Dignity/Chicago Responds to the 7/20/2025 Chicago Tribune article

A recent Tribune article raises a question that is important to LGBTQ+ Catholics and our allies: Will the Catholic Church be more accepting and inclusive following the election of Pope Leo XIV?  While it is heartening to see a story on AGLO as a “sanctioned” ministry of the Archdiocese of Chicago, it fails to tell the full story of LGBTQ+ Catholic ministry and advocacy here in Chicago.

Dignity/Chicago has ministered to LGBTQ+ Catholics in Chicago since 1972, offering a truly welcoming and inclusive community experience. In 1989, as part of a Vatican crackdown on local Church support of ministry to LGBTQ+ persons, Cardinal Joseph Bernadin suspended the weekly Dignity/Chicago Mass at a northside parish and demanded that the community disavow its Dignity name and pledge acceptance of Catholic Church doctrine on sexuality. A reminder that Church teaching condemns same-sex attraction as morally disordered and same-sex expression of sexuality as intrinsically evil. Dignity/Chicago has refused to step away from our identity and has rejected this Church teaching. 

For decades, Dignity/Chicago has been doing the hard work of ministering to those who feel rejected by the Catholic Church while also advocating locally and nationally, as part of its national organization, DignityUSA, for real change to official Church teaching.

There is no complete story about the relationship of LGBTQ+ Catholics to the Catholic Church in Chicago without the inclusion of Dignity/Chicago’s work and legacy. We, too, pray for a more respectful and inclusive Church, but we do so out loud and in public. If the Church wants to be truly welcoming and inclusive here in Chicago, it should go beyond prayers and comforting words to actually honor the sanctity of LGBTQ+ persons, our relationships, and our families. 

Dignity/Chicago and other groups rooted in our Catholic faith work for that goal every day. That’s the complete story.

Mary Donnelly, President

Dignity/Chicago

DignityUSA, its Chapters, and many other Catholic groups around the world are deeply committed to justice, equality, and full inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in our church and society. We firmly believe that every human being is beloved by God and has equal dignity. We will continue this work until our goals are achieved.

Dignity/Chicago has ministered to Chicago-area LGBTQI Catholics and our allies since 1972. We serve the community through worship, spiritual education and social justice action.

Join us for Mass on the 1st and 4th Sundays of the month at 5:00 p.m., in-person at Broadway United Methodist Church, 3338 N. Broadway in Chicago. To join us via Teams, send a request to: dignitychicago@gmail.com.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

• Email DignityChicago@gmail.com

• Call and leave a message at 312-458-9438

• Mail Address: 3023 N Clark #237, Chicago, IL 60657

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