Coming Home
There are many reasons why you may have distanced yourself from your Catholic heritage.
- Perhaps you were in a difficult marriage that ended in divorce, and someone told you that you could not enjoy the consolations of the faith.
- You may have witnessed expressions of the Catholic faith that did not appeal to your sense of spirituality—even by members of your family—and you attributed these practices to the essence of Catholicism, which you rejected.
- You may be gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered, and have experienced rejection at the hands of some who claimed to represent the Catholic tradition; perhaps they even expressed judgmental attitudes towards you, physically harmed you or denied you basic human rights.
- It may be that you disagree with some Church teachings as you understood them from the media, and this has caused you great personal difficulty in reconciling your personal beliefs to what you understand church teaching to be.
- A member of the clergy may have offended you—or even wronged you in some way, perhaps violating you—and you have been unable to overcome the anger and shame resulting from such a situation to continue your faith journey according to the Catholic tradition.
None of these experiences are beyond the power of reconciliation. Without attributing blame or defending the actions of those who may have hurt or offended you, we wish to be a channel of peace. If you are ready, we invite you to explore these issues with us at St. Brendan. If you believe that God is love, that Jesus has Good News for the world, and that the Holy Spirit works in your life, you can be a Catholic at St. Brendan Church.
It may very well be that we can help you to find peace, and to reconcile yourself with your Catholic heritage, and to once again be welcome among the People of God. In every way we can, we strive to emphasize that all are welcome at St. Brendan. If you don't believe this, then give us a call to see.
If you have questions, please contact Kathy Russell at 323 936 4656 ext. 259 or by e-mail at kathy@stbrendanchurch.org.
If you are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered and wish to talk about your role in the Christian community of St. Brendan, just as you are, you are welcome to contact Deacon Eric Stoltz.
Reclaim your Catholic heritage! We miss you. We look forward to welcoming you home.
