BBC celebrates gay Mass

As we report today, the BBC's Sunday Service on Radio 4 tomorrow morning will be a “gay Mass” from San Francisco as part of Radio 4’s Sunday Worship programme. Anglican Mainstream is among those to condemn the broadcast, describing it as a broadcast that "will knowingly cause offence to the overwhelming majority of Christians." San Francisco is home to the renowned Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, two of whom are pictured here. (Update: a number of posters have understandably queried why I've included the infamous Sisters here. I should have explained in the original post and apologise for not doing so. It is because, according to the Mail report, until stopped by the Archbishop of SF, they regularly staged "lewd and irreverent bingo nights" on the Holy Redeemer church premises, handing out prizes of a "sexual" nature. More details also in this story, which makes it clear that the RC SF diocese has in no way endorsed the "Mass".rg)

The service was first reported by Si Caldwell in the Mail, who described how Bible readings and prayers will explore what it means to be gay in the context of Christianity. Father Donal Godfrey will lead the act of worship from the Catholic Church of Most Holy Redeemer in the Castro district of San Francisco.The church has been described as an “inspiration” to gay and lesbian Christians.

The preacher will be Father James Alison, a British theologician, who has had several books published by Darton, Longman & Todd.

Broadcasting standards campaigner John Beyer, of Mediawatch UK, said the BBC should focus on more mainstream religious programming. “Having this particular service, I think, will cause offence to people who feel that such practices are wrong and are taught as such in holy scripture,” he told the Mail.

But a Radio 4 spokeswoman said: “The strength of Sunday Worship is its diversity. It aims to reflect a variety of Christian spiritualities in its speech and music, and for that reason, when editorially appropriate - on average about once a quarter - comes from outside the UK.

“Taking the theme ‘Finding a place in the Christian narrative’, this programme comes from the largest and oldest predominantly gay area in the world, from a Catholic community which has an experienced and developed understanding of the issues of being gay and Christian. As far as we know, this is the first time the subject of being gay and Christian has been explored by the programme.”

Comments

[Geoffrey Smith]

Dear Ruth,
I'm sorry you should have felt it necessary to delete some remarks I made on my two posts about this topic. On second thoughts, perhaps I should have realised that certain individuals would not take kindly to having their dirty deeds exposed in the media, and would be most anxious to gag any whistle-blowers. It's very sad to see a great paper like the Times choosing to co-operate with these deceitful men.
Next time I obtain important information like this, I shall make a point of recording it's exact source, but for now my memory fails me. I'm sorry.

[Geoffrey Smith]

"A Catholic priest, whose duty is to adhere to and to disseminate the teachings of the Church, is hardly a bird of a feather with a group of militant gay atheists who parody the religious life".
- Martin, 4 May 2007

For reasons which she did not disclose, Ruth abbreviated my last post. Perhaps because I named names, she felt it unwise to publish my (whole) comment on this disgraceful episode.
However, Martin, I have to ask you this question: just how naive can you be?

(rg adds: I have simply had to delete Geoffrey's explanation because it is highly libellous.I am sorry Geoffrey but I really don't want to end up in court! One defence against libel of course is justification - truth. If what you are stating has been published anywhere before, plse just post a link to the relevant story, I am happy to have a link to another story containing those facts on the blog.)

[Martin]

"Birds of a feather flock together, don't you know."

A Catholic priest, whose duty is to adhere to and to disseminate the teachings of the Church, is hardly a bird of a feather with a group of militant gay atheists who parody the religious life.

Or at least one would hope not!

[Geoffrey Smith]

Don't be flabbergasted, Martin. There is no need to be. Birds of a feather flock together, don't you know.

[Martin]

"Actually, the inclusion of the photo of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence is not inappropriate.

For a time, the group sponsored a bingo fundraiser hosted at MHR."

I simply do not understand what the priest was thinking when he allowed this. Is he not aware that these people actively campaign against the Catholic Church and ridicule it?

I am flabbergasted.

