Edith okeke

Happy New month😍

Last night I shared the news of the death of Bishop Thomas Gumbleton, at age 94, after spending much of his priestly ministry not only in the pastoral and episcopal care of the People of God, but also specifically on promoting peace, working for social justice, helping the poor and vulnerable, and helping LGBTQ people, all in the face of great opposition, sometimes from his fellow US bishops. He was also a frequent and valued contributor to America Magazine - The Jesuit Review. In recent years, he became a strong advocate for victims and survivors of sexual abuse and revealed that he himself was also a survivor of abuse at the hands of a priest. (For this too he received criticism.)

For those of a certain age, Bishops Gumbleton represented the Catholic Church at its best: standing alongside in Jesus's name those who were hurting.

Bishop Gumbleton was also exceedingly kind to me, long before I started working with LGBTQ people, and I will never forget his warm, friendly and often funny encouragement. When I was invited to deliver the "Building Bridges" talk for New Ways Ministry, in October of 2016, in Maryland, I was astonished to find him there among the crowd. Many people knew Tom, as his friends called him, much better than I did, but I'm just as grateful that I knew him. May he rest in peace with the God he served for so long.

"I will not tire of declaring that if we really want an effective end to violence we must remove the violence that lies at the root of all violence: structural violence, social injustice, exclusion of citizens from the management of the country, repression. All this is what constitutes the primal cause, from which the rest flows naturally."

Happy Feast of St Óscar Romero

What are you buying from me today 🌝