St Patrick’s Cathedral is condemning the funeral of well-known trans activist Cecilia Gentili, who died on February 6 aged 52 – after initially allowing the service to take place on their property.
Rector Enrique Salvo, on behalf of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, issued a statement through the Cathedral of St. x (formerly known as Twitter) site calling the funeral “scandalous behavior”.
“The cathedral only knew that family and friends were asking for a memorial mass for a Catholic,” he added, noting that religious officials “had no idea that our welcome and prayer would be degraded in such a sacrilegious and fraudulent way.”
Salvo continued the statement by saying: “That such a scandal happened in the ‘American’s Parish Church’ makes the situation worse; that this happened at the beginning of Lent, the annual forty-day struggle with the forces of sin and darkness, is a powerful reminder of how much we need prayer, repair, repentance, grace and mercy that this holy time calls us to.”
Billy Porter sings at the funeral of transgender community activist Cecilia Gentili at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on February 15, 2024 in New York City.
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At the end of the message, the rector announced a “appropriate Mass of satisfaction” in response, which he said was proposed by Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who precedes the US branch of the Catholic Church.
New York Archdiocese spokesman Joseph Zwilling clarified that Salvo’s statement focused on “the behavior of some of those present at the funeral — including comments such as ‘the mother of all whores’ or changing the words to ‘Ave Maria,’ the sacred hymn, ‘Ave Cecilia’ to name just two examples, “per The Washington Post.
PEOPLE reached out to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York for further comment, but they did not immediately respond.
Other religious figures also condemned Gentili’s funeral on social networks. Father Nicholas Gregoris posted on x calling the service a “blasphemous and sacrilegious fiasco”, adding that holding it in St. Patrick, for him, “a deplorable desecration of the most famous American Catholic Church.”
Funeral organizer Ceyenne Doroshow claimed that The Washington Post that the cathedral never asked to clarify Gentili’s gender identity or sexuality before the funeral. Doroshow also stated that it was “an unprecedented funeral for an unprecedented icon” in response to complaints about the behavior of attendees raised by Zwilling and others.
About 1,000 people attended Gentili’s funeral at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, according to CNN. Organizers told the publication they believe Gentili’s monument is the first in the cathedral’s history to honor a trans person. Other famous icons of the LGBTQ+ community, such as Billy Porter, were also present at the service.
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Gentili is known for her activism within the trans community as well as her role in the TV show Pose. The news of her death was announced in a post on her Instagram page. “Our beloved Cecilia Gentili passed away this morning to continue to watch over us in spirit,” read the caption of the post, asking followers “for privacy, time and space to grieve.”
GLAAD, a non-profit LGBTQ+ advocacy group, paid tribute to Gentili on Instagram, calling the late star “a pillar in the trans community.”
“Cecilia just celebrated her 52nd birthday, surrounded by friends, loved ones and community,” the organization added, referring to Gentili’s Jan. 31, which occurred less than a week before her death.
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Source: HIS Education