Another example of religious intolerance

As you know, there are organizations in Iowa who are doing everything in their power to overrule the Iowa Supreme Court's decision to allow same-sex marriages in the state.  One of those groups is the Iowa Family Policy Center, a Christian organization led by Chuck Hurley.  (Don't you love how these groups always claim the word "family" as their own?)  Jason Hancock of the Iowa Independent has written a story that highlights yet again where the real intolerance lies in this debate.  According to Hancock:
 
Chuck Hurley (left), president of the politically influential Christian organization Iowa Family Policy Center, says any religious leader who supports legalized same-sex marriage is “confused at best and blatantly evil at worst.”

The statement comes in response to demands that Hurley retract an earlier statement calling members of the pro-marriage equity Iowa Interfaith Alliance “pseudo pastors.”

Iowa Interfaith Alliance delivered a letter to legislators during the 2010 General Assembly signed by more than 150 religious leaders in Iowa who support marriage rights for same-sex couples, which Hurley refers to as “state-sanctioned sodomy.”

“Yesterday, I said that I believe a pseudo pastor, meaning anyone who would knowingly lead their flock astray on issues of morality and spirituality, and so clearly violate the revealed Word of God, is a wolf in sheep’s clothing and a false shepherd,” Hurley said, later adding: “In my opinion, those who signed their name to the Interfaith Alliance petition in support of state sanctioned sodomy are not only wolves in sheep’s clothing, but they are blind leaders of the blind.”

He called on members of the Interfaith Alliance to “repent, turn to Christ, and join us in showing genuine concern for both the physical and the spiritual wellbeing of those caught up in the destructive sin of homosexuality.”

Connie Ryan Terrell, executive director of the Iowa Interfaith Alliance, responded immediately.

“Mr. Hurley is blatantly disrespectful of the many clergy from across Iowa who are supportive of marriage equality simply because he believes differently,” she said. “Mr. Hurley, who is not a pastor, has every right to his belief, as do the clergy who signed our letter in February and other clergy from across the state who support marriage equality.”

Terrell said Hurley has no business proclaiming who should and should not call themselves pastor.

“It is inappropriate and uncivil for Mr. Hurley to do so,” she said. “He should retract and apologize for his statement that clearly has no place in this public discussion.”

 Can't wait to read about the ensuing scandal that seems to go hand-in-hand with folks who are so irrationally and intolerantly "Christian."

A Bad Christian Example

Sad, isn't it? This "minister" considers himself a Christian but encourages violence. He has a church where people listen to this garbage. And he is now touring the country with his hateful message. (Note: he recently acknowledged that advocating violence was misguided; time will tell if he has really seen the light.)  Thank you to Joe Jervis for posting this video on his blog.



Shenandoah Baptist Church's Pastor Jeff Owens: BURN AND SHOOT FAGS! from Joe Jervis on Vimeo.

God steps in....

Okay.  Here's letter (via Right Wing Watch) from a far right religious group that puzzles me.  If, in fact, their prayers to God stopped the Times Square bombing, does that mean he could have stopped 9/11 but didn't?  And what would that say about such a God that would allow such suffering?  (By the way, the prayer day described was a complete flop.  A few hundred people at the most showed up, when they were expecting close to 10,000.)

We pay for this.....

Because churches do not pay taxes, every taxpayer in the country subsidizes offensive campaigns like this.  I thought churches weren't supposed to take sides in elections?  This story is from aol.news.

If you are on a drive in Gainesville, Fla., cruising down Northwest 37th Street, you might be a little surprised at a handwritten sign on the front lawn of the Dove World Outreach Center. It reads: "No homo mayor."

Who would put up such an unpleasant message on the grass outside a Christian church? The culprit: Pastor Terry Jones. It seems that Pastor Jones is more than a little upset that an openly gay city commissioner is seeking the mayor's office in a runoff election this month.

