In the latest example of the Catholic Church hierarchy digging in their heels against marriage equality, a Newark Archbishop recently sent a pastoral letter to implore over 1 million Catholics in his New Jersey parish to stop supporting same-sex marriage. In fact, Archbishop John Myers even went so far as to suggest that any Catholics who support same-sex marriage, regardless of their own sexual orientation, should refrain from taking communion at Catholic mass because they are “unable to assent to or live the Church’s teaching in these matters.”

James Salt, the executive director of the progressive Catholics United group, pointed out that Catholic leaders like Myers simply alienate their parishioners with their anti-equality sentiment when they choose to focus on culture war politics rather than on issues of economic justice:

SALT: We live in a time when Catholics are walking away from the faith in record numbers. Archbishop Myers’ tone-deaf pastoral letter on marriage might explain why. When so many families live paycheck to paycheck, pew-sitting Catholics like myself want our faith known for its service to the poor, not for the far-right politics of the bishops.

A world in which Catholics who do not support LGBT rights are considered unwelcome at mass could result in a lot of empty pews, just as Salt suggests. The Public Religion Research Institute reports that nearly three-fourths of Catholics support either same-sex marriage or civil unions; in fact, Catholics are more supportive of legal recognition for same-sex couples than any other religious group in the country. And studies reveal that the Catholic Church’s unwelcoming attitude toward the LGBT community has directly contributed to former adherents’ decision to leave the church.

Furthermore, Holy Communion is certainly not intended to be wielded by Catholic leaders as a political tool. When a lesbian woman was denied communion at her mother’s funeral simply because of her sexual orientation, a wide range of religious voices protested the injustice and a high-ranking archdiocese official apologized for the “lack of pastoral sensitivity.” The Catholic priest in question was eventually placed on administrative leave. Myers’ suggestion that Catholics who support fundamental human rights for LGBT individuals are too sinful to take part in communion is a similar manipulation of the religious ritual.

But Myers is hardly the first Archbishop to use his position of authority to persuade lay Catholics to reject LGBT rights. A Nebraska Archbishop is currently working to repeal the sexual orientation nondiscrimination protections in Omaha, a Minnesota Archbishop wrote to his parishioners last month in an attempt to convince them to support a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, and a recent letter from a Washington State Bishop encouraged Catholics to overturn his state’s marriage equality law. And Salvatore Cordileone, a key player in the passage of Proposition 8 in California — who does not believe any Catholic in a gay or lesbian relationship should be allowed to take communion — has just been appointed by the Pope as the next Archbishop of San Francisco.

The Washington Blade recently caught up with New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D), who married her partner Kim Catullo in May. Quinn, who is favored to succeed Michael Bloomberg (I) as mayor of New York, reflected on the advance of marriage equality last year, pointing out that there have been no “fear and gloom” consequences as a result:

QUINN: When New York State passed marriage equality, one could feel the joy on the streets. Everywhere couples went, people asked when are they getting married, what will their wedding be like? You could see and feel their happiness. The fear and gloom that opponents predicted did not come true, the world did not end when gay people could marry. Just the opposite, people felt love and joy. We had the opportunity to publicly commit in a legal ceremony in front of our family and friends, that we are a couple, we are family. And we are just as important as any other family. I will always be grateful for that day and remember that day for the rest of my life.

Quinn also offered a full-throated endorsement for President Obama’s re-election because “we can’t go back to a time when we lost our rights.”

French President François Hollande made an impassioned speech to the United Nations General Assembly yesterday calling for countries across the globe to end the criminalization of homosexuality. Echoing a commitment made by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last year, Hollande said that France will work to ensure the citizens of all countries live free of persecution:

HOLLANDE: France will continue to engage in all these struggles: for the abolition of the death penalty, for women’s rights to equality and dignity, for the universal decriminalization of homosexuality, which should not be recognised as a crime but, on the contrary, recognized as a [sexual] orientation.

All members countries have the obligation to guarantee the security of their citizens, and if one nation adheres to this obligation, it is then imperative that we, the United Nations, facilitate the necessary means to make that guarantee. These are the issues that France will lead and defend in the United Nations. I say this with seriousness. When there is paralysis… and inaction, then injustice and intolerance can find their place.

Watch a clip of some of Hollande’s remarks: