Boston's Gay Pride mass is back on

It will happen next month, according to the Boston Globe:

“See you all on July 10!’’ said Rainbow Ministry president John Kelly, throwing his hands into the air at an alternative service held outside the church last night. An audience of nearly 250 people, from children in baseball uniforms to elderly couples in their Sunday best, applauded.

The Rainbow Ministry of St. Cecilia’s Church will host the Mass at 11 a.m. on that date.

Earlier this month, the church had announced in its bulletin that it planned to hold a Mass yesterday themed “All Are Welcome,’’ to support Boston Pride Month. But following a flurry of criticism from bloggers and conservative Catholics, the archdiocese canceled the Mass.

Instead, the Rainbow Ministry sponsored last night’s open-air prayer service, also themed “All Are Welcome.’’

Members of the congregation led readings, hymns, and prayers from a podium set up on the sidewalk across the street from the church on Belvidere Street near the Berklee College of Music. As the evening sun flooded the block with warm light, some parishioners listened to the service gathered in a semicircle around the speakers, while others filled the shaded church steps.

One young woman could be seen listening from the third floor of a red-brick building next door, her head stuck out the window looking down on the scene. Police blocked off part of the street for the service.

“Remind us that what unites us is greater than what divides us,’’ parish council member Susan Donnelly said during the opening prayer.

“Amen!’’ someone in the crowd murmured.

Read the rest.