Elena Curti on the Soho Masses: Export it to Bristol, Manchester, Edinburgh

Coming to a town near you? The Rainbow Roadshow...

Elena Curti believes the Soho Masses are so great at communicating the Catholic Faith to men and women with same-sex attraction that they should be exported to Bristol, Manchester, Edinburgh and, well, seemingly everywhere where there might be 'a gay' and 'a Church'. Wherever there is a gay, there should be a gay Mass. So now we know why St Pio of Pietrelcina once threw a communist out of his confessional box by force, simply for being a communist...

Elena pines for the day when every Church will have its own Gay Mass for the gay contingent. What could possibly go wrong? And how's this for a cracking start to a blogpost:

'Gay Catholics are called to life-long friendship, the Archbishop of Westminster told BBC2's Newsnight programme last week. It was as far as Archbishop Vincent Nichols was prepared to go in articulating the Church's pastoral concern for its gay members. But he could have referred to the bi-monthly Soho Masses for gay Catholics and their families, which continue in his diocese in spite of complaints to Rome by traditionalists.'

How much further did she expect the Archbishop to go? All the way?

Indeed, he could have referred to the bi-monthly Soho Masses, but there is an outside possibility that the Archbishop finds these Masses a little embarrassing at this time, when the dissent emanating from Soho runs in contradiction to Catholic Teaching and while they continue to draw criticism from 'traditionalists' and, presumably, other Catholics of sound faith in Rome. Full of praise for the Soho Masses, Elena opines:

'These, more than anything else, have demonstrated that the Catholic Church takes seriously its ministry to gay members. It counters the argument from those advocating gay marriage that the Church is homophobic.'

It certainly does counter the argument from those advocating gay marriage that the Church is homophobic. If you listen to what some of the organisers actually say, it counters that argument so much that you get the distinct impression that there is very little difference between what supporters of 'gay marriage' believe and what organisers of the Soho Masses believe. Then, as if to finally confirm what many already believed, that The Tablet editorial team is comprised of fantasists, Elena says:

'As for Cardinal Keith O'Brien, what better way to counter the furore that greeted his outburst against the notion of gay marriage?'

Good luck with that one, Elena, love. I think you need a lay down, dear.

And, of course, no Tablet article would be complete without perpetuating the lie that the Universal Church has any support whatsoever, or ever shall, for gay civil unions, even though the parallel Magisterium of The Tablet and (at times, some of) the English Hierarchy can give people the impression that this is the case:

'If we as Catholics are to argue convincingly that marriage is the nucleus of our society, that to tamper with it has implications for the care of children and that civil partnerships are the way to recognise stable, committed gay unions, we need the Church to show support for its gay members. Extending the gay Masses would be a good way to do that.'

I suppose they would be a good way to do that, if, into the bargain, you wished to scandalise the good faith of Catholics, undermine the Church's teaching on sexuality, create breeding grounds for dissent around the country and introduce the Marxist liberation theology of the gay movement into every city and town into the country. Yep, that sounds like The Tablet to me. Love it or loathe it, it can always be relied upon to show us the direction in which Holy Mother Church should be going. Just read The Tablet and remember to go in the opposite direction where the compass is pointing.