 Ah, yes.  The un-Christian Christianity is becoming a religion unto itself.  Here are some other words of wisdom from Rev. Jones:

On Homosexuality:
“One man climbing up on another man and poking him is not God’s way.”
On Evolution:
“All of those pictures in textbooks where it shows the ape developing into a man, those are not true. Those are made up. There is no development that has been found. And if evolution was a fact, then we would somehow still be developing…When something is something, it stays that.”
On Evolution:
 “A dog will never have puppy horses.” 
On the Church:
“The church is actually what I would call...it is in a retarded stage. The church has stayed about six years old. About six or eight years old. Now that’s all fine when you’re that old, but if you stay six when you’re sixty, then what do we call that? We call that retarded.”  
On Muslims:
“In France in 39 years, France will become an Islam republic.”

There isn't enough coverage of this sort of news

AP has posted the following story about gay marriage in Iowa and faith leaders:

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - More than 160 faith leaders are weighing in on gay marriage, saying they support such unions and disagree with those who cite the Bible in raising objections

The 167 people, who represent a number of faiths, held a Statehouse news conference Tuesday to argue that unions based on love "must be honored." 

All too often, the media opts to portray religious communities and leaders as vehement opponents of gay people.  This simply isn't true in many cases.  I'm glad that these leaders are making themselves heard.

All for now.  Taking tomorrow off from blogging.  See you Thursday!

A new law regarding gay marriage is pending in California

There is some interesting news in the San Francisco Chronicle.  Here's a summary and an opinion.

A bill is being pushed that would exempt clergy and churches from any legal consequences for denying same-sex marriages to gay couples.  What's interesting is that the major supporters of the  bill are supporters of same-sex marriage.

Politically and (in my opinion) constitutionally it makes sense.  Once a law like this is on the books, it makes it more difficult for anti-equality folks to claim that churches that reject same-sex marriage will be required to perform them.  (Are you listening, Maine?)  It also makes constitutional sense by supporting the notion of the separation of church and state.  The government shouldn't be allowed to tell religious groups what to believe.

Said the bill's author, state senator Mark Leno D-San Francisco (left), "We heard through the Prop. 8 debate great concern from certain clergy that their freedom of religion could be infringed upon and their tax-exempt status revoked. We want to clarify that by putting the constitutional guarantee of the First Amendment, freedom of religion, into statute."

Another benefit from the bill would be that it would highlight the difference between civil and religious marriage by putting the word "civil" in front of references to marriage.  Said Geoff Kors, executive director of Equality California (right). "There is confusion among many people whether a marriage license is a civil document or a religious document. It's a civil document, and this is putting that in the code so there is no confusion."

Although some religious groups that supported the ban of marriage though Proposition 8, I do wonder if the leaders of these groups would be ready to support same-sex civil marriage.  Said Prop 8 supporter Terry Barone (left), "That certainly would seem to add protections for a clergy member who, for whatever reason, might be hesitant to perform a marriage ceremony." 

What I find fascinating about the bill is that people are talking about gay marriage -- which is not allowed in California because of Prop 8 -- as if it were inevitable.  Why else would people support a move that protected clergy from performing same-sex marriage ceremonies in a state where same sex marriage was unconstitutional?

A quote from Barney Frank, and a website

"Recently, Liberty University, the college founded by Jerry Falwell, named me as one of the ten liberals most in need of prayer through the school's new "Adopt-a-Liberal" program. Participants are supposed to pray for liberals to be "quiet and peaceable." This strikes me as somewhat hypocritical because Reverend Falwell was the opposite of quiet and peaceable. This is a man who said Tinky Winky was gay, and that the terrible things that had happened in America were a punishment because the country wasn't sufficiently anti-gay. He conjured up a vengeful and vindictive God, who hurt innocent people because other people did things with which Reverend Falwell disagreed. This is a distortion of what I understand to be the meaning of prayer."

 

Yes, this "adopt a liberal" website does exist.  Take a look and see who's on it:

adopt a liberal prayer program

Beyond disgraceful

Joe.My.God posted this video of Pat Robinson, blaming the Haitians "pact with the devil" for the unspeakable misery the Haitian people are now experiencing.  Unbelievable.  This is what his God does to people?

