Last month during Dublin Pride weekend, parishioners at Church in Dublin city were allegedly subjected to a “vitriolic rant” about homosexuality in light of the recent passing of the marriage equality referendum.

UPDATE: Fr Gregory Carroll, Provincial of the Irish Dominican Order has responded to complaints by parishioner, Patrick Donovan.

He writes,

Dear Patrick,
 
Thank you for your recent letter and for your courage in writing it. I was very saddened to read of the hurt and pain caused to you by a homily preached in St. Saviours, Dominick Street, by one of the community.
 
I have spoken with Fr Terence Crotty and suggested that he should meet with you. 
 
I did not reveal to him either your name or contact details or give him a copy of your letter. I wanted to first ask you if it would be okay for me to do so. I would appreciate it if you could let me know if it is okay to give Fr Crotty a copy of your letter. 
 
With every good wish, 
 
Yours sincerely, 
 
Gregory Carroll OP. 

Provincial

On Sunday June 28, at the 11.30am mass at St. Saviours Dominican Priory, a parishioner was left “deeply offended and deeply angered” by the alleged “vitriolic rant” delivered by head celebrant Fr. Terence Crotty, in which he supposedly referred to gay people as “intrinsically disordered”.

Patrick Donovan, an gay member of the congregation wrote an open letter to Fr Gregory Carroll, Provincial of the Irish Dominican Order about the incident, but is yet to receive a reply.

In the letter, which he shared with The Outmost, he explains:

[Fr. Crotty] chose his homily, he stated, “in light of recent events [marriage equality referendum] and the Dublin City Gay Pride taking place over that weekend.”

He stated that as a priest, he was often asked by classroom students as to why “the Church hates gay people” and that it was a question he “always had to be prepared for.”

 

Of course he stated, “the Church hates no one” and that gay people should be shown the same respect and compassion [as straight people]. However, “the Church can never be seen to condone the acts.”

“Homosexuals are by their very nature intrinsically disordered,” he added, and continued to elaborate on how in God’s “greater plan,” gay people seem to “have very little purpose” .

 

He continued, “the true sanctity of marriage is indeed to procreate, and how can homosexuals fit in with this greater plan.” He also stated quite categorically that there is “no such thing as a homosexual gene” and spouted some convoluted evidence to support his warped theory. He endeavoured thus to leave the congregation, in no doubt that homosexuality was indeed a choice, and therefore the Church can never be seen to condone the lifestyle and especially “the [sexual] acts”!

 

Donovan, who is gay and an active member of the Church, said he felt “deeply offended” leaving the mass, being particularly sensitive and drained following the debates from both sides in the lead up to the Marriage Referendum.

Like many of my ‘intrinsically disordered’ persuasion, I had to sit through several rants and homilies in the lead up to the Marriage Equality Referendum, with the Church advocating a No vote, and using every ounce of its ever dwindling power to convince the faithful in Ireland to do what was “right” and vote no!

 

The Irish people came out in their droves and voted by a 2:1 margin to vote Yes to equality on May 22 2015, thus enshrining it forever more in the constitution – the first country in the world to do so! It even prompted Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin to state that the church in Ireland was in dire need of a “reality check”.

 

By further demeaning homosexual people [with this homily], degrading and adding further to the bias and discrimination we have all in the gay community experienced for far too long, surely Fr. Crotty is doing nothing more than adding the final few nails to the coffin lid of a Church that is slowly wilting and dying, and refusing point blank, to take this same ‘reality check’?

The Outmost has reached out to Dominicans Ireland for comment.