The Soho Masses

The Soho Masses
take place at 5.00 pm, on the First and Third Sundays of every month, at the
The Church of Our Lady of the Assumption & St. Gregory
Warwick Street, London W1B 5NB, close to Piccadilly Circus.
The church dates from the 18th century. It served first as the Chapel of the Portuguese Embassy and later of the Royal Bavarian Embassy and so enjoyed diplomatic immunity when Catholic worship was still outlawed in England. Some of the few English Catholics who survived in London were able to attend Mass here.
The Masses are offered by the
Archdiocese of Westminster
as part of its pastoral ministry and outreach to LGBT Catholics.
Further information may be obtained from the Diocesan Press Office.
Statements of the Archdiocese of Wesminster and of the Soho Masses Pastoral Council:
PRESS RELEASE
Issued by the Diocese of Westminster
Date: 2nd February 2007
Statement issued by the Diocese of Westminster concerning its outreach and ministry to homosexual[1] persons.
In recent years the Diocese of Westminster has become increasingly conscious of the particular pastoralneeds which are present in parts of the West End of London, notably in Soho and Piccadilly. In particular, anumber of homosexual Catholics, together with their parents, families and friends, have expressed theirdesire for pastoral care from the Diocese. Before laying out the practical steps the diocese intends toundertake so as to meet these requests, it is important to be mindful of certain principles underpinning theChurch’s engagement in its ministry to persons with a homosexual inclination.1. Underlying PrinciplesThe Mission of the Church is to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ and to minister to all people in his name. All people are created in the image and likeness of God and thus possess an innate human dignity that must be acknowledged and respected. (Catechism of the Catholic Church par 1700-1702).In understanding this teaching, the Church teaches that homosexual persons “must be accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity” (Catechism of the Catholic Church par 2358). The Church utterly condemns all forms of unjust discrimination, violence, harassment or abuse directed against people who are homosexual. The Church recognises that “it is deplorable that homosexual persons have been and are the object of violent malice in speech or in action. Such treatment deserves condemnation from the Church’s pastors wherever it occurs.” (Congregation of the Doctrine of Faith On the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons, 1986, par 10).The Church’s pastoral outreach recognises that baptised persons with a homosexual inclination continue to look to the Church for a place where they might live in authentic human integrity and holiness of life. Being welcomed and participating in their local faith community is the foundation of spiritual support that the Church offers to them. Full and active participation is encouraged.This full and active participation takes place within the context of the wider Church and specifically within existing parish structures and pastoral services, always of course in accordance with the Church’s teaching and liturgical norms. In seeking to meet these pastoral needs there would be no attempt to create separate congregations and exclusive services out of step with the Church’s teaching.That teaching has been laid out in successive Church documents including the recent document of the Bishop’s Conference of England and Wales, Cherishing Life, which states that in so far as a homosexual inclination “can lead to sexual activity which excludes openness to the generation of new human life and the essential sexual complementarity of man and woman, it is, in this particular and precise sense only, objectively disordered.” (Cherishing Life par 111)That document goes on to say that a homosexual inclination “must never be considered sinful or evil in itself …..The Church teaches that sexual intercourse finds its proper place and meaning only in marriage and does not share the assumption common in some circles that every adult person needs to be sexually active. This teaching applies to all, whether married or unmarried, homosexual or heterosexual, engaged, single through choice, widowed or divorced. Everyone needs to develop the virtue of chastity so as to live well in his or her own situation.” (Cherishing Life par 113)The Cardinal and his auxiliary Bishops would like to make it clear at this time, that they are openly expressing the teaching of the Church regarding homosexuality, following the statement made by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith which says, “Departure from the Church’s teaching or silence about it, in an effort to provide pastoral care, is neither caring nor pastoral. Only what is true can ultimately be pastoral.” (Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons, par 15). It is in the light of this that the Diocese is seeking to provide pastoral care for homosexual Catholics.2. Practical StepsThe Archbishop’s Council of the Diocese of Westminster, reflecting on the pastoral needs of homosexual Catholics and their families and on Masses celebrated in Islington and at the Anglican Church of St Anne’s in Soho, proposes that in future a Mass should take place at Our Lady of the Assumption, Warwick Street, a Catholic Church in the West End of London. This Mass would be part of normal pastoral outreach, open to everyone and would be celebrated on Sunday at 5pm twice a month. Celebrants of the Mass will be drawn for the most part from diocesan and religious priests who already exercise ministry within the Diocese, reflecting custom and practice where priests celebrating Mass in parishes are ultimately authorised to do so by the Archbishop of Westminster. The rota will be drawn together by the Vicar General, Mgr Seamus O’Boyle in collaboration with the local Dean, Canon Patrick Browne.Information about the Mass will be sensitive to the reality that the celebration of Mass is not to be used for campaigning for any change to, or ambiguity about, the Church’s teaching.The arrangements at Our Lady of the Assumption, Warwick Street, will be subject to review after six months.The Diocese of Westminster will continue to develop its Pastoral outreach to homosexual people so as to enable them to enter more fully into the life of the Church. This includes the weekly Listening Service being provided by the Catholic churches in Soho and the West End of London which provides support and opportunities to speak with a priest at the Church of Notre Dame, Leicester Place.------------------------------------------------------ --------------------------[1] The Catechism of the Catholic Church and other Church teaching use the term “homosexual”. This statement is consistent with this terminology whilst recognising that other individuals or groups may identify themselves in other ways, such as ‘gay’, or ‘lesbian’. In using the language of ‘homosexual’ it is, however, worth bearing in mind that the Church “refuses to consider the person as a ‘heterosexual’ or a ‘homosexual’ and insists that every person has a fundamental identity: the creature of God and, by grace, his child and heir to eternal life” (Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, On the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons, par 16).
