Founded in 1918, the Missionary Society of St. Columban (SCC) describes itself as “a society of missionaries, including priests and lay people, who minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing to the universal love of God. We go in the name of the Church to announce, by deed and word, the Good News of Jesus Christ.” Its stated mission is “to facilitate the formation of vibrant faith communities and help struggling people regain their dignity. Through our diverse efforts, we challenge the oppressive structures of poverty, illiteracy, violence and injustice. Our social, economic, medical and educational programs are open to all regardless of religious affiliation.”
Unfortunately, our investigation into the Society’s leadership has uncovered support and promotion of homosexualism and all kinds of LGBT activism and ideologies that render the organization too risky for faithful Catholic donations. Additionally, we are deeply concerned about the Columban’s support for the United Nations (especially regarding the Sustainable Development Goals), its involvement in Liberation Theology and promotion of International Women’s Day.
Father Albert Utzig
Father Albert (Al) Utzig is a Columban pastor at St Mary’s Catholic Church of the San Bernardino diocese in Fontana California. In an October 2024 St Mary’s bulletin, Father Utzig revealed that he is scheduled to become the United States Regional Director for the Society of St. Columban. Page 3 of the bulletin includes a message from Father Utzig that reads:
“Last week I received news from our Central Administration in Hong Kong (of the Columban Fathers) that I have been appointed as Regional Director of the U.S. Region of the Columbans. Most of our members are elderly and there are not many “younger” members to take this responsibility. So I accepted it” [emphasis added]
Father Utzig holds and promotes various beliefs that are not only in direct contradiction with Church teaching but should disqualify him from this newly appointed position entirely.
In a questionnaire posted on the Diocese of San Bernardino’s news site (Inland Catholic Byte), Father Utzig states that “an important issue facing the Church of San Bernardino” is that gays and lesbians do not feel welcome in the Catholic community.
“This is a very active church, a pretty vibrant church. I see the Bishop wanting to see if something can be done with, let’s say, “invalid marriages.” There are also issues with gays and lesbians, making them feel a part of the community. I see a lot of suffering. People with “invalid marriages” wanting to participate, but can’t. I see men and women with same-sex attraction that want to be involved, but they don’t feel welcome.” [emphasis added]
Of course, those that deal with same-sex attraction should be given the proper care and guidance needed to help them work through and overcome their struggles. However, rather than assisting these wounded souls to seek purity on the path to salvation, Father Utzig encourages them to celebrate evil and perverted lifestyles.
In May 2024, the Missionary Society of Saint Columban published an article by Father Utzig on its own website that openly promotes LGBT ideologies. This article, titled “What Have I Learned?: A Columban Looks Back,” goes over Father Utzig’s experience with attending LGBT Pride parades, starting in 1990:
“As the school year was ending at Berkeley, we were hearing about the Gay Pride Parade in San Francisco. It was something strange and unknown to me. So, on the day, I took the BART train alone to town and just stood there among thousands of people who had come for the parade. From the comments flying all around me, I was pretty sure there were plenty of gay and lesbian people there.”
As the article continues, Father Utzig has nothing but praise for the parade, and asks the question, “who am I to judge?” in regard to parents of “LGBT children.”
“I was just taking it all in. People on six-foot stilts all painted silver or gold walking through the crowd throwing souvenirs, lots of chatter and laughing. The parade started with “Dikes on Bikes,” maybe a hundred, dressed in chains, some with blow-up dolls strapped to their backs, riding big Harleys. Noisy and off the wall! There were all kinds of groups on floats. But the ones I remember most were gay police, gay firefighters, gay EMT’s, gay doctors and nurses — people I hadn’t associated with being gay or lesbian. And then came the parents and friends of gay children. They were not ashamed or afraid to be seen as such. They loved their children. Period. Who am I to judge?
