The Diocese of Bismarck is now offering an outreach program, called Courage, for persons with same-sex attraction. This nation-wide program has been available for some time, but is new to the diocese.
The Courage central office operates through support of the Archdiocese of New York, but largely through the contributions and volunteer work of Courage members and other individuals and organizations. Individual chapters throughout the world are self-supporting and exist with the permission of their diocesan bishop.
“The Courage program brings the very fruitful experience of this Catholic outreach to any and all persons with a same-sex attraction,” said Bishop David Kagan. “By that I mean that Courage does not try to convert a person. Through the use of the Catholic Church’s rich and long tradition of prayer and meditation, it helps persons develop and deepen their own relationship to God by using the discipline of prayer to live a chaste life in every way.”
Bishop Kagan added, “It is a very confidential support to persons who struggle in this matter to live a life of real virtue by living a life of prayer, meditation on Sacred Scripture and solid and wholesome spiritual reading. There are no demands of persons who are in Courage other than to commit to it unconditionally.”
There is often some confusion among the laity regarding the Church’s teaching on same-sex attraction. This can lead to an inability to live a fully Christian life in communion with God and others.
“What the Catholic Church says to a person experiencing a same-sex attraction is simply this: we do not judge you but we love you as a child of God and we respect you as a unique person,” Bishop Kagan explained. “Look upon yourself in the very same way and live every day as an act of thanksgiving to God for your life. Do nothing to injure your relationship with Him. Live each day in a chaste manner as an act of love for and thanksgiving to God for who you are. Actually, the Catholic Church says this to every person no matter the sexual orientation or attraction.”
Another aspect of the program offers guidance and support for loved ones involved. EnCourage is a Catholic apostolate for parents, friends and family members of loved ones with samesex attractions.
To this, Bishop Kagan added, “The Church teaches very clearly in the Catechism of the Catholic Church that to treat another person as inferior to oneself because of a same-sex attraction by any act of unkindness or discrimination is forbidden to us. This is a most serious sin which does real harm to the unity of the Church and is never justified.”
For more information on the Courage program in the diocese, go to www.bismarckdiocese.com/courage.