The Archdiocese
of St. Paul and Minneapolis has told a liberal Roman
Catholic church in Minneapolis that it can't hold its annual
gay pride prayer service because the event goes
against the teachings of the church.
St. Joan of Arc
Church has held the prayer service for several years in
conjunction with the annual Twin Cities Pride Celebration.
The archdiocese, however, suggested that the church
hold a "peace" service with no mention of rights for
lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people.
"That descriptor
[LGBT] was not possible on church property. We
suggested they shift it, change the nature of it a little
bit, and they did," archdiocese spokesman Dennis
McGrath said. "The reason is quite simply because it
was an LGBT pride prayer service, and that is really
inimical to the teachings of the Catholic Church."
Officials with
the Catholic Pastoral Committee on Sexual Minorities, an
independent coalition promoting acceptance of gays in the
Catholic Church, said they consider the action an
attack by Archbishop John Nienstedt, who took the helm
of the archdiocese in May.
Nienstedt has
said homosexuality is a disorder and is a leader in the
campaign to persuade the Minnesota legislature to prohibit
same-sex unions. (AP)
