Courage Statement on Supreme Court Decision

For nearly 35 years, Courage International has provided authentic pastoral care to men and women who experience same-sex attraction and who have made a free choice to embrace the call of Jesus Christ to live chastely in harmony with the teaching of the Catholic Church. Some of our members follow this call in loving marriages to a person of the opposite sex, while many others live chaste celibate lives, accepting the many heroic sacrifices that this requires in a spirit of cheerful, generous self-giving. Our members are a daily inspiration to the chaplains who serve them, and to the whole Church.

Mindful of the guidance of Pope Francis, and the priorities set for the Church by the Synod on the Family, Courage remains committed to ministering to this underserved community and, through the EnCourage apostolate, to those who love them. We are daily inspired by their joyful embrace of chastity and of the freedom that it gives them to love authentically, and believe that their compelling stories are a powerful witness to others.

(Source: www.couragerc.org)

Fathers, Sons and Homosexuality

Fathers, love your sons. Today as we celebrate Father's Day, I want to remind all fathers out there to spend quality time with your sons and build an intimate relationships with them. Many of us men struggling with same-sex attractions have a lot of deep and painful issues with our own fathers and although we do not want to put the blame on them for our personal struggles, I think it is fair to say that many fathers today do not know how to become good fathers. This very short article will reveal to you that missing link in your relationships with your sons that I hope may create a truly lasting and authentic father-son relationship. Happy Father's Day!

A SHARED DELIGHT

by Joseph Nicolosi, Ph.D.

In my search for the particular quality of father-son bonding that is fundamental to the development of the boy's masculine identity, I have been led to a phenomenon that I call "a shared delight."

I am convinced that the healthy development of masculine identification depends on this phenomenon. This special emotional exchange should be between the boy and his father, although a father figure or grandfather may serve the purpose where no father is available. It is not a single event or one-time occurrence, but should characterize the relationship.

This particular style of emotional attunement is especially important during the critical developmental gender-identity period.

Homosexual men have great difficulty recalling childhood father-son activities that were fun, exciting and enjoyable and included success and achievement for the client-- a shared delight. They typically do not have many positive memories of their fathers coaching them to gain a new skill that involves bodily activity or strength. Indeed, many lament this deprivation.

An example of "a shared delight" is found in writer and social commentator Malcolm Muggeridge's autobiobiography. Malcolm's father was his hero; and as a teenager, Malcolm would travel to his father's office in London. When the young man arrived, he noticed an embodied shift in his father:

"When he saw me, his face always lit up, as it had a way of doing, quite suddenly, thereby completely altering his appearance; transforming him from a rather cavernous, shrunken man into someone boyish and ardent. He would leap agilely off his stool, wave gaily to his colleague... and we would make off together.

"There was always about these excursions an element of being on an illicit spree, which greatly added to their pleasure. They were the most enjoyable episodes in all my childhood."

As we work with men who experience same-sex attractions, we hear that repeated theme--their inability to recall "a shared delight."

Physical interaction between father and son appears essential in making the father feel familiar, non-mysterious, and approachable in the boy's eyes.

So much of what lies behind adult same-sex attraction is that deep, lingering, unsatisfied desire for physical closeness with a man. With internalization of the father's masculinity, there will be no need to sexualize another man.

Prayer to Renew the Sanctity and Beauty of Human Sexuality

The world celebrates Gay Pride on the last week of June (in remembrance of the Stonewall riots). The Church respects and honors the dignity of all human beings including homosexuals. As Christians, we believe that their full dignity is in the identity of being redeemed children of God and that their true freedom lies in obedience to God's will. In this regard, we request an hour of adoration in June to be offered for the realization of this truth and for the above prayer, "Prayer to Renew the Sanctity and Beauty of Human Sexuality", to be said at least once on the last week of June with an act of mortification to be lovingly offered as reparation.

The LGBT community uses the rainbow as their icon. The rainbow of biblical account is God's covenant after the big flood and a continuation of God's deliverance done through Noah's ark for those obedient to His will. The Noah's ark also housed and saved the male and female of every species with which to renew life. This is our contemporary Noah's ark moment when we give glory to God for saving His obedient children and for protecting and upholding the male and female union of every species to renew and sustain life.

Below is a brief explanation of the logo that you see above which was designed by one of our Courage brothers.

a. Male and female icons in place and they are united in Christ and the Divine Mercy watches over them. The rays can actually be seen as like a light from a lighthouse too guiding the ark's navigation.

b. The cross is gold which is the true treasure of the Church.

c. Background is sky blue which is Marian. But the one below is gray which is the flood and the challenges that face the ark.

d. Outer ring is maroon which is the color of Courage. Interestingly enough, this can also be crimson which is what the claws of the dove became when it came back to Noah after checking if there's already dry land.

Please feel free to forward this beautiful prayer to everyone you know. You can download a soft copy of this prayer by right clicking on the image above and click 'Save As' or you can send me an e-mail at couragemanila@yahoo.com if you want to receive the original soft copy. Thank you.