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SOHO MASSES PASTORAL COUNCIL
PO BOX 24632
LONDON E9 6XF
MEDIA RELEASE
4 FEBRUARY 2007
OUR PLACES AT THE TABLE
A statement by the Soho Masses Pastoral Council on pastoral ministry with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered Catholics, their parents and families.
The Soho Masses Pastoral Council has been responsible for organising Masses for lesbian, gay, bisexual,transgendered (LGBT) Catholics, their parents, families and friends since July 2005, building upon the pioneeringwork of others begun in a Catholic convent in 1999. The SMPC recognises Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor’sdesire to ensure that pastoral support for these communities is integrated into the overall pastoral provision of theArchdiocese of Westminster, and also a need for this to reflect his own ministry as Archbishop.The SMPC values its recent discussions with Archdiocesan representatives. These have led to an agreement thatfrom 4 March 2007, Masses celebrated at 17.00 pm, on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of each month at the Church of theAssumption, Warwick Street, will particularly welcome LGBT Catholics, their parents and families, as well as beingopen to any of the People of God. We rejoice that we are recognised as having a rightful place at the table ofChrist’s banquet, where the bread is broken and the wine is poured out, not just for some, but for all.The SMPC recognises that the statement issued by Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor on 2nd February 2007 reflects hispersonal position as Archbishop and his adherence to the principles underlying the Church’s teaching documentsinsofar as they relate to human sexuality in general and homosexuality in particular. While we regret theterminology and the narrow range of Church teaching documents chosen as references, we recognise that this is astatement written particularly for the Archdiocese of Westminster, as well as other parts of the Church in England& Wales and elsewhere, offering a rationale for this aspect of Diocesan pastoral ministry.We welcome the integrity of the Diocesan representatives, with whom we have been in discussion, and theirclarification that the document is not a joint statement, but rather a framework within which the Diocese can workmore constructively, honestly, and collaboratively with LGBT Catholics and others. We therefore value theopportunity to offer our own independent statement on these matters, not least reflecting the informed consciencesof many individual members of our communities.Our discussions with Archdiocesan personnel have been marked by mutual respect, honesty, and trust. We adoptedtried and tested principles, notably the ecumenical practice of employing language used by communities aboutthemselves. Therefore the validity of using lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered vocabulary was recognisedand acknowledged in a footnote to the Cardinal’s Statement. The conversations have resulted in a stronger senseof ecclesial communion and a developing understanding of pastoral realities affecting the communities involved.It is regrettable, however, that there was no direct conversation with the Cardinal himself during the process. As aresult, his statement may appear to reflect more the concerns of the Church’s hierarchy rather than the livedexperience of committed LGBT Catholics and their pastoral and spiritual needs. The continued use of narrowlydefined, pseudo-clinical terminology to describe people of diverse sexualities, while closely reflecting Vatican usage,tends to pathologise people, focussing almost entirely on the Church’s teaching regarding sexual activity outsidemarriage. It also mistakenly reinforces the myth that this worshipping community is exclusive to a specific sexualorientation rather than being an inclusive expression of the Church, gathering all sorts and conditions of people.There is a risk that such language defines LGBT Catholics, their parents and families, as persons with problems tobe solved, rather than recognising the contributions and gifts they bring to the building up of the Body of Christ, therich catholicity of the People of God. It may focus more on the grief and anxieties of human existence than on thejoy and hope of a Church trying to live with integrity in contemporary society. Being proudly lesbian, gay, bisexual,or transgendered, and proudly Catholic is at the heart of this community of faith.While we recognise that Cardinal Cormac’s statement is not directly addressed to us, we regret that, in spite of ourinvolvement in discussions leading to the relocation of Masses for LGBT Catholics to the Church of the Assumption,Warwick Street, the SMPC is not named in his statement. Nevertheless, we welcome the decision, in response torequests made over a number of years, to enable LGBT Catholics in Soho to worship within a Catholic parishsetting. This provides new opportunities for our pastoral, spiritual, and faith development. At the same time wehope to contribute to broader pastoral ministry in the context of an historic West End parish, and the life of theArchdiocese. The outcome of our consultations offers the wider Church in England and Wales and beyond, thepotential to develop more effective models of pastoral ministry within our LGBT communities, so strengtheningecclesial communion rather than creating disharmony.We particularly honour the ministry of the ordained members of our community who have empowered us throughtheir breaking of the Word and our celebration of the Eucharist together. Their presence among us has been aconsistent sign of reconciliation and of our wider communion with local Churches and with the various dioceses,here and throughout the world, from which members of our community continue to come. This rich gift ofpresbyteral ministry has enabled us to grow in a true sense of collaborative ministry of mutual care. We are pleased that so many have expressed the wish to continue their ministry with us and offer our heartfelt thanks tothose who have chosen to stand down from their active ministry in this particular setting.Our growth in faith, the vibrancy of our community and worship, our commitment to all in the pursuit of justice,whatever their needs, have been nurtured by the hospitality we have received from St. Anne’s Anglican ParishChurch in Soho and its Rector, the Revd. Clare Herbert. We now embark on a new stage in a rich ecumenical relationship, which began in the context of the Soho bombing in 1997. Out of such tragic loss of life, new life, hope,and joyful community has emerged.Our forthcoming transition is not a closure, nor even a beginning, but rather a further step in the journey of God’spilgrim, rainbow people, a gift to be shared not only between our two local communities but also with the widerecclesial communities to which we belong. Although the place of our Eucharistic celebrations might have changed,our common life together, united in baptism, will continue through other ways of prayer and worship, study, andcommon action for justice within and across our communities.