What the Bible Really Says About Marriage

Using the poor as pawns in the culture wars

Michael A. Jones of change.org reports that three churches in Michigan have stopped feeding the homeless because some of the churches they were working with supported LGBT rights.  Yes, you read that correctly.  The three churches weren't asked to have anything to do with LGBT people, but because their partners in combating hunger didn't preach about immoral homosexuals, they jumped ship.

The churches, all in Kalamazoo, Michigan, are Agape Christian Church, Word for Life Church of God, and Centerpoint Church. They had worked with five other faith communities in a program called "Martha's Table." Some of these five other churches take a progressive stance on LGBT issues, so Agape Christian Church, Word for Life Church of God, and Centerpoint Church all said good-bye.  And in essence told the homeless to fend for themselves.

Said a lay pastor from Agape Christian Church,  "An immoral lifestyle has eternal ramifications in Scripture." Another pastor said they couldn't  work next to people of faith who don't agree with their biblical worldview, even if the homeless are collateral damage in the faith wars.

Of course, this is not the first time the poor have been used as pawns in battles over homosexuality.  The Roman Catholic Church has threatened to pull its support of Washington, DC's homeless once a same-sex marriage bill becomes law.

As the Frederick, the character played by Max Von Sydow in Hannah and Her Sisters, says, "If Jesus came back, and saw what's going on in his name, he'd never stop throwing up."

Some positive news from the Episcopal Church

A friend of mine emailed me this letter yesterday.  It's from Bishop M. Thomas Shaw  (photo) of the Episcopal Church.  I have edited some of the letter but the gist remains: gay and lesbian couples can marry with the church's blessing in Eastern Massachusetts.  I've highlighted some of the Bishop's words in bold and italics.

November 29, 2009

Christian marriage is a sacramental rite that has evolved in the church, along with confirmation, ordination, penance, and the anointing of the sick, and while it is not necessary for all, it must be open to all as a means of grace and sustenance to our Christian hope.

I believe this because the truth of it is in our midst, revealed again and again by the many marriages—of women and men, and of persons of the same gender—that are characterized, just as our church expects, by fidelity, monogamy, mutual affection and respect, and the holy love which enables spouses to see in one another the image of God.

In May of 2004 the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court opened civil marriage in our state to same-gender couples.  That ruling set up a contradiction between what civil law would allow and what our church’s canons and formulary state, which is that marriage is between a man and a woman.  And so, for more than five years now, while faithfully waiting for the General Convention of the Episcopal Church to act in response, we in the Diocese of Massachusetts have been living at some cost with an imperfect accommodation:  Our clergy have not been allowed to solemnize same-gender marriages, but they have been permitted to bless them after the fact. 

In July of this year, the 76th General Convention adopted resolution C056, “Liturgies for Blessings.”  It allows that “bishops, particularly those in dioceses within civil jurisdictions where same-gender marriage, civil unions or domestic partnerships are legal, may provide generous pastoral response to meet the needs of members of this church.”

Your bishops understand this to mean for us here in the Diocese of Massachusetts that the clergy of this diocese may, at their discretion, solemnize marriages for all eligible couples, beginning Advent I.  Solemnization, in accordance with Massachusetts law, includes hearing the declaration of consent, pronouncing the marriage and signing the marriage certificate.  This provision for generous pastoral response is an allowance and not a requirement; any member of the clergy may decline to solemnize any marriage. 

We also know that by calling us to minister in the context of this particular place and time God is again blessing our diocese with a great challenge by which we might enter more fully into that ethic of love which Jesus speaks to us through the New Testament.  It is an immeasurable love given for all.  We are being asked to live it, all of us, children of God, each with equal claim upon the love, acceptance and pastoral care of this church, so that the newness and fullness of life promised through word and sacrament might be for all people and for the completion of God’s purpose for the world.

/s/ M. Thomas Shaw, SSJE