St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church by Guiseppe Rollini

Dear Friends,

I hope that you are looking forward to the Annual Courage and EnCourage Conference as much as I am! Nearly three hundred members of our Courage International family have already registered, more than half of whom will be joining us at Benedictine College on July 15. Whether you are able to attend in person, or will be participating "virtually", I am confident that our conference will be a source of blessing, encouragement and renewal for all.

As you know, we have placed this conference under the watchful care and intercession of Saint Joseph, the patron of the universal Church, whom we will celebrate as a "Model of Courageous Love." Our conference speakers will discuss various facets of the life of Saint Joseph, and the way that he loves and serves Our Lady and Our Lord, and give us insight and guidance to become more like him. We will also benefit from the presence of seven bishops, our spiritual fathers and shepherds in the Church, who will celebrate Mass for us and join us for talks and meals. I know that they are looking forward to getting to know you better, and their participation is a reminder to us all that our apostolate lives in the heart of the universal Church, and that we share in the apostolic mission to spread the Good News by the way we live and love.

Registration for the annual conference is open until July 1, but the practical necessities of technology mean that we have to make that a strict deadline. So don't delay! More information appears below.

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to so many of you who sent cards, texts, and voicemails to wish me a happy Fathers' Day, and to join you in wishing the same to all of our Courage and EnCourage chaplains. Like Saint Joseph, our fatherhood comes not from the natural order but from a special calling from God, to watch over His sons and daughters in His name and as He would do. It is the greatest privilege of my priesthood to be called to be the spiritual father of our Courage and EnCourage family, and I'm sure I don't tell you often enough how much that means to me. Spiritual fatherhood is a delegated responsibility, so I need you to keep praying that I and my fellow chaplains may always stay close to our heavenly Father, and stay true to the vocation we have received. Be sure that you are in our prayers as well, and in our hearts.

May the Sacred Heart of Jesus make all of our hearts more like His own, and may Our Lady and Saint Joseph continue to guide and protect you and your loved ones.

Elena, a member from Scotland, reflects on her first Courage & EnCourage Annual Conference on The Upper Room blog (subscribe by clicking "Update Profile" at the bottom of this email) :

The Courage International YouTube channel is taking off! We have three new original series with exclusive content:

From the Courage in Focus playlist:

Visit our YouTube channel, and click the "Subscribe" button today.

Then "like" and share our videos to help others find us.

Archbishop Richard Gagnon of the Archdiocese of Winnipeg, Manitoba, hosted Deacon Gilles Urquhart, the local Courage chaplain, on The Archbishop's Friday Report. The archbishop speaks of having read the new Handbook for Courage and EnCourage Chaplains: "I was impressed by the quality, the theology, and the pastoral outreach — very impressive for any Catholic to read … very excellent indeed." He and Deacon Urquhart go on to discuss the history of Courage and the benefits the deacon has observed for the members of the chapter he initiated and leads.

Father Ricardo Piñeda, CPM, is a Fathers of Mercy missionary priest whose ministry includes parish missions and retreats around the country. He will be presenting the equivalent of a four-part parish mission at the conference, reflecting on the exemplary life and virtues of St. Joseph. See the conference page for talk titles.

For a sample of his dynamic preaching, listen to Father Piñeda's joyful homily encouraging listeners to seek out the liberating and tender mercy of God in Confession (a core component of the goals of Courage and EnCourage).

We are grateful to EWTN News in Depth for their interview with our executive director, Father Philip Bochanski (19:37), about pastoral ministry and the Catholic approach to Pride Month. The full segment (14:53) provides an overview of Church teaching and includes Courage chaplain, Father Paul Scalia (18:06).

You can also find this story on our new "Courage in the media" YouTube playlist along with several other media appearances of Father Bochanski and Courage members in the Catholic media.

View EWTN News in Depth segment on Catholics living with same-sex attraction

What is chastity? Why am I called to live chastely if I experience same-sex attractions? If I can never marry someone to whom I'm attracted, doesn't that mean I'm condemned to a life of loneliness?

One of the new collections on the Courage YouTube channel, the Living With Courage playlist, will provide responses to frequently asked questions like these from Courage members and other Catholics who experience same-sex attractions.

