PITTSBURGH (LifeSiteNews) – Bishop David Zubick of Pittsburgh is reportedly calling for the cancellation of what he described as an unauthorized “Pride Mass.”
A flyer circulating online showed the Mass scheduled for June 11, the Feast of Corpus Christi, at Duquesne University’s Holy Spirit Chapel. It is meant to be presided over by Father Doug Boud. The Daily Signal reported on May 31 that Zubick responded to the event by calling for its cancellation and claiming that neither he nor Duquesne University president Ken Gormley “knew anything about the Mass until calls came in to our respective offices over the holiday weekend.”
It’s unclear how the event was planned and, as Zubick noted, it flies in the face of the Catholic Church’s opposition to homosexual fornication. “This event was billed as a ‘Pride Mass’ organized to coincide with Pride Month, an annual secular observance that supports members of the LGBTQ community on every level, including lifestyle and behavior, which the Church cannot endorse,” Zubick wrote.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have decided to honor the blasphemous anti-Catholic drag group, the “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence”, with a Community Hero Award on June 16, the Feast of the Sacred Heart.
This blatant contempt for the Catholic faith cannot go unchallenged.
SIGN: The LA Dodgers must revoke their plan to honor these ‘transgender nuns’
The Major League Baseball franchise said it had decided to honor the group — which engages in deliberately offensive sexualized burlesque mockeries of Catholicism — after initially canceling plans to do so when the public expressed outrage.
“After much thoughtful feedback from our diverse communities, honest conversations within the Los Angeles Dodgers organization and generous discussions with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the Los Angeles Dodgers would like to offer our sincerest apologies to the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, members of the LGBTQ+ community and their friends and families,” the statement read.
In one move, you managed to turn off conservatives and slap Christians in the face with disgusting drag nuns. What a disgrace you’ve become. Was recently at a game. Won’t be coming back.
— Courrielche⚡️ (@courrielche) May 23, 2023
The baseball team said it will ask the sacrilegious group “to take their place on the field at our 10th annual LGBTQ+ Pride Night on June 16th.”
SIGN: The LA Dodgers must NOT allow this mockery to take place
The Dodgers’ Monday announcement comes after it previously agreed to dis-invite the group after outrage by Catholics and other conservatives.
Among others, Catholic Vote and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida vocally objected to the decision to honor the so-called “sisters.”
“Given the strong feelings of people who have been offended by the sisters’ inclusion in our evening, and in an effort not to distract from the great benefits that we have seen over the years of Pride Night, we are deciding to remove them from this year’s group of honorees,” the team said in a since-deleted May 17 announcement.
San Francisco’s Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone had previously thanked the Dodgers for their decision to roll back the invitation.
In its Monday statement, after apologizing for temporarily dis-inviting the anti-Catholic hate group, the Dodgers promised to “work with our LGBTQ+ partners to better educate ourselves, find ways to strengthen the ties that bind and use our platform to support all our fans who make diversity part of the Dodgers family.”
Make your voice heard NOW, before this blasphemy takes center stage.
SIGN: The LA Dodgers must not honor anti-Catholic, anti-Christian drag ‘nuns’
Conservatives responded on social media by slamming the baseball team for caving.
“Yes, it is vital that the national pastime honor and support those who mock religion and decency,” reacted Daily Wire co-founder and podcaster Ben Shapiro.
“The Gay Mafia will always extract their payment for ‘protection,’ said Crisis magazine editor-in-chief Eric Sammons.
Some social media users hinted that the team should face the same backlash as beer company Bud Light, which is continuing to endure a massive boycott after its decision to honor transgender-identifying TikTok activist Dylan Mulvaney.
But the Dodgers weren’t always woke and divorced from traditional religious practice.
Former Dodgers great Sandy Koufax, a left-handed pitcher who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in fame in 1972, famously refused to pitch during Game 1 of the World Series because it fell on Yom Kippur, the most important holy day in the Jewish calendar. He previously opted out of games that landed on Passover and Rosh Hashanah.
And Koufax wasn’t alone in living an active faith. Legendary announcer Vin Scully, the “Voice of the Dodgers” for 67 years, was a staunch Catholic. Scully, who passed away last year at age 94, was described by Catholic News Agency’s Jonah McKeown as “a devout Catholic who found in his faith a source of joy and comfort and sought to share it with others through personal kindness and philanthropy.”
