A Good Example Of A Missed Opportunity

I’ve stumbled upon this story: Catholic University of America banned (on the day of!) a screening of Milk, the biopic of gay rights activist and pioneer Harvey Milk.

CUA cited a campus policy banning “events that advocate for positions contrary to Catholic teaching.” You can certainly argue that the screening would fall under that. But you can also certainly argue that it wouldn’t.

One of the most striking Biblical themes is God’s ability to write straight in crooked lines, to take suffering or evil or failure or bad things and make them work for good. In many ways, God is a judoka.

Instead of banning the movie, why not induce the students to agree to put on a bigger, joint event? This event would feature a screening of Milk as well as, say, Desire of the Everlasting Hills, the movie about three celibate, gay Catholics (reviewed here by my fellow Catholic Patheosi Eve Tushnet)? Or, simply, a talk by an orthodox, winsome (gay) Catholic on Gay Catholic Whatnot? (Hopefully a talk that would include repentance of the manifold ways in which the Church has failed and fails in pastoring gay people.) All of it could be followed by a moderated Q&A. And milk and cookies.

Being wise as serpents is a thing. Paul went to Athens and saw a city rife with Pagan idolatry. But he used the shrine to the unknown god as a jumping off point for his evangelization.

I hate culture wars. But if we’re going to fight culture wars, let’s at least be smart about it.