ATLANTA—Marija Pritchard found inspiration from her faith to organize food drives, build homes for Habit for Humanity and cook for families at the Ronald McDonald House as a student with her college’s Newman Catholic Center. Her passion for social justice and faith pushed her to earn an undergraduate degree in religious studies and a graduate degree in theology. 

While she invested in her Catholic faith, Pritchard, 28, said at times she harbors doubts whether the Catholic community is equally invested in her due to her sexual orientation, which she embraced in her early 20s. 

“I still love being Catholic and want to be involved. I wasn’t exactly sure if the church wanted to be involved with me.”  

Pritchard now channels that same passion as a leader of a Bible study for LGBT young adults at St. Thomas More Church in Decatur, offering a space for others like her.   

She sees hope in an initiative started by the Archdiocese of Atlanta, announced by Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., at the priests’ convocation in September.  

The archbishop is creating an advisory group—the LGBTQ+ Pastoral Affairs Commission—geared to better listen to members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning community. 

The board is “dedicated to better understanding the realities and pastoral needs of LGBTQ+ Catholics in the Archdiocese of Atlanta,” according to information from the Restorative Justice Ministry, which will coordinate the group. 

Archbishop Hartmayer said he started the commission to “allow a broader and an ongoing dialogue” with members of the LGBTQ+ community.  

He said church documents consistently affirm the dignity of every individual, including those in the gay community. The church’s mission, he said, is to convey “words of faith, hope, and love,” referencing the 1997 document “Always Our Children” from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. 

In a statement, he clarified the committee is not intended to alter church teachings. Instead, its goal is to help the archdiocese “better minister to those with same-sex attraction, as well as their families and friends, often referred to as allies.” 

“I pray that through the creation of this commission we will all come to a better understanding of and respect for each other,” said the archbishop. “After all, we are all children of God, brothers and sisters on this journey.” 

 The Restorative Justice Ministry will be organizing the commission in the Office of Life, Dignity and Justice of the archdiocese. The LGBTQ+ Pastoral Affairs Commission is scheduled to meet quarterly and will consist of priests, deacons and laypeople. 

The group will be focused on “synodal listening and restorative approaches” to foster a ministry of hospitality. Its goal is to build “a stronger, more resilient community of faith in which all belong,” according to the archdiocesan office.  

Worries about the treatment faced by the LGBTQ+ community came up as archdiocesan leaders hosted listening sessions for the 2022 Synod on Synodality. It was the local response to a global initiative of Pope Francis to solicit input from the Catholic community.  

Its final report identified 11% of responses from participants was “concerned with reaching out to” LGBTQ/Women. “Some sentiments included the perception that the church has not journeyed well with people who identify as LGBTQ+, women and people with disabilities,” wrote the authors. (https://archatl.com/synod/full-synod-report/) 

Polls of Catholics by the Pew Research Center found growing acceptance of homosexuality. A 2020 report found six out of 10 believers in the United States were accepting of gay marriages, which is contrary to church teaching.  

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that “homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered” and calls on homosexual people to practice chastity, while it also calls on the faithful to treat gay men and women with “respect, compassion and sensitivity.”  

A few Atlanta area churches have parish ministries for the needs of its gay members. The Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Atlanta has long been the center of the LGBTQ+ Catholic community, with regular potluck dinners. Other churches promote the official international ministry of Courage and Encourage.  

“There’s the one beatitude that says, ‘bless those who persecute you and pray for those who hurt you,’” said Rob McDowell, 63, an assistant professor of geology and a lifelong Catholic. He is a lector at Mass at the Shrine and leads spiritual retreats at the Ignatius House Jesuit Retreat Center.  

“We’ve been living that beatitude by staying in the church for our whole lives. Those of us who stayed, we stayed out of love. I think it would be nice to have that recognized.” 

McDowell, who accepted his sexual orientation at the age of 29, recalled telling God, “If this is who you want me to be, this is who I will be. Just help me do it right and don’t condemn me for who you made me.’”  

He hopes the commission ensures gay women and men, like himself, won’t face discrimination.  

“I hope this would totally preclude that from happening in the Archdiocese of Atlanta,” said McDowell. 

Kelly Quindlen, 36, attended Holy Redeemer School and graduated from Blessed Trinity High School. She’s a novelist who writes LGBTQ books for young adults. She said the commission holds the promise for people to be their authentic selves in their faith. 

“I hope it shines light on how many LGBTQ Catholics there are. We are everywhere. We always have been everywhere,” said Quindlen.
She sees the commission as “a step toward restoration of that relationship. It’s an acknowledgement that we have always been in the family,” said Quindlen. 

Courage is the Vatican-approved ministry to the LGBTQ+ community and many parishes promote its monthly meeting. The group promotes fellowship and chaste living among men and women with same-sex attraction. EnCourage is a related ministry to serve family and friends of Courage members. 

Peter Cummings, a leader with the group, said it is powerful knowing Atlanta bishops will be hearing from the community.  

“It means everything to me, that they’re acknowledging us, that they’re giving us a voice,” said Cummings, a life-long Catholic. The retired Atlanta police officer ended a long-term relationship with a man and found a home in the Courage community. Outreach efforts have different understandings of what it means to live as a LGBTQ+ Catholics, so Cummings envisions the groups gathering to better understand the church’s view.  

Father Mark White, a former chaplain for Courage/Encourage, hopes the committee will be a resource for the archbishop, pastors and the faithful. It can serve as a “creative and prudent way to support and reach out to people,” he wrote in an email.  

The church needs “to support, guide and care” the Catholics here “while compassionately evangelizing and challenging those who seek to live in accord with and promote the LBGTQ agenda in the church.”      

At Decatur’s St. Thomas More Church, Pritchard co-leads the two-year-old ministry called LGBTQ+ Catholics & Friends.  

Its goal is to serve as an “affirming and safe place” for believers, she said. The group is embarking on a deep dive of the book of Job, like what it did with reading the Gospel of Luke. Over the past two years, it has been an invaluable resource for understanding Sunday Scripture and enriching the spiritual lives of participants. 

“I decided that if I’m not in the church and if people like me are not in the church, then the church is missing out because we’re great and we have a lot of gifts,” said Pritchard.