As LifeSiteNews previously reported, Scully was devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary and even narrated a two-CD audio recording of the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 2016.
SIGN & SHARE our urgent petition today – do not be silent as the Catholic faith is attacked!
That statement reportedly came in a letter to clergy and those upset about the event, which caused an uproar on social media. Crisis Magazine editor-in-chief Eric Sammons blasted the event, tweeting last week that “The bishop of Pittsburg [sic] has a sacred obligation to shut this sacrilege down and discipline all clerics associated with it.”
The bishop of Pittsburg has a sacred obligation to shut this sacrilege down and discipline all clerics associated with it. @DioPitt pic.twitter.com/GT07smTRHM
— Eric Sammons (@EricRSammons) May 27, 2023
The flyer listed Fr. Boud as well as Deacons Herb Riley and Keith Kondrich, who appeared to tweet and then remove the ad alongside the message “Come celebrate with us … ”
It’s unclear whether the Mass has been officially canceled. The diocese and Fr. Tom Burke, the pastor at St. Mary Magdalene Church in Pittsburgh, did not respond to LifeSite’s requests for comment. Vicki Sheridan, who is listed as a “scripture commentator” for the Mass and coordinator for St. Mary Magdalene Parish’s “LGBTQ” ministry, likewise did not respond.
Other co-hosts listed are the “LGBTQ Ministry at St. Joseph the Worker” and Pax Christi. The flyer lists other co-hosts as APP, apparently referring to the Association of Pittsburgh Priests, and CCOC, the acronym for Catholics for Change in our Church.
According to an article in the Pittsburgh City Paper, Sheridan’s daughters “are part of the LGBTQ community” and attended Pittsburgh Pride in 2017. The article, published last April, quotes Sheridan saying that “she wanted to be someone who supports LGBTQ Catholics ‘exactly as they are.’”
It claims that Sheridan received permission to start the ministry in 2000 from Fr. Burke, whom the outlet indicated had said that “an LGBTQ ministry group” could work at St. Mary Magadalene parish because of its economically and racially diverse congregation. The parish’s website says the group “recognizes that all the baptized, in the diversity of our sexual orientations and gender identities, are called to full participation in the life, worship, and mission of the church. The ministry seeks to foster an appreciation of the gifts that our LGBTQ members, their families, and allies bring to our community and to create a safe and supportive space for their social and spiritual growth.”
Burke reportedly said the ministry didn’t seek to oppose Church teaching (e.g. “perform a same-sex marriage”) but also claimed that “[b]eing a police in the bedroom, that’s not my job. My job is to be the pastor.” It’s unclear what Burke meant by “being a police in the bedroom,” but the Church has long taught that homosexual acts and the inclination toward them are “intrinsically disordered.”
“They are contrary to the natural law,” the Catholic Catechism reads. “They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.”
In his response, Bishop Zubick echoed the Catechism in condemning homosexual acts while encouraging love toward individuals who experience same-sex attraction.
“As Pope Francis has reminded us, the Church, and this diocese, have strongly encouraged welcoming, listening and accompanying those in LGBTQ communities with various ministries such as Courage and EnCourage,” he said, referring to faithful ministries for same-sex-attracted Catholics and their families. “We need to and want to do more in our pastoral care. We welcome, listen and accompany but cannot endorse behavior contrary to what we know to be God’s law. At the same time, we must be willing to love and welcome each other as children of God. My hope is that the Church of Pittsburgh is welcoming to the LGBTQ community and in turn that the LGBTQ community is welcoming of the Church and her teachings.”
The scheduled Mass came amid broader concerns about “Pride Month” and how Catholic institutions handle the secular festival. On Thursday, the University of Notre Dame received backlash for posting a tweet celebrating Pride Month. “Happy #PrideMonth!” It read. “We celebrate all LGBTQ+ identities and reaffirm our commitment to being a welcoming, safe and supportive place for ALL members of the Notre Dame family.”
St. Mary Magdalene in Pittsburgh has also promoted the work of Fr. James Martin, who regularly pushes highly controversial views on the issue. Facebook posts from last year show the group notifying followers of discussions of Martin’s “Building a Bridge” book and documentary.
Duquesne did not immediately respond to Lifesite’s requests for comment.
Readers can contact the diocese using the contact form on its website.