Catholic Priest Receives Standing Ovation After Coming Out as Gay

With more than a few shades of Alicia Johnston, Fr. Gregory Greiten said he “will embrace the person that God created me to be.”

A Roman Catholic priest in Wisconsin says he feels “liberated” after coming out to his church ― and the world ― as a gay man.

The Rev. Gregory Greiten, who serves as the pastor of Milwaukee’s St. Bernadette Parish, received a standing ovation when he opened up about his sexuality to his parishioners this past Sunday. 

“I am Greg. I am a Roman Catholic priest,” he reportedly told the congregation. “And, yes, I am gay!”

Greiten, of course, is not alone.  Although most surveys are based on limited samples due to the sensitivity of the issue, more recent estimates have put the share of Catholic priests in the U.S. identifying as gay between 15 percent and 50 percent.

“The difference for me now is I get to live a life that’s open,” he told local NBC affiliate TMJ 4. “It is honest and it’s full of integrity, and that’s what’s most important to me.” 

It's a bit confusing to us, I thought honesty meant having a heart open to the Word of God, and integrity meant living it.

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