The bishop of Pittsburgh is calling for a “Pride Mass” to be cancelled, emphasizing that “independent sponsors” promoted the event to coincide with the secular Pride Month.

The mass was scheduled to take place on June 11, at 1 p.m. at Duquesne Holy Spirit Chapel, presided over by a Father Doug Boud (who did not respond to requests for comment). Fliers obtained by The Daily Signal said the event was co-hosted by various groups including Catholics for Change in Our Church and the LGBTQ Ministry at St. Joseph the Worker.

Those fliers also stated that the event would be a ministry of St. Mary Magdalene Parish, a Pittsburgh-based parish that hosts an LGBTQ ministry shepherded by Pastor Tom Burke and coordinator Vicki Sheridan. Sheridan, who did not respond to requests for comment, has several children who are “part of the LGBTQ community,” as the Pittsburgh City Paper reported.

[This seems odd to me. If this is taking place in his diocese, the bishop has the authority to order the event to be cancelled. He also has the authority to discipline priests who disobey his authority. I’m not sure why Bishop David Zubik is only “calling” for the cancellation, although he does claim that the pastors of these churches did not actually approve the events either.

In any event, the very idea of a “Pride Mass” is an oxymoron. Pride is, after all, a mortal sin in Catholic teaching. What’s next — a Sloth Mass? An Avarice Mass? A Lust Mass? Gluttony? Envy? Pittsburgh Catholics had better take care that they don’t find themselves at a Wrath Mass at the end of their lives. — Ed]