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A clergyman from the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) on Truth gave a speech on the sanctity of marriage last Wednesday, which turned into a debate about the marriage rights of gays and lesbians.
The speech was given by Father John Ignatius, who spoke as part of a series, “Why Marriage Has Never Been Gay: A Defense of Marriage as Between Man and Woman.”
Many people challenged his premise, which was to demonstrate the presence of Roman Catholics on the DU campus.
Ignatius’ presentation turned into a civil debate between the Roman Catholic community and the LGBTQI community.
Ignatius acknowledged his position as a minority opinion both in contemporary culture and the Catholic community.
In spite of this, Ignatius explained his belief in terms of precedent, language and nature,
When referring to precedent, Ignatius referred to the fact that marriages have been established as the union of one man and one woman, and that marriage is a unique institution because of this.
“Alongside marriage there have always been adult committed consensual relationships, including prostitution and men who love men, such as in the case of loving Jesus,” said Ignatius. “But none of these have ever been marriage.”
Ignatius went on to explain that nature compliments the presence of one male and one female in order to procreate and continue a species. He then stated that homosexuality is unnatural and dangerous for the health of both participants.
“Most copulation occurs between heterosexuals,” said Ignatius. “That is the norm.”
His presentation concluded with statements supporting his belief that actual harm will come from changing the definition of the institution of marriage, and that marriage between a man and a women is “miraculous.”
Following his presentation audience members immediately formed a line to ask Ignatius questions regarding his presentation and challenged his perspective.
Charlie Severance-Medaris, a sophomore studying political science and public policy, approached the microphone to speak with Ignatius wearing a T-shirt that read “Some dudes marry dudes. Get over it,” which he admits was intentional.
After thanking Ignatius and the audience for engaging in a civil discussion of the controversial topic, Severance-Medaris addressed studies that have led every psychological organization in the United States to oppose attempts at “conversion therapy” and say that it is not possible to intentionally alter one’s sexual orientation.
“My point was simply to say that given this scientific understanding that sexual orientation is innate and inalterable. Why can’t we change our definition of marriage to reflect what we now know about what is natural, human, sexual behavior?” said Severance-Medaris.
While the presentation was meant to explain the point of view to fellow Catholics who may be a minority on campus, the presence of the LGBTQI community and students such as Severance-Medaris added a disputable element to the production in advancement of inclusive excellence on campus.
“I think we had a tremendous effect on the outcome of the event as there were a lot of queer and ally people in the audience,” said Severance-Medaris. “FOCUS presented the evening as a series on ‘truth’ and I think that our presence and questions showed that their version of the truth was not a foregone conclusion.”
For more information on FOCUS visit www.du.edu/orgs/focus. For more information on the Queer Straight Alliance visit www.du.edu/orgs/qsa.
For further discussion on FOCUS on Truth, Why Marriage has Never Been Gay, see the responses to Ignatius’ message in Opinions, on page 6.
Visit the opinions section to see DU Professor, opinion on the issue.
