Planning underway for World Meeting of Families

Last year, many of you followed and supported as a group of Equally Blessed pilgrims traveled to World Youth Day to spread the message that LGBT Catholics and their allies are an important part of our worldwide church.  Next year, we'll have the chance to spread the same message at the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia. Call To Action is a member of the Equally Blessed Coalition, which is currently recruiting families of all types to be part of the core planning group for this important witness.

On September 22-27, 2015 Catholics from around the world will gather in Philadelphia for World Meeting of Families. Pope Francis has been invited. If he attends, this will be his first visit to the United States. Equally Blessed is looking for LGBT families that are willing to attend World Meeting of Families to speak out for LGBT inclusion in the Catholic Church.

Equally Blessed Pilgrims will be expected to:

• Have conversations with other World Meeting of Families pilgrims about the need for LGBT inclusion in the Roman Catholic Church and give away Equally Blessed materials.

• Be willing to act as a public face for Equally Blessed by speaking with members of the media at World Meeting of Families.

• Write reflections about their experience at World Meeting of Families that can be used on the Equally Blessed blog.

• Post about their experiences on their personal Facebook and Twitter pages, and be willing to have their names and photos posted on the official Equally Blessed Facebook and Twitter pages.

• Work with the Equally Blessed coalition in the year leading up to World Meeting of Families to plan outreach techniques and build community with other Equally Blessed pilgrims.

• Assist Equally Blessed in fundraising to defray the cost of travel, registration, etc.

Pilgrims aren’t expected to be “experts” on Catholic teaching, but should be committed to LGBT inclusion in the Catholic Church and willing to learn about progressive Catholic values. We are searching for pilgrims that represent the wide diversity of LGBT Catholic families, including: same-sex couples, parents of LGBT children, trans parents, and single LGBT parents. People of color and Spanish-speaking families are particularly encouraged to participate.

To get more information about how your family can be Equally Blessed Pilgrims, email coordinator@equally-blessed.org.