Finally, a settlement at St. Francis

The fight over the Westside church on the hill has finally ended.

The Episcopal Diocese of the Rio Grande has agreed to settle a 2008 lawsuit that challenged the ownership of St. Francis on the Hill Church.

The settlement means the conservative breakaway Anglican group now occupying the church has to be out by the end of July.

It also means a smaller group of Episcopalians who felt forced out of the church a few years ago will take control of the property, but not its financial assets. MORE

Some Korean-American Presbyterians oppose gay, lesbian ordination

Beginning Sunday, gays and lesbians can be ordained as elders and pastors, according to change approved by Presbyterian Church U.S.A. But some  Korean American churches oppose the change. 

But some groups in the assembly, including the National Council of Korean Presbyterian Churches, which held a three-day conference in Anaheim last month to discuss the change, are speaking out in opposition. The Korean council, the second largest racial ethnic caucus in the denomination, represents 430 Korean-American churches with about 55,000 active members, group members say.
"We would not ordain active homosexuals," said Pastor Tae Young Ko, senior pastor at Good Shepherd Presbyterian in Rowland Heights and the conference moderator. "This meeting reaffirmed that the Korean-American community would not support this and we will try to help local churches strongly reaffirm our conviction."
Collins said his church supports the amendment but is not surprised that the Korean council, among others, is not happy.
"For the most part, it was don't ask, don't tell in our denomination," he said.
Lt. Dan Choi, a Tustin High School and West Point graduate who was discharged last year from the Army National Guard after announcing he was gay on "The Rachel Maddow Show," said many in the Korean-American community are anti-gay and very conservative.
"I think it's a great decision by the (assembly) and I hope that all other religious denominations will recognize their fellow gay and lesbian congregants," Choi said. "Jesus would have us love all gay people and treat them as equal preachers of God."
Choi, an Iraq war veteran, said he grew up in a strict Korean-American household and his father was a senior pastor in a church in Garden Grove. He said his public announcement in 2009 strained his relationship with his parents and they do not speak to this day.

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What Didn't Make It Into The Bible?

Bart D. Ehrman writes:

For a complete picture of what the earliest Christians "knew" about Jesus, the books of the New Testament are not enough. One also needs to read the books that did not make it into Scripture, books written by and for Christians to convey what, in the authors' opinions, were the true views of the Christian faith. Some of these books contain ideas and perspectives that Christians today may regard as strange, or even heretical. Other readers will find them historically valuable and even scintillating. However they are judged today, at one time they were considered by some of Jesus' followers to be sacred Scripture.

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Grants will fund conclusion of work on same-gender blessings

[Episcopal News Service] Church Divinity School of the Pacific has been awarded a $90,000 grant from the Arcus Foundation and a $75,000 grant from the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation to support the completion of work on proposed rites for the blessing of same-gender relationships in the Episcopal Church, according to a release from the school, located in Berkeley, California.
The grants will make it possible for CDSP to continue its support of the church’s Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music, which was authorized by the church’s 2009 General Convention to “collect and develop theological and liturgical resources” for the blessing of same-gender relationships, in consultation with the church’s House of Bishops, the release said.

“We are grateful for the support of the Arcus and Carpenter Foundations as we enter the final phases of our work,” the Rev. Dr. Ruth Meyers, chair of the Standing Commission, and Hodges-Haynes professor of liturgics at CDSP, said in the release. “This money makes possible continued support from a staff person at CDSP, and the opportunity to meet face-to-face with Anglican colleagues who are eager to discuss our work. We would have been hard-pressed to fulfill our obligations to the General Convention without it.”

Since beginning its work in 2009, the Standing Commission has conducted extensive consultations throughout the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion. At its largest meeting, held in Atlanta in March 2011, 184 clergy and lay people, representing 96 of the church’s 110 dioceses, gathered to discuss the commission’s work on liturgical and theological resources, and to be equipped to facilitate further reflection in their dioceses.

The Standing Commission will report on its work to the General Convention, which next meets in Indianapolis in July 2012.

The Arcus Foundation, based in Kalamazoo, Michigan, works in global human rights and conservation. Within those areas, its work is focused on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights and preservation of the world's great apes and their habitat. The E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation, headquartered in Philadelphia, supports graduate theological education, among other causes.

Episcopal Bishop of Rochester welcomes gay marriage

Statement from The Rt. Rev. Prince G. Singh, Bishop of Rochester, and the Task Force on Marriage Equality

As we approach the implementation of the Marriage Equality Act, we rejoice in the extension of civil rights to same-sex couples in New York. We believe this extension to be fully consonant with the Good News of God in Jesus Christ proclaimed by the church.

This extension of marriage equality follows quite naturally with the history of the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester, which has tirelessly promoted the full inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons in the life of the church, including blessing their relationships as a pastoral response in many parish contexts, for almost forty years. While we recognize that there are differing opinions, even within our own church, we want to clear that these differences do not break the fellowship by which we are bound together. Let us constantly seek reconciliation and act in ways that uphold both our convictions and one another's dignity.

After careful discernment and consultation, we recommend to our parish clergy that they proceed with fully welcoming all couples who seek to enter the marriage covenant of fidelity, mutuality and service. We encourage the celebration and blessing of all marriages in accordance with congregational guidelines. In doing so, we uphold the Episcopal Church's 2009 General Convention resolution (C056) that allows bishops to provide a "generous pastoral response" in those jurisdictions which allow for equal marriage, civil unions, or domestic partnerships. However, as with current canon law, presiding at any marriage is at the discretion of clergy.

It will take some time for the language of both and the Canons of the Episcopal Church to catch up to this new reality. In the meantime, the Bishop's office will be a resource for those seeking to celebrate and bless marriage with appropriate rites and careful preparation. We encourage clergy to do whatever work of formation and discernment necessary, in order to create consensus, as much as possible, before moving forward. Further guidelines for the clergy will be forthcoming; this matter will be a topic of a clergy gathering on September 25.

May God bless us as we move forward in the spread of the freedom for which Christ sets us free (Galatians 5:1), and may God bless all couples who are seeking to celebrate their commitment and ask the blessing of God on it.

