In a statement published this week, a Bishop says that the goal of Pride parades is to conquer the Catholic Church.

Athanasius Schneider (pictured), Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Mary Most Holy in Astana, Kazakhstan said that he released his statement because it is “the grave moral duty” of bishops “to take a stand regarding the phenomenon of ‘gay pride’ parades”.

“These demonstrations are carried out with enormous financial and logistical commitments, accompanied by propaganda supported by the most influential powers of public life, namely political elites, social media and powerful economic and financial bodies,” he said.

“Such unanimous support on the part of these public bodies was typical of historical totalitarian systems in order to impose a certain ideology on society. The so-called “gay pride” demonstrations unmistakably resemble the propaganda marches of various totalitarian political regimes of the past.

“However, there is one very important voice in public life that has not yet officially, or to a large extent, joined this unanimous chorus of support for so-called “gay pride” parades. This voice is that of the Catholic Church. The totalitarianism of homosexualist gender ideology is pursuing its most ambitious goal, which is to conquer the last bastion of resistance, i.e. the Catholic Church.”

Castigating clergy who “without blushing, are already offering grains of incense to the idol of homosexuality or gender ideology,” Bishop Schneider asserts that the correct response to LGBT+ Pride is to “proclaim the truth of the objective psychological and sexual disorder of homosexual tendencies, and then talk about the truth concerning needed and discreet help for people with homosexual tendencies, so that they receive care and liberation from their psychological disability.”

“Then one must also proclaim the Divine truth about the gravely sinful character of homosexual acts and of the homosexual lifestyle, since they are offensive to God’s will,” the Bishop added.

Pope Francis, who visits Ireland this month for the World Meeting of Families, has been more ambiguous in his statements about LGBT people, although homosexuality in the Catholic doctrine continues to be characterised as “intrinsically disordered” and “contrary to natural law”.