CRISIS: A Catholic response to “Pride Month”

Today I saw with disgust that the US Embassy to the Holy See in Rome has displayed a homosexuality flag.

At Crisis today there is a good piece entitled “The Catholic Response to ‘Pride Month'” by John A. Monaco.

After recounting the increasingly rapid incrementalism by which the homosexalist agenda is being shoved down everyone’s throats, the writer make positive suggestions for how we, as faithful Catholics, should comport ourselves in the face of incessant LGBTQ+ aggression.

[…]

What is the Catholic response to “Pride Month,” then? Certainly, it is not found in Ontario’s Catholic schools, nor is it found in Fr. Martin’s celebration and promotion of how “Pride Month” is congenial to Catholicism. Nor can a Catholic in good conscience march in “Pride Month’s” scantily-clad parades and tolerate the LGBT community’s attempts to redefine the family, love, and compassion.

Aggressive protest measures, such as burning the rainbow flag, will only result in fifteen years of imprisonment. But as the oft-quoted motto goes, “silence is violence”; and to remain silent in the wake of a growing LGBT movement is to show one’s apathy and complicity in it. An appropriate and prudent response is required, one that will be consistent with traditional Catholic moral teaching and living. Three responses come to mind: prayer, penance, and proselytization.

It goes without saying that prayer is essential to the life of any Catholic. Prayer, in itself, may take many forms—our prayer may be mental, vocal, imaginative, devotional, liturgical, communal. Each of us have our own preferred methods and established habits.

What I suggest for June, then, is not merely to pray (I take that as a given), but to focus and add to our spiritual lives by praying for those who experience same-sex attractions and those involved in the homosexual lifestyle. This should not be interpreted in a condescending way (“I’ll pray for you, sinner!”), but rather in a truly loving way. Whether in our recitation of the rosary, Eucharistic adoration, or morning and nighttime prayers, let us make a conscious effort to bring same-sex attracted men and women—perhaps our friends, maybe our enemies—to the Lord by our intercession.

If June is a month of “pride” for the LGBT community, Catholics should counter the celebrated vice of pride with the oft-scorned virtue of humility. There is no better way to grow in this virtue than to remember in our minds and hearts those involved in certain lifestyles and carrying particular crosses.

[…]

Penance is often understood as a “making up” for one’s own wrongdoings. However, a true definition of penance avoids individualism. While we are solely to confess our own sins in the Sacrament of Penance, we are encouraged by the tradition to not only do penance for ourselves but for the whole world. Even if we ourselves are not involved in homosexual activity, we still are connected to those who are by virtue of our common humanity and, in many cases, our shared baptism.

We need not to be guilty of a specific wrongdoing to perform penance in satisfaction for the sins of others, especially for those sins which cry out to heaven for vengeance. After all, if Christ—who is sinless—suffered out of love for all humanity—how much more is it appropriate for we—who are sinners—to perform acts of voluntary penance on behalf of our fellow sinners? Admittedly, this is not a popular concept today. But it nonetheless remains true.

[…]

The final suggestion I have is that of proselytization. This is often considered a dirty word, especially in the post-conciliar epoch. Pope Francis has repeatedly warned against proselytization, preferring the more neutral term “evangelization” and “witness.” However, by proselytization, I am referring to its literal, etymological definition—coming from the Greek word prosêlutos meaning “to come over/towards.” In ancient times, it was understood to refer to someone who leaves one community for another, such as a Gentile convert to Judaism. Despite numerous attempts to suggest the contrary, one cannot simultaneously celebrate homosexual activity and remain committed to the teachings of Christ’s Church.

Whatever the fruits of the “New Evangelization,” it cannot include in them the conversion of society—if not all bishops and clergy in the Church—to the truth of human sexuality as illuminated by Christian identity. In fact, I would go as far to suggest that attempts by some Catholics to weaken Church teaching on homosexuality in the name of “accompaniment” and “dialogue” are more worthy of damnation than anything one might witness at any given “Pride” parade.

[…]

Interwoven in these snippets from his piece are good suggestions about concrete things to do and how to tie them to, for example, certain feast days.  Also, check his original piece at Crisis for the links he embedded.

