u/trans-duckie-boy

Today was gonna be my first Sunday Mass at my new parish, but I came down with a nasty cold. 🥶 coughing my head off, stuffy nose, and too tired to move. Hoping maybe if I sleep enough this week, I can be better enough to go next week. 😞 any prayers are appreciated. ❤️🙏🏻

I’m so tired of conservative Catholics on the internet invading progressive Catholic spaces to cause damage, harm and division towards LGBTQ Catholics (or those of us like myself who are going to be entering the Church next Easter). I’ve been with my partner for four years in total. We’re committed to each other but cannot get married obviously in the Church. I can’t get legally married due to disabilities but we wear rings to show our commitment to one another. I have his last name legally as mine and we know that’s as far as we can go, especially as an interfaith relationship with me becoming Catholic and him being Hindu. I love the Lord, Jesus is my Savior. I’m consecrated to the Blessed Mother. I go to Mass daily at my Jesuit run parish. I say my Rosary almost every day. I read my Bible as often as my ADHD ridden brain will let me. Everyone at my parish knows that I’m queer, trans and in a committed queer relationship, and no one has said anything negative or hateful and has been extremely loving. My priest knew this day one and still said next year I’ll be allowed to be baptized and confirmed Catholic validly. Which is great.

But boy does it *hurt* when conservative Catholics who think they know everything tell me I’m living in sin, and that any absolution or taking of the Eucharist I’ll receive won’t be valid unless I remain celibate and single. I don’t believe that. I never will. If being gay is not a sin, how can acting in genuine love with my partner be a sin? I don’t believe it is. Even my priest who’s much older than me has told me that it’s not necessary for me to be single or celibate as long as it doesn’t impede or hinder my faith as a Catholic. Even had a very insightful, loving, honest conversation with him this morning after Mass about my relationship with my partner being not only romantic but sexual, and if I’ll need to bring that to confession or not.

My priest said and I quote: “if it doesn’t cause you to stumble, if it doesn’t make you feel as though you’re being removed from God’s grace, and you don’t feel convicted in your heart that you’re sinning, then no I don’t think you need to bring that to confession. This is more a conscious thing than a doctrine thing. If everyone in the Church tried to follow the catechism to the letter, we’d all be going to Hell. You’re going to be fine.”

I want to trust that. I want to believe in it and at the end of the day I do. I don’t care that conservative Catholics don’t like the Jesuits. It’s of no consequence or concern to me, truly. I just wish they’d mind their business and let us exist without acting just like evangelical protestant people. It’s so disheartening and painful and one of the reasons I originally ran from the church when my old parish tried to make me detransition and be straight to take OCIA. Ugh. 😑

Idk what I’m doing with this post. Venting I guess or looking for someone who’s experienced this that’s now in a more positive position about it? Idk. :/

Hello everyone! Blessed Sunday to you all! 🥰 I’m going to try to keep this short so I don’t waste anyone’s time 🥹 do any of you use any good prayer/bible apps as LGBTQ+ practicing Catholics (Hallow is obviously a no-go) that you really like for iOS? Something with audio through the year daily Bible readings, the rosary, etc? I’m struggling and don’t want to give any money to Ascension or Hallow personally, given they’re very obviously traditional and expensive to boot. 🥲 thank you for your help!

Hey there y’all. Y’all have been absolutely fantastic and so lovely in this group that I’ve made the decision to become Episcopal (would say I’m more Anglo-Catholic in practices at home but I digress!) officially next winter before the next Easter season after attending and enjoying a service at the cathedral in my city, as it’s where I feel Jesus is leading me. 🏳️‍🌈✝️ I even ordered a really nice rainbow themed Anglican rosary to pray with (definitely helps my ADHD brain with prayer) and a new NRSVue bible with tabs, because it’s the one I’ve seen so many people here mention after days of scrolling the subreddit here. I’ve started listening to my worship music again (still love contemporary worship tbh 🥲) and praying again.

My question is… how can I faithfully and properly read the Bible as a transgender, queer Christian and not feel… like I used to when I was on the conservative side of Christianity? Like I’m doing something wrong, sinning by being myself, etc, just by opening God’s Word as a queer and trans individual who loves Jesus and was saved? It’s something that’s been on my mind ever since I pressed the “place order” button on that new bible, if I’m honest. I know this might seem like a no brainer to some folk, but it’s… a really hard thing for me to undo all that painful conditioning, that I’m almost… scared?… of what I might find in those words in red. I still hold some of my traditional beliefs about Christianity (like about God’s Word itself being really true, Hell being permanent if I don’t choose to follow Christ, etc, just not about queer and trans folk being a sin) but I don’t want to tell other folks what to do. I know some people might disagree with me, but that’s not what this post is about, for the most part, I suppose, I think I’m just trying to cohesively make this make sense on a tired brain.

I don’t want to run from my faith in Christ again. I don’t want to doubt His love and saving work on the cross anymore. I want to follow Jesus forever. And I want to fall back in love with God’s Word again. I just am worried I’ll hit a roadblock. A lot of the Bible apps, except for one, are very very obviously made for straight, cis, conservative, evangelical Christians, and the Episcopal ones I’ve found and downloaded don’t really have what I’m looking for in terms of Bible study plans, daily readings, things like that, and seem more for just praying the Daily Office or using the BCP, which is great, but I want something not as geared towards conservative Christians for reading the Bible. I feel a bit lost. 🥲

Anyway, I don’t want to ramble. Thank you if you made it this far. Thank you for any positive feedback or suggestions. I love this subreddit and I’m excited to go to church tomorrow as *me*. Much appreciated y’all, and may God bless you. ✝️🏳️‍🌈❤️