Kerry’s chapel has liberal past

BOSTON – The chapel where Sen. John Kerry regularly receives Holy Communion attracts Catholics uncomfortable with some of the Vatican’s orthodox teachings, or who otherwise feel alienated from the Roman Catholic Church.

The Paulist Center’s congregation includes gay couples, whose adopted children are baptized there, unlike in some other Boston parishes. In November, its leaders refused to read aloud during Mass from a letter opposing gay marriage, as requested by Massachusetts bishops.

The congregation is not geographical, but ideological, drawing people from as far as away as New Hampshire, said Drew Deskur, the center’s music director and a parishioner for 25 years.

“It’s not St. Around-the-Corner,” Deskur said. “It’s an intentional community that draws people from all over Boston. It tries to make sure that everyone feels welcome and that everyone participates in the liturgy.”

Kerry and his wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, regularly attend services there, according to campaign spokesman David Wade.

The candidate’s faith has been in the spotlight in recent days, after a top Vatican cardinal’s pronouncement that priests should deny communion to Catholic politicians who, like Kerry, support abortion rights. Kerry, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, is a lifelong Catholic.

The Archdiocese of Boston “does not hold to the practice of publicly refusing communion to anyone,” archdiocese spokesman Rev. Christopher Coyne said. He said it was up to the individual to decide whether to receive communion.

In the days before Kerry attended Easter Mass at the Paulist Center, staff members received threatening phone calls and e-mails from Catholics who believed the senator should be denied communion.

Coyne said he also received letters and angry calls from concerned Catholics about Kerry’s ability to take communion. He said he contacted the Paulist Center ahead of time to ensure there would be no problem when the senator participated in the rote.

The chapel celebrates Mass and can conduct every sacrament except marriage.

Founded in 1970, the church is located within the Archdiocese of Boston and operates with the permission of the bishop. The center, however, is financially independent and has a history of reaching out to marginalized Catholics.

The Paulist Center began a support group for divorced Catholics that has since been replicated in churches across the country. The center also hosts a group for bisexual, gay and lesbian Catholics, as well as a program for lapsed Catholics who are considering a return to the church.

The center helped launch the Walk for Hunger, a now annual fund-raiser for soup kitchens across the region, and has held funeral Masses for homeless people who died without family or loved ones.