Protect our youth this easater
Peace through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, amen. My brothers and sisters in Christ, it is striking — almost cynical — that the United States Supreme Court chose this week, of all weeks, to release its opinion on conversion therapy. Traditionally, the Court waits until the final weeks of its term in June to announce major decisions. This time, however, they issued their ruling early. Perhaps they intended to give conservative priests and pastors something to preach about on Easter Sunday, the second most attended day in the Christian year after Christmas. Yet our calling as members of the universal Church is unmistakably clear. We are not called to preach cruelty or shame, least of all on Easter Sunday, the day our Lord and Savior rose from the tomb. We are called to love our neighbors. As Jesus teaches in Matthew 22:39: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” This commandment carries no exceptions. It does not exclude anyone based on identity, and it does not bend ...