Circumcision Bans May Be Blocked By New CA Bill

SAN FRANCISCO — Two California lawmakers have introduced a bill that would pre-empt local governments from passing laws banning male circumcision and limit the enacting of such legislation to the state.    MORE

Willow Creek Cuts Ties With Ex-Gay Exodus International

Willow Creek Community Church, a trend-setting megachurch in suburban Chicago, has quietly ended its partnership with Exodus International, an "ex-gay" organization. MORE

Marriage Equality As Sacrament

The Rev. Winnie Varghese, Priest in Charge, St. Mark’s Church in the Bowery writes:

Now that it's legal for same sex couples to marry, Episcopalians, whose canons (church laws) say that we marry in conformity with the laws of the church and the state are invited to a sacramental understanding of marriage beyond gender. For most of us that has been an intellectual exercise that seems reasonable enough because of our experience of our own relationships and other wonderful gay and lesbian couples in our congregations and communities. Some of us have offered blessings to same sex couples for some time now, in acts that move us towards recognizing these relationships as sacramental in nature, at least on the very local level. The Gospels call us to "testify to what we see" and we do. The church as a whole, however, has not expanded its notion of marriage beyond gender. Sacraments are foundational to our understanding of God at work in the world, so significant conformity is expected, but we are also a tradition that takes our lived reality seriously.

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Priests may solemnize same-gender marriages in majority of New York dioceses

Bishops set policies ahead of new state law

By Mary Frances Schjonberg, July 22, 2011
[Episcopal News Service] When the State of New York begins to allow same-gender marriages on July 24, priests in four of the six Episcopal Church dioceses may solemnize those marriages.
The bishops of the dioceses of Central New York , Long Island, Rochester and Western New York have announced that priests there may preside at the marriages of same-gender couples while in Albany and New York the bishops have refused.

The New York State Senate voted 33-29 on June 24 to pass the Marriage Equality Act, making New York the largest state in the United States to allow same-gender couples to wed. New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signed the measure at 11:55 p.m. that day. The bill goes into effect July 24, 30 days from that date.

Washington, D.C., Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont also allow such couples to marry while 29 states have constitutional bans on such marriages and 12 more have other laws against them.

In New York the number of same-gender couples wanting to be married on July 24 is so great that the city at first decided to cap at 764 the number of couples who can be wed at the city clerk's five borough offices on that day and hold a lottery for those spots. However, on July 21, New York Magazine reported that all 823 couples who applied will be able to marriage on the law's first day. Couples are not required to be married in the city clerk's office.

Specific language exempting religious organizations and their clergy was inserted into the bill as part of complex negotiations led by Cuomo to get the bill passed. The law says that such organizations and people cannot be required to solemnize a same-gender marriage nor can they be sued or otherwise legally punished for refusing to do so.

Enactment of the New York law takes place for Episcopalians against the backdrop of General Convention 2009 Resolution C056m, which says 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."

Some of the bishops who gave their priests permission to solemnize same-gender marriages cited C056's "generous pastoral response" as at least part of the context for their decision. And all of those allow such actions acknowledged that not all in their dioceses agree with that decision or the law itself.

As the bishops weighed in with their policy stances, the NYC-Metro chapter of Integrity USA said that while it "would rejoice if all bishops were to immediately solemnize marriages, we realize that this is not immediately likely for varying reasons, and we urge charity and pastoral engagement on all sides in other dioceses." The group also said that clergy ought to hold same-gender couples to the same standards of preparation expected of heterosexual people as well as the marriage rubrics in the prayer book.

In Central New York, Bishop Gladstone "Skip" Adams has told his clergy he would be "deferring to [their] pastoral judgment" in terms of whether they choose to preside over same-gender marriages.

"It is in my mind, based on the best reflection I can do as supported by scripture, tradition and reason, [that it is] meet, right and just that we provide this pastoral response to the LGBT people of our diocese," Adams said.

The bishop noted that passage of the law "has prompted rejoicing for some and deep sadness for others." He predicted that his decision to allow priests to solemnize same-gender marriage will do the same.

Several weeks before the state legislature passed the bill, Adams said he asked the diocese's Liturgy and Music Commission to prepare a rite to be used in the diocese for same-gender marriage.

Citing the marriage rubrics in the Book of Common Prayer, Diocese of Long Island Bishop Lawrence Provenzano said in a pastoral letter that he will "allow for the use of such rites that bless marriages between persons of the same gender and further permit the celebration of the Holy Eucharist in the midst of such blessing."

His letter, titled "A Theological Perspective and Practical Guideline on Marriage in the Diocese of Long Island as New York," was sent to all diocesan clergy and is to be read in Long Island parishes on Aug. 7.

"It is not the priest or bishop who marry the couple. The priest or bishop is present to witness and bless and, when included, celebrate the Holy Eucharist," Provenzano noted. "The function of the ordained person in the rite of marriage is to bless the marriage and provide the appropriate words in the exchange of vows, which indicate within the vows the church's call for permanence and fidelity on the part of those who marry each other."

Diocese of Rochester Bishop Prince Singh, a strong supporter of the state law, said July 21 that he and a marriage equality task force he appointed shortly after the bill was signed "rejoice in the extension of civil rights to same-sex couples in New York" and "believe this extension to be fully consonant with the Good News of God in Jesus Christ proclaimed by the church."

They also said that the state's decision to make same-gender marriage legal "follows quite naturally with the history of the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester, which has tirelessly promoted the full inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons in the life of the church, including blessing their relationships as a pastoral response in many parish contexts, for almost 40 years."

The group recommended that parish clergy "proceed with fully welcoming all couples who seek to enter the marriage covenant of fidelity, mutuality and service."

Not all in the diocese will agree with that recommendation, Singh and the task force acknowledged, and they urged all diocesan members to "constantly seek reconciliation and act in ways that uphold both our convictions and one another's dignity."

