Father James Martin’s newest book, Building a Bridge, makes a bold call for the Catholic Church to live into God’s all-inclusive love, and fullywelcome LGBT people into the life and ministry of the Church. In this lunchtime chat, Martin and acclaimed journalist David Gibson will discuss his book and ongoing efforts to promote affirming theology within Catholocism.

James Martin, SJ is a Jesuit priest, editor at large of America Media, Consultor to the Vatican’s Secretariat for Communication and author of many books including Jesus: A Pilgrimage, The Jesuit Guide and, most recently, Building a Bridge.

Xorje Olivares is a SiriusXM talk show host and producer, and the creator of HeyXorje.com. His writing, most ofwhich centers on his gay and Catholic identities, has appeared in VICE, Playboy, Rolling Stone, and Vox, among other outlets. He’s an LGBTQ ministry team leader at the Church of St. Paul the Apostle.

Jessica Tezen received her bachelors in Music Business with a concentration in Audio Recording Technology from Five Towns College. As an audio engineer, she’s had the pleasure to work with many great vocalists and musicians. Currently, Jessica is obtaining her Masters in Divinity from Union Theological Seminary where her concentration is theology and the arts. As the Student Engagement Coordinator for NYU’s GSL, she fosters relationships with students that are authentic, vibrant and transform multifaith and spiritual encounters at NYU and beyond.

Jason Steidl is a PhD candidate in systematic theology at Fordham University. His academic work focuses on ecclesial activism and the relationship between marginalized Catholic communities and the Catholic hierarchy.  He is a member of the ministry team for Out at Saint Paul’s, the LGBTQ ministry of Saint Paul the Apostle Church in Manhattan.

David Gibson is the director of Fordham University’s Center on Religion and Culture, a post he was named to last year after a long career as anaward-winning religion journalist, author and filmmaker. He is the author of several books on the Catholic Church, and co-author of a book on biblical archeology, “Finding Jesus: Faith. Fact. Forgery,” that is the basis of a popular CNN series of the same name.