From some time in the afternoon (Rome time) of December 10, the entry for one of the approved Jubilee pilgrimages to Rome was deleted from the official website.
As of time of writing, the entry for the September 5-6, 2025 pilgrimage of the “Associazione la Tenda di Gionata e altre associazioni” – or “Association of Jonathan’s tent and other groups” – is no longer active.
An archived version can be viewed here.
LifeSite has inquired with the LGBT group behind the pilgrimage to ascertain if the pilgrimage will still proceed, but has not received a reply yet.
The pilgrimage had only recently been announced, and is specifically for “Lgbt+ pilgrims, their parents, workers and all those who gravitate to these rainbow associations.”
The pilgrimage will be officially named “Church, Home for All, Lgbt+ Christians and Other Existential Frontiers,” and will be led chiefly by the prominent Italian LGBT organization Tenda di Gionata (TDG).
They will hold a prayer vigil in the Gesù church on Friday, September 5, before then passing through the Holy Door at the Vatican on the Saturday.
TDG is, as a group “aimed at making ‘known the path that LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Christians) take every day in their communities and in the various Churches.” The group looks to present tales of LGBT “experiences” so that they “can help society and the Churches to open up to the understanding and reception of homosexual people.”
First reported by Il Messaggero on December 6, the pilgrimage is believed to be the brainchild of a Jesuit priest from Bologna, Father Pino Piva, who brought the idea to the Pope.
Pope Francis approved the idea, and also was supported in this by Cardinal Matteo Zuppi – the president of the Italian bishops’ conference. In addition, the plan received the support and praise of Father Arturo Sosa, superior general of the Jesuits.
The Jesuit involvement is at the heart of the pilgrimage. Not only was it the idea of an Italian Jesuit and approved by a Jesuit pope, but the pilgrimage is due to be based out of the famously lavishly decorated church of the Gesù, which is the mother church of the Jesuit order in Rome – home to relics of St. Francis Xavier.
As part of the 2025 ordinary Jubilee a large number of groups and pilgrimages are coming to the Eternal City for their own specific pilgrimages. Examples include various dioceses, groups of pilgrims united by common themes, such as volunteering in health care or public services.
Certain specific events – such as that for deacons, or artists, or members of the armed forces – are known as the “Jubilee for …,” as numerous and varied members of the Catholic Church gather in Rome for the Jubilee year.
Each is included in the official calendar for the Jubilee, overseen by the Dicastery for Evangelization which has responsibility for the Jubilee. The Dicastery has yet to reply to LifeSite queries about the LGBT pilgrimage.
However, an official spoke to Reuters saying that inclusion in the official calendar did not imply support of a specific event. Notwithstanding the Dicastery’s distancing itself from officially backing the pilgrimage, or indeed from any other pilgrimage during the Jubilee, according to Il Messaggero the LGBT event received the support of Francis and the head of the Italian bishops, meaning that there was significant Vatican backing behind it.
The event has been heralded by LGBT activists as a key victory in securing increased Church support for their cause. “While 2025’s event may seem like a small step, when compared with how the Vatican reacted to the presence of gay people in Rome during 2000, we can see what a sea change has taken place in terms of responding to LGBTQ+ people,” wrote Francis DeBernardo, executive director of LGBT group New Ways Ministry – a group which though receiving support of Pope Francis remains officially sanctioned by the Church.
Tenda di Gionata also has a highly controversial record. In promoting LGBT prayer events in recent years, TDG have posted a number of images including an icon of Christ backed by the rainbow flag, an icon of Christ with a rainbow colored halo, and an icon of Christ appearing as a transgender individual surrounded by individuals in modern dress.
Church teaching expressly condemns same-sex activity, and issued careful guidance to those with same-sex attraction. Under the leadership of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in 1986, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) issued a document instructing bishops on the pastoral care of homosexual persons. The CDF admonished bishops to ensure they, and any “pastoral programme” in the diocese, are “clearly stating that homosexual activity is immoral.”
Such an authentic pastoral approach would “assist homosexual persons at all levels of the spiritual life: through the sacraments, and in particular through the frequent and sincere use of the sacrament of Reconciliation, through prayer, witness, counsel and individual care,” stated the CDF.
The document added that “we wish to make it clear that departure from the Church’s teaching, or silence about it, in an effort to provide pastoral care is neither caring nor pastoral. Only what is true can ultimately be pastoral. The neglect of the Church’s position prevents homosexual men and women from receiving the care they need and deserve.”