom same-sex attraction is a daily reality. In its 1986 Letter on the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith urged bishops to use “the means at their disposal” to provide them authentic pastoral care, including “the assistance of the psychological, sociological and medical sciences, in full accord with the teaching of the Church.” I should note that I am writing here on behalf of fellow guest editors whose professional positions and licensure have been threatened in recent years by gay activists. They have asked to remain unnamed so as not to draw further attention from those who would attempt to silence them. In our first article, Father James McTavish provides a valuable reflection on pastoral care and spiritual support for people experiencing same-sex attractions. He writes from the unique position of being both a moral theologian, a missionary priest, and a physician involved in the care of people with HIV/AIDS. He is thus able not only to speak candidly about the spiritual and physical dangers inherent in homosexual acts and relationships, but also to provide a perspective on pastoral care that attends to the needs of the whole person. His emphasis on “spiritual accompaniment” responds well to the urging of Pope Francis in regard to care for homosexual persons. “In life, God accompanies persons,” the Holy Father told an interviewer in 2013, “and we must accompany them, starting from their situation. It is necessary to accompany them with mercy.” The remaining articles provide thoughtful reflection and serious research that challenge the prevailing cultural narrative in response to current questions: “How do children fare in same-sex households?” “Is surgery the right way to deal with gender dysphoria?” “Isn’t it harmful for a person The Linacre Quarterly 82 (4) 2015, 321–322