The parade was long, but I don’t know how long. It all was so fast to me. I went home to our dorm and finished the school year. I learned many things, but maybe the most important was to appreciate how much pressure these brothers and sisters of ours have to live under for fear of not being accepted or being free to just be who they are. To see so many just let loose together gave me one of the biggest smiles I have ever had. And I thank God for that opportunity to experience “a life not like my own,” as St. Columban would say.” [emphasis added]
Father Utzig then states that in 2023, he decided to meet with “LGBTQ+ Catholics” in his diocese from the group “Gifted and Called,” and that he went with them to attend yet another Pride parade:
“At the beginning of November 2023, I joined some members of the LGBTQ+ community of Catholics in the San Bernardino Diocese where I am a pastor. They are called “Gifted and Called.” This refers to the fact that so many of them have many talents, they are “gifted,” and want to use them in the Church for the good of all, “called.” And they want to be accepted as brothers and sisters, just like everyone else, without hiding or feeling cursed or dirty or strange. They want to be respected like everyone else as they are blessings to the community.
Palm Springs was hosting the annual Pride Parade, over 200 different floats. My first experience 30 years ago was so joyful, I wanted to go again. The members of Gifted and Called in Palm Springs are mostly retired people who have gone through the wars. Our members from my parish are younger people who are getting into the wars. We were about 25. The parade was much tamer than San Francisco’s parade but just as joyful. As we walked the route, I saw many big smiles and even a few tears as the spectators realized we were Catholics and part of the family of God, God’s children.” [emphasis added]
Now, perhaps one might try to give Father Utzig the benefit of the doubt and say that he didn’t intend for his participation in a sexual perversion parade to be an endorsement for the ideologies that said parade stands for. Unfortunately, that simply cannot be the case, as the following evidence will prove.
Gifted and Called
In February of 2023, Father Albert Utzig allowed the “Gifted and Called” LGBTQ+ Catholic ministry to begin hosting officially scheduled events at his own parish.
The Ministry was also publicly advertised on the St. Mary’s website at the time.
Gifted and Called LGBT Ministry describes itself as “an out and proud LGBTQ+ Catholic Ministry of the three Catholic parishes” as well as “a ministry that serves Catholics in the Diocese of San Bernardino who are seeking faith and spiritual support, accompaniment, and Catholic resources concerning Lesbian and Gay issues. We promote respect, compassion, sensitivity, and inclusivity and emphasize the inherent dignity of all persons. We strive to provide a safe space for dialogue and welcome all who would like to learn more or simply have questions about this ministry that celebrates more than 20 years of service.”
One of Gifted and Called’s founding members is Jeff Weyant. The LGBTQ Community Center of the Desert (of which Weyent is the Treasurer) describes Jeff Weyant as:
“A founding member and leader of Gifted and Called LGBTQ Catholics and a member of St. Theresa’s Parish Council, Jeff is a passionate advocate for LGBTQ equality and justice in the Church and with husband Marty established the Weyant-Massiello Charitable Trust ten years ago, the focus to improve the quality of life of the marginalized and impoverished through equality and justice driven initiatives and opportunities.” [emphasis added]
Make no mistake, Gifted and Called was clearly not founded with the intention of helping Catholics with homosexual tendencies work through their struggles in a Christ-like way. This is made obvious by the fact that a founding member, a man, and supposedly baptized Catholic would claim to be validly married to another man. This is simply absurd, and is made even worse by the fact that Jeff Weyant’s “husband”, Martin (Marty) Massiello, is the CEO of Eisenhower Health, which openly brags about providing “Hormone therapy for transgender patients” and “Referral for gender affirming surgeries.”
We could go on at length about Eisenhower Health, but ultimately this report is not about them. Eisenhower Health is, however, linked to a founding member of Gifted and Called, which again, is being allowed by Father Utzig to host events at Catholic churches.
The Gifted and Called Ministry’s website’s “Links” page, features links to such organizations as the dissident New Ways Ministry, which we have covered quite extensively in other reports.
On May 28th, 2024, Gifted and Called posted a “Serenity Prayer” on its Instagram, which included a photo of a man wearing drag makeup.
On October 27th, 2024, Gifted and Called posted a picture of a greeting tent they had set up (2nd photo in post), with such pro-LGBT books on display as Father James Martin’s “Building a Bridge” and Stan JR Zerkowski’s “Coming Out and Coming Home,” with a forward by Bishop John Stowe.
Gifted and Called has also posted several pictures and videos on their Instagram, that show members of the Ministry posing with none other than Father Albert Utzig, often directly next to pro-LGBT material.