It is important for all of us to engage this pervasive and growing problem in the positive ways the writer proposes.   Remember: the stakes are high and their homosexualist agenda won’t end at creating “welcoming communities”.  No.  There is a great deal more to the homosexualist agenda, ultimately, including demonic gender ideology and the lowering of the age of consent as well as the totalitarian principle that “everything not forbidden is compulsory”.

Homosexualists and abortion defenders are, at heart, totalitarians.    My friend Jennifer Roback Morse make this argument, demonstrating how their thought and agenda is, in essence, totalitarian in scope and tactic.   You can start with her book:

The Sexual State: How Elite Ideologies Are Destroying Lives and Why The Church Was Right All Along

US HERE – UK HERE

“Why The Church Was Right All Along…”.  Well… iuxta modum.  There is plenty of silence from our lots of our leaders on this and downright complicity from many.

I’ll add something to the writer’s suggestions.

GO TO CONFESSION!

Good initiatives ought always to start with a good examination of conscience and a good confession and good Holy Communion.

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
This entry was posted in Our Catholic Identity, Si vis pacem para bellum!, Sin That Cries To Heaven, The Coming Storm, The future and our choices and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink.

14 Comments

  1. The Astronomer says:

    Nothing says America is worth emulating more than a “yay sodomy!” flag flying outside our embassies, especially in the Middle East and Africa. No wonder these countries get disgusted at our every-four-years merry-go-round values emphasis and embrace Putin or Xi Jinping instead.

  2. Sieber says:

    The Biden Secretary of State declared that he would order the LGBT+ flag to be flown at all of our embassies. That such a flag would be flown at the Vatican embassy is a direct and calculated affront to the Church. Our ambassador should be called to Parolin’s office and officially reprimanded.
    Then they can break out the Champagne and have a good laugh!

  3. JustaSinner says:

    First, I want the rainbow back. It is the symbol of God’s solemn vow never to destroy the Earth by floods.
    Secondly, I want the term “gay” back. It means happy, frivolous and light-hearted; not some perverse sodomite behavior so vile demons won’t watch!
    Finally, I am upset when straight acquaintances brag about sex…TMI and not befitting open discussion, so I REALLY don’t wish to hear sodomites bragging!
    Oh, and to Fr Jesse James Martin, SJ, there is no pride in sodomy. There is no pride in your scandalous behavior. There will be no pride in God’s judgement of you lest ye not repent.

  4. epr says:

    Pride month? Rubbish. June is the month dedicated to the Sacred Heart.

  5. Josephus Corvus says:

    It’s discriminatory to have “Pride” month. How about Greed, Envy, Avarice, Anger, Lust, Gluttony, and Sloth? Don’t they count?

  6. Ellen says:

    Is the gay flag in front of the Saudi embassy?

  7. adriennep says:

    Our diocesan Latin Mass priest gave us handouts and asked us to “take back the month” by praying the Consecration and Litany to the Sacred Heart. We would follow him anywhere.

  8. TonyO says:

    One small way to fight back (in addition to prayer, penance, etc.): fight fire with fire in the naming business. First of all, always remember that in fundamental reality, there is NO ACTUAL AGREEMENT of principles and intentions between the gays and the trans-genders. In fact, a huge number of gays and lesbians are very upset at hitching the “T” for trans-gender to their (or “their”) sexual orientation classifications for GLB. Q, of course, is crazy and idiotic and hardly anyone actually LIKES the Q people. Anyway, this gives us room for breaking up the letters as much as you like; GL, GBL, TQ, or any combination you like. Splinter them.

    Or, go the other direction: there are LOTS AND LOTS of additional letters in the alphabet, and lots of people and causes claiming those letters. The neutrals (and the nutrois, whatever that is) claim N – let them have it. Then there are Z’s, and K’s, and so on. so, dilute the meaning and specialness of the “victim status” for these so-called classes, by giving EVERYONE a letter, (including heterosexuals, of course.) GNQLVDBTHRZ – or make up your own grouping. You know: if everyone is special, then (really) nobody is special.

