Posted on Nov 15, 2023
One Illinois transgender Catholic reckons with his faith as the church shifts
203
4
2
3
3
0
Harrison Price remembers when he first started feeling unwelcome in the Catholic church. It was 2015 when the Supreme Court was considering Obergefell v. Hodges, the case that guaranteed the right marriage for LGBTQ+ couples.
“In the bulletin, there was a big note that had an image, like, you know, bathroom-sign-type image of a man and a woman holding hands, and it was like, ‘Same-sex marriage is not God’s way. One man, one woman is right,'” Price said. “That was the first time I felt that dread.”
Though Price hadn’t fully come to understand his gender identity as a transgender man at that point in his adolescence, he knew he wasn’t straight.
“Seeing that sort of hateful message, at least for me, really reinforced the idea that not only are there people in general who are not safe here, but I’m not safe here,” he said.
After distancing himself from his Catholic upbringing in Missouri and even rejecting religion for a while, Price’s move to Champaign-Urbana in 2021 led him to explore a different denomination, the Community United Church of Christ.
“In the bulletin, there was a big note that had an image, like, you know, bathroom-sign-type image of a man and a woman holding hands, and it was like, ‘Same-sex marriage is not God’s way. One man, one woman is right,'” Price said. “That was the first time I felt that dread.”
Though Price hadn’t fully come to understand his gender identity as a transgender man at that point in his adolescence, he knew he wasn’t straight.
“Seeing that sort of hateful message, at least for me, really reinforced the idea that not only are there people in general who are not safe here, but I’m not safe here,” he said.
After distancing himself from his Catholic upbringing in Missouri and even rejecting religion for a while, Price’s move to Champaign-Urbana in 2021 led him to explore a different denomination, the Community United Church of Christ.
One Illinois transgender Catholic reckons with his faith as the church shifts
Posted from stlpr.org
Transgender
Gender
LGBTQ+
Religion
Christianity
Posted 6 mo ago
Responses: 2
1
1
0
PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Price pointed out that for most trans-identifying Catholics, who were likely baptized as babies, the Vatican’s proclamation doesn’t really change anything. “To hear people just praise this sort of thing as progressive, it is like a slap in the face,” he said.
However, the fact that acceptance of queer and trans people was even being discussed is a good sign in his view.
“I really do hope that even the call, or the intention to do this is a big wake-up for a lot of people in power,” Price said.
The Archdiocese of Peoria did not respond to requests for comment."
..."Price pointed out that for most trans-identifying Catholics, who were likely baptized as babies, the Vatican’s proclamation doesn’t really change anything. “To hear people just praise this sort of thing as progressive, it is like a slap in the face,” he said.
However, the fact that acceptance of queer and trans people was even being discussed is a good sign in his view.
“I really do hope that even the call, or the intention to do this is a big wake-up for a lot of people in power,” Price said.
The Archdiocese of Peoria did not respond to requests for comment."
(1)
(0)
0
0
0
Read This Next
Continue with Facebook 
Continue with Google