JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

In the context of religion, a fine line of what shall and shall not be practiced is firmly discussed to serve as a guide for many devotees to follow their path of faith in God. Particularly, it is often likely for same-sex relationships and gender to be the topics that are still of concern in today’s modern society involving the Church—especially in countries that widely practice Catholicism. Thus, the concept of religion and gender overlap negatively, due to their contrasting beliefs. Whereas, the public often views LGBT individuals as people who practice a life that is not accepted within the Catholic Church; likewise, Catholics practice a life that is opposite to people who identify themselves as LGBT.

Objective:

The study aimed to explore the Lived Experiences of LGBT Servants in the Catholic Church. Specifically, it sought answers to the following questions: How do the participants describe their experiences as an LGBT and a servant of the Catholic church? How do the participants express themselves as a member of the LGBT, and a Catholic church servant? How do the participants maintain their sense of self, being an LGBT and a Servant in a Catholic church?

Methods:

The researchers utilized a phenomenological approach to examine the experiences of LGBT servants inside the Catholic Church. The qualitative research design allowed the researchers to gain extensive knowledge about the life of LGBT, their experiences, and self-representation while serving in the Catholic Church.

Results:

The findings of this study described the experiences as LGBT and a Servant of the Catholic Church. Likewise, the study also revealed ways on how LGBT Servants express themselves in a Catholic Church, and how they can maintain their sense of self as both LGBT and Servant of a Catholic Church. Consequently, the findings of the study showed that the experiences of the participants can be grouped into two, being Positive and Negative Experiences. Here, they report having encountered instances such as Perceived Acceptance and Inclusivity, Intimate Relationship with God, Established Sexual Identity, Moderation of Self-expression, Conflicting Identities, and Preference of Heterosexual Mannerisms of Servants by Church Members. Furthermore, LGBT Servants express themselves by embracing their Identity or by affirming the church rules, even though LGBT Servants face misapprehension in their societal sphere. Consequently, these experiences have resulted in the formation of how LGBT Servants manage the implications of their experiences, whereby the participants maintain their sense of self, being LGBT and Servant in the Catholic Church through various ways, such as by practicing the teachings of the church, advocating for the LGBT Community, and ignoring criticisms from their fellow Church members.

Conclusions:

In filling the gaps between their identities, the LGBT Servants, consequently pray as one way of reconciling their Sexual and Religious Identities. Moreover, the researchers also concluded that the environment of the Church community of the LGBT Servants implies how they can express themselves inside the Catholic Church. Likewise, the researchers also concluded that acceptance from their respective Church communities was earned during the span of their years of service and their sincerity towards fulfilling it. Lastly, it was also concluded that the majority of the participants believe that the moderation of their self-expression is not just their way of conforming with norms established in the Church; rather, it is a choice they made as a sign of respect for the sanctity of the Catholic Church and God. Clinical Trial: NA