Just a week ago, we reported that Most Holy Redeemer parish in the Castro neighborhood of San Francisco had banned an annual fundraising event because it featured drag queens.
The San Francisco Examiner is now reporting that the ban on drag queens has been lifted:
“Although a gay-friendly Catholic church in The City’s Castro neighborhood is receiving heat for allegedly banning drag queens from all future events on its premises, church officials are saying that while they opposed the idea at first, they quickly changed their minds.”
The event is a fundraiser for the Castro Country Club, a neighborhood 12-step recovery organization, which has used the church’s hall for several years.
The news report suggests that the new pastor received some education about drag queens before announcing the new decision:
“. . . “[C]hurch Business Manager Michael Poma acknowledged that Pastor Brian Costello did tell members of the Castro Country Club that they could not hold their event if drag queens were scheduled to attend, Poma said he quickly reversed his decision.
“ ‘Father Brian wasn’t educated about the importance of drag queens in the gay community,’ Poma said. ‘Once it was explained to him, he said they were welcome to attend as long as their behavior was church-appropriate.’ ”
Most Holy Redeemer says that there was a different reason for the ban:
“Church officials now say the new policy is not a prohibition against drag queens, but rather an end to all one-time events that do not originate at the church. Poma said the ban applies to all outside events — gay or straight — including weddings, parties or fundraisers. The church is still planning to hold its own events, including 12-step programs, suppers for the homeless and AIDS support groups.
“ ‘This is not a ban on drag queens or an insult to the gay community whatsoever,’ Poma said. ‘In the church hall there have been issues with weddings and other groups, so we decided to put an end to them altogether. We are part of the community here and to think that we’re banning drag queens is obnoxious and ridiculous.’ ”
Related articles
- Drag Queen Ban Lifted and New Ban Imposed (newwaysministryblog.wordpress.com)
- Catholic Archdiocese Trying to Downplay Drag Ban at Castro Church (sfist.com)
- Beauty Product or Drag Queen? (bellasugar.com)
From Eternity To Here 
How do you say “B.S.” in Latin? I bet BXVI slaps his wrist. Not a good way to start out…by
vascillating on your first edict. Now he’s going to have to look for a fabulous outfit to wear!
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