Majority of Catholics and Protestants support marriage equality

gaywrites:

More and more religious individuals support marriage equality, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center. 

The study found that a majority of both Catholics and white mainline Protestants now support marriage equality. Support for same-sex marriage has increased across the board even among the most traditionally homophobic groups; 23% of white evangelicals now support marriage equality, up from 13% in 2001. In addition, fewer people report that supporting same-sex marriage goes against their religious beliefs.

A third of the people who participated in the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life said their minds changed on marriage equality because someone they know — either family, friend, or other acquaintance — came out to them as LGBT. Equal percentages of people, 18%, said they now support marriage equality because it’s either inevitable and the world is changing, or because they think the government should no longer dictate marriage on a personal level. 

As if it needed to be said, support for marriage equality among people who aren’t religiously affiliated is at an all-time high. The more you know! 

Iowa View: 1 man, 1 woman isn't the Bible's only marriage view

The debate about marriage equality often centers, however discretely, on an appeal to the Bible. Unfortunately, such appeals often reflect a lack of biblical literacy on the part of those who use that complex collection of texts as an authority to enact modern social policy.

As academic biblical scholars, we wish to clarify that the biblical texts do not support the frequent claim that marriage between one man and one woman is the only type of marriage deemed acceptable by the Bible’s authors.

TransGriot: Indonesia's Trans Muslims

Here’s a documentary focusing on our Indonesian trans sisters.   They have been catching hell there lately, and the anti-trans attitudes whipped up by fundie Muslims even affected a 2010 international trans conference held there.   The anti-trans hatred is felt even more keenly by our Indonesian trans sisters who are Muslims who simply want to be themselves and practice their faith.

Church of Scotland Accepts Gay Ministers.

The Church of Scotland‘s ruling general assembly has voted to allow congregations in Scotland to admit gay ministers, if they elect to do so, in a radical departure from more than 450 years of history and ending a four year long argument. The ‘gay ministers’ issue has dominated discussion within the church for some time&

collective striving & struggle: Coming Out Muslim Blog: Resistance as Liberation

chashmesia:

http://comingoutmuslim.squarespace.com/com-blog/2012/11/15/resistance-as-liberation.html

Last Saturday, TTG and I met up at Columbia University for the first ever Muslim Writer’s Symposium entitled, The Muslim Protagonist: an opportunity to convene some of the most brilliant writers and…

(via queermuslims)

Source: comingoutmuslim.squarespace.com

UK: Leading black Pentecostal pastor backs equal marriage for same-sex couples

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Rev Paul Bailey says that gay couples should have the right to marry (Photo: Keep the Faith)
Rev Paul Bailey says that gay couples should have the right to marry (Photo: Keep the Faith)

The Reverend Paul Bailey has become one of the first black church leaders to back the introduction of same-sex marriage in England and Wales. Mr Bailey, who leads the Regeneration Project, an inclusive Pentecostal church in Mitcham, south London, said that the Government plans to give “equal rights to an oppressed sexual minority.”

He said: “At its heart, this is a civil rights issue. It is important to note that in the Bible, marriage was fluid and amorphous; there are many kinds of marriage in Scripture. It is only in Jesus that we move towards a concrete definition.”

The church leader was speaking to Keep the Faith earlier this month. The publication asked him why he supports equality given than many Pentecostals are against equal rights for gay people.

“For some Pentecostals, this is a matter of conscience based on their interpretation of Scripture,” he replied. “For others, this is simply hate-based homophobia. Marriage is a legally-binding covenant of love and commitment. Gay people are uniquely created by God to reflect the beauty and diversity of His creation, just as heterosexual people; they should enjoy the same rights. Our failure to interpret and apply Scripture accurately has resulted in murder, persecution and oppression for the way gay people have been created, ie. their sexual orientation.”

The minister argued that he can support equal rights for gay couples because of the way that Jesus ministered to eunuchs, who were discriminated against in the Old Testament laws, as were gay people.