    Better yet, making up your own groupings, and CHANGE it constantly. You know, everyone is claiming the picture is “more fluid” than mere polarity from 2 poles. So, let your groups be fluid. Better still, make sure you change them up constantly, but preface EACH set with the universal three-letters for totalitarianism run amok: KGB. So, we can have KGB-GLBQTHNDV, and KGB-BLT-HATE-FREAKs. Special points for inserting NKVD in there to back up KGB.

    Yes, it’s petty and silly. That’s what the name salad deserves – being treated as ridiculous.

  9. My colleagues were going to get lunch at Chipotle this afternoon. I looked at the menu on the web site and quickly saw that they were observing the month according to the prescribed rituals. I decided I could skip lunch.

  10. ChesterFrank says:

    U.S. military personnel who have died in the performance of their military duties get a memorial day. Gays get a month.

  11. hwriggles4 says:

    The last few years I have noticed “Pride Month type” signs posted at several Protestant churches (even a few mainline Protestant) around this time of the year. It makes my blood pressure go up.

    Several former Episcopalians say affirmation of the LGBT lifestyle was one reason they left, and I am disappointed that a faction in the United Methodist Church is contemplating recognizing “same sex unions. “

  12. jjbulano says:

    The memo from the secretary of state called for the ambassadors to use their good judgment and not put the flags up if there could be a problem — if it would do harm. So, exactly what was the Ambassador to the Holy See thinking when he put the flag up? Was he relying on all of Francis’s ambiguous statements about the gay life style to mean that the Church supports same-sex unions and disordered sexual relationships? Maybe he should have checked first? Or, maybe he did check and got yet another ambiguous answer that he felt gave him the ok to put the flag up?

  13. The Cobbler says:

    TonyO, some wag once coined “LGBTQWTFBBQ”

  14. Semper Gumby says:

    Good article by John Monaco. He refers to a Jesuit Prepatory School named for St. Jean de Brebeuf, who lived with the Huron for years and brought them the Good News of Jesus Christ, and was martyred by the hostile Iroquois. That prep school now appears to draw its inspiration from Francois Babeuf, a French Revolutionary and proto-Commie who today would approve of reducing the human being- made in the image of God- to merely a sack of animal flesh engaging in random acts of genitalia.

    John Monaco: “Even when a bishop warns the faithful to avoid Pride Month activities, he receives a slew of angry comments, predictable and yet ironic from the community of “inclusiveness” and “toleration.””

    Proverbs 16: Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit
    before a fall.

    To that one may add: the “Tolerant” sure are Intolerant these days.

    As others have pointed out, such as ChesterFrank above, sodomites demand a month to be even more obnoxious about their rutting ritual and convert children to their infernal cause, while those who have given their lives for God, Country and their friends are honored with one day. The Pentagon, if it weren’t so busy these days trying to transform citizen-soldiers into Social Justice Warriors, implementing divisive policies, hiring political commissars and pimping Ibram X. Kendi’s racist book, should be supporting a God and Country Month. One benefit of a well-trained, cohesive, virtuous and disciplined military focused on mission accomplishment is…peace.

    Which brings us to embassies, mentioned above. Not only Sodomy Supremacy Flags but BLM flags were recently displayed by some embassies. Marxist BLM flags were visible in Madrid and Phnom Penh- the ambassadors ignorant of or simply don’t care about what Commies did to those countries. Those “ambassadors” are not making friends and influencing people, they’re encouraging enemies.

    TonyO makes a good point about the KGB. During the Cold War KGB officer Yuri Bezmenov defected to the West. He warned that the Soviets had a four-step plan to conquer the West: demoralize (teach the West is bad), destabilize (agitate the West is bad), crisis (manufacture events to “prove” the West is bad), normalize (what was good is now bad, what was bad is now good). Several generations of Useful Idiots in media, academia, art and entertainment, politics and the churches are still at it.

    Abp. Fulton Sheen, who should be a Saint, said: “Patriotism is a Virtue.” Good point, and the more people refuse to discipline their lusts, the more susceptible they will be to enslavement by others.

    As others point out above, Pride belongs to Satan, the Rainbow belongs to God, and June is the month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ.

Comments are closed.