In 2013, Detroit Archbishop Allen Vigneron wrote that that Catholics who back same-sex marriage and receive Communion would "logically bring shame for a double-dealing that is not unlike perjury".

But this month he told the Detroit Free Press: "Whenever it comes to Communion, the objective is never to steer a person away."

Archbishop Vigneron admitted that that faithful Catholics — dealing with gay relatives now legally free to marry in civil ceremonies and in other churches that perform same-sex marriages — are feeling torn.

"The Church and her pastors are there to help harmonise these priorities — of being faithful to and open about the truth (of Church teachings about sexuality), and of being loving and compassionate to fellow Catholics in their personal and family lives," the archbishop wrote.

"Given the variety of circumstances which go into a person's particular situation, the best way forward for one person may not be best for another."

Archbishop Vigneron's response drew praise from other Catholics.

"He's really taken a big step forward," said Tom Nelson, a Detroit-area Catholic who is involved with Fortunate Families, a group for Catholics with LGBT family members.

"It's a very welcoming and loving response. It's a Jesus response."

"It recognises that people, in their consciences, have to weigh the Church's teachings in their own lives and relationships," said Francis DeBernardo, executive director of New Ways Ministry, which advocates for LGBT equality in the Church.

"That is authentic Catholic teaching. He's not watering down anything. He's proclaiming the Church's teaching more accurately than he did back then."

There have been several instances in the US of Catholics being denied Communion either because they support same-sex marriage or are in same-sex marriages.

Some of these denials have happened at funerals of loved ones.

Sources

• Detroit Free Press
• Advocate
• Image: Free Republic

In a letter to priests and deacons, Archbishop Allen Vigneron of Detroit stated: "Many people have been sacramentalised, but never evangelised."

Such people "knew about God, but they didn't know him".

Another group of people in the typical Mass congregation are the "practical atheists", Archbishop Vigneron wrote.

These people do not reject God outright, but compartmentalise their faith and spend most of their lives in a "secular, consumer world", living as if God did not exist or had no meaning in their lives.

Other people come to Mass "biased" by media, entertainment and academia, which tell them that faith is incompatible with reason.

Also present at Mass are the "seemingly dead", who arrive late and leave early, do not pay attention or participate, and do not seem to want to be there.

Then there are "the bored and the blasé", those who have seen only a "dumbed down and neutered" version of Christ and the Gospel.

But deep down, Archbishop Vigneron said, everyone at Mass wants the same thing - an encounter with Christ.

It is the priest's responsibility to help facilitate that through his preaching.

Sadly, Archbishop Vigneron noted, many people in the pews have heard the phrase "God loves you", but have not internalised it.

Without encountering the love of Christ, "the faith simply looks like rules and regulations".

Ultimately, priests and deacons foster an encounter with God when they preach Christ crucified, he wrote.

"The cross is the single greatest demonstration of love ever seen. Help them to understand it. Repeatedly call their attention to it. Help them to understand God doesn't simply tell us he loves us; He shows us."

Among other suggestions the archbishop offered were occasional series of themed homilies, preaching using examples from the preacher's own life and applying the readings to the "concrete situation" of the community.

Sources

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: Catholic Vote