Collection

Quest: a Group for Homosexual Catholics Ephemera Collection

Span Dates: 1975-2001
Bulk Dates:
Volume:

Description

The Quest items in the ephemera collection of the Hall Carpenter Archives consist primarily of the publications Quest Link and Quest Journal. It also includes the first annual report of a Yorkshire group, conference programs, one poster, and Michael Stephens' 1983 report, "Gay Catholics in Britain: the story of Quest."

Hist/Bio Note

In 1973 nine Catholic laymen met together, after responding to an advertisement in the gay press and began to meet regularly and publish a newsletter. In 1976, they adopted a Constitution, confirming the name, Quest and the purpose to support LGBT+ Catholics integrate faith with sexuality and identity. Headquartered in London, numerous satellite groups formed throughout the United Kingdom. Quest has a regional group structure which covers most of the UK. Quest published its newsletter and Quest Link which discussed homosexuality in church teaching. These titles were replacing in 1986 with the Quest News and Quest Journal and replaced again in 1995 by Quest Chronical and Quest Bulletin. In 1980, Quest members participated, as diocesan representatives, in the National Pastoral Congress at Liverpool, whose report recognized a need ‘at all levels of the Church’ for ‘a continuing re-evaluation of attitudes’ to homosexuality. Quest is a founding member of the European Forum of Lesbian and Gay Christian Groups and has been represented at the National Conference of Priests’ annual meeting. In 2003, Quest’s founder, Ralph Long, addressed the 30th Anniversary Conference in Birmingham, giving a history of Quest from the first advertisement in the new paper, Gay News, through to the present day.

Finding Aid

There is not a finding aid for the ephemera collection.

Location

The Hall Carpenter Archives are located in the British School of Economics and Politics (London, UK). Further information about these items is available by contacting the archives at the following website.
https://www.lse.ac.uk/library

Tags

Catholic (Roman) | Quest | England | London | United Kingdom