Equally Blessed, a coalition of four Roman Catholic organizations that support full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and their families both in the church and in civil society, today asked the Most Rev. Francis Chullikatt, the Vatican’s permanent observer to the United Nations, to condemn violence against lesbian and gay people in Uganda.
In a letter signed by leaders of the four coalition members, Equally Blessed asked Chullikatt to renew the call of his predecessor, Archbishop Celestino Migliore, who condemned cruel and unusual punishment for homosexuality in December 2009. Chullikatt replaced Migliore in July 2010.
Equally Blessed is a coalition of faithful Catholics who support full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people both in the church and in civil society. Equally Blessed includes four organizations that have spent a combined 112 years working on behalf of LGBT people and their families: Call to Action, DignityUSA, Fortunate Families, and New Ways Ministry.
“All of us with lesbian or gay children can imagine the sickening horror of Ugandan parents as they see their children terrorized,” said Casey Lopata, co-founder of Fortunate Families, a ministry for Catholic parents with LGBT children. “We implore Archbishop Chullikatt to help save the lives of these children of God by raising his voice in the international community.”
Equally Blessed also encouraged other faithful Catholics to send their own letters to Archbishop Chullikatt respectfully asking him to use the Vatican’s moral authority to safeguard gay and lesbian people in Uganda. Chullikatt’s address is:
The Most Rev. Francis Chullikatt
Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations
25 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016-0903
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