- then Father Marcel Guarnizo was officiating at a funeral mass for Loetta Johnson. After saying only people in a “state of grace” could receive communion, he refused to allow Loetta’s daughter, Barbara, to drink from the communion chalice. The reason? She’s a lesbian, and lives with her partner — a sin, by the Catholic Church’s standards.
- nowBarbara Johnson is calling for the priest’s removal. The archdiocese has said questions of whether communion ought to be rendered should be addressed privately, not by “public reprimand” like Guarnizo did. They have refused, however, to comment on his ongoing status in the priesthood, claiming it’s a personnel issue. sour.ce