St. Anthony Shrine has removed a gay Boston man from several lay leadership posts after he wrote a memoir that called attention to his dual roles as an author of gay erotica and a lector at the Catholic church.Scott Pomfret, a lawyer for the Securities and Exchange Commission who described himself in his memoir as "a happy porn-writing Sodomite," had served for eight years in various capacities at the shrine, even after he disclosed to the friars that he was an advocate of same-sex marriage and, with his partner, a published author of erotic works.
His writings, most of which he coauthored with his partner, were not a secret - the pair had been profiled in the Globe and The
But Pomfret's latest book, a sarcastic memoir titled "Since My Last Confession," proved too much for the friars, many of whom were interviewed by Pomfret as he wrote the book. The book suggests that some local clergy, who are given fictional names, are sexually active, and is mocking toward Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley, the archbishop of Boston. The shrine's executive director, the Rev. David Convertino, said some people had expressed concern about the appropriateness of Pomfret's role at the church.
"There were people who felt it was incompatible for someone to stand up publicly and say, 'I'm a pornographer, and I'm a lector at St. Anthony Shrine,' " Convertino said. "There's a public stance that he's taking, and it seems that most of this is to sell the book."
Pomfret, 40, said that in addition to serving as a lector, he had been a Eucharistic minister, trainer of lay ministers, and adviser to the social justice ministries at the Arch Street shrine. The shrine is overseen by the Franciscan Friars of Holy Name Province and is not administered by the Archdiocese of Boston; a spokesman for the archdiocese said officials there were not involved with the decision.
Pomfret said the shrine had also eliminated its gay and lesbian spirituality group, of which he was a leader. But Convertino said the group has not been eliminated, but changed, so that it will focus on occasional events, such as retreats, rather than ongoing monthly meetings, as had been past practice. Convertino said the changes to the group had been contemplated before Pomfret's book was published.
Pomfret, who as a lector had been reading from the Scriptures at Mass most Fridays in recent years, described himself as disappointed, but not shocked, by the decision to end his duties. He said a shrine official told him that the friars were angry that the book had been portrayed as a memoir, but instead read like an exposé.
"I anticipated in my book that perhaps the archdiocese might boot me out, but it never occurred to me that it would be the friars," he said. "I am still kind of speechless - I am on some level amazed that it came from the friars, since these guys sat through interviews with me for the express purpose of this book."
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(Source: boston.com)