``There are several gay people in my family, and I am bisexual myself in a monogamous heterosexual relationship. In the last 100 years, biological and psychological understanding of human sexuality has expanded and changed profoundly, so that we know far better how truly we are all made in the image of God, no matter what our sexuality, just as the most severely disabled people are in the image of God, and we do not, generally, let them die at birth, or lock them away out of sight in institutions. We can no longer say that people are either male or female, and that the only ordered way of expressing physical love is between man and woman, that is simply not true. 1 in 2000 people are born with an indeterminate gender. We know now that all human embryos are female to start with, not male as the mediaeval theologians believed, and may become male or get stuck part way through. Sex, love, people are rainbow-coloured, get over it.``

``I have been a priest for almost twenty years. From an early age I knew I was different from other boys, although at that time I would not have been able to explain it but now recognise that I was homosexual. I came from a good Catholic home and had attended Catholic Schools. Like many other boys I messed around but only had my first real sexual experience when I was sixteen. Afterwards I felt guilty, although I had enjoyed the experience. I went to confession. The priest told me that I was in mortal sin and would go to hell for ever if I ever did anything like that again. You can only deny yourself for so long and if you go on suppressing your sexuality, which is such an integral part of your human identity, then it is a time bomb waiting to go off. I almost had a breakdown and in a way this was a blessing in disguise, as I had to face myself and discover who and what I am. I spent some years in therapy and had a wonderful woman counsellor who helped me to discover myself. For me it was the discovery that the Church was wrong on this issue.``

I am a heterosexual woman. As far as I know my adult children are heterosexual too though when they were younger I encouraged them to talk about their sexuality so I could support them whatever that would be. I have gay friends and have learned a lot about being gay from them and some of the prejudice and lack of understanding other people have about them, particularly the Church. The reason why I have made this testimony is because it is now known scientifically that men and women are gay, lesbian, bisexual and heterosexual and this is genetically determined. It is not a chosen life style. The Church is behaving as it was in Galileo’s time. When scientific knowledge caught up with the Church it exonerated Galileo. The Church needs to look at the science of sexuality and recognise that being gay, straight or anywhere on that spectrum is God given. I ask the Pope and Bishops to look at this area. Please look at the terrible scapegoating gay people experience. Look at the terrible draconian laws some so called Catholic or Christian countries have made against gay people including the death penalty.

I am a young, sixty-five-year-old American male and I have bee in a loving relationship with another man for over 25 years (since I was 40). My childhood upbringing was in Catholic schools and I came from a very devout family. I discovered my sexuality gradually from the time I was around twelve to fourteen. I discovered the word “homosexual” when I was about sixteen and read an article in Life Magazine that depicted homosexuals as frightening degenerates. I was fascinated and horrified. I knew I was a homosexual but I also knew I couldn’t be. I went through several therapists (some were priests) from age sixteen until I got out of college at twenty-two. No therapist ever acknowledged my true identity, instead said things like “you can’t be homosexual, you’ve never had sex with a male,” or “You’re just shy with women. “ or “you’re an intelligent person, you can work things out for yourself.” My education continued in Catholic institutions through graduate school where I got a degree in Pastoral Counselling. I even sacrificed what might have been a career in another field in order to study psychology and try to “figure out” how to “cure” myself. I experienced long periods of depression for most of my life, often after making occasional aborted attempts to connect with another man. Finally, thanks to a co-worker, I found a therapist who was excellent, non-judgmental and who stayed with me for the long haul – more than two years. My long inner struggle finally came to an end with my full acceptance and embracing of my sexuality. I “came out” at the age of thirty-six; I came out personally, psychologically, sexually, spiritually and politically. It was 1984. This was the most joyous, liberating, deeply spiritual, fulfilling and positive period of my entire life. Since that time I observe that vis-à-vis most Christian denominations I am anathema. As we LGBT communities advance in our civil rights, Christian religions, and most prominently the Catholic Church, has redoubled efforts to put us down, condemn us, and spread outright lies about us, our lives and relationships. I now have little use for organised religion of any kind and find their promulgations just as unimportant, irrelevant and worthless as they find me. Why do you spend so much time and energy and money and spiritual capital in a misguided attempt to destroy us, we who are part of God’s creation and made to exist in His image and through His infinite wisdom?

Was it bought, was it caught, or was it taught? Does it really matter? The reality is that it is not chosen . Those of us who happen to be gay had about as much to do with it as those who happen to be heterosexual. I have known I was gay since childhood and for the so many years was tortured with the guilt as a result. I knew it would hurt my family if I said anything and that I would get teased and bullied if the truth were known, so I just bottled it. Some people guessed so I had a hard time anyway but I just carried on doing my best to keep my shameful secret. Honestly I had a good family and was taken to church and sent to Catholic School. Unfortunately my feelings of being worthless and evil were only endorsed there. Surprisingly, something else I knew since childhood was that I wanted to be a priest. Like so many other gay people I tried to be normal and even had a few girlfriends but I could never make that final commitment as I knew I would make a bad husband and make some poor girl’s life hell. Eventually i applied to go to seminary, still riddled with guilt but still with this sometimes overwhelming conviction that I must do it. Seminary was on the whole a good experience and the beginning of my pastoral ministry went well. However my now full blown alcoholism really kicked in. I’m not blaming anyone for this, including myself, but boy did I have great excuses to drink as the hungry wolf so long locked away in the cellar (my sexuality) came to take his revenge. I very nearly drunk myself to death . Thanks be to God I got into recovery and have found the love and acceptance I have been shown. I am still working as a parish priest today because I found in that amazing fellowship what I could not find in my church. I still love the church and still think I am doing the right thing staying in the priesthood.