[Julie Pain]

Too 'in your face', too much information and provocation for provocation's sake; they're not that representative, it's just bad press for everyone else.

[Terry]

Actually, the inclusion of the photo of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence is not inappropriate.

For a time, the group sponsored a bingo fundraiser hosted at MHR. The involvement caused a big kerfuffle last fall, which led to some leave for the pastor, and so on. The story is here:

http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/nov/06111709.html

[Chris Gillibrand]

Surely not the same BBC that for reasons of economies of scale had to record Christmas and Easter Songs of Praise at the same time.

I think it will be some time before the BBC broadcasts a Latin Mass in all its glory. But the deficiency is more than made up for by YouTube, where the banalities of modern liturgy just cannot compete with the "real thing".

[Tony Phelan]

Having listened to the Suday Worship this morning, I'm puzzled by the attempt to whip up some sort of media furore (if that's what it is). The service wasn't as far as I could tell a Mass (gay or otherwise), and not obviously the Ministry of the Word in the liturgy or an ante-communion. I fail to see the relevance of the image of the Sisters of Perpetual Mercy that garces your blog (except they are based in San Francisco too). And the worship, oncee you got used to the songs-from-the-shows style, was terrific. Fr James Allison's sermon was a very good introduction to a different way of understanding the Christian encounter with God -- and in the midst of the other furore about 'penal substitutionary atonement' theory in Evangelical circles, his text from Matt. 9 'Go and learn what this means, "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice."' waws very apposite. ur friends over at Anglican Mainstream as usual aren't very interested in listening to any of that!
Incidentally, is 'theologician' a pun, a neew kind of anti-liberal jibe, or just a typo? Tony Phelan, Oxford

[Christopher]

Dear Ruth, I think you are being just a little mischievous in including a picture of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence in your report about the mass broadcast from the Most Holy Redeemer, San Francisco? These 'queer nuns' can hardly be compared with the catholic christians, gay or otherwise who attend the Most Holy Redeemer Church. The Sisters are pure street theatre and have little to do with organised religion except to spoof some of it trappings in their international work on AIDS prevention on the ground. The Ferrari Guide to Paris gives this report:
" Soeurs de la Perpétuelle Indulgence: In affiliating themselves with the San Francisco order, which was created in 1979, the members of the Paris convent took their vows in 1990 in front of Sister Vicious Power Hungry Bitch, Mother Superior of the San Francisco Convent. The association became official in France the following year. Since then, convents have formed in the cities of Montpellier, Bordeaux, Angers and Marseilles. The vows number five: 1) Visibility and rejection of shame. 2) Universal joy. 3) Tolerance and peace. 4) Charity. 5) AIDS information and prevention. The latter is currently the primary action of the convent, as sisters go into the street or into bars to distribute condoms and AIDS prevention information. They are also active in rest and vacation camps for seriopositive individuals and AIDS patients."

No wonder the ghost of Mary Whitehouse at Mediawatch UK and the humourless divines of the anglican mainstream god squad got their knickers in a twist and started condemning the BBC even before they had heard the broadcast. Still that is nothing new, when you consider how the bishops Broadbent, Benn and Wright condemned the Dean of St Alban's sermon on the atonement before they had even read it. Knee-jerk responses all round. The diocese of San Francisco is to be congratulated surely that it has provided a small haven where they do remember that Jesus dined with the outcasts - perhaps one of the few places where HIS kind of religion is actually practised - 'all are welcome'. As I write this I am listening to the broadcast. I'd like to know if the anglican mainstream squaddies still think it ' knowingly cause[d] offence to the overwhelming majority of Christians'. But remember, Peter Vardy in the Puzzle of Sex conducted a survey of 3000 A-level students in the UK which showed that catholic lay people are significantly less judgmental than anglicans and protestants towards gay people.

[Tom Jackson]

It is an interesting - and logical - characteristic of minority groups, that they will be courted by the more liberal and well-meaning members of society as an indication that they are not being rejected and their views, while not necessarily accepted, have value.