Their statement said that Singh's office would be a resource for clergy seeking to celebrate and bless same-gender marriage, especially because "it will take some time for the language of the Book of Common Prayer the Canons of the Episcopal Church to catch up to this new reality."

Diocese of Western New York Bishop William Franklin said in a pastoral letter that he is called "to lead our diocese into the new era which dawns" on July 24.

Franklin's letter is to be read in the Buffalo-based diocese's congregations on the day the law takes effect.

"I act under the highest human authority in our Episcopal Church, the General Convention, which is made up of the bishops and the elected representatives of the clergy and laity," Franklin said, citing Resolution C056.

The bishop said he made his decision after meeting with both gay and lesbian clergy as well as "all the rectors and vicars of our parishes who hold traditional views on human sexuality." There was also a diocesan-wide meeting on the issue and Franklin consulted with other committees and diocesan officials, he said.

"As your bishop, I believe that I am acting out of the tradition of the via media, the middle way, which has been a key to the identity of our church for centuries," he said. "We do not all have to agree to remain in one diocesan community."

Meanwhile, in the Diocese of Albany, Bishop William Love said in a pastoral letter that the diocese anticipated that the state of New York might some day allow same-gender marriage and, in 2008, passed two canons barring diocesan recognition of such relationships.

Canon 16.1 "specifically bars any other union" than that between a man and a woman, Love said, "even if they be recognized in other jurisdictions." This stance, he said, "is in agreement with the mainstream of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the wider church." The canon says diocesan clergy "shall neither officiate at, nor facilitate, nor participate in, any service, whether public or private" involving a same-gender marriage.

Canon 16.2 bars the use properties of the diocese, parishes and other Episcopal-related bodies within the diocese for any marriage ceremonies other than those for a man and woman.

The full text of the canon is here.

Love said that "the overwhelming majority of the people and clergy of the diocese of Albany do not and cannot support the new marriage legislation" and that "there are some very well meaning people in the diocese who are sympathetic to and support the legalization of same-gender marriages and the blessing of such unions."

Noting what he called the church's "long-standing commitment to acknowledge homosexual persons as loved by God, and as recipients of pastoral care within the church," Love said that he hoped and prayed that "every parish in the Diocese of Albany will welcome and share God's love with anyone who is seeking a deeper relationship with and desiring to worship and serve our Lord Jesus Christ."
In the Diocese of New York, Bishop Mark Sisk said that Resolution C056's offer of generous pastoral response "does not supersede the [marriage] canon that we have all vowed to uphold" even though "it does offer an opening for a generous and grace filled accommodation to local circumstances."

Episcopal Church clergy sign an oath at their ordination promising to "conform to the doctrine, discipline and worship" of the church. Title I, Canon 18 of the church's canons defines marriage as that between a man and a woman, and says that "every member of the clergy of this Church shall conform to the laws of the State governing the creation of the civil status of marriage, and also to the laws of this Church governing the solemnization of Holy Matrimony."

Sisk noted that the way in which the church understands marriage "is a matter of on-going debate within the life of the Episcopal Church."

Resolution C056 directs the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music to work with the House of Bishops to collect and develop theological resources and liturgies for blessing same-gender relationships. The commission is to report to the 77th General Convention in 2012 in Indianapolis, which is expected to make some statement of such blessings. A website here contains some of the materials gathered thus far.

Sisk said that in light of C056, clergy who wish to bless same-gender couples may use the Blessing of a Civil Marriage rite in the prayer book (page 433). Thus, a couple seeking the church's blessing would first have to be married in a civil service.

"I do not believe that Resolution C056 empowered bishops to authorize clergy to perform such marriages," Sisk said. "Nor do I believe that it is appropriate for clergy to circumvent the vows we have taken by becoming separately licensed by the state to perform such marriages."

Sisk left to his clergy's "good judgment" what he called "the sometimes difficult balancing of the pastoral needs of the particular individuals, the interests of the parish community, the needs of the larger church, and specific questions as to the exact logistics of when and where marriages and blessings take place."

Sisk had written to the New York Times in May to note his and the diocese's long-standing support of allowing same-gender couples the right of civil marriage.

-- The Rev. Mary Frances Schjonberg is an editor/reporter for the Episcopal News Service.

Church of England tied in knots over allowing gay men to become bishops

The leadership of the established church remains tied in knots over how far it can comply with the Equality Act in its treatment of gay people. Church lawyers have told the bishops that while they cannot take into account that someone is homosexual in considering them for preferment, they also cannot put forward clergy in active same-sex relationships and, even if they are celibate, must consider whether they can "act as a focus for unity" to their flocks if appointed to a diocese. mORE

A Short Introduction to the Anglican Covenant

press release from noanglicancovenant.org

COALITION RELEASES A SHORT INTRODUCTION TO THE ANGLICAN COVENANT

LONDON – Responding to requests for a concise explanation of the Anglican Covenant and the lack of even‐handed discussions of the Covenant from official sources, the No Anglican Covenant Coalition has released of A Short Introduction to the Anglican Covenant. The one‐page primer outlines the history and likely effect of the proposed Anglican Covenant.

“Most of the study material that has been produced to date has been designed for readers already familiar with the background and issues involved,” said the Coalition’s Moderator, the Revd. Dr. Lesley Fellows. “This brief, plain‐language explanation is intended to help ordinary Anglicans worldwide to understand what is being proposed.”
“Many people have complained that the official study material from the Anglican Communion Office has lacked balance and has failed to take seriously the concerns of Covenant critics,” according to the Revd. Canon Hugh Magee, the Coalition’s Scottish Convenor. “Recent study material from Canada has taken a more realistic view. While clearly written in opposition to the Covenant, A Short Introduction seeks to present a fair but critical view of the Covenant.”

A Short Introduction to the Anglican Covenant may be printed and copied by groups or individuals. It is particularly appropriate for people who know little about the Covenant or are overwhelmed by the available material related to the proposed pact. The document is available formatted both for letter‐size stationery used in Canada and the United States and for A4 stationery used in Britain and elsewhere.

