Courage International, Anti-Trans Violence, and the Possibility of Queer Grace

In recent years, the profile of Courage International, the Catholic Church's official apostolate to gay, lesbian, and bisexual Catholics, has risen both in public discourse and within the Vatican itself. This paper explores the historical and ideological development of Courage, along with the testimony of liberation that many gay men claim to have found through the organization. Ultimately, this paper suggests two problems with the Courage model. First, the liberation Courage offers is predicated upon anti-trans and anti-queer violence. Second, Courage's theology of grace is nothing less than a betrayal of the Catholic theological tradition. In conversation with Hanna Reichel, Micah Cronin, Edward Schillebeeckx, Karl Raher, and Elizabeth Johnson, this paper suggests the contours of a theology of queer grace that could form a foundation for greater solidarity among LGBTQ+ Catholics.