WWJD-What Would Josephine Do?

There are times when I find myself at odds with my Catholic faith. Most recent, I am angered at the way the Catholic hierarchy sees nothing wrong with the discrimination it openly projects towards gays and lesbians. I find it hard to reconcile the idea that a church which calls itself catholic continues to ostracize an entire group of believers because of who they are. By definition, catholic means "all-inclusive."

Discrimination based on sexual orientation is no different than discrimination based on skin color. If we heard someone was being denied communion because of their ethnicity we would be outraged. But there was a time when that was all too common.

My father-in-law (now 88) often tells a story from his childhood about his mother (and my husband's grandmother) Josephine. As a child growing up in Norfolk, Virginia, blacks and whites both attended their local Catholic church; however, the church was segregated. Blacks were relegated to sitting in the back pews. At communion time, no blacks were permitted to partake in communion before all the whites received it.

Josephine knew the way the church was treating blacks was wrong and felt she needed to do something about it. What she did was something that has stuck with my father-in-law to this day. Each Sunday, as all the other whites obediently lined up to receive communion, Josephine would stay in her pew.

Then, after all the blacks were permitted to receive communion, Josephine would get up and approach the alter to receive communion-drinking from the same wine cup the blacks had used, showing everyone what it really means to be a Christian. My father-in-law said her action delivered a silent yet powerful message to the priest and the parishioners (both black and white). Josephine lived out Jesus' principles and, in doing so, shined a light on the Church's hypocrisy. A different person might have chosen to walk away from the church entirely; but Josephine continued to go, praying one day they would recognize what the words "do unto others" really mean.

Josephine is no longer here; she died when my husband was a small child. Perhaps if she were alive today, she would feel the church is misguided in its stance regarding homosexuality and try to find some way to show the church hierarchy they were wrong. I think she would be pleased that her grandson and his family belong to one of the few Catholic churches in the Twin Cities welcoming to everyone including gays.

I wish I could have met Josephine. Then I could thank her for making a place at the table for me. And I, in turn, will do all I can to make room for anyone else who wants to join.