In its final report, released today, Study Group 9 of the Synod of Bishops, has published the testimonies of two gay men, as part of what they call “cases for listening.” As far as I know, this marks the first time that a Vatican report has included such detailed stories from LGBTQ Catholics. As such, it marks a significant step forward in the church’s relationship with the LGBTQ community. (There may have been other occasions that I’m not aware of but, at the very least, we can say that this is very rare.)
A little background may help readers understand why these two testimonies are so important and, in a way, historic.
The Synod of Bishops was convened in 2021 by Pope Francis to help the church become more welcoming, listening and participatory. To begin this years-long process of consultation, Catholics from around the world were asked to participate in listening sessions in their parishes. Some may object and say, “I wasn’t included,” but since this was the first time for this kind of ecclesial consultation, not every parish or diocese handled it perfectly. (It was often called the largest consultative process in history.)
This marks the first time that a Vatican report has included stories from LGBTQ Catholics. As such, it marks a significant step forward in the church’s relationship with the LGBTQ community.
Nonetheless, millions of Catholics around the world participated, and the results of the initial parish-level listening sessions were passed up to the diocesan level and, then, to the level of the local bishops’ conferences, which issued reports and summaries of what was heard. Then came the “continental level” of dialogue, gathering the bishops’ conferences by continent. Finally, the results of the continental sessions were gathered into a “Working Document” that was shared with Synod delegates (of which I was one), who met in Rome for two sessions: one in October 2023 and one in October 2024.
As I’ve written elsewhere, one member of the Synod preparatory team told me that roughly half of all the bishops’ conferences reports included mention of LGBTQ people (or similar terminology) as issues that needed to be considered by the Synod. And, as he told me, this was not simply a Western concern. Thus, ministering to LGBTQ people was included as one topic (among many) in the “Working Document” that was given to the Synod delegates and formed the basis of our deliberations.
And, as I’ve also written before, LGBTQ issues were discussed at the first session of the Synod, and these discussions proved, at times, explosive. Despite so many bishops conference reports including the topic, and despite the fact that some delegates were eager to discuss outreach to this community, some delegates opposed this discussion (and even the mention of the term “LGBTQ”).
The next year, Pope Francis decided than rather than asking the Synod delegates to address individual topics of this nature (among them, women’s ordination to the diaconate, the church’s “digital mission,” the role of women, ecumenism, polygamy, liturgy, the ministry of nuncios and the selection of bishops), these topics would be given over to “Study Groups,” so that the Synod as a whole could focus on the main topic of making the church more “synodal,” that is, more participatory. There was some pushback on Pope Francis’s decision, but in the end this made sense, since it allowed the Synod to deliberate on the more overarching issues.
Listening to LGBTQ Catholics in this way is a major, even historic, shift for the church.
Now, we come to Study Group 9, which was tasked with looking at “controversial theological issues,” which represented a broad mandate that included the “issue” of ministry to LGBTQ people. This group has met since October 2024 and released its final report today. (An early part of their deliberations included moving from the language of “controversial issues” to “emerging issues.”)
The report focuses mainly on the “methodology” by which the church can discern a way forward on “emerging issues.” That is, it asks: What is necessary for the church to discern the correct doctrinal, pastoral and ethical responses to emerging issues? One necessity, they write, is listening. As the Study Group writes in its executive summary, when it comes to the synodal way that the church has embarked on, a way supported by both Popes Francis and Leo XIV, “[T]he disposition to listen to the testimonies shared by the people with first-hand experience takes on particular importance.”
This is where the moving and honest testimonies from two gay Catholics enter into the conversation. As the final report says, “[T]he experience of the synodal church demands that we listen to one another.” Listening to LGBTQ Catholics in this way, however, is a major, even historic, shift for the church. So is publishing them, as was done today.
The first testimony, from a married gay man in Portugal, speaks candidly of growing up Catholic, with the graces and struggles that one experiences as a gay person in the church.
I cannot ignore the scars I carry. I have witnessed the devastating effects of ‘conversion therapies’ and the break-up of families, which felt like an attack on God’s sensitive and blameless creation. These experiences deeply hurt, because they target the inherent dignity of a person who simply bears the love of another of the same gender.
At the same time, he is faithful to his call as a Catholic and loves the church, finding a home in Christian Life Communities and finding love in his marriage.
Although living a gay relationship, I truly believe the sign of God in my life was the gifts He gave me of fidelity and courage, required to build a life of shared faith and service with my husband.
The second testimony, from a married gay man in the United States, includes his experiences of “conversion therapy” and, finally, happiness as he studied for his Ph.D. in theology at Fordham University.
I learned new forms of theology that helped me accept myself as a gay man created in God’s image. Reading the Bible in context made me realize that traditionalist interpretations have little to say about contemporary, life-giving same-sex relationships. I began to take my experience, and the experiences of other LGBTQ people, seriously as the sight of God’s unfolding work. At Fordham I came out and began the hard work of spiritual healing and integration.
He also lists Outreach and Fortunate Families as blessings in his life. And he loves the church.
Being an LGBTQ Catholic is not easy, and many days I grieve the harm the church has caused. But I also have hope. I have witnessed conversion during Pope Francis’ papacy at the local and universal levels of the church, and I look forward to helping build up the body of Christ that reflects Jesus’ ministry of healing and inclusion.
At the start of the Synod, there were great expectations among the faithful, some of them reasonable, some of them not. Some LGBTQ Catholics expected a change in the language of the Catechism or some other change in church teaching. The document Fiducia Supplicans, which came out after the first session, and which allows for priests to bless same-sex couples under certain circumstances, was a step forward, but it was not directly related to the Synod’s deliberations.
Some may still view the final report of Study Group 9 as “not enough.” But if the Catholic Church has begun to listen to LGBTQ Catholics as part of its methodology, the church has already moved forward in a significant way. The two testimonies published today by the Synod, then, mark an historic step forward. The experience of a synodal church, as the Synod states, “demands listening.” And that means, finally, listening to LGBTQ Catholics too.