UCC Adopts Groundbreaking LGBT Resolutions

The 28th General Synod of the United Church of Christ, on July 5th, approved two groundbreaking denominational resolutions supporting "The Right of LGBT Persons to Adopt and Raise Children" and"International Human Rights Related to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity." The UCC is the first mainline protestant denomination to pass such clear and substantive policies on these two particular issues.

About that non-existent slippery slope

In a recent conversation discussing the New York Times’ glowing hagiography of Dan Savage and his views in favor of adultery, we discussed how former Sen. Rick Santorum had said something years ago to infuriate Savage. The crime that resulted in naming the fecal slime that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex after Santorum? He argued that the legal reasoning being used in the Lawrence v. Texas (a huge gay rights case) could be used in favor of polygamy and various other private sexual acts.

I’ve long wondered — and frequently asked about — what arguments being used in favor of same-sex marriage couldn’t also be used in favor of plural marriage. I’ve not seen this discussion engaged in the press so much as dismissed.

It turns out that we’ll get to see the early contours of the argument with a new lawsuit challenging polygamy law. MORE

Presbyterian Church (USA) Opens Door to LGBT Clergy

An historic change to the Presbyterian Church (USA) constitution took effect July 10 allowing out, non-celibate LGBT Presbyterians to serve as clergy. The new ordination standards were debated and approved at the PCUSA General Assembly last July and were subsequently passed by a majority of presbyteries in May. Read the Presbyterian Church's statement on the change in ordination standards and see HRC's comments on this momentous occasion.

Bravo's anti-trans swipe

Bravo's anti-trans swipe: Bravo's host included the word "transgender" in the joke because, to him, it made the person more of an undesirable to have him also be trans.  MORE

Nightline - Michele Bachmann's Family Business Exposed!

Texas Prayer Day Stirs Debate, Includes Anti-Gay Pastors

A prayer day called "The Response" organized by Texas Gov. Rick Perry has stirred controversy -- not least because of the views of some of the pastors and organizations associated with it. The co-organizer of the event is the anti-gay religious organization the American Family Association. Religious right pastors Jim Garlow and John Hagee are slated to attend, along with a number of others. MORE 

Are you now or have you ever been a Lutheran?

I’ve frequently discussed my dislike of religiously ignorant reporters playing theological “gotcha” with political candidates. Sometimes I will be sitting in church and listening to a sermon and just imagining how completely and thoroughly a reporter might miss the point, the context, the tradition, the nuance, the proper distinction of the Law and the Gospel, etc.

Almost always I’ve written about my dislike of reporters trying to understand the significance of some snippet of a sermon or a bulletin insert when it comes to President Barack Obama. But we have a doozie — and yes, you can all stop sending it in now — with Joshua Green’s piece in The Atlantic titled:

Michele Bachmann’s Church Says The Pope Is The Antichrist

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Cain: Legal right to ban mosque - who's next to be outlawed?

Presidential candidate Herman Cain on Sunday defended his opposition to a new mosque in Tennessee, expressing concern about Shariah law and declaring Americans "have the right" to ban mosques in their communities. 
Read more: 

Desert Fathers The Religious Right’s real pioneers came not from the South but Southern California.

he saga of the Christian right is often told as a horror story of southern fanaticism escaping from the rural churches of Dixie and infecting the politics and culture of a sometimes uncomprehending country. Less well known is the history of conservative Christians who made Southern California their home, and who came to have as profound an impact on the emerging Sun Belt and its conservative approach to God and country as their brethren in the Deep South itself.

In his new book, From Bible Belt to Sun Belt: Plain-Folk Religion, Grassroots Politics, and the Rise of Evangelical Conservatism, Purdue University history professor Darren Dochuk tells the tale of southern migrants (mainly from the freewheeling states of the “western South” such as Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma) who flooded into the Los Angeles area before and after World War II. They brought with them a distinctive brand of institutionally adaptive but theologically rigid evangelical Protestantism, which eventually served as a crucial vanguard for the conservative movement that mobilized behind Barry Goldwater and reached the promised land via California’s own Ronald Reagan. MORE

TWO Claims That Marcus Bachmann Is Lying When He Says His Clinic is Not Anti-Gay

NEW YORK – Truth Wins Out vigorously disputed Marcus Bachmann’s statement to the  Star Tribune today where he falsely claimed that his clinic was not anti-gay and had no “agenda or a philosophy of trying to change anyone.” His untruthful assertions contradict the evidence that clearly shows his clinic is disdainful towards LGBT people and practices a discredited and harmful brand of therapy designed to “cure” gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.

“Marcus Bachmann is not telling the truth when he dishonestly claims that his clinic is not anti-gay,” said Truth Wins Out’s Executive Director Wayne Besen, responding to Bachmann’s new statement in the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “Our investigation clearly shows that his clinic has great antipathy towards gay and lesbian people and his therapists work to convert clients from gay to straight.”

“Marcus Bachmann is willfully and wantonly misrepresenting what I experienced during my five therapy sessions at his clinic,” said John Becker, TWO’s Director of Communications and Development, who led an undercover operation at Bachmann’s clinic. “We urge Bachmann & Associates to stop misleading the public and commit to ending the harmful and discredited practice of ‘ex-gay’ therapy.”

According to The Star Tribune article, Bachmann explained that he only offered “ex-gay” therapy at a client’s request.

“Will I address it? Certainly we’ll talk about it,” Bachmann said. “Is it a remedy form that I typically would use? … It is at the client’s discretion…We don’t have an agenda or a philosophy of trying to change someone.”

Bachmann said counselors at his clinics follow the wishes of patients and don’t force any treatment.

“This individual came to us under a false pretense,” Bachmann said. “The truth of the matter is he specifically asked for help.”

“Bachmann & Associates was under no obligation to offer a quack therapy treatment that is rejected by every mainstream medical and mental health association in America,” said TWO’s Wayne Besen. “Taking a clients hard-earned money for a ‘cure’ that is not possible is unethical and a form of consumer fraud.”

