MARQUETTE — A group of Marquette-area Catholics are petitioning the Roman Catholic Diocese of Marquette to soften its policy on gay and transgender members of the church.

This stems from Bishop John Doerfler and the diocese taking a controversial stance that says members of the LGBTQ community may not be baptized or receive other sacraments unless they have “repented.”

The group of citizens will meet with Doerfler in 2022 to discuss its concerns with the diocese’s stance after the policy garnered nationwide attention from prominent social media accounts, as well as major news outlets such as NBC.

Marquette attorney Robert Anderson is one of the local Catholics who hope to open up a dialogue with the bishop.

“We are concerned with the negativity with the differences in sexuality and gender,” Anderson said. “We believe that Jesus would want to be open to inviting everybody into the Christian faith, regardless of their sexual or gender differences.”

While many other dioceses have policies and commentaries regarding the Catholic Church’s position on transgender and other LGBTQ individuals, the Marquette diocese is believed to be the first to deny individuals sacraments like baptism, communion and the anointing of the sick, which brings spiritual comfort to many Catholics who are reaching the end of their life.

The policy is widely considered to be the most sweeping and comprehensive anti-LGBTQ stance from a Catholic diocese in the nation.

Issued in July, the policy is part of a 15-page document which instructs members of the diocese to not refer to someone as “gay or transgender” but instead to refer to them as “persons with same-sex attraction and persons with gender dysphoria.”

Prominent Jesuit Rev. Father James Martin brought widespread attention to the stance earlier this month via his Twitter account, where he frequently speaks out on behalf of transgender rights.

“It is not a sin to be transgender. Transgender people are beloved children of God struggling to understand their identity,” said Martin in a tweet. “They need to be accepted with ‘respect, compassion and sensitivity.’ As Cardinal Gregory told a trans person(: ‘)You belong to the heart of this church.(‘)”

A Wisconsin native, Doerfler was appointed by Pope Francis to take over his current role as the 13th bishop of the Marquette diocese in 2013. Doerfler is considered the most prominent member of the Catholic Church in the Upper Peninsula.

Members of the group that will meet with Doerfler in 2022 continue to be supportive of the bishop, even though they disagree with his current stance.

“We are very expectant that we are going to have a good, respectful dialogue, with a man whom we all respect and have a lot of reverence for,” Anderson said. “We have a lot of confidence in our bishop and we know he’s going to do the right thing.”

Randy Crouch can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 242. His email address is rcrouch@miningjournal.net.