Cardinal T. Dolan Q. and A. on Homosexuality

Cardinal Timothy Dolan Q. &A. on Homosexuality
In pursuit of the truth – www.cinopsbegoneblogspot.com – Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2012

We have excerpts from the book: A People of Hope – “Archbishop Timothy Dolan in Conversation with John L. Allen Jr.” – 2012 – Random House – p. 66-68

1.What is the Church actually saying to homosexuals?

First of all, we’re saying that it’s absurd to identify yourself with your sexual urges. When somebody comes to me, as people often do, and says, “I must tell you, I am a homosexual,” or “I am gay,” I say. “Well thanks for your confidence. Nice to meet you, sit down, you’re welcome here, but as a matter of fact, no you’re not. You happen to be John Jones, who is a child of God and redeemed by the blood of his only begotten Son, destined to spend eternity with him.

When God looks at you, he sees a work of art. That’s who you are. You happen to be sexually attracted to men, but that doesn’t define who you are.” Now, I happen to think that’s rather liberating, it’s ennobling, but our culture doesn’t see that. There’s the great challenge, to make people see that we are not our sexual urges.

A church, or any authority, like a parent, who would stand up and say this is who you are, this is your birthright, and there are certain things you can and can’t do because it detracts from who you are, this is thought to be verboten today. For some reason, we have put our foot in our mouth when we have tried to say these things, and I don’t know how we get out from that. I’d like to think we’re the best friend of humanity, no matter what their urges might be or what their inclinations might be, because for all that is secondary to who we are: children of God, made in his image and likeness…

2. If somebody come to you and says, my attraction is same-sex but I want to be a faithful Catholic, the only thing you can say is that they’re called to a life of chastity. You can understand how that’s a tough call sell.

It is, but chastity is not just an expectation of people with a same-sex attraction. I can tell story after story from being a parish priest. I once had a man in his mid-thirties, at the peak of everything, with a wife who had become an invalid, and he’s going to have to be a celibate the rest of his life as far as sexual urges go, because she cannot engage in sex. Does he live a faithful, happy, whole life? You bet he does.

Would he change it for anything in the world? No. He, a married man, is called, is called to heroic chastity for the rest of his life. It goes back to our pivotal teaching on sexuality, which is that sexuality mirrors the love God has for us, so it has to have those same characteristics, meaning lifelong, life-giving, and faithful. Anything outside of that can’t do. I understand that’s a very tough sell, but fundamentally it’s a very positive, beautiful vision of human love. A lifelong, life-giving, faithful marriage between a man and a woman, open to children, is, simply put, the only way God intends sexual love to be expressed.

George H. Kubeck –
Does the gay homosexual agenda speak for homosexuals? I doubt it. For example, homosexuals have never been polled on same-sex marriage. They all had a mother and father. Would they choose to be adopted by same-sex couples? Gay relationships are contrary to natural law and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. It is in the best interests of homosexuals that we have legalized Proposition 8 that marriage is between a man and woman. All the propaganda about equality and civil rights are gay political correctness and irrational. In like manner the editorial in the Los Angeles Times on SB. 48 make sense to me as a retired public school teacher.