The notion that a counselor is required harm a client just because he or she asks is patently absurd, asserts TWO. Similarly, if a bodybuilder had asked a doctor to help him or her inject steroids, the practitioner could refuse. If an African American asked a doctor for a skin bleaching, he or she could decline. If a physician is urged to help manage a model’s anorexia, he or she could turn the model away and instead offer real medical help.

While Bachmann claims that his clinic is not anti-gay, nor invested in “ex-gay” therapy, his office sells a book written by a viciously homophobic minister named Janet Boynes who calls homosexuality a “dirty and shameful life.” In her tome, Called Out: A Former Lesbian’s Discovery of Freedom, she says:

“What are the effects of living a homosexual lifestyle? The list is long: Hurt. Despair. Frustration. Loneliness. Depression. Restlessness. Shame….Hollywood would have you believe gays and lesbians are happy, humorous, well adjusted people, but very rarely do they show the other side – the ugly side. They don’t show the tears behind the mask. They don’t show the desperate ache to be loved beneath all the jokes, clever comebacks and playful remarks.” (pg. 184)

“If Marcus Bachmann’s clinic is not anti-gay, than why is he selling homophobic trash like Janet Boynes’ hateful and deceptive book in his office?” asked Besen.

Truth Wins Out is a non-profit organization that fights anti-LGBT religious extremism. TWO specializes in turning information into action by organizing, advocating and fighting for LGBT equality.

Episcopal sisters plan convent in new location

[Episcopal News Service] The Order of Saint Helena is purchasing 28 acres in Aiken County, South Carolina, for a new convent.

The site, which is about 20 minutes north of the present convent in Augusta, Georgia, will be in the city of North Augusta, South Carolina, if the sisters' petition is granted for the property to be incorporated, according to a July 14 press release.
 
In October 2008, the Episcopal Church-affiliated sisters announced that they would sell their properties in New York State and relocate all of the sisters to the Augusta convent. The move was planned as a temporary step, while they searched for a location in which to build a new convent and a new future, according to the release.

"We have felt that God has been with us throughout this process," Sr. Ellen Francis said in the release. "Even though it has taken longer than we first expected to decide where we would ultimately settle, it seems to me that this is the place where God is calling us to be, to grow, and to thrive."

The Order of Saint Helena has served and ministered in the Augusta area since the 1960s, the release said, and the sisters "hoped to find a location that would be convenient for guests and for the ministries of the sisters, and also be a quiet and natural setting for retreat and contemplation."

Sr. Ellen Francis said that the new property has all of the qualities the sisters were looking for: a beautiful, wooded place close to a major highway, airport, and other facilities.

The sisters plan to design and build an energy-efficient convent that will house the sisters and provide hospitality for guests.

The decision to consolidate three houses into one was a difficult one, but necessary since the sisters had been facing increasingly serious budget deficits, as well as a shortage of "sister power" for ministry and running the order, the release said. Some sisters are aging and in need of special support, and at the same time the order is accepting new members.

"We need to provide a nourishing and supportive environment for our new sisters," said Sr. Ellen Francis, "and give all of the sisters hope for the future of our community and for religious life in the Episcopal Church."

The order has three new members, in addition to 16 life-professed members. Several women are in vocational discernment.

The Order of St. Helena was founded in 1945 and is dedicated to prayer, ministry, and service to the church. The sisters engage in guest ministry at the convent, spiritual direction, chaplaincy, parish ministry, writing and the arts, retreat leading, peacemaking and prayer.  

Four years ago the order published The Saint Helena Breviary using expansive language. The monastic edition is designed for use in community settings for singing and praying Matins, the Midday Office, Vespers and Compline. A personal edition can be used by anyone to follow the calendar of prayer of the Episcopal Church as well as the daily hours of prayer of the sisters in the convent chapel.

Tanks. On the front lawn. At Lambeth.

From the urban pastor:

Robert Piggott, the BBC Religious Correspondent, got it about right on Saturday on Radio 4. In his piece on the Today Programme he commented that, in launching the AMiE, conservative evangelicals had parked their tanks on the front lawn of Lambeth Palace.
It’s obviously the case that the establishing of this new mission society is seen by some as unnecessarily provocative. Even by some of those who are orthodox on the issue of human sexuality. But it’s worth asking why some evangelicals thought that such a drastic move was necessary. A ‘conversation’ is supposed to be taking place between, if I may simplify, the liberal revisionists and the evangelical reformers. But clearly one side doesn’t feel that they’re being listened to. They are now, I’ll wager.

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California Legislature Passes Bill Strengthening Parental Rights for Non-Biological Parents

Sacramento – Om July 15, the California State Senate passed the Protection of Parent-Child Relationships Act (AB 1349) in a 23-14 vote. Authored by Assemblymember Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo) and sponsored by Equality California and the Association of California Adoption Lawyers (ACAL), the bill would allow the courts to determine who a child’s parents are in cases where there is both a non-biological parent and a man who has signed a voluntary declaration of paternity.

“It is critical that state courts take into consideration the established relationship between a parent and child when determining legal parentage,” said Equality California Executive Director Roland Palencia. “This bill would protect families from being broken up by preserving children’s established family relationships, and this includes LGBT families.”

This bill will fix a problem caused by a recent case that said that courts cannot recognize a non-biological parent who has raised the child if another man signed a voluntary paternity declaration, even if the man who signed the declaration had no relationship with the child and no intention of raising the child.

Because of this case, children with non-biological parents are vulnerable to losing the parent they have always known. For example, when a same-sex or opposite-sex couple uses a sperm donor to conceive a child, if the couple later breaks up and the sperm donor and the biological mother sign a declaration of paternity, the non-biological parent may not be legally recognized as a parent.

"Parenting is more than just biology,” said Assemblyman Hill. “It’s about nurturing and a sacred bond between a child and a guardian that should not be severed by external forces.”

The Assembly passed AB 1349 in May. The bill now heads to the Governor’s desk.