A natural consequence of this is that representatives of these minorities gain far more influence in organisations than you would expect. In our politically-correct culture, many of these representatives occupy positions of influence and power, many due to merit and some due to a fear of the organisation appearing biased, racist or - in the case of homosexuality - homophobic.

I belong to - what I consider to be - the majority, white, heterosexual Anglo-Saxon. I have strong views on many subjects and I also recognise that those views need to be examined at regular intervals and tested for their validity (one of the reasons this blog is so useful).

The BBC broadcasting of a Mass for homosexuals is such a situation. I believe the majority of people will be offended or confused by the media organisation's decision. My concern, however, is not for the effect of that broadcast but what the decision to broadcast indicates about those who are responsible for the decision.

As mentioned above, there is an opportunity for insidious attempts to shape our attitudes to issues such as homosexuality and - another prime example - Islamic beliefs where organisations such as the BBC are concerned and we should always be alert and aware of the possibility of this happening.

[Robert Ian Williams]

What a tragic betrayal of the men and women mixed up with this community...confirming them in trespasses and sin, under the guise of "liberating them".

The fault lies with Cardinal levada who when he was Archbishop of San Francisco allowed this "community " to emerge.

If some one really loves them , you tell them the truth.

[Peter Ould]

I know what a theologian is, but what's a theologician? Someone who makes things appear by magic in Scripture even though they're not really there?

[David Palmer]

The simplest thing is not to listen.

Most churches record their services, or at the very least the sermon. So why not ask the local vicar, priest, pastor for a copy of a recent service?

Christians know the media are by and large are dead set against us (with some notable exceptions), so why not get over it and be grateful when they do go and record a service at a believing, orthodox church, whatever its denominational stripe?

[Emanuel Appel]

a letter from America

Dear Ruth,

Welcome to San Francisco, my home.

As you can see, the BBC picks the most central point of our collective life ( a gay Mass) and uses it for your religious growth. Of course, they wouldn't have the guts to broadcast a gay Moslem service.

[Martin]

"San Francisco is home to the renowned Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, two of whom are pictured here."

Really, why mention this here? These people are just drag queens, they are not in any sense relevant to the mass being celebrated there. I disapprove of specifically gay masses, as the Church is clear that gay people ought not to be treated as a special case but should be pastorally cared for within the context of their ordinary parishes. It also looks suspiciously like a "political" campaign to alter Church teaching when such events are held.

[Huw Richardson]

"San Francisco is home to the renowned Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, two of whom are pictured here."

One wonders what this has to do with anything in the story. Are all Church in San Francisco thus off limits because SF has these folks? Does the presence of them in several other major cities - including London - also taint the Churches in those cities?

[snafu]

Sometimes all one can do is shake one's head in disbelief at the arguments made by those such as Anglican Mainstream.

If they are offended by the prospect of a 'gay mass', how about they complain to the celebrant (Father Donal Godfrey) rather than the BBC?

I'm afraid that one man's mainstream issue is another man's irrelevancy, so that is no excuse. And if we were to take their argument (that it would cause upset) to it's logical conclusion, then we'd never hear about Darfur either.

[Geoffrey Smith]

I must correct you on this point, Ruth.
It is NOT a Mass, gay or otherwise, which
the BBC is going to broadcast tomorrow
morning, Sunday, April 29. It is a "special" prayer service set up by the Jesuit, "Fr" Donal Godfrey, with the connivance of "Fr" James Alison, both of them homosexuals with an agenda of hate to promote against the Catholic Church and her moral theology. The Archdiocese of
San Francisco has publicly denied that
any such service meets with the approval
of the diocesan authorities, precisely
because it involves a cynical and deliberate trashing of the Church's liturgy. You should understand that anything that involves the participation of American Jesuits should be treated with
a great deal of suspicion and reserve.
More likely than not, it will be a demonstration of petulant hubris against
a Church that will not bow to their demands.