Los Angeles Archdiocese Suspends Priest for Promoting Homosexuality
A priest in Los Angeles has been removed from his church after he insisted on continuing his advocacy for gay marriage despite repeated warnings to stop the practice.
Father Joseph Palacios is one of the founding members of Catholics for Equality. The group publically advocates and promotes same-sex marriage along with other issues that the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities advocate.
Several prominent religious figures, including Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington, have stated that Catholics for Equality is not endorsed by the Catholic Church and puts forth teachings that are in conflict with the Church's teachings.
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Archbishop Jose H. Gomez of Los Angeles decided to suspend Fr. Palacios and place him on inactive leave from his ministry due to his continued promotion of same sex marriage- a practice at odds with biblical teachings.
As a result of his suspension, Fr. Palacios is not permitted to preside over Mass or provide the sacraments. He is also not allowed to wear a Roman collar and cannot identify himself as a priest.
Fr. Palacios revealed that he will remain on inactive leave as long as he continues to promote homosexuality and remain involved with political advocacy. He also maintains that he does not represent the Church or present himself as a priest when he is advocating for same-sex marriage, as reported by the National Catholic Register.
However, several reports conflict with that statement. Back in February Fr. Palacios spoke at a panel discussion called "Same Sex Marriage in the United States: Where We Are as a Nation," which was conducted at the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University.
The reports indicate that he was introduced as "Father Joseph Palacios" and wore his priestly collar while addressing the crowd, according to the Catholic News Agency.
Fr. Palacios was ordained for the archdiocese of Los Angeles in 1987.
