Rocking the Foundation

A gay Catholic mass builds a new core of acceptance in London’s Soho

BY SARAH WHITMIRE

LONDON—As the church bells chime 5 o’clock, the organ prelude begins. Late-comers hurry to take their seats. The congregation is mostly single men, with some couples and even a handful of families—all with the shared goal of unhindered worship.

Our Lady of the Assumption & St. Gregory’s Catholic Church capitalizes on the oxymoronic by offering mass for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered community the first and third Sunday of each month. “This is the only LGBT Catholic mass offered on a regular basis,” says Terry Weldon (below), a member of the Soho Masses Pastoral Council. “I’ve now been attending these for almost six years, even though the journey into Soho from my home in Surrey is time consuming.”

I could go on forever

BY SARAH WHITMIRE

Going through the final edits for my story on Terry Weldon and the Soho masses, I was plagued, yet again, with the beautiful problem of too much information. Like my Dublin story on Summayah Kenna, the Irish Muslim, this piece on gay Catholics goes so much deeper than what makes the cut for the final story.

Plight of the “Narrow Lens”

BY SARAH WHITMIRE

Journalism, by definition, is assuredly the preferred way of telling stories and getting the news out to a wide range of readers, listeners and viewers. However, with areas related to religion and conflict among different sects and beliefs, very often the desired message can be quite far from what each individual may actually glean from a story.

Faith Through My Eyes

BY SARAH WHITMIRE

Follow me on my reporting travels across Europe as I find a wide array of religious sects and cultures.
Red — Catholicism
Pink — Sikhism
Yellow — Protestantism
Blue — Judaism
Green — Islam

All images shot by Sarah Whitmire for Faith & Friction blog for the Walter Cronkite School for Journalism and Mass Communication.
® Sarah Whitmire 2009

Story on a Stick

BY SARAH WHITMIRE

My final Faith & Friction piece is a story that will combine elements of a profile piece on Terry Weldon, as well as a narrative dealing with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender Catholic masses in Soho.

Upon my arrival in London, given our demanding schedule, I had planned on taking advantage of our planned afternoon in the Sikh community and writing a story there. After doing a bit of research on the homosexual community in London, especially Soho, I found a couple of sizable differences from what you’d find in America (most notably, the red state of Arizona).

Online Nerdiness Comes to Fruition

BY SARAH WHITMIRE

Actually, “online” nerdiness is probably too specific. General nerdiness is more accurate.

In the middle of our time in Dublin, I decided to follow a more encompassing idea for a story that would cover all three cities we visit. So to go along with religion, I’ve been taking pictures of various religious symbols everywhere we’ve gone. Pretty straightforward, but I really had a great time trying to perfect my exposure and make each picture as good as it could be. 

Summayah’s Story

BY SARAH WHITMIRE

As a teenager in Ireland during the 1970s, Summayah Kenna converted from Catholicism to Islam. This video piece tells the story of her decision to follow an unpopular path in a country torn by religious strife.

Click here for Lauren Kawam’s print story on Summayah Kenna.

An Afternoon in Le Marais

BY: SARAH WHITMIRE

Le Marais is a district in Paris noted for its Jewish and homosexual communities.

Boys on rue des Rosiers, ‘Rue des Rosiers’ means ‘street of the rosebushes’

Jewish couple talks on rue Pavée

A heated conversation on rue Pavée

Jewish star over synagogue 10 on rue Pavée, this synagogue was commissioned by the Agoudas Hakehilos society of Orthodox Jews, and is known for it’s Art Noveau style

Man on rue Pavée checks out a building under construction

Boy on rue Pavée

Though we’d hoped to see an intermingling of the two facets of this area, after walking the streets, it seemed that the groups just happened to be next to each other.

Pardon the Technical Difficulties

BY SARAH WHITMIRE

If we had a dollar for every time we heard that phrase…. Oh, well, it’s depressing to think about, but the more technical aspect of reporting in a foreign country is something to be reckoned with, along with chaotic public transportation and the sad lack of a reliable phone number. Each student brought a slew of equipment from the Cronkite equipment lab—from Sony HD cameras, tripods and external hard drives to voice recorders, fancy SLR cameras and a laptop for nearly every person. 

A Reporter’s Dream Interview

BY: SARAH WHITMIRE

After our first day of questionable weather (we consider ourselves lucky to be basking in the sun as long as we have), I’m happy to report that the editing and compiling of my multimedia piece is just about finished. Lauren and I had a great experience at the Islamic Cultural Centre and Mosque. Friday is Islamic Holy Day. When we arrived at the packed parking lot, ethereal singing from the Qu’ran came over the loudspeakers.