Gay protesters in Chicago area to be denied Communion

CHICAGO -- Cardinal Francis George has told priests in the Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago to deny Communion to gay members of the church who show up for services Sunday wearing a rainbow sash, the symbol of a protest organized by a group pushing for the church to accept homosexuals.

In a letter sent to the archdiocese's 375 priests last week, George writes that the protest organized by the Rainbow Sash Movement (USA) signals "opposition to church teaching" and that the sash is an overt statement that the wearer is in conflict with Catholic teachings.

"The Rainbow Sash Movement wants its members to be fully accepted in the Church, not on the same conditions as any Catholic, but precisely as a gay," George wrote. "With this comes the requirement that the Church change her moral teaching, which is from the Lord and His Apostles."

Rainbow Sash has chapters in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, Rochester, N.Y., and New Orleans. It is urging gay and lesbian Catholics to wear the sash and attend Pentecost services Sunday at churches around the country.

"In wearing the Rainbow Sash, we proclaim that we are Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender," the group says on its website. "With our families, friends, and loved ones, we witness and celebrate our sexuality as a sacred gift."

The group urges members who are denied Communion to return to their pews and remain standing, while those who receive Communion should kneel at their pews, which is customary in the Catholic Church.

James Dwyer, spokesman for the Chicago Archdiocese, said it was not George's intent to alienate gays and lesbians.

"We can't speak for the minds and hearts of people," he said. "It's his intent to show his opposition and that of the bishops to anyone who would use the sacred moment of the Eucharist as a public spectacle to oppose Catholic teaching."

A Rainbow Sash official, Joe Murray, said last night, "This is our home too, and we're laying claim to the Eucharistic table."

There have been other high-profile instances recently where church leaders have said they would deny Communion on grounds critics contend are political more than spiritual.

In St. Louis, Archbishop Raymond Burke announced in January that he would deny Communion to Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kerry because of the Massachusetts senator's support of abortion rights. In Colorado Springs earlier this month, Bishop Michael Sheridan said Catholic voters who support proabortion candidates should not receive Communion.