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Bishop Robert McElroy of San Diego wrote a column about James Martin SJ that said Martin’s critics are a cancer on the Church, that criticism of his work is driven by homophobia, a distortion of Catholic moral theology, and is an attack on Pope Francis. This shameful column was applauded by a chorus including Elizabeth Scalia, the editor of one of the largest Catholic websites in the country, Austen Ivereigh, founder of Catholic Voices, Massimo Faggioli of Villanova University, among others.James Martin himself has taken to calling his critics the “Catholic alt-right,” a phrase he likes very much and has...

Jesuit Fr. James Martin, well-known for his attempts to normalize homosexuality in the Church, claims ex-gays lead a less "integrated life" than current gays. In an August 29 interview with Brandon Ambrosino, a gay man engaged to his male partner, Martin said: I know just for the record that a lot of the people who are critiquing me online are self-professed ... former gays. So it's a lot of former gay people. And I would say that there's a lot of conflict going on. So it's sad because what happens is their own junk inside gets focused outwards on people who...

f you’re looking for a Catholic priest who inspires people - and makes them laugh and think - James Martin, SJ, is your guy.  At the Ignatian Solidarity Network’s annual conference, he’s greeted like a rock star by swarms of young Catholics who devour his books and remember him as Stephen Colbert’s “chaplain” on the Colbert Report. To say this is unusual is an understatement. Millennials are leaving the church in droves, turned off in part by an institution that has made opposition to same-sex marriage central to Catholic identity in the public square.This generation of Catholics remains inspired by the...

Ironically, these groups, like the website Church Militant, which tout their desire for “traditional” Catholic practices consistently set themselves against bishops and religious superiors. Thus, groups that have zero legitimacy in the Church (and which have often been criticized by Church leadership) are setting themselves up against legitimate authorities. Pope Francis himself, for example, is a frequent target. In this way, such supposedly “traditional” Catholic websites are subverting tradition. As a result of their hateful content, they cause confusion, frustration and contempt. Such campaigns can never lead to the kind of results that St. Ignatius calls indicative of the “Good...

Father James Martin seems to be implying that the Blessed Mother was a lesbian. In a Facebook tirade posted Tuesday, the pro-gay priest urged Catholics to call their local bishops to complain about so-called hate groups like Church Militant in order to silence them, closing his exhortation by referring to the Holy Spirit as "She." "Hope in the Holy Spirit," Martin wrote. "Things can always improve. And the Holy Spirit knows what She's doing." Screen capture of end of Fr. Martin's Facebook post, Sept. 20, 2017 The Holy Spirit is traditionally known as the Spouse of Mary. The angel Gabriel...

See if you recognize this rhetorical strategy: Say that the people who disagree with you are motivated by hatred.Say that they’re dangerous extremists, a threat to civil society.Say that you are interested in genuine debate, but your opponents won’t allow it.Compare your opponents to Nazis.Insist that responsible people must disavow any connection with your opponents. And then…>Say that your opponents are intolerant. It’s a clever technique: a campaign of intolerance, camouflaged as a plea for tolerance. And it’s picking up steam in the Catholic media.The focus of the campaign is Father James Martin, the popular Jesuit, who has written a...

Father James Martin is saying that chastity is not required of homosexuals. In a video posted on YouTube on September 20, the Jesuit claims the Church's teaching on chastity is not binding on the consciences of the faithful because it has not been "received" by the people. It's a denial of the infallible teaching authority of the Catholic Church in matters of both faith and morals. He also said in a post on Facebook, "Things can always improve. And the Holy Spirit knows what She's doing" (emphasis added). "For a teaching to be really authoritative," he said, "it is expected...

The Leo House, a Catholic guesthouse in Manhattan, has announced that Fr. James Martin will present its Pope Leo XIII Award to Cdl. Timothy Dolan at a December 11 fundraising gala in New York.   Named after the mighty Italian prelate and administered by the Leo House board of directors, the award "seeks to recognize Catholic clergy, religious and lay persons or organizations who best embody the ideals and values most cherished by the late pontiff" and "recognizes those who have served faithfully to advance and enhance the pontifical legacy and heritage of Leo XIII." "The Inaugural Pope Leo XIII...

The withdrawal of Jesuit Father James Martin’s appearance next month at Catholic University of America-affiliated Theological College stirred reaction that continued into Monday and included San Diego Bishop Robert McElroy defending the controversial priest. McElroy was among those who labeled reports and commentary on Father Martin’s LGBT stances as homophobia, censorship, “verbal violence,” and being a “cancer of vilification” in the Church. The bishop said Father Martin’s critics were overemphasizing chastity and they resent Pope Francis’ call for Catholics to move away from judging others. “There has arisen both in Catholic journals and on social media a campaign to vilify...

Father James Martin, SJ, is a faithful priest, best-selling writer, and a respected member of the editorial staff at the Jesuit-run America Media. His most recent book, “Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church and the LGBT Community Can Enter into a Relationship of Respect, Compassion, and Sensitivity,” is an important publication for our Church and the people of God to whom we minister. All of Father Martin’s books are written with the full consent of his religious superiors and in conformity with Catholic Church publishing guidelines. “Building a Bridge,” which was reviewed by the Censor Librorum of the USA...

