Conflict between religion and the LGBTQIA+ community was going to publicly appear soon enough. In every community there are members who are hidden and others now out and proud of who they are. This community continues to challenge all traditional community and religious attitudes. Catholic Church doctrine welcomes the person but also points out the sin. Reformed Christian Churches firmly oppose the gay lifestyle, while the United church is firmly supportive and accepting. It is Islam (with Christian fundamentalist allies) that will bring the fight to public administrations, school boards and even private board rooms. Islam protects itself, its Quran, its Prophet Muhammed, and Islamic traditions.

The Catholic community in Canada needs better leadership. Our bishops, as shepherds of the most vulnerable lambs, have failed to respond to recent events with united and unambiguous statements. Some statements have been made but were open to interpretation and thus inappropriate for the laity. On no occasion have I heard from pulpit or Catholic media a clear defense of the Catholic doctrine in respect of Pride activity. A clear and unambiguous letter from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops could be read from the pulpit to clarify the Catholic position. The word pride, in this context, refers to personal achievement without God's major involvement. It represents one of the seven deadly sins. How many Catholic children are made aware of the seven deadly sins and the virtues when they are not mentioned from the pulpit? We should be mindful that Our Lord was never politically correct and very direct in his teachings.

The penny has finally dropped and I now realize that you are actually not a Christian paper at all but rather a sort of political and intellectual commentary upon things Catholic.

There is a quotation which has been on the Internet for years, attributed to many people, but the one I saw had Jacob Waldron������Ƶapp name attached to it. It is entitled, “Church is Hard.” In it he says, “Church is hard for the person walking through the doors, afraid of judgment. Church is hard for the prodigal soul returning home, broken and battered by the world. Church is hard for the teenage girl, ashamed of her mistakes.”

News broke recently that the Jesuits have dismissed the famed artist, Fr. Marko Ivan Rupnik, from amongst their ranks. The dismissal resulted from his failure to obey orders to limit his travel as a result of allegations of sexual and psychological abuse levelled against him by several religious women.

The June 16 death of Daniel Ellsberg again brings to the fore the morality of his release of the top-secret Pentagon Papers during the height of the Vietnam War. Did Ellsberg perform a morally good action in releasing documents detailing a long history of American deceit, lies and self-deception about a war which took the lives of up to three million Indochinese and 58,000 Americans? Or should he have upheld his oath to maintain the secrecy of confidential information?

The Catholic Register������Ƶapp recent editorial “What reason for Pride season?” sounds like a secular commentary on gay culture and trans individuals.

Canada������Ƶapp Catholic hierarchy is being reminded why even the “Lord” backed down in a contretemps with Calgary������Ƶapp Bishop Emeritus Fred Henry. At the very least, they will learn again that His Grace is not for turning.

The recent kerfuffle regarding the Los Angeles Dodgers honouring “The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” at Dodgers Stadium got me investigating the bad Sisters. I knew very little about them, except that they would often show up on the news in full nun regalia (over-the-top garish and even ghoulish, akin to the horror film The Nun) to receive accolades for their “charitable work.”

Pope Francis’ address to artists on the 50th anniversary of the inauguration of the Vatican Museum������Ƶapp collection of modern art.