Lexington man who leads LGBTQ ministry was ‘shocked’ at personal message from the pope
A Lexington man who is dedicated to helping the Catholic Church reach out to the LGBTQ community has received a personal note from Pope Francis.
Stan “JR” Zerkowski, who works in both local and national outreach efforts, said he wrote the pope earlier this month, and two days later received a handwritten response from the pontiff.
“I was shocked,” said Zerkowski, a layman who leads LGBTQ outreach for the Diocese of Lexington and at St. Paul Catholic Church on Short Street. “I never thought I’d get a personal response.”
The note, addressed to Zerkowski and attached to an email from a staffer as an image, reads, “Dear brother, Thank you very much for your email. Thank you very much for your ministry. I pray for you, please continue to do so for me. May the Lord bless you and the Madonna watch over you. Fraternally, Francis.”
Though the message was short, Zerkowski said it “goes way beyond me” and “ratifies” the work being done to create belonging for LGBTQ people.
He said churches often say they are welcoming but don’t want LGBTQ attendees to bring their significant others or talk about pronouns.
“Welcome is not enough,” he said.
In addition to the work he does in Lexington, Zerkowski leads Fortunate Families, which helps churches and schools develop LGBTQ outreach ministries of their own.
Zerkowski said he emailed a letter to the pope, thinking “perhaps, maybe a longshot, somebody might print that letter,” and it might be read by someone at the Vatican during the synod going on this month in which church leaders are discussing a range of issues facing the church.
Zerkowski said he wanted the pope to hear a lay person’s voice on the topic of LGBTQ inclusivity, and he said he told Pope Francis in his letter that he was grateful for the gestures the pope has made to welcome LGBTQ people.
“That touches our young people, and that saves lives,” he said.
He said receiving a response from the pope shows that “the Holy Father obviously is listening.”
And he said he hopes the pope’s note opens the door for conversation with Catholics who have expressed “resistance” to the message of inclusion his ministry promotes.
“For the Holy Father to say thank you for your ministry ... it’s affirming the ministry,” Zerkowski said. “There weren’t any qualifiers.
“It opens the door, maybe, for discussions where discussions could not be had before.”
