BackCouncil of Australasian Catholics (CAC)
(formally Australasian Catholic Coalition for Church Reform)
and Garratt Publishing presented
CREATING AN LGBTIQA+
INCLUSIVE FAITH COMMUNITY
Webinar
Wednesday 12 August 2026
This webinar explored LGBTIQA+ realities and the Catholic faith. Topics covered were identity, faith, and belonging – and what it means for the Church to be a place where all are truly welcome.
The panel featured Angela Han, Founder of Acceptance Perth, an inclusive and affirming community for LGBTIQA+ Catholics, their families and friends; Stef Rozitis, a PhD researcher on masculinities in education with a lifelong Catholic journey; and Tim Smyth, a longtime member of Acceptance, whose search for a welcoming parish reflects a wider story within the Church.
Susan Sullivan moderated the event.
The presentation was recorded and can be viewed below.
SPEAKERS
Angela Han
Angela is the Founder and Chairperson of Acceptance Perth, a LGBTIQA+ affirming Catholic community group in Western Australia. With a background in parish youth ministry and as a pastoral care worker, she brings a pastoral heart to questions of faith, identity, and belonging – and a deep commitment to the Church being a place where all are welcome at the table.
Stef Rozitis
Stef (they/them) is a PhD student researching masculinities in education at Adelaide University and has been a Catholic on and off for 52 years. They knew they were genderqueer as a child, long before they had any words to explain their identity. Throughout their teens and young adulthood they struggled with severe depression, as a result of trying to be what they weren’t. Stef has three supportive, adult children.
Tim Smyth
Tim now lives in Melbourne and married his partner of 23 years in 2018. He has successfully chopped and changed parishes over the years to find a welcoming home, usually after changes in the parish priests. He is active as a lector and music minister and has been a member of the Catholic gay group Acceptance since 2003. Sadly, six banners in rainbow colours each displaying a gospel value – faith, hope, love, peace, justice and compassion – that proudly hung in two parish churches now sit in his garage seeking another parish.
MODERATOR
Susan Sullivan
Susan has worked in executive mission leadership for a range of Catholic organisations, providing strategic thought leadership in the mission and identity of Catholic services. She has designed and implemented a range of innovative mission-focused initiatives, striving to enhance collaborative resource development across the Catholic sector. Susan is a member of several boards including Marymead CatholicCare in the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn, and Campfire in the Heart located in Alice Springs. She is also an active member of Canberra’s refugee support and advocacy network. She has three adult children and lives in Canberra with her husband Francis.
RECORDING
USEFUL LINKS
AUSTRALIA
https://www.acceptanceperth.com
https://melbourneacceptance.com.au
https://www.rainbownetwork.com.au
https://australiancatholicsforequality.org
https://www.gaycatholic.com.au
https://rainbowcatholicsin.wixsite.com/website
https://pridecentre.org.au
INTERNATIONAL
https://rainbowcatholics.org
https://outreach.faith/about-outreach
https://www.newwaysministry.org
RESOURCES
ACCEPTANCE PERTH RESOURCES PAGE
https://www.acceptanceperth.com/resources/
ACCEPTANCE PERTH FAQ PAGE
https://www.acceptanceperth.com/faq/
NATIONAL CATHOLIC SAFEGUARDING STANDARDS
Safeguarding is a mechanism to report discrimination and abuse. It was an outcome of the Royal Commission for Sexual Abuse. Safeguarding Standards applies to children and adults at risk, and standard 4.3 does reference those of diverse sexuality. https://www.acsltd.org.au/national-catholic-safeguarding-standards/standard-four/#content-anchor
The standard applies to both staff and volunteers as well. For example, if a church greeter who is on duty says something LGBTIQA+ phobic to you while you’re taking the bulletin, for example, then you can report this as a complaint. This does not apply when they are not on duty, as they are free to have a private opinion.
The scenario that describes a story regarding a non-binary kid is on page 49. https://www.acsltd.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NCSS-Implementation-Guide-Part-1_December-2023.pdf
Loving Your Child When They Are Different may be useful for parents/families who struggle with their kids being LGBTIQA+ – https://agmc.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/VEOHRC_AGMC_CSP_Parent_2026_Booklet_FINAL.pdf
THEOLOGY
Imago Dei (Genesis 1:26-27) – every person is made in the image and likeness of God. Dignity is intrinsic, not conditional. The Hebrew Elohim is plural – “let us make humanity in our image.” The divine name carries both masculine and feminine. God is, in a sense, a ‘them’. The full spectrum of humanity together reflects the image of God.
Primacy of Conscience – Conscience, carefully and prayerfully formed, is the final moral guide for the individual Catholic. The Spirit can lead us somewhere the institution has not yet followed – and that is not disobedience. It is the tradition working as intended.
Gaudium et Spes – the Church reads the signs of the times. What we now know about sexuality and gender is part of what the Spirit is saying.
CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING
Human Dignity – includes the dignity and worth of people who are living currently. This includes everyone from people with disabilities to refugees to LGBTIQA+ people.
The Common Good requires the flourishing of all – not most. It teaches that this is not just about individual suffering. If there is oppression and injustice, then it is a communal failure. The flourishing of the whole community requires the flourishing of each member. We must advocate for a just society in which all people, particularly the vulnerable and marginalised, are able to flourish and meet their needs.
Solidarity: we are bound to one another. The suffering of LGBTIQA+ Catholics is not theirs alone to carry. We are asked to stand in unity with each other, particularly those who are powerless or disadvantaged, and recognise each person’s rights regardless of our differences.
Preferential option: Catholic tradition calls us to stand closest to those most marginalised. LGBTIQA+ Catholics are amongst them.
Stewardship of Creation: All of creation is interconnected. And human beings, including LGBTIQA+, are part of God’s creation.
A Church that excludes is a Church diminished. This is everyone’s problem.
WHAT THE CHURCH ITSELF IS NOW SAYING (Can also refer to FAQ on Acceptance website)
Vatican II / Gaudium et Spes – the Church has always understood itself as reading the signs of the times. That task is ongoing.
Pope Francis – “todos, todos, todos” at WYD Lisbon – everyone is invited in. A consistent pastoral emphasis on accompaniment, welcome, and not excluding people on the basis of who they are.
Late 2023 – two documents in quick succession:
1. The DDF Dubia response (October/November 2023) – signed by Pope Francis: trans individuals can be baptised, serve as godparents, and act as witnesses at sacramental marriages. (Caveat: as long as it doesn’t cause scandal or confusion) https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2023-11/transsexual-and-homosesual-persons-and-the-sacraments.html
2. Fiducia Supplicans (December 2023) – same-sex couples can receive an informal same-sex union blessing (not to be confused with a wedding ritual).
3. Study Group 9 of the Synod on Synodality – Condemns conversion therapy. Describes groups like Courage as harmful. Calls for LGBTIQA+ people to be not merely tolerated but genuinely loved, woven into the full life of the community, able to use every God-given gift they possess. That is Imago Dei applied consistently. https://www.synod.va/en/the-synodal-process/phase-3-the-implementation/the-study-groups/final-reports/group-9.html (please note testimony 3 is for an emerging topic not related to LGBTIQA+)
The unity or division of the Church should not revolve around sexual matters. We tend to think that when the Church is talking about morality, that the only issue of morality is sexual. And in reality, I believe there are much greater, more important issues, such as justice, equality, freedom of men and women, freedom of religion, that would all take priority.
–Pope Leo XIV
