Just a few years ago, public opinion placed Christianity clearly in the "God vs. Gay" camp. Today, despite what Rick Perry would have us think, nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of Americans agree that gay and lesbian relationships should be accepted by society, including majorities of all major religious groups except white evangelicals (Public Religion Research Institute, Aug. 29, 2011).
The events of 2011 demonstrated this shift in profound and thrilling ways. Following are the top 10 put together by the Believe Out Loud team.
May it be so in 2012.
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Believe Out Loud: A Million Christians for LGBT Equality - YouTube
Shame on them.
No. It is considered a sin by some people who call themselves Christians. There is a difference.
As an agnostic, I have always been amused at the concept of a god that would create a creature in his image, but that could not decide if this creature should be male or female. Would this god be hermaphrodite?
What is more, the scriptures suggest that Adam was to be immortal. Now what would an immortal creature have any use for a sex (or even food)? Why then would this god not just make nothing but males, or nothing but females, or nothing but hermaphrodites? It seems rather malicious. Would this gay trend be a just return to what should have been?
As much as I do not agree with this Religion, far from it, I have to admit that its position on gays is final. The religion has always said, “this is the Truth”; there is no turning a cheek to that, nor changing the slightest comma, without undermining its 'infallibility' and its authority or validity.
I can't understand this almost manic determination to want to make a square peg fit in a round hole. There are other religious philosophies out there . And, if none fit the bill, create one, but with new parts, not old antiquated parts that just won't fit together.
This is nonsense. It is comparable to a celibate priest declaring absolute truths about the experience of sexuality.
Once again, there's an opponent of religion promoting anti-gay theology, and endangering GLBTQ people, in order to advance his prejudice against people of faith.
When all is said and done, we will see who was right.
I feel the need to allow my 'former-catholic-voice' to note: the above should read...
"We are to ATTEMPT TO love our neighbors as we love ourselves and ATTEMPT TO love one another as Jesus loved us..."
In our failures to accomplish these noble_goals lies our humanity...
That said I’m on a poly-theist-road these days...
I cannot imagine returning to previous spiritual_ways specifically because of those who’d attempt to control who I marry/when-I-reproduce, (or...'don't'!), and who my children, (if I hadn't 'vasectomized'), would have fought-to-the-death for, (either 'profit', aka, the war-on-terror...), and/or 'entertainment';
These lost show little sign of enlightenment!
The (retired) ‘Paramedic, A.C.L.S.’ in me would assign a ‘Glasgow_Coma_Scale’ number, but…the G.C.S. only descends to ‘3’; A 'picture' of a frog has a G.C.S. of ‘3’!
In watching the republican's Mini-Deities waddle towards November, I'm amused;
But ONLY because I can't imagine any of them, sitting, (Lewinsky-&/or-male-clone-to-one-side, 'Football'-on-the-other!) in their ‘pro-life’ non-scientific-irrationality, behind that desk from which it is rumored the 'Buck' has no_escape!
There is no such thing as "the GLBT lifestyle" - you have sinned, and as a follower of Christ, must repent.
Were Adam and Eve black, brown, red, blonde headed?
Were Adam and Eve right handed or left handed?
Were Adam and Eve seven feet tall or three feet tall?
There is a lot of diversity in the human population G-d created when G-d created humanity. Gay males and Gay females are also some of that diversity.
And G-d said it was good.
We remember that we're not supposed to judge people... that's not our job.
We each strive to live life as best and fully as possible instead of "just getting by."
We raise our kids to be happy, adventurous, healthy, loving individuals as kids tend to be.
We learn how to give and receive hugs. Big bear hugs. Because they make the world a much better place.
... I think it's a good idea, anyway. I think I'll start my own "Free Hugs" campaign in Texas. Anyone with me??
I think that in churches, kindness increases as you move lower in the hierarchy, and I’d expect Sojourners readers to be second to none in the kindness department. So I too might reject an ad that accuses them so harshly. I wonder if there are any real-life scenarios of hostility (outside the deep South) like the cold rejection depicted in the ad, or is the ad a reaction to a nonexistent problem, a rebuke to people who don’t deserve it.
It doesn’t say much for the gay couple that they wish to be welcomed by a congregation of cold, nasty people. Is there no Unitarian church where they live? No Dignity, Integrity, or Am Tikva? I’d prefer the ad to have shown the family turning on their heels and seeking a church worth belonging to.
So maybe Sojourners made the right decision in rejecting the ad, and their error was the statement of their rationale that suggests that they have decided not to care a great deal about LGBT concerns. If they don’t care, they ought to. You can’t be in the vanguard of social justice activism and not care about justice and equality for gay people.
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I've done on the ground research with real, live LG couples who were members of the Episcopal Church's OASIS outreach group. They told me terrible, terrible stories of being rejected by people (including clergy) at the "low end" of the hierarchy.
But you don't have to believe me. Just read the comments from some of these "kind" Christians right here on this thread. The best they can do is "love the sinner, hate the sin".
Why? Because they are fundamentalists. You would find the exact same thing in fundamentalist Jewish congregations, and Muslim congregations as well.
The root problem is that they are trying to be "virtuous" by following the teachings of deeply flawed and ancient texts - even though so much of what those texts assert has been proven false by our modern science.
We now know that homosexuality has NOTHING to do with moral evil. It is simply one more character trait that arises in early childhood for some 5% or so of the population - not unlike being left-handed.
Fundamentalists are simply in denial, because to admit the truth would undermine their entire world view.
I think it's kind of pathetic that some gay people crave acceptance by awful people in awful churches. I'd vote for growing up and letting go of affection for the churches of their childhoods that don't want them. After all, entering a church is strictly voluntary. And there's no law against being hateful. So let the haters hate, and let the rest of us find love and community elsewhere. For me, that's as far away from a church as I can get, but for people who need church, there are welcoming alternatives.
THere is certainly a struggle within the RCC but the struggle exists at the top and not in the pews. I had happily begun to attend my childhood parish up until the priest made a plea for us to call our state rep's and urge them not to vote for gay marriage to be legalized in NY. This happenned at the end of the liturgy and the speech went on for a while and though straight I was very offended.After that service I found a new RCC church.
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I guarantee you these "ministries" are entirely different. The collegiate church (if it is indeed like the one in the ad) is ACCEPTING and APPROVING of same sex relationships. The roman catholic church is NOT.
Want to be sure? Just ask each of the pastoral leaders if they would preside at a same sex wedding, now that it's legal in NYC.
Boththese churches are landmark churches in NYC and are doing A LOT ofgood work in NYC....