Editor’s note: Because Del fin Bautista does not identify with one specific gender, the non-gendered “they” is used as a pronoun.
Rainbow rosaries, buttons and stickers filled the baggage of six Equally Blessed pilgrims, who packed their suitcases and headed off to Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day.
Among the troupe was Delfin Bautista, the director of Ohio University’s LGBT Center. Equal ly Blessed’s goal is to provide a voice for the LGBTA community within the Catholic faith.
World Youth Day is a spiritual event held by the Vatican every two or three years. The gather ing ran from July 23 to 28 and an estimated 3 million people attended.
“Once on the ground, we were truly embraced with open arms,” Bautista said. “Specifi cally to be Catholic and be an LGBT person is even more po larized… we need to have con versations at the intersection of faith and sexuality.”
The six travellers aimed to start discussions, spread infor mation and network with other LGBT leaders.
“Speaking to these pilgrims has been eye-opening and in spiring and has also reminded me again and again that we are part of a worldwide church and our struggle as LGBT and allied Catholics is universal,” said El len Eucilde, another member of the group in her blog about the event.
Although conflict between faith and sexuality might be an international problem, accep tance of LGBTA lifestyles in gen eral might be greater outside the United States.
“The international com munity is a few steps ahead in terms of nondiscrimination policy,” Bautista said. “There are countries in Latin Amer ica and Europe that are way ahead.”
Homosexuality is more ac cepted in North America, the European Union and South America, and it is commonly rejected in Muslim nations, along with Africa, Russia and parts of Asia, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center.
Bautista said they will ap ply the lessons learned about how to discuss LGBTA issues internationally back at the LGBT Center in order to be more open for international students.
After World Youth Day, Pope Francis issued a statement that sent the world chattering.
“If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?” he said.
Bautista said they experi enced mixed emotions in re gards to the statement.
“It was a very cool, unique, powerful way to end our time in Rio,” Bautista said. “He didn’t say anything revolutionary or radical in terms of the church’s stance.”
Bautista added that the pope had also continued the refusal of female priests in the Catholic Church, which Bautista called “one step forward and another step back.”
“We shall see moving forward (what impact this has),” Bautista said.
