Vatican report acknowledges harm of conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ Catholics

A recent Vatican report prepared for Pope Francis’ Synod of Bishops has formally recognized that so‑called “conversion” or “reparative” therapies have caused “profound suffering” and spiritual damage to LGBTQ+ Catholics, lending weight to long‑standing concerns raised by LGBTQ+ advocates and affirming pastoral voices in the Church.

The document, produced by a Synod study group focused on participation and inclusion, arrives only weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court, in an 8–1 decision, struck down Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy for minors and cast uncertainty over similar protections across the United States, Advocate reports.

In a notable first, the report incorporates detailed testimony from two gay Catholic men in same‑sex marriages — one from the United States and one from Portugal — each subjected to conversion practices within a Catholic context. LGBTQ+ Catholics and allies say the inclusion of their lived experience marks a clear movement toward listening to and recognizing LGBTQ+ realities inside the Church.

Father James Martin, founder of Outreach, a Catholic ministry serving LGBTQ+ people, welcomed the development, writing that it represents a significant advance in how Vatican documents engage with LGBTQ+ Catholics.

The American witness recounts involvement with Courage, a Catholic organization that promotes lifelong celibacy for people experiencing same-sex attraction. While the report acknowledges that such groups present themselves as offering pastoral care to those on the margins, it also describes their membership as “problematic” and highlights how their approach has intensified shame, isolation, and inner conflict for some participants.

The Portuguese contributor details “devastating effects” of attempts to “recover heterosexuality,” including advice to pursue peace by marrying a woman. Rather than bringing stability, that path deepened his alienation. His account describes a turning point upon entering an Ignatian Christian community that encouraged people to encounter God in every dimension of life, including sexuality. According to the report, this journey helped clarify that the core issue was not a same-sex relationship itself, but the struggle to trust in a God who genuinely desires human flourishing.

Drawing on these testimonies, the Synod document concludes that condemnation of same-sex attraction and efforts to “repair” or alter sexual orientation have led to “profound suffering, personal lacerations, and experiences of marginalisation or ‘double lives’ for believers with same-sex attractions.” It calls for environments in which LGBTQ+ Catholics are integrated into the life of the Church rather than pushed to its edges.

At the same time, the report highlights an internal fault line between Catholics who prioritize pastoral inclusion and those who stress what the text calls “doctrinal firmness.” It carefully notes that its recommendations do not alter official Catholic teaching on homosexuality or marriage, insisting that any pastoral approach must remain consistent with Church doctrine.

Even with these limits, LGBTQ+ Catholic leaders view the report as an important movement away from framing LGBTQ+ people primarily as moral problems to be corrected, and toward recognizing their dignity, relationships, and spiritual depth.

“It’s still calling for all Catholics to engage in a process of discernment that is respectful of people’s lived experiences,” said Yunuen Trujillo, a lesbian lay minister from Los Angeles, in comments to Religion News Service.

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