Without Exception Newsletter

⭐ NOW CELEBRATING OVER 600 PEOPLE ON OUR MAILING LIST! ⭐

This section is an open forum for members to share reflections or responses connected to our mission.

🚩Please respect the privacy of the authors. These reflections are intended only for the private forum of our network. Public sharing or reprinting is not permitted without permission.

I am grateful for the 84 people who registered for my Project in Ministry. We are now more than halfway through the program. With two session remaining, we continue to navigate tremendous complexities at the intersection of theology, ministry, education, science, and culture. A recurring question is "What are some concrete things we can do in Catholic schools to support our LGBTQ+ students?"

Behind every answer is the same theme: "build connectedness."

This guide for educators from the Family Acceptance Project is an excellent resource grounded in decades of research. Together with this article on evaluating credible sources, I think we have some solid material to use when building support systems in Catholic schools.

May the good Lord bless your remaining days of summer. 🙏

"I have a high school senior who is struggling to accept himself in light of his sexuality, and he is just starting to confide in a few peers and adults on campus. Last week he stayed after class to tell me he'd spotted a Without Exception sticker in his English teacher's classroom. That silent but clear affirmation made his day."

For LGBTQ+ young persons an affirming symbol can be a lifeline. It communicates "you are precious in my eyes and honored, and I love you" (Isaiah 43:4). The gesture is small, but it increases a young person's sense of value and supports their physical, mental, and spiritual health.

In some places rainbow colors are controversial and beyond the threshold for community leaders. That is why the Without Exception logo is designed to be an integrated Catholic symbol. The circle represents the universal (catholic) call to be witnesses to the gospel in all places, “to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8); in all times, as symbolized by the colors of the liturgical year; and to all people, as we “look upon our neighbor (without any exception) as another self” (CCC 1931). The heart at the center of the logo is an interpretation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the colors of the liturgical year symbolize glory and celebration (gold); Mary and water (blue); blood and fire (red); penance and preparation (purple); life and growth (green); and joy and hope (rose).

These items are available at cost plus $6.00 for shipping. Payment can be made by Venmo.

Beyond our network, there are other organizations that offer signals of support for the mental health and wellbeing of young persons. Some examples are included below:

Sign outside Old St. Patrick's Church, Chicago, IL

Photo shared with permission of Old St. Pat's

• The annual Interfaith Weekend Retreat for LGBTQ+ Persons, Allies, and Family Members will be held on the weekend of November 7-9, 2025 at the Feliciana Retreat and Conference Center in Norwood, Louisiana. Those who belong to historically marginalized groups, which includes members of the LGBTQ+ community, are presently experiencing high levels of uncertainty, fear, and stress due to the political climate. Many are struggling to maintain some sense of hope for the future in order to survive. How can we get to that space within these stormy times? What do our wisdom figures say? For members of the LGBTQ+ community and their loved ones who are living through these challenging times, how can we move together as people of hope? How can we embrace loving kindness and compassion? How can we take action based on this hope? This annual retreat will provide a wonderful opportunity to dive into these important questions together as a beloved community. The facilitators are Sr. Rochelle Perrier, Brad Leger, and Fr. Buddy Noel. Registration deadline is October 22, 2025. Please email Brad for more information: brad@balconsulting.org.

Burt, Stephanie. A Strange Time to Be Trans. The Atlantic, July 12, 2025.

Carroll, Amber. Questions Kids Ask: What Does Gay Mean? Equip, June 11, 2025.

Cherkis, Jason. The Best Way to Save People from Suicide. Huffington Post, 2018.

Cherkis, Jason. What I Heard on a Suicide Hotline for Trans Kids. New York Times, July 2, 2025.

Fox-Kelly, Meg. How a chaplain connects broader social justice with LGBTQ campus ministry. Outreach, July 30, 2025.

Martin, James. How Does Jesus Want Us to Deal with Opposition? Outreach, July 5, 2025.

Moore, Helna. Teaching religious attitudes towards same-sex relationships: a critical reflection on religious education curricula. British Journal of Religious Education, May 24, 2025.

Nichols, Marissa. Encountering a Tender and Trustworthy God: Author Eve Tushnet on Accompanying our Gay Catholic Sisters and Brothers. The Valley Catholic, July 1, 2024.

Nichols, Marissa, host. Episode 5: Faith and Discipleship in the Lives of Gay Catholics [podcast]. The Valley Catholic, July 9, 2025.