A Houston councilman discouraged residents from donating to the Red Cross in the wake of Hurricane Harvey at a council meeting Wednesday, the Houston Chronicle reports. Council member Dave Martin, who represents the Kingwood area of Houston, begged residents "not to give a penny" to the Red Cross, but to give money instead to "another cause." "They are the most inept, unorganized organization I've ever experienced," Martin said.

A senior Vatican cardinal has issued a rebuke of Fr. James Martin in the Wall Street Journal as the Jesuit priest continues his high-profile campaign against Church teaching on homosexuality. In an op-ed published August 31, Cardinal Robert Sarah describes Martin as “one of the most outspoken critics of the church’s message with regard to sexuality.” Cardinal Sarah serves as prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. Martin was appointed in April as a consultant to the Vatican’s Secretariat for Communications. In June, he published the book Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church...

A high-profile Vatican adviser responded to a recent Evangelical statement affirming marriage between “one man and one woman” with his own statement affirming "LGBT people."   Rev. James Martin, a Catholic priest, author, and adviser to the Vatican on communications, tweeted a seven-point list of pro-homosexual affirmations in response to the Evangelical’s “Nashville Statement” that defended marriage between a man and woman. Martin’s series of tweets were picked up by The Washington Post and published as a “counter-list” in an August 30 article titled “Seven simple ways to respond to the Nashville Statement on sexuality.” In his list affirming “LGBT people,”...

On September 5, 2017, Fordham University will host “a conversation” between James Martin, S.J., and Dr. Patrick Hornbeck. A similar event with Martin and Hornbeck took place at Fordham in 2014. Hornbeck is currently Associate Professor and Chair of Fordham’s Department of Theology. In 2015, he married his same-sex partner at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church in New York City. During the 2014 event, Martin discussed “the law of gradualism” at it relates to possible Catholic pastoral practices with LGBT men and women. He explained:John the Baptist’s model is essentially conversion first and then Communion. You repent, you convert, and then you...

In a July 14 article, responding to queries about Building a Bridge, his new book on the Catholic-LGBT divide, Father James Martin, SJ explains why he did not devote more space to explaining the Church’s teaching on same-sex relations and marriage. The positions of both sides, he says, are clear, and neither side regards them as negotiable. He continues: Theologically speaking, you could say that these teachings have not been “received” by the L.G.B.T. community, to whom they were directed. So I intentionally did not focus on those topics, since not only are those teachings well known, but they are...

James Martin, the sodomy-promoting Jesuit priest, is maintaining his constant promotion and support of sodomy, sex outside of marriage, transgenderism and progressive-liberal politics is supported by his Jesuit superior and confreres, as well as "several cardinals and bishops, both publicly and privately." In a series of tweets, Martin also claims "my prayer tells me that this is the right thing to do, that it's important and that it's a work of mercy." He also accuses critics who call out his endorsement of sodomy as being "uncomfortable with their own complex sexuality." In his new book, Building a Bridge: How the Catholic...

In response to numerous questions over the past two weeks about Jesuit Fr. James Martin’s book, Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church and the LGBT Community Can Enter into a Relationship of Respect, Compassion, and Sensitivity, I have prepared the following reflection. Many years ago I was invited by the Archdiocese of San Francisco to preach the annual Parish Mission at Most Holy Redeemer Church in the heart of the “Castro”, the gay district of that city. I was told that I had been invited to preach the mission because of my own Scripture studies, teaching and work...

In his book Building Bridges, the popular Jesuit author, Father James Martin, argues for acceptance of homosexuals in the Catholic Church. Remarkably, in a book dedicated to that topic, he manages to avoid the obvious question. So in a trenchant First Things review of the Martin book, Father Paul Mankowski, SJ, asks it:Is sodomy a sin? Perplexed readers of Fr. James Martin, SJ’s latest book will want to put the question to him, if only to understand why he felt it important to write at all.The National Catholic Register posed roughly the same question, and drew this reply from Father...

Father James Martin Proposes an Alternate Catechism BOOK REVIEW: The popular Jesuit priest puts forth the notion that the Church has misunderstood God’s plan for human sexuality for her entire history. Father Gerald E. Murray In his new book, Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church and the LGBT Community Can Enter Into a Relationship of Respect, Compassion and Sensitivity (HarperCollins), Jesuit Father James Martin has written a critique of the Catholic Church’s dealings with what he calls the “the LGBT community.” What is the “LGBT community”? This acronym describes three groups of people: those who engage in, or feel...

Fr. James Martin, SJA scathing new review of Fr. James Martin, SJ’s recently published pro-gay book points out its flawed premise, namely “that the Church has misunderstood God’s plan for human sexuality for her entire history.” Martin’s book, Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church and the LGBT Community Can Enter Into a Relationship of Respect, Compassion and Sensitivity is critical of the church’s pastoral approaches to the “LGBT community.” Fr. Gerald Murray explains in the National Catholic Register that Martin goes further, asserting that the Church “must now switch to a new teaching, namely that the union of...