Stand With Catholic Church Workers!
Reading the Chicago Tribune this morning, an article jumped off the page: "Archdiocese faces 2nd complaint over gay-marriage firing." I read further. Two different men at two different parishes, one for 17 years, have recently been fired because they married their partners. Both men said their pastors and parishioners knew they were gay and had partners. Both had felt supported. It was when they decided to celebrate and formalize their relationships in marriage that they were fired. Ironic, isn't it?
The Catholic Church teachings say heterosexual couples should not live together but be wedded, creating a stable commitment for love to grow. But when homosexual couples do that exact same thing, the Church hierarchy pushes them outside the circle even more. This injustice is exactly what Call To Action had in mind when we asked those who work or who had worked for the Catholic Church to write a Catholic Church Worker Declaration. This declaration was proclaimed at the 2015 Call To Action Conference last weekend and was affirmed by over 1000 people who were present. To read the Church Worker Declaration, click here.
But our work is far from over. We are asking individuals across country and the world to stand with Church Workers by signing this petition. We invite all Catholics to join us in creating Catholic workplaces (hospitals, schools, parishes, diocesan offices, affiliated organizations) where Truth is the guide, Justice the end, and Love the guiding force. Love and Justice compel us to listen to the Voice of Truth speaking even in those with whom we disagree. As people of faith, we believe this is possible. We invite you to join us in affirming the Gospel’s call to seek dialogue and to trust in the power of the Holy Spirit alive in each of us.
Please support those who work for your parishes, schools, and hospitals by signing this petition! For Sandor Demkovich, former music director at St. Andre the Apostle Parish in Calumet City; for Colin Collette, former music director at Holy Family Catholic Community in Inverness; for Kristin and Margie and Ruth and the many others who have been fired unjustly, let us stand as one. Together we are the Body of Christ.
