After decades of honing his musical skills, Charles Philyaw landed his dream job in 2004 as the full-time director of music liturgy at St. Andrew Catholic Church in Verona. The church, with 1,643 adult members, was more than just a place to work for Philyaw. He and his partner, James Mulder-Philyaw, joined the parish and participated fully in the religious community.
Then in June, it all collapsed. Philyaw said he was told by the parish priest, the Rev. Dave Timmerman, that he would no longer be retained because he was living an openly gay life. He was given two weeks' notice.
Philyaw later learned that five parishioners had raised concerns about him and his partner being so prominently involved in church activities. Bishop Robert Morlino's office became involved, leading to his dismissal, Philyaw said.
His firing has divided parishioners, pitting friends against friends and spawning a sharp debate over Christ's teachings. More than 100 church members signed a petition — sent to Morlino — praising Philyaw and bemoaning his dismissal. But others say Philyaw's firing was inevitable because his employment made a mockery of Catholic doctrine.
"Absolutely, Chuck lost his job because he's openly gay," said Jo Ellen Kilkenny, one of the five whose inquiries triggered Philyaw's dismissal.
She calls him a "wonderful music director" and said she feels horrible that he lost his livelihood, yet it became indefensible for him to be in a highly visible role as an active homosexual, she said.
"We are all sinners, but when you hold a leadership position, you're held to a higher standard than people in the pews," she said.
Wisconsin added sexual orientation to its anti-discrimination statutes in 1982. However, churches are allowed to hire or fire without regard to discrimination laws if an employee's main duties are ecclesiastical or ministerial, said Tamara Packard, a Madison lawyer whose primary area of practice is employment law.
This First Amendment protection is intended to prevent the government from infringing on how a religion selects its spiritual leaders, she said. The only gray area is what constitutes an ecclesiastical position. The church in this case may be able to show that a director of music liturgy is closely linked to church leadership, she said.
Philyaw directed the church choir, led the liturgy committee and played for multiple Masses weekly. He said he was upfront with Timmerman before his hiring about being in a gay relationship.
Timmerman declined to comment for this article. Philyaw said he bears no ill will toward Timmerman and does not blame him for his firing.
Brent King, spokesman for the Madison Catholic Diocese, said Bishop Morlino does not comment on personnel issues. But the diocese made available the Rev. Monsignor James Bartylla, director of vocations, who is helping to coordinate locally a program called Courage, a national Catholic initiative that counsels people with same-sex attraction.
While same-sex attraction is considered a disorder by the Catholic Church, it is not a sin in and of itself, Bartylla said. "It is acting on the attraction that makes it a sinful act, a grave depravity," he said.
People with same-sex attraction must control their desires and live chaste lives, he said. If they do so, they can participate fully in church life, including in leadership positions, he said.
Because of this distinction between same-sex attraction and acting on it, it would be a mistake to say the Catholic Church dismisses anyone from employment simply for their sexual orientation, King said.
As for parishioners who are sexually active homosexuals, Bartylla said the church would welcome them, then "begin dealing immediately" with the issue. "We'd encourage them and challenge them to come into conformity with church teaching, the same as with any parishioner dealing with sin."
If a parishioner thinks a church leader is not living according to church doctrine, Bartylla suggested that the parishioner discreetly tell the parish priest.
Both Philyaw and his partner became confirmed in the Catholic faith as adults. Philyaw said he was drawn to the denomination because of the Eucharist — the sacrament of Holy Communion in which, in the Catholic faith, the bread and wine are consecrated and become the body and blood of Christ.
As their Catholic faith deepened, Philyaw and his partner became increasingly involved in church activities. Earlier this year, Mulder-Philyaw went through church training so that he could serve the Eucharist as a layperson. In late May, the two led a song together for middle school students during a religious education program.
This level of participation prompted questions, especially from children, said Mark Heyde, who, along with his wife, Pamela, are among the five parishioners who raised concerns. His wife teaches high school religious education.
"The kids were going, What's going on here?' They thought it was hypocritical," Mark Heyde said. "We didn't know how to respond, so we started asking questions about the church's teaching and how we are called to apply that in our daily lives."
Kilkenny said that after receiving Communion from Mulder-Philyaw, she "felt uncomfortable" and prayed about it. She later contacted the diocese for spiritual direction.
Both Heyde and Kilkenny say the issue snowballed far beyond their intentions. They did not go after Philyaw's job, they say.
Kilkenny said she pressed the issue with love for her faith, her church and for Philyaw, although she acknowledges that "Chuck would probably want to vomit if he heard me say that."
She said she "didn't think beyond" her initial inquiries. But she now feels, with sadness, that "if you take it to the logical conclusion, Chuck would have to lose his job."
Heyde said he was concerned with the salvation of Philyaw's soul. "We are taught that if you know your brother is doing something wrong and you don't say something, they'll be punished but you'll be punished worse," he said.
The final two parishioners who raised concerns, Kevin and Julie Keyes, were not available for an interview. In a brief phone message, Julie Keyes said any decisions affecting Philyaw were the responsibility of church leaders. "We've had nothing but love in our hearts for Chuck," she said.
Philyaw, who earned $41,000 a year, now works a part-time temp job with no benefits. He and his partner face the likelihood of foreclosure on their house within two months, he said.
"It's been devastating," he said. "These five people didn't think through how they were going to be impacting our lives."
Regardless of their motives, "their actions did not positively contribute to spreading the word of the Gospels or the love that Jesus taught us," he said.
Life has not been pleasant for the five who pressed the issue, either. Kilkenny said she's received hate mail and has been called a "Judas" and "a vigilante." Heyde said people he thought were friends no longer speak to him.
"I think (our parish) has a lot of tough times ahead," he said.
Nancy Oswald, a St. Andrew member for 40 years, is among the 116 members who signed the petition supporting Philyaw, although nothing has come of it. "I consider myself to have been a good Catholic for over 70 years and find it morally unacceptable for a person's job to be in jeopardy because of his or her sexual preference," she said.
Member Judy Niederberger said she's "terribly disappointed" that people are concerning themselves with the private lives of others. "I've known people living together who are platonic. Who's to say they're sexual? Unless everyone is willing to have everything about them on the blackboard, they should not be throwing stones."
Adds her husband, Bill: "What I don't like is that someone would be so pompous as to pass judgment on someone else."
Choir member Beth Homb said Philyaw's firing and some tenets of the Catholic faith have caused her to step back from regular attendance at St. Andrew. "It's hard to be there, but it's hard not to be there," she said.
Philyaw said he believes he was born gay and that God led him to the Catholic Church. "We ended up opening the eyes of many people in the church."
His firing has not shaken his faith in God, he said. He and his partner now worship with a United Church of Christ congregation.
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(Source: TwinCities.com)