Finally, a 2023 article from the aforementioned Inland Catholic Byte, titled “A place at the table,” features a quote from Father Utzig, where he openly admits to pushing LGBT “acceptance” on his congregation. The following are a few important excerpts from said article:
“The Gifted and Called Ministry of St. Mary Catholic Church in Fontana dedicated Masses for the souls of both Carleton and Ikeguchi. The faith sharing group for LGBTQ+ parishioners is a little known but emerging ministry in our Diocese. The group at St. Mary’s started just this year, while another at St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church in Chino started just last month. The Diocese’s only long standing Gifted and Called Ministry, representing three parishes in the Coachella Valley, recently celebrated its 10-year anniversary with a special Mass.” [emphasis added]
“Father Al Utzig, SSC, Pastor of St. Mary’s, says the Gifted and Called Ministry at his parish has been greeted with mixed reaction. In an effort to ease tensions, Fr. Utzig and Father David Andel, JV, an Embrace Commissioner, recently held a meeting with parishioners uncomfortable with the ministry. Fr. Utzig says he’s not “pushing anything” but acceptance. “[LGBTQ+ parishioners] don’t feel welcome,” explained Fr. Utzig. “And they’re Baptized, they’re Catholic, they’re part of the Body of Christ. They need to be here.”” [emphasis added]
Gifted and Called is still advertising events taking place at St. Mary’s on their Instagram as recently as November 11th, 2024.
Concerns with support for Liberation Theology, Sustainable Development Goals and International Women’s Day
While researching the Missionary Society of St. Columban, we found several areas of concern, namely unqualified support for Liberation Theology, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and International Women’s Day.
Unqualified support of Liberation Theology is a warning sign that a religious order has lost sight of the evangelical mission to save souls. Liberation Theology comes in many shades and flavors, ranging from an unbridled hard Marxism to a softer form more interested in liberating the poor from “structures of sin.” In any form, the flaw is the emphasis on a form of earthly political liberation and divorcing of Christ from His mission to free us from the bondage of sin. It is the flaw of such programs as the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, or any such enterprise that would turn the Church into a worldly NGO. Unfortunately, the Columbans praise Liberation Theology throughout its sites and materials.
For example, this document from the Columbans places a heavy emphasis on political liberation with very little mention of true spiritual liberation. Also, this article praises Liberation theology and states, “Columbans have gradually become aware that our present way of living will inevitably put an end to life as we know it on planet Earth. Prophetic voices have opened our eyes to the impending catastrophe brought on by our blindness and greed.” Further Columban articles praising Liberation Theology or congratulating Columban priests who study it can be seen here, here and here.
Likewise, unqualified support for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals is a major warning sign if not disqualifying due to the SDG’s explicit call for “reproductive rights” including abortion, and its alignment with international Marxism. For a full understanding of the SDG’s, please reference our previous report, here. The Columbans voiced official for the SDG’s in this document where they state:
“Governments should promote sustainable development goals, debt and trade policies, and reforms of international financial institutions that address the root causes of migration and enable people to remain in their local communities.”
Further promotion of the SDG’s by the Columbans can be found here, here and here.
Finally, we found the Columban Sisters promoting International Women’s Day (IWD) every year since 2015 to the present. IWD, originally a communist holiday, is all about “reproductive rights,” a fact which even appears on the Columban Sister’s website.
Conclusion
We were sent several requests to investigate the Missionary Society of St. Columban and asked if donations towards the society would benefit noble Catholic causes. Unfortunately, after our extensive research our conclusion is that the Missionary Society of St Columban is not fit for Catholic donations.
The Columbans are a worldwide order, and they have chosen as US Regional Director a priest who openly promotes homosexual and transgender ideologies to his very own flock in his very own parish. Furthermore, we have found unqualified support for Liberation Theology, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and International Women’s Day by the Columbans. This is a grave indictment of the order, and we at the Lepanto Institute strongly encourage our readers to contact their bishops about this report as well as provide this report to members of Missionary Society so that they might be made aware of the ongoing problems and potentially help change the course of their order.
Until these changes are made, the Lepanto Institute has no recourse but to label the Missionary Society of St. Columban as “NOT SAFE” for Catholics to donate to.
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