Ren, Z. and Schaumberg, R. Disagreement Gets Mistaken for Bad Listening. Psychological Science, 35 (5), 455-470, 2024.

Ruiz, Ish. LGBTQ ministry exists to remind people that they are loved by God. Outreach, July 8, 2025.

Ryan, Caitlin and Graciela Slesaransky-Poe. Q&A for Helping Educators & School Providers to Provide Guidance. Family Acceptance Project, 2023.

Silverman, Julia. Portland Catholic school revokes admission for same-sex couple's children. The Oregonian, July 26, 2025.

Tueme, Nabil. Evaluating the Soundness of Research. Springtide Research Institute, May 20, 2025.

• NFCYM received a grant to create a resource that will help Catholic Schools integrate their service hours requirement into the total formation of their students. The writers are working hard on it -- and it's looking amazing. The grant gave NFCYM funding to send print resource kits to 150 schools FOR FREE! They are inviting members of Without Exception to help identify the best contact person at your schools to receive this resource. Just click the link and let them know should receive the resource.

• Fortunate Families is launching Trans & Catholic 101, a series of 13 free weekly webinars on the lives of transgender and non-binary Catholics. Topics include trans history, medical and pastoral issues, relevant Catholic teaching, spirituality, legal concerns, and parenting trans children, among others. Speakers include Sr. Luisa Derouen, O.P., Dr. Craig Ford, Fr. Charles Bouchard, O.P., Maureen Rasmussen and Michael Sennett (trans Catholics who met Pope Francis last year), and more. Webinars will run June 17th to September 9th, each Tuesday from 7:00 - 8:30 PM Eastern Time, and will be moderated by members of Fortunate Families' Trans Ministry team. More information and registration is available here.

• Fortunate Families and the Marianist Social Justice Collaborative are launching Trans Mutual Aid, a monthly faith-based Zoom drop-in group for trans adults starting Wednesday, May 28th, at 8:00 pm Eastern Time and continuing on the 4th Wednesday of every month. The purpose of the group is to pray for one another, share how each person is being affected by church policies as well as by the significant changes in local, state, and federal laws/executive orders over the past few months, and organize to support each other and the wider trans community. Registration is available here.

• Fortunate Families and the Marianist Social Justice Collaborative are also starting a support group for parents of transgender individuals. The group is titled Seeds of Hope and will be a safe and confidential listening space offering assistance for parents who wish to love and support their children. The group will meet on the 4th Sunday of each month starting on June 22, 2025 at 7:00 pm Eastern Time. Registration is available here.

• New Ways Ministry is sponsoring a retreat for EVERYBODY—LGBTQ+ people, family, friends, and pastoral ministers, and all interested people. Entitled "The Path of Desire: Adventures in Spirituality," the retreat will be held Friday to Sunday, September 5-7, 2025, at Holy Family Passionist Retreat Center, 303 Tunxis Road, West Hartford, Connecticut. The retreat will be facilitated by Lisa Fullam, D.V.M., Th.D., professor emerita of moral theology at the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University. This retreat will explore spiritualities of desire—spiritualities that seek God in the longings of our hearts and the yearnings of our imaginations. The weekend will combine talks, small group discussions, silent meditation, communal prayer, and socializing. More information and registration are available here.

• Posture Shift is running an in-person program on August 20-21 in the Boston area. "Posture Shift Intensive" is a biblically sound, missiological training designed for church leaders, ministry teams, counselors, camp and school administrators and teachers, lay leaders, and family members. With almost 20 years of time-tested expertise, Posture Shift provides practical, tangible guidance for real-life inclusion and care of LGBT+ individuals and their families in your ministry context. More details and registration are available here. Additional in-person trainings are scheduled this fall in Los Angeles, Columbia (South Carolina), and Seattle.

July 2025

June 2025

May 2025

April 2025

March 2025

February 2025

Without Exception is a no-cost ministry network for people in Catholic secondary education and related fields of ministry. The goal is to offer helpful networking and resources to accompany our LGBTQ+ students and colleagues with the love of Jesus Christ and his church. Please respect privacy and confidentiality concerning the persons and schools connected to our network. The strength of this work is sustained by the trust among members.

Without Exception is a global network of Catholic secondary educators dedicated to discerning the art of accompaniment for LGBTQ+ students in Catholic schools. Through a commitment to faithful dialogue and peer collaboration, we seek to understand what it means to share the love of Jesus Christ with every person, without exception.

Email: info@withoutexception.net

Website: www.withoutexception.net