Utica (RC) Priest Discloses He is Gay

AP Wire (direct feec) | March 30, 2004

[NYer]

UTICA, N.Y. (AP) _ A priest with a history of advocacy for gay and lesbian rights has publicly acknowledged he is gay.

The Rev. Fred Daley, pastor of St. Francis de Sales Church, is believed to be the first priest in the seven-county Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse to publicly disclose that he is homosexual. ``I'm the same person today as I was yesterday,'' Daley said. ``My expectation and prayer is that people will continue to love and respect me.''

Despite a tremendous amount of fear and anxiety about coming out publicly, Daley said he felt called by God to do so and is ready to accept whatever ``rejection or misunderstanding'' he encounters. Daley told his congregation over the weekend. All priests are committed to celibacy, and sexual orientation alone does not lead to dismissal from the priesthood, said Danielle Cummings, communications director for the diocese.

Daley, 56, has been pastor of St. Francis de Sales since 1992. For at least 30 years, the Utica parish has had a reputation for supporting the poor and fighting injustice. Last week, Daley received a ``Real Hero'' award from the United Way of Greater Utica in recognition of his work with the poor.

Daley was ordained in 1974. He also served at St. Mary Church, Jamesville. In 1987, while co-director of vocations for the diocese, he led a group of 16 local Catholics on a 10-day retreat in Nicaragua.

In September 2002, organizers of an interfaith Sept. 11 memorial service in Utica removed Daley as the main speaker after criticism of his advocacy for the gay and lesbian community. Daley has celebrated Masses for gay and lesbian Catholics. Diocesan officials have said his participation in such services is not in opposition to church teaching.

[dangus]

Uhhh... Yup. We've already read about this poofter's heresy and discord.

[dangus]

Yeah, the guy would be correct to call himself and them "homophilic" rather than "homosexual." Unless he IS a homosexual. (Odds of that are... what, about the same as Kerry lying whenever his lips move?)

[dangus]

>>If he remains celibate and defends the Catholic Church's teaching on homosexuality, there should be no problem.<<

COMMENCE THE DEFROCKING:

“We can’t use the Bible to hit people over the head with,” he said, noting that he doesn’t think modern theologians are able to use the Bible to prove homosexuality a sin.

The Catholic church and others should not be so obsessed with what people do in private, he said.

[NYer]

Seriously, homosexuality should be taken as a warning sign to people considering the admission of a priest candidate to a seminary.

In the interview on EWTN, Archbishop Raymond Burke said that it would take a big stretch for him to accept an acknowledged homosexual into the priesthood.

Amongst the bishops, there are the ultra conservatives and the ultra liberals. One camp gains, while the other one loses. Here in the Albany diocese, heterosexual candidates for the priesthood have been turned away because they were considered 'homophobic'.

Please remember these bishops and priests in your prayers.

[broadsword]

The Church says SAAD is a serious disorder. Why ordain seriously disordered people to the priesthood? Just think of how ridiculous it is to ordain a Sodomite to the priesthood of Jesus Christ.

It could get, for sections of the Church, just what it got for Sodom and Gomorrah.