Equality California (EQCA) is the largest statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights advocacy organization in California. Over the past decade, Equality California has strategically moved California from a state with extremely limited legal protections for LGBT individuals to a state with some of the most comprehensive civil rights protections in the nation. Equality California has passed more than 70 pieces of legislation and continues to advance equality through legislative advocacy, electoral work, public education and community empowerment. www.eqca.org

ABC’s Nightline Features TWO Undercover Investigation of Bachmann Clinic

ABC’s Brian Ross did a terrific job with this Nightline segment, as well as an earlier piece on ABC World News.

Truth Wins Out is pleased that our efforts uncovered the incontrovertible evidence that Bachmann & Associates practices “ex-gay” therapy. It is now time for Michele Bachmann to stop waffling and weaving and finally admit that she and her husband own a clinic that tries to “cure” LGBT people.

What are they so ashamed of and why are they running from their reprehensible record? We thought the Bachmann’s were proud of their extremism, but apparently they are masking their genuine beliefs in an effort to appeal to mainstream voters.

Michele Bachmann leaves church accused of anti-Catholic bias vvvvv

Michele Bachmann has formally left a church in Minnesota accused of holding anti-Catholic views.

According to CNN, the church that Michele Bachmann and her husband Marcus had attended for more than a decade, Salem Lutheran in Stillwater, Minn., granted the couple’s request to be released from their membership last month, a week after Bachmann told a national audience that she would run for the Republican presidential nomination. MORE

NEW ZEALAND: Commission to study church's position on ordination of gay priests

By Taonga staff, July 12, 2011

[Anglican Taonga] The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia has decided to set up a commission to study and summarize its findings on whether openly gay and lesbian people should be ordained as Anglican priests.

The commission is expected to complete its work and report to the church's 2014 General Synod/te Hinota Whanui.

At its recent meeting in Fiji, the General Synod Standing Committee – the body that acts for General Synod between its biennial gatherings – considered a proposal from Diocese of Taranaki Bishop Philip Richardson to set up a commission at the 2012 General Synod. But the Standing Committee has said the commission should start its work nine months earlier, in November this year.

A small working group has been set up to propose names for membership on the commission by the end of August with the hope that the November meeting of Standing Committee will formally appoint a commission.

The commission is charged with presenting "a summary of the biblical and theological work done by our church on the issues surrounding Christian ethics, human sexuality and the blessing and ordination of people in same-sex relationships, including missiological, doctrinal, canonical, cultural and pastoral issues."

The Standing Committee also is asking the commission for recommendations to General Synod on "the principles of Anglican ecclesiology" and "in the light of our diversity, the ecclesial possibilities for ways forward for our three tikanga church."

Richardson, the original proposer of the commission, earlier triggered widespread discussion when he issued a public statement challenging a petition that alleged bishops "discriminated" against gay and lesbian people who felt called to the priesthood.

The latest developments also follow advice from Judge Chris Harding, the chancellor of the Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki.

The Standing Committee had requested Harding's legal opinion after the Auckland, Waiapu and Dunedin diocesan synods last year passed resolutions seeking clarification on the status of an Anglican Communion moratorium on the ordination of people in same-sex relationships.

Those diocesan synods also sought clarification as to whether each diocesan bishop has "ultimate responsibility" for deciding who gets ordained.

Harding said there was, in fact, no formal legal moratorium. Rather, there was a "request and advice from" the Anglican Communion's instruments of communion "which bishops are expected to take seriously in their decision-making."

However, bishops "do not have infinite freedom as to who to ordain," Harding added.

The canons require people seeking ordination to be chaste – and as the canons now stand, chastity can only be understood as "either refraining from sexual relations with others, or having a sexual relationship only within the confines of marriage."

Harding continued: "Ordination of persons in same-sex relationships was never contemplated by our present canons. That is because the canons were not ever written to either provide or not provide for such a thing – it simply was not something which could or did historically arise.

"For these reasons, as present, bishops seeking to ordain those in same-sex relationships proceed at their peril, and could face formal challenge either by those of a traditional and more conservative view within the church or by those concerned with the integrity of church process, or both."

The bishops sought a subsequent opinion from Harding, and in March he spelled out the consequences if, in the face of his previous advice, a bishop chose to "go it alone" and ordain a gay candidate to the diaconate or priesthood.

Such an ordination might now be appealed to a tribunal, which would then pass judgment – and that, he wrote, would be "far from an ideal process for deciding an issue such as this."

A Terrible Pledge

Will abortion affect voters’ decisions in 2012? Probably not. But that hasn’t stopped a group from demanding that GOP candidates sign an extreme, anti-abortion pledge. Too many of them have. MORE

Highland Park church offers camp for gay teens

Bob Makin reports: "Dierra Doyle, a 16-year-old headed into her junior year at Highland Park High School, said she thinks Jesus doesn’t love her because she is a lesbian.

She said that most churches make her feel too unwelcome to want to draw close to God, but the open arms of the Reformed Church of Highland Park is starting to change that.

Doyle will be one of more than a dozen gay teens who attend the church’s first Room for All Christian Camp this summer. She said that she is hoping to find a connection to the other campers and to Christ."  MORE 

The Search for the Historical Paul: Which Letters Did He Really Write?

There is, however, a massive consensus in modern scholarship that those three letters to Timothy and Titus were written in Paul's name but long after his death. It would seen, then, that around 1265 a Byzantine artist at Sopoćani already accepted that viewpoint -- hence, only 10 scrolls for 10 letters.

There is also a strong (but not massive) consensus among much of modern scholarship that a further three of those 10 letters were not written by Paul. MORE

Bishops react to to NY marriage change with varied actions

When the state of New York allows same-gender couples to marry beginning July 24, some of the state's Episcopal Church bishops are requiring their partnered clergy to avail themselves of the law.

Clergy living in same-gender relationships in the Diocese of Long Island have nine months from July 24 to have their relationships "be regularized either by the exchange of vows in marriage" or live apart, Bishop Lawrence Provenzano announced in a July 8 pastoral letter setting out guidelines for implementing the new law.


The letter, titled "A Theological Perspective and Practical Guideline on Marriage in the Diocese of Long Island as New York," was sent to all diocesan clergy and is to be read in Long Island parishes on Aug. 7.
"I deem it to be honest and fair, and I do so direct and require, now that it is legal, that only married couples may live together, either in rectories or elsewhere as a clergy couple living in the midst of our faith community," wrote the bishop, who had earlier welcomed the new law's passage.