“The statements in Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Romans, 1 Corinthians and 1 Timothy refer to a range of homosexual acts, but not to the issue of same-sex orientation, or to loving relationships between people of the same gender,” he said. “Scripture should be applied in the light of God’s welcome of excluded peoples. If the Scriptures do not prohibit same-sex love, then who are we to exclude those whom God has included? Some may say we are stretching, we are; we are trying to reach out to our lost and excluded brothers and sisters.”

He admitted that most of his fellow black church leaders disagree with his interpretation saying: “Homophobia is rife and unchallenged in many of our churches. Regardless of where we stand on this issue, we are called to love and reconciliation. Substance misuse, suicide, self-harm and poor mental health are significantly higher in the gay community. We all have a role in ministering to broken people. ”

Rev David Shosanya, director & regional minister of the London Baptist Association said that he disagreed with the interpretations of Mr Bailey but said: “How we handle our divergence of opinions is an indicator of our maturity and perhaps a statement of our measure in Christ.” He added: “We may not agree with Rev Bailey, (whom I know) but I refuse to demonise my brother!”

WATCH: Gay Mormon Student Says He'll Live 'Horrible,' Celibate Life

The gay Mormon BYU student who filmed his family and friends’ reactions to his coming out tells Current TV that his life will be celibate, “horrible, and it’s going to suck.”

BY SUNNIVIE BRYDUM

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On Wednesday, Jimmy Lee Hales, a Mormon student at Brigham Young University, came out to the world in a big way — with a YouTube video that captured the honest reactions of Hales’ family and friends as he told them for the first time that he is gay. On Thursday, Hales appeared on Joy Behar’s Current TV program, Say Anything!, to talk about how his sexuality coexists with his faith. 

“The whole being celibate and openly gay thing doesn’t sit well with a lot of people,” Hales toldSay Anything guest host Nancy Giles. “And frankly, I can’t blame them.”

Giles presses Hales on his gay-but-celibate future, asking if he’s really OK with his fate.

“Yes,” replies Hales tentatively. “I’m willing to endure this life. It’s going to be horrible and it’s going to suck. I’m going to be lonely, and no one wants that. But I believe in the end, it’ll be worth it.”

Click the header link above to watch the interview.

WATCH: A Gay Mormon Comes Out to Family, Friends

A self-described gay Mormon student at Brigham Young University filmed the reactions of his family and friends as he told each of them for the first time that he is gay.

BY SUNNIVIE BRYDUM

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Jimmy Lee Hales, a Mormon student at Brigham Young University, is finally coming out as gay to his friends and family — and catching the whole experience on camera. In a lengthy blog post announcing the news, Hales describes coming to terms with his sexuality slowly, as his friends coupled up with opposite-sex partners. Hales writes he first acknowledged his “same-gender attraction” with his bishop, who replied, simply, “That sucks.”

“It was exactly what I needed to hear,” wrote Hales. “I needed empathy. I need empathy. He didn’t make the mistake and tell me to have hope, or that one day I still might get married. Either one of those approaches would have thrust me out the door. My bishop is a man of God. The topic was relatively new to him and I feel he did well with it. He is a man of God, with the gift of discernment that I haven’t seen before.”

Encouraged by his bishop’s reaction, Hales eventually came out to his best friend in 2012, according to his blog. After her surprised but supportive reaction, Hales decided to begin documenting his coming out process on video. Hales hopes that by documenting his experiences, he can help demonstrate that not all Mormons are gay-hating.

“I believe, with time, it won’t as big a deal to all members of the church either,” writes Hales. “They just need opportunity to think about it, so here I am posting about it. Every Mormon I’ve come out to has been awesome. Soon enough, gay people will be able to come out and not be as afraid to do so.”

Click the header link above to watch the video.

WATCH: 'God Made a Gay Man' Proclaims 'It's Great to Be Gay'

TW: anti-gay slurs
Gay publication Crew magazine produced a video commending the resilience, creativity, and pride of gay men.

BY SUNNIVIE BRYDUM

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Inspired by the Dodge Ram Super Bowl commercial “God Made a Farmer,” gay magazine Crewhas produced a touching tribute to the strength of gay men, appropriately titled “So God Made a Gay Man.”

