The Catholic apostolate Courage International has announced the launch of a new online course aimed at laypeople, seminarians, and religious sisters to train them in accompanying people with same-sex attraction (SSA), as reported by ACI Prensa. The initiative comes just a few days after the ministry’s leaders met with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican.
The course, titled What Does the Church Teach About Same-Sex Attraction?, seeks to offer training tools to welcome those who experience SSA from a perspective of “charity and truth”, in fidelity to the Church’s teaching.
“This is their home”
In statements gathered by ACI Prensa, the organizers explained that the proposal arises from the “evident need to welcome and accompany” these people, maintaining a pastoral gaze that combines mercy and fidelity to the Magisterium.
“The person who experiences SSA has a place in the Church, this is their home”, affirmed the apostolate’s leaders, emphasizing that the starting point for accompaniment must be the fundamental Christian identity: the condition of being a beloved child of God.
Training in Christian anthropology and Catechism
Unlike previous editions more oriented toward the clergy, this new call is explicitly directed at catechists, pastoral agents, seminarians, religious sisters, and health professionals.
The program aims to deepen Christian anthropology and the teaching of the Catechism of the Catholic Church on same-sex attraction, offering criteria that can be applied in various pastoral and educational settings.
Likewise, the pastoral proposal of Courage and EnCourage will be presented, apostolates that accompany both people who experience SSA and their families, promoting the practice of chastity and spiritual growth.
Practical guidelines for accompaniment
The organizers insist that the training is not limited to doctrinal exposition, but seeks to offer concrete guidelines for those who, in their pastoral or professional work, must address this reality.
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The goal, they indicate, is to equip pastoral agents to provide accompaniment that is both merciful and faithful to the Church’s Magisterium, avoiding both exclusion and doctrinal confusion.