Provenzano told Episcopal News Service in a telephone interview July 11 that after he consulted with the leadership of the diocese "it was clear that the consensus of thinking was that there ought to be some time frame" on fulfilling his requirement. "If we left it completely open-ended, it might not be acted on" and that inaction would create a "disparity," he said, noting that he would not allow a heterosexual clergy couple to live together outside of marriage.

The bishop said he has not received any criticism from the gay and lesbian clergy of the diocese.
"At least as it applies to the Diocese of Long Island, I don't think it's going to feel to anyone that I am being unpastoral or punitive in any way or creating a hardship for them by saying nine months," he said. "I suspect that most of our partnered gay and lesbian clergy have been living in committed relationships for a fairly long period of time and that the concept of being married is exactly what they've been waiting for to happen, so the church moving in this direction with them is welcomed."

Provenzano noted that the lay people involved in these same-gender relationships are being told by their employers that they must marry in order to preserve their benefits.

"An overarching ecclesial matter" for him, the bishop said, was that there not be a long period of time when the clergy of the diocese seemed to have "a special privilege over the lay folk of their parishes" in terms of these employment requirements.

Meanwhile, Manhattan-based Diocese of New York, Bishop Mark Sisk said in a letter to clergy about their options for marrying same-gender couples under the law that "in the spirit of the opportunity provided by this new law, it is my expectation that all those who are currently living in committed relationships, will, in due course, have those relationships formalized by the state of New York."

This, Sisk said, "is an especially high priority for priests and deacons because in their ordination vows they promised to pattern their lives and that of their families and households "in accordance with the teachings of Christ" so that they may be "a wholesome example" to people.

Diocese of Rochester Bishop Prince Sing, a strong supporter of the law, told ENS via e-mail that he has commissioned a "Marriage Equality Task Force made up of thoughtful leaders to study, distill and provide me with options and guidelines to help us move forward with dignity and integrity." Singh asked the group to provide their recommendations within the next four weeks.

In the Buffalo-based Diocese of Western New York, Bishop William Franklin, who welcomed the new law, said he is writing a policy statement for the diocese, which will be issued before the law goes into effect. That works comes as the bishop finished a series of meetings with various groups of clergy and diocesan leaders to listen to their views on the topic of marriage equality.

Elsewhere in the Episcopal Church where dioceses are located within states and other jurisdictions that allow same-gender marriage, bishops' policies differ.

In the Diocese of Washington, Bishop John Chane does not required clergy living in same-gender relationships to marry. The diocese encompasses four Maryland counties and the District of Columbia, which began allowing same-gender marriage in March 2010. At that time Chane said that clergy could preside at such civil marriages. The guidelines Chane set are here.

Chane told ENS in a telephone interview July 11 that he would "never, ever" require priests in his diocese who live in same-gender relationships to marry unless they wanted to.

To do so, he said, misses the fact that civil authorities have denied "basic human rights and privileges" to same-gender couples for years and now "it's almost as if the straight community is once again telling gay people what they ought to do and I find that really somewhat troublesome."

The district's law "gives people the right and I believe also the opportunity to determine if in fact they wish to be married to one another, or whether they wish to retain the relationship that they had to live with given the laws that were in effect prior to being allowed to be married like anyone else," the bishop said.
Previously, "they had no option but to either live quietly in a closet, live quietly together and not do anything or live quietly and ask the church in some way to bless their commitment to one another, but their human rights had been violated by the status quo," he said, adding that some people in such relationships could lose their jobs if it became known that they were married to someone of the same gender.
"In a culture that is still going through turmoil trying to understand the nature of human sexuality and relationships that are same-gender, I find that … to be unconscionable," he said.
Rather than be definitive about what clergy living in such relationships must do, "as we go through this transitional time, there has to be some real careful exercise of … a pastoral embrace," he said.

Chane said that at least six clergy in his diocese who had been living in committed relationships which had been formally blessed by the church have chosen to get married in the district. Most others living in same-gender relationships (including those in the Maryland portions of the diocese) have had those commitments blessed by the church, he added, noting that the diocese was among the first to begin blessing such relationships for diocesan members.

The Rev. Canon Mally Lloyd, Diocese of Massachusetts canon to the ordinary, said in a comment e-mailed to ENS July 11 that "in general the bishops' practice during this time of transition and change has been to treat situations with pastoral care whenever possible because the fact that marriage is now legal for gay and lesbian people is a quantum shift in identity and possibility for many of them, and to put a timeline on a couple's readiness for the sacramental rite of marriage when that has never been available to them before seems arbitrary and unpastoral."

In 2004, the State of Massachusetts was the first state to issue licenses for same-gender marriages. The diocese does not have a written policy on the issue.

"We feel it is important to hear the voices and experiences of gay and lesbian people on this subject, and that takes time," Lloyd continued. "The standard here has been that unmarried people should not live together in church-owned housing, but there is no written policy.”

The Diocese of Connecticut has no written policy on marriage for clergy living in same-gender relationships, according to the Rev. Canon Erick Larsen, canon for transition ministry. However, when the state passed first a civil-union bill and later a same-gender marriage law, then-diocesan Bishop Andrew Smith expected gay and lesbian clergy to live with the same sort of fidelity and commitment that was expected of heterosexual clergy, Larsen said.

"The same rules apply to everybody, regardless of gender," Larsen said, adding that "there's been no public change" in that approach since Ian Douglas succeed Smith in April 2010.
In July 2009, the church's General Convention passed Resolution C056, which said in part 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." The resolution also called for the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music to work with the House of Bishops to collect and develop theological resources and liturgies for blessing same-gender relationships. The commission is to report to the 77th General Convention in 2012 in Indianapolis.

Church Pension Group of the Episcopal Church extends "parity of benefits for legally-married same-gender spouses"

The Church Pension Group of the Episcopal Church said July 11 that it decided nearly a month ago to follow the requirements of the New York law and provide "parity of benefits for legally-married same-gender spouses." A letter explaining the change was recently sent to all participants.


