Rochester to bid farewell to progressive religious leader Father Jim Callan Saturday morning

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — An instrumental pillar of the progressive Catholic Church in Rochester will be laid to rest on Saturday morning. The community is invited to honor Father Jim Callan at his funeral service.

Father Callan was a progressive religious leader known for his role in founding the Spiritus Christi Catholic Church. He was an advocate for gay marriage, the ordination of women, and would invite non-Catholics to participate in communion.

“He was a man of faith, a man of action, and a man of humanity,” said the co-founder of Trillium Health, Dr. William Valenti, who knew Father Jim for 30 years.

The funeral mass will be held at 10 a.m. at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center. Father Callan died away after battling cancer.

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