NWM pilgrims attend Mass in Rome

Over the years, New Ways Ministry has led several pilgrimages for LGBT Catholics and their families. This year's trip included visits to Florence and Assisi as well as being in St. Peter's Square on Ash Wednesday. They were happily surprised to find that this year, they were seated in the VIP section for the papal audience! While they didn't meet the Pope, organizers say this was a significantly warmer welcome than they've received in past years." Sister Jeannine had written to Pope Francis in December 2014, asking him to meet personally with the group when they visited Rome as part of their ten-day pilgrimage to Florence, Assisi, and the Eternal City" reports Bondings 2.0 (the online publication of New Ways Ministry). Two weeks before departure on February 12th, she received a letter from Archbishop Georg Ganswein, Prefect of the Papal Household, letting her know that he had reserved tickets for the group for the Ash Wednesday audience. She assumed that these were the general seating tickets.

On the night of February 17th, when the group picked up the tickets at St. Peter’s, they learned that they were VIP seating. When the group arrived at St. Peter’s Square in the morning, we were guided by papal ushers to the level of the Square where the pope sits. All were astonished! While we were not able to shake the pope’s hand personally, it is very significant that the Vatican responded so positively to an LGBT group by giving us such a prominent place at the audience. Although the Pope continues to make statements condemning marriage equality and rights for trans* individuals, the sense of openness that the Pope has brought to the Church is hard to deny. We have a long way to go, but we are certainly glad to hear that the pilgrims had a good visit to Rome!