In announcing the changes, the Manhattan-based Pension Group said in its statement that, "under the laws of the State of New York, employers subject to New York State law must recognize same-gender marriages that are validly solemnized within or outside the State of New York for the purposes of providing benefits to employees."

The rule changes apply to participants in the Church Pension Fund Clergy Pension Plan, the defined-benefit Episcopal Church Lay Employees' Retirement Plan and the Church Pension Fund Clergy Post-Retirement Medical Assistance Plan (known as the Medicare Supplement Benefit).
Previously, in terms of pension benefits, the Clergy Pension Plan offered at no cost to the cleric an automatic survivor benefit for an eligible surviving spouse equal to 50 percent of the cleric's pension benefit at the time of the cleric's death, according to the Church Pension Benefits Under the Church Pension Fund. A reduction in the cleric's benefit could increase the survivor benefit to 60, 75, 85 or 100 percent of the cleric's pension benefit. An "eligible spouse" was previously defined as "the individual that the cleric is married to pursuant to the laws of the State governing the creation of the civil state of marriage and to the Canons of the Episcopal Church governing the solemnization of Holy Matrimony."

Title I, Canon 18 defines marriage as that between a man and a woman, and says that "every member of the clergy of this Church shall conform to the laws of the State governing the creation of the civil status of marriage, and also to the laws of this Church governing the solemnization of Holy Matrimony."
Clergy who were single in the eyes of the civil jurisdiction in which they lived could establish a survivor's benefit at various percentages for a named beneficiary, according to the guide.

A summary of the rule changes is here.

CA California Faith for Equality announces the resumption of operations

The Board of Directors of California Faith for Equality (CFE) announced today that it has retained the services of an experienced transition management team, enabling it to resume operations that had been interrupted in April due to funding

challenges.

Rev. Dr. Neil Thomas, the President of CFE, announced, “we are incredibly pleased to announce that due to the support of our community we have been able to

retain some of the best nonprofit executive staffing available anywhere.”

 He noted that the organization had retained one of the nation’s most experienced nonprofit transition management professional services firms, Third Sector Company, based in Long Beach and Vancouver.

Thomas went on to announce that the new Interim Executive Director of CFE will be Marc Haupert, a highly experienced transition and executive management consultant and a veteran in leadership of major nonprofit organizations in the Midwest and California. “Marc’s well demonstrated organizational, programming and advocacy skills will ensure maximum productivity and a smooth transition to a permanent staffing structure,” said Thomas.

The management team will also include Kurt Swanson, whose extensive nonprofit and business experience includes serving as Administrative Director of the AIDS Pastoral Care Network, Chicago’s largest interfaith network working with LGBTQ communities to facilitate care for those with HIV disease. Swanson will serve as Interim Director of Operations and Programs. Haupert and Swanson will be assisted by The Third Sector’s CEO, Jeffrey Wilcox and other Third Sector consultants, comprising a team that offers unsurpassed organizational development leadership.

“We want to sincerely thank the committed clergy and secular leaders whose belief in the importance of having voices of faith at the center of the struggle for equality for God’s GLBTQ community has brought us five years of notable success, in the face of significant challenges. CFE has grown into a statewide organization that has effectively harnessed the power of religious witness on behalf of civil rights and religious freedom, providing important leadership in California and support for people of faith organizing in other states,” Thomas said.

“I am honored to be stepping into leadership of one of our state’s most important advocacy and education organizations working to ensure equal rights and protections for all in our communities,” Haupert added. “From my first work in LGBT and African American civil rights advocacy in the 70’s, to leading some of our nation’s leading AIDS service organizations in the 80’s and 90’s, to assisting nonprofits of all kinds to better serve their missions in recent years, I have been continually awed by the progress that a dedicated and passionate few can achieve.”

 “We are at a turning point in the struggle for equal rights for the LGBTQ community. There is much more to do, and the voices of people of faith will need to continue to be the loudest expressions of truth, compassion and fierce dedication to human rights, as they have throughout history,” he said.

 The new office of the organization will be located at 4444 Riverside Drive, Suite 104, Toluca Lake, CA 91505. Haupert can be reached at Marc@CAfaithForEquality.org. More information is available at www.cafaithforequality.org  

Church of England bishops meet ministers over 'chilling' effect of equality laws

Church of England bishops have urged the Coalition to protect Christians from the “chilling” effect of equality laws, in a series of meetings with ministers.

  MORE

Church of England faces being wiped out, report warns

"We are faced with a stark and urgent choice: do we spend the next few years managing decline, or do we go for growth?

"In other words, do we accept the continual numerical decline of the Church of England as inevitable, or do we dare to believe a different future, that God might want his Church to grow, in holiness and in numbers?"

MORE

Lambeth rebuke for Kenya ordinations

The Church times reports:

A LAMBETH Palace statement has criticised the foundation of the Anglican Mission in England (AMIE), and the ordination in Kenya, last month, of three men from the diocese of Southwark (News, 1 July).
The statement said that Lambeth was “not at all clear” how the panel of five bishops, appointed by the AMIE, a new, conservative Evan­gelical group, “relate to the proper oversight of the diocesan bishop in the Church of England. Nor is there any definition of what the issues are that might be thought to justify appeal to such a panel rather than the use of normal procedures.”
The Archbishop of Canterbury had spoken to the Archbishop of Kenya, Dr Eliud Wabukala, the statement said, about the ordina­tions of the men, who are members of the AMIE.

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Rowan Williams: God's boxer

The archbishop of Canterbury talks to David Hare about taking on the coalition, the atheists – and why life isn't like a Woody Allen movie.

"Like Barack Obama, Williams seemed a good man dealt an impossible hand. If you had happened, at any point, to follow the unending rows about gay clergy and women bishops, then it was obvious that the archbishop had endured a great deal from some insufferable oafs in the higher reaches of Anglicanism who had always been ready to pretend that their lack of Christian kindness towards colleagues was somehow justified by faith."

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