‘Nation Catholic Reporter’ names gay couple ‘Persons of the Year’
GLAAD announced yesterday that the National Catholic Reporter has names a same-sex married couple as “Persons of the Year.”
According to GLAAD’s blog, “Three years ago, Greg Bourke was forced to resign as Assistant Scoutmaster of his son's Boy Scout troop in Louisville, Kentucky because he is openly gay. This occurred despite his involvement with the Boy Scouts for eight years, including six years as a registered leader, and the support of his troop and the church that sponsors his unit. During this time, GLAAD worked with Bourke to help him share his story and urge the Boy Scouts to end its discriminatory ban.”
Greg Bourke and his husband, Michael DeLeon emerged in the public eye when news of Bourke’s removal by the Boy Scouts became news. That attracted attorneys for a challenge to Kentucky’s ban on gay marriage. The couple was asked to join a lawsuit seeking to have the state’s ban declared unconstitutional, and they agreed.
The rest is history. The Supreme Court, in Obergefell v. Hodges, declared a right to marry, and same-sex marriage became the law of the land across the United States.
The National Catholic Reporter is not a stranger to taking positions that upset the Catholic Church hierarchy. “Despite the name, the publication operates outside of the authority of the Catholic Church,” reports Wikipedia. “Promoting a progressive position, the NCR presents itself ‘as one of the few, if not the only truly independent, journalistic outlet for Catholics and others who struggle with the complex moral and societal issues of the day.’ However, the publication has been accused of ideological bias, favoring voices of dissent within the Catholic Church both in its expression of opinion and in its choice of news to report and of tending to criticize statements by the Holy See and Catholic bishops.”
GLAAD notes that Bourke attempted to rejoin his Boy Scout group after the national governing body removed the restriction on gay troop leaders. “Also this summer, the Boy Scouts removed its ban on LGB leaders. Greg thought he'd be able to return to the organization. However, according to a Change.org petition started by Bourke, the Archdiocese [Archbishop] Joseph Kurtz of Louisville decided that Bourke could not rejoin the Boy Scout troop because he is openly gay. In response, Bourke started a petition to ask Archbishop Kurtz to approve his re-application for membership and end his ban on out gay Boy Scout leaders.
“Greg and Michael's recognition is due to their dedication to their children, bringing acceptance to the Boy Scouts, and helping bring marriage equality to the United States. They continue to advocate, and we are so proud of them!”
The NCR editorial naming the couple as its “Persons of the Year” said, “Bourke and DeLeon are emblematic of this major challenge facing the church today, because they force us to ask not how will we live out a hypothetical situation, but how will we live with Greg and Michael. They give flesh to an abstraction.
“The answers the church is giving now are confused, uneven and often cruel. Greg and Michael -- and countless gay, lesbian and transgender Catholics -- deserve better.
“For their historic roles as plaintiffs in Obergefell v. Hodges and for their faithful public witness as gay Catholics, we name Greg Bourke and Michael DeLeon NCR's persons of the year for 2015.”
You can read the entire NCR editorial at www.ncronline.org/news/people/editorial-our-persons-year-2015.
The Gayly – December 29, 2015 @ 1:20 p.m.