Australia: A gay and lesbian Catholic forum that World Youth Day organisers tried to shut down has gone ahead in a different venue without official support.

The organisers of the forum had tried to have the event included in the event's Youth Festival but were told it did not fit within church policies.

It was not listed on any official World Youth Day literature but there was a smattering of pilgrims in the crowd of about 200 people, who had come to discuss the question, "Is there a place for gay and lesbian Catholic youth in the church?".

Organiser Paul Harris, from gay Catholic group Acceptance, says many people find there is a conflict between their sexuality and their spirituality.

"They give up their faith, they give up going to church," he said.

"They may have been brought up Catholic and then all of a sudden they realise they're gay or lesbian or whatever and think, 'I can't be gay and I can't follow my faith'. We say 'no, that's not case'."

Twenty-four-year-old Daniel Smith had trouble reconciling the two issues. When he realised he was gay, his faith was an impediment.

"I always felt very dirty, very sinful, and so was very, very internal," he said. "I didn't come out to anyone until I'd worked all this stuff out myself." (To read this article on line in full, Click Here.)