Opening with a phrase reminiscent of the book of Genesis, the video declares that on the eighth day, God made a gay man, and said:

“I need someone with a will strong enough to rustle rejection from those who love him, to repel the abuse from those who condemn him, wish him ill, call him ‘fairy,’ and ‘flamer, and ‘freak,’ and ‘faggot.’ And yet, someone forgiving enough to open his arms when they finally understand his heart and soul are no different from their own. So God made a gay man.”

Click the header link above to watch the video.

Vatican backtracks on support for gay couples

A top Vatican official blamed the media for “derailing” his recent remarks on possible legal protections for unmarried couples, while reaffirming his support for British and French bishops who have been vocal opponents of same-sex marriage. Speaking at a Vatican press conference on Monday (Feb. 4), Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, head of the Pontifical Council for the Family, had acknowledged that nations could find “private law solutions” to protect the rights of unmarried couples — including, potentially, gay and lesbian couples.

Paglia also said the church should support the repeal of laws that criminalize homosexuality in various countries. His remarks were widely repeated, with some interpreting it as a softening of the Vatican’s stance just as bishops in France and Britain are furiously opposing the legalization of same-sex marriage. In an interview on Vatican Radio on Wednesday (Feb. 6), Paglia said he had been “very surprised” by the way his words had been reported by “some media.”

“Not only were the words not understood … but in truth, and perhaps knowingly, they were, as it were, derailed,” he said.

For the archbishop, recognizing that “norms that protect individual rights” can find their place in “existing (legal) systems” is “completely different” from approving same-sex marriage. Marianne Duddy-Burke, executive director of DignityUSA, a lay group for gay Catholics, called Paglia’s apparent backtracking “disheartening.” However, she emphasized that “real hope on this front comes from the people, not the hierarchy,” as Catholics “continue to grow increasingly supportive of civil recognition of same-sex couples’ relationships.”

In his original remarks, Paglia had been careful to stress that the protection of the rights for unmarried couples shouldn’t be confused with the reaffirmation of the unique value of traditional marriage. But his words came on the eve of a key vote by the British Parliament on legalizing gay marriage, which passed Tuesday 400-175 with the support of Prime Minister David Cameron. In his Vatican Radio interview, Paglia said he was “totally supportive” of British bishops, and that he had been equally sympathetic to initiatives by French bishops to attempt to stop the legalization of gay marriage.

Broad Coalition Prods Congress to Pass Immigration Overhaul

By Kate Ackley

On the heels of a bipartisan Senate agreement to overhaul immigration laws and a day before the president plans to give a speech on the issue, a collection of unions, immigration groups and social organizations announced a major campaign to build momentum for legislation. They are organizing a rally on Capitol Hill on April 10 to coincide with demonstrations across the country, the groups announced Monday during a news conference. Mary Kay Henry, the international president of the Service Employees International Union, said she and her allies, which include the NAACP and faith-based organizations, expect lawmakers “to fix our broken immigration system now.” “We will march, rally, pray and knock on every door in Congress,” she said.

The union leaders and other speakers said prerequisites for their support include a path to citizenship for the millions of undocumented workers now in the United States that keeps families together. But offering a glimpse of some of the possible hurdles ahead, Mee Moua, president and executive director of the Asian American Justice Center, noted that the Senate framework does not include gay families. She added that immigration legislation “must be inclusive of all our families.”

Although organizations such as the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops generally support an immigration overhaul — including a pathway to citizenship for undocumented workers — the bishops oppose equivalent treatment for same-sex families. Some Republican lawmakers have also said they will oppose measures that include a path to citizenship for workers who have come to the country illegally. Members of the groups nonetheless struck an upbeat, urgent tone Monday, emphasizing that this is the year to pass a bill and that lawmakers of either party who do not get on board do so at their peril heading into the midterm elections. They also noted that they are working with traditional rivals in the business community including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

“This country has the greatest level of consensus on this issue that we have ever seen,” said Benjamin Todd Jealous, president of the NAACP. “This is an issue that black voters see as a basic humanitarian need for this country.” Added Sister Simone Campbell, executive director of Network, “As a people of faith, we have great hope today.”