Staff Training

For general parish use or to facilitate discussions with parish or diocesan staff training on the Catholic perspective on sex and “gender,” we suggest the following:

• A guided group discussion centered on “The Basics” FAQs  is a helpful way to introduce parish volunteers or staff to the basic of Catholic teaching on these issues.
• The video lectures below provide an excellent introduction to foundational principles of Catholic anthropology and the reasoning behind relevant Catholic teaching.
• A 6-week series on “Gender Ideology: What Catholics Need to Know” covers the anthropological, cultural, medical, and pastoral in a way that conveys both love and truth.
• For staff members new to working for the Church, we suggest beginning with “Faith and Reason: The Catholic Both/And” (about 20 mins), followed by “The Christian View of the Human Person” (about 30 mins). 
• For parish educators and administrators, the lecture “The Congregations for Catholic Education’s ‘Male and Female He Created Them’” (about 50 mins) provides an essential overview of the Vatican’s most authoritative statement to date on Catholic Schools and contemporary claims about gender.
• Pastors and others who are charged with pastoral care might find the lecture below titled “A Catholic Approach to Pastoral Care for People Affected by Gender Incongruence” useful. The lecture, given to an audience of seminarians and seminary faculty, begins with introductory comments on the challenges facing priests and pastoral workers. The section of the lecture titled “The Metaphysics of the Sex Binary” begins at 19:00. And the final section sketching a Catholic approach to pastoral care for people affected by gender incongruity in themselves or their loved ones begins at 42:00. A downloadable copy of the lecture is available here.
• For an overview of the current situation facing children and parents, we encourage you to watch the lecture below, “The Gender Revolution: Medical Perspectives” given by Deacon Patrick Lappert, MD (60 mins).
• For an overview of Theology of the Body, Dr. Andrew Sodergren from Ruah Woods Institute’s has an introduction with a comprehensive collection of articles that can better inform and educate those in your care.