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Love thy neighbor: Elizabeth Anscombe, queer identities, and what it means to believe someone

My recent talk at the Catholic University of America.
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This week, I was invited by a number of student groups at the Catholic University of America to give a talk on LGBTQ+ identities in the Catholic Church. I covered a number of controversial topics while trying to make sense of the challenges facing the Church, including the experiences of trans persons, conversion therapy, critical race theory, Freudian psychoanalysis, spiritual manipulation, and seminary formation. I’ve been trying to connect various issues facing the Church today, and this talk was my first public lecture identifying some key connections I’ve discovered. You can watch the video above!

I was invited to give this talk, in part, because of a Catholic speaker who had been invited by another student group to give a lecture against “transgenderism.” I address some of those issues in my lecture. But if you want to read some of my (limited and developing) views and perspectives on gender, Catholicism, and trans/non-binary persons (and also one piece by a friend), you can check out:

If you want to learn more about conversion therapy, the ex-gay narrative, and sexual orientation change efforts:

As I mention in my talk, I am not an expert on these questions. A large part of what I have been trying to do is talking with people who have been harmed by sexual orientation change efforts, and also identifying problems with popular Catholic arguments about trans people. But if you want to understand these people, I highly recommend you dig in to their stories. When we can truly learn to listen, I believe we can have a much more helpful approach.

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Chris Damian