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Cardinal Stephen Chow, SJ (center) of Hong Kong participates in the Synod on Synodality.©synod.va/Lagarica

(LifeSiteNews) — Cardinal Stephen Chow, S.J., the bishop of Hong Kong, recently wrote an article for the Sunday Examiner glowingly reflecting on his participation at a pro-LGBT event organized by Fr. James Martin’s Outreach group and the Jesuit-run America Magazine during October’s Synod on Synodality.

Chow, who offered the opening prayer at the conference, praised the heterodox event as a “great synodal opportunity” to listen to the “LGBTQ community.” The “What is the experience of LGBTQ Catholics?” event featured other prelates and speakers who are “married” to members of the same sex.

“Jesus our Lord, teach us to journey with each other with respect and gratitude. We do not take for granted this privilege to listen, to learn and to walk together as synodal companions,” Chow prayed in the opening prayer, adding:

“Oh, Holy Spirit, send us your guiding light of truth, so that our ignorance and prejudices can melt away through this synodal encounter, and a new morn marked by mutual respect and empathic understanding can take shape in our church for our LGBTQ+ sisters and brothers, as well as for ourselves and our church as a whole.”

The cardinal underscored that he was grateful to attend the session and lead the opening prayer, which was meant to serve as an assurance to the LGBT attendees that “(T)he church, which should reflect the communion and love of the Holy Trinity, cares for and loves the LGBTQ community, even though not everyone in the church does. And I am sorry to say that some Catholics even despise these sisters and brothers of ours.”  

Chow notably failed to mention that the Church has never taught that those with homosexual inclinations are themselves unloved by God and that any such assertion would be contrary to Catholic teaching.

Rather, the Catholic Church has always taught, in accordance with Sacred Scripture and Tradition, that homosexual activity is intrinsically disordered and gravely sinful.

Chow further emphasized in the article the importance of listening to LGBT Catholics to develop the Church into a “Synodal Church.”

“If we are serious about developing our Church into a synodal Church, listening to different social groups, including those with whom we might have a hard time identifying ourselves, is mandatory. Prejudices, ignorance, fears, and hate actually reflect our unwillingness to engage in real listening and soul-searching, especially to those voices which are deemed erroneous or make us feel deeply uneasy,” the cardinal wrote.

Along with Chow and Martin, the conference featured other clergy such as Fr. Antoine Kerhuel, S.J., who serves as the secretary of the Jesuits. Several of the lay speakers are openly “married” to members of the same sex, including Christopher Vella, who leads the Malta-based “LGBT Catholic” group Drachma and identifies as a “bisexual Catholic married to another man.” Another speaker,  Juan Carlos Cruz, is a member of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors whom Pope Francis is infamously said to have told that “God made you gay.”

Cardinal Chow, who has been a key supporter of the Vatican’s secretive deal with China for appointing bishops, has a history of making statements that contradict Catholic teaching. Most notably, the Cardinal has expressed hope that the Church will “one day” ordain women and said that evangelization shouldn’t have the “agenda” of converting people to Catholicism.

Cardinal Chow did not respond to LifeSite’s request for comment as of publication.

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