(RNS) — Bishop-elect Thomas Hennen was appointed by Pope Leo XIV to lead the Diocese of Baker, Oregon, on Thursday (July 10). At age 47, Hennen will be the youngest bishop leading a U.S. diocese.
Hennen’s ministry to LGBTQ+ people has seen mixed reactions about his pastoral approach.
While ministering at the Diocese of Davenport, Iowa — his most recent post — Hennen spoke at a 2023 diocesan talk about ministry to LGBTQ+ Catholics. He said he had been working with Courage International, a Catholic group that encourages people “who experience same-sex attraction” to live in chastity, according to its website, for nearly the last eight years. His remarks signaled he backed current Catholic Church teaching on LGBTQ+ issues.
“We should not feel forced into choosing between truth and love,” Hennen said. “The truth is ultimately loving. The way that the truth is expressed is not always loving, and that’s what we have to navigate very carefully.”
As president of Dignity Detroit, an LGBTQ+ Catholic group, Frank D’Amore told the Detroit Free Press, “Courage is like a 12-step program, which is kind of insulting.” Using the allusion to a program for people experiencing addiction, he explained, “I don’t need a 12-step program. It’s ludicrous.”
Former Ireland President Mary McAleese in 2019 called the group “Machiavellian, dangerous and deliberately specious” because it encourages LGBTQ+ people to suppress their identities.
But some voices on …