View Living With Courage Episode 1: "The Call To Chastity"

From New York City, to the gay lifestyle in California, and back to Christ: Watch the moving testimony of Angelo, a longtime Courage member who has faithfully served our apostolate for many years.

The Courage in Focus series on our YouTube channel will cover a variety of special topics, including testimonies like Angelo's. His story and others will also be collected in the testimonies playlist, with even more set aside in a special list for young adults.

View Courage in Focus: "Angelo's Story"

Fr. Colin Blatchford

Associate Director

Courage International

David

Your son, daughter, or sibling has announced that they are getting married to their same-sex partner. How do you respond with love, without betraying your Catholic faith? Father Philip Bochanski, executive director of Courage International, addresses this dilemma in which more and more Catholic families find themselves.

Frequently-asked questions like these will be considered in a new series on the Courage YouTube channel called EnCourage: A Family of Hope, directed to EnCourage members and others who have loved ones who experience same-sex attractions and sexual identity discordance.

View episode 1 of A Family of Hope: "My Loved One and Same-Sex Marriage"

Subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Visit The Upper Room blog where members and chaplains share their stories

Subscribe to the blog by clicking "Update profile" at the bottom of this email

Courage Internacional website in Spanish

This day of presentations for priests, deacons, and seminarians includes talks on the following foundational topics as they relate to same-sex attractions:

(Clergy track is free. Fee charged for full conference participation.)

In May, Courage associate director, Father Colin Blatchford, wrote a post on the Truth & Love blog about how we are to love those who do not deserve our love with the gratuitous love of God exemplified by the Good Samaritan. We enter their suffering "through loving encouragement and compassionate expression of the truth to show them the face and heart of God." Such divine love can inspire conversion.

Then "Theophilus," an anonymous Courage member, responded to Father Blatchford's piece, recognizing his own call to love the people in his life who are still caught up in acting on their same-sex attractions. "All I can do is model a good Christian life as best as I can. … I can offer my life as an example of chastity, illustrating the joy chastity brings, of its simplicity and peacefulness. … I can offer my experience as something that has brought me much satisfaction and peace."

Check out all the recent posts on the Truth & Love blog:

To subscribe to the blog, click "Update profile" at the bottom of this email.

A special feature of July's Courage & EnCourage Annual Conference will be a four-part series directed to parents of children who experience sexual identity discordance ("transgenderism"). One of our speakers will be Dr. Christopher Gross, Ph.D. whose presentation will be on "St. Joseph: Solace of the Grieved."

Dr. Gross earned his B.A. in political science and religion from Hampden-Sydney College. After completing his M.T.S. at Harvard Divinity School, he earned his Ph.D. from Catholic University of America. Dr. Gross is currently an assistant professor at Divine Mercy University, where he teaches courses in theological anthropology and virtue ethics. His current research interests are in the area of Thomistic virtue ethics, bioethics, and marriage formation. For a scholarly example of Dr. Gross's relevant work, see his "Karol Wojtyla on Sex Reassignment Surgery: An Application of His Philosophical Anthropology" in The Catholic Bioethics Quarterly.

Bishop David Konderla, the shepherd of the Diocese of Tulsa, is the chairman of the U.S. bishop's Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage. He is also a former Courage chaplain, and we are most pleased that he will be joining us for our conference in July. In the context of a National Catholic Register interview about the Equality Act, he also responded to broader questions about "thoughtful and sensitive ways for [faithful Catholics] to respond to the societal belief in transgenderism" and the importance of accompanying Catholics who experience gender confusion so that they know we are there for them and that "we applaud and respect them for their efforts to live the faith even though they struggle with these issues themselves, to not give in to the LGBTQ movement or to the false theories of gender ideology."

* For an explanation of the expression, "sexual identity discordance," and coverage of the subject, see the new Handbook for Courage and EnCourage Chaplains starting on page 81.

We hope to move forward with the in-person events listed on our 2021 calendar, while always being mindful of the health and wellbeing of our members. Please be aware that, as the situation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, we may be required to postpone, cancel, or move these events online. If you have any questions or concerns, you may review our statement, or contact us here. Watch our events calendar for updates.