You say, “The Lord’s way is not fair!” (Ezekiel 18)

“That’s not fair!” How often de we hear or say that line!? In fact, many things in life are not fair. They don’t work out the way we expect or the way that seems just. But life goes on. God is just and created out world to run with a sense of justice, but he also respects peoples free will to act justly or not. When we don’t act justly, he does call us to conversion – especially through our conscience and through the practice of our faith. In the end, there will be a judgment where God’s justice (and mercy) will prevail.

Last weekend Deacon Jim spoke about being welcoming to members of the LGBT Community who want to be part of our Catholic faith and parish life. Maybe some people think “it’s not fair, or right, to reach out to members of this community.”

Here is a message he received in response to his homily. This email shows why we are making efforts to reach out to them, and why we are called to be to be loving and respectful of all people, even if we don’t agree with them or their way of life….

Deacon Jim: I so loved your homily.

My younger brother lives in North Dakota. He has 2 daughters that were married traditionally in the church for about 5 years and then came out saying they were getting divorces and were gay.

One of his daughters just married their gay partner. At the time they told everyone, everything changed with my brother and family.  he no longer has any kind of relationship with his daughters. We used to be a very very close family. Now he will not talk to any of us because we still accept our niece as part of our family.

He is friends with a priest at St Joseph parish in Mandan North Dakota. The priest has given him guidance to not have any kind of relationship with his daughters. They will not discuss it. I believe his daughters still have their faith but feel very alienated and they do not feel welcome. It is a very sad state of affairs.

I try telling my brother that God loves us all, but he feels his daughters are condemned and he will never see them in the afterlife. Your homily might just get him to open a door that really needs to be opened.

If you could send me a soft copy of your homily, I would like to share it with all 7 of my siblings.

God Bless, Yvette McCamant