Catholics protest LGBTQ-affirming priest’s upcoming talk

A petition to cancel Jesuit priest James Martin’s upcoming talk at a Pennsylvania Catholic Church had gathered nearly 20,000 signatures by Thursday afternoon. Catholic activist group TFP Student Action, which authored the petition to the church’s pastor, said Martin’s support of homosexuality and transgender ideology was at odds with the Bible and Catholic doctrine. TFP Student Action is a branch of a lay Catholic organization, the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property.

Martin’s talk is scheduled for Feb. 7 at Epiphany of Our Lord Catholic Church in Plymouth Meeting, Penn., about a 30-minute drive northwest of Philadelphia. Martin grew up attending that congregation, he wrote in a social media post. Other venues previously disinvited Martin from planned talks following backlash from Catholics, according to TFP Student Action.

What’s the subject of Martin’s scheduled talk? Martin planned to speak on his new book, Work in Progress, which is described as a coming-of-age autobiographical memoir. The book chronicles his series of jobs and experiences leading up to his decision to become a priest, as well as life lessons he learned along the way, according to its description. Martin is known for founding Outreach, a pro-LGBTQ Catholic organization.

How did Epiphany of Our Lord Catholic Church respond to the petition? Much of the reaction to Martin’s planned talk didn’t accurately reflect the nature of the event, pastor Thomas O’Donald told WORLD in a Friday email. The talk was only about Martin’s promotion of his book in his home parish, not about his controversial views, O’Donald said. While O’Donald profoundly disagreed with Martin on several issues, he was still a priest in good standing and should be treated with love and respect, O’Donald said. The church had received many messages from outsiders opposing the event, but most of its own parishioners supported the talk and understood its purpose, he said. The church planned to go forward with the event, he said.

Dig deeper: Read Liz Lykins’ report on a Finnish lawmaker’s testimony to Congress about censure she faced for a biblical tweet.