Quest was very pleased to be able to support our deputy chair, George White, to attend this years Outreach conference held in Washington DC, August 2-4, 2024.
Here are his thoughts from the conference with a link to his longer reflection on his time there:
“It was a beautiful weekend filled with joy, moving stories and liturgies and a reaffirmation of our place within the Church. So wonderful to meet many other LGBT+ Catholics in person after communicating for so long online!
I attach my key takeaways from the conference that I will be taking back/renewing in my ministry in Catholic education in case they are helpful for you too:
– Listen to stories; be attentive and allow for open, honest dialogue
– Encourage dialogue, reach out and uplift the voices of those who have less power
– Use those stories to be informed and develop good practice for being a visible ally. This, in turn, will help to reduce the burden of anxiety upon those who are waiting to share their stories
– Be forgiving and embrace those who make mistakes, help them through dialogue and action to develop their practice. Encourage open dialogue with those who have different views, be ready to be fully present in those conversations and prepared to make mistakes and move forward together where you can.”