'emjam@sysnet.net'
I forward this public statement from MCC’s Office of the Moderator along with my concern that Jamaica seems to be such an unfriendly and dangerous place for lesbian and gay persons. I join my voices to others worldwide calling for an end to human rights abuses against gay and lesbian people in Jamaica. No one should live in fear of their safety simply for being who they are or for being in a consensual adult relationship with another person of any gender. It is time for the leadership of Jamaica to do something to protect the gay and lesbian minority from violence and abuse.
Yours most sincerely,
Durrell+
The Reverend Canon Durrell Watkins, M.A., M.Div.
Sunshine Cathedral
www.sunshinecathedral.org
……………………………………………
P U B L I C S T A T E M E N T
For Immediate Release: February 20, 2007
Leader of Metropolitan Community Churches (MCC)Expresses Outrage Over Attacks on Gays in Jamaica
Issues Urgent Call For Prayers, Actions To SupportJamaicans Targeted For Violence And Abuse
Statement byRev. Elder Nancy L. Wilson
Office of the ModeratorMetropolitan Community Churches
A series of escalating attacks against gays and lesbians in Jamaica has prompted our call today for island officials to guarantee the human rights and safety of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons across Jamaica.Today I am calling upon people of conscience around the world to speak up and to support those who are struggling for human and civil rights in Jamaica.The lethal combination of homophobia and AIDS-phobia must stop. We cannot stand by and watch as our sisters and brothers are tormented, beaten, raped and killed solely for being who they are. There are leaders in Jamaica, including political and religious leaders, who have failed to speak up. Such silence is not acceptable. Now is the time for all people of goodwill to speak out for justice and against intolerance. No person of conscience should remain silent in the face of the continuing horrific attacks on gays in Jamaica.
The Valentine's Day attack on three gay men at a pharmacy in Tropical Plaza in St. Andrews parish of Jamaica is part of a pattern of violence against gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender persons. This pattern of anti-gay violence, which has included public beatings and numerous murders of gay people, has often flown under the radar of the Jamaican press and received scant attention from civil authorities.According to the gay rights group Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG), three men were shopping in a local pharmacy in the parish of St. Andrew when two of them were targeted by an unnamed woman who reprimanded them for what she termed "distasteful" behavior. According to eyewitnesses, she left the store and made a phone call that resulted in a large crowd gathering at the Monarch Pharmacy. The crowd called for the three men to be "sent out" to face them. The incident is tragically reminiscent of the infamous biblical story of Sodom and Gomorrah, found in the 19th chapter of the Book of Genesis.
The management of the pharmacy locked the three men inside for their safety until police arrived. To get the men out of the pharmacy and into a waiting police van, officers fired tear gas into the crowd. One of the men reported he was gun-butted by the police and another was hit in the head with a stone. All three men report they were repeatedly taunted by the police officers with anti-gay slurs.
Since the Valentines Day attack, the tragedy and violence have continued to grow. Over the last few days, other gay people reportedly have been attacked in Ocho Rios and Montego Bay, and at least one gay person in Montego Bay has been murdered. And on Sunday, there was an unconfirmed report that one of the three men attacked on Valentines Day had attempted suicide in the aftermath of the attack.Metropolitan Community Churches, which recently opened a worshipping community in Jamaica, offered to relocate the gay men to a safer venue. The men have also been encouraged by their friends to go into hiding until their safety can be assured. We are deeply concerned for the safety of these men, and for the well-being of thousands of gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender persons in Jamaica -- a country designated by Time magazine as "the most homophobic country in the Western Hemisphere."
One of the young men, whom we will only identify by his first name of Gareth, said, "They may kill me, but I am dead already if I do nothing." He said he will stay and continue to fight for the human rights of all Jamaicans, including its lesbian and gay citizens.While viewed throughout much of the world as a vacation paradise for its pristine beaches, the sad truth is that Jamaica harbors the world's highest murder rate. Over the past several years, Metropolitan Community Churches has confirmed a pattern of abuse, hostility, attacks, and murder of persons solely because they may be perceived to be gay or lesbian, from the mutilation of gay rights activists Brian Williamson and the murder of Steve Harvey, to the killing of two lesbians whose bodies were left in a ditch and whose known slayer was for days left unquestioned by police, to the father who upon learning of his young son's gay identity, invited a crowd to the boy's school to lynch him.In light of these developments, I have asked the Global Justice Team of Metropolitan Community Churches, led by Rev. Pat Bumgardner, to monitor the situation in Jamaica and to assist the Office of the Moderator in developing an on-going plan to support human rights for the gay community there. I have also designated Rev. Robert Griffin as MCC's representative to gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people and groups across Jamaica.On behalf of Metropolitan Community Churches, I am today calling upon people of goodwill everywhere to stand up and say, "Enough is enough!"
There can be no moral or Biblical justification for the targeting and slaughter of any group of people simply because of who they are. It was wrong to target Jewish people in World War II, and it was shameful to target U.S. citizens of Japanese origin for internment during that same time. It was wrong to target ethnic groups in Eastern Europe and Chesnya; it was wrong to target the Hutu and Tutsi tribes of Rwanda for genocide in the 1990's; and it is wrong to target the people of Darfur in the Sudan today. And such targeting is just as morally reprehensible when used against gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender people in Jamaica.It is imperative that the world raise a united voice once again -- this time against the violence, hatred, and murder that is targeted against God's gay children, not only in Jamaica, but also around the globe.Today I call upon political leaders and spiritual leaders in Jamaica to work publicly for an end to identity-motivated violence.Today I call upon all people of goodwill to speak out on behalf of those whose lives are marginalized and jeopardized by hatred, bigotry, and violence in Jamaica.
Today, I call upon people of faith to hold these three men who were attacked on Valentines Day in your prayers, along with a growing number of individuals and families across Jamaica whose lives have been touched by a pattern of anti-gay violence.
Today, I call upon the leaders of all religious communions to join in declaring Ash Wednesday a day of fasting and prayer for an end to the violence against gay people in Jamaica.
And today I call for concerned people everywhere to write directly to Jamaica's Prime Minister, The Most Honorable Portia Simpson Miller, by e-mail at HPM@opm.gov.jm. Ask her to speak out publicly against the violence, to establish a tone of respect and tolerance for all life, and to guarantee the human rights and safety of Jamaica's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens.This Lenten season is an appropriate time for people of goodwill everywhere to change course and live together in ways that honor the sanctity and value of all life./signed/Rev. Elder Nancy L. WilsonOffice of the ModeratorMetropolitan Community Churches (END)
For Additional Information, OrTo Arrange Media Interviews, Contact:Rev. Pat BumgardnerChair, MCC Global Justice Team(212) 629-7440E-Mail: RvPatMCCNY@aol.com
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
My Letter to the PM of Jamaica - Please send your own calling for an end to homophobic violence in Jamaica
20 February 2007
The Reverend Canon Durrell Watkins, M.A., M.Div.
Sunshine CathedralFort Lauderdale, FL USA
The Most Honourable Portia Simpson Miller
Office of the Prime MinisterJamaica, West Indies
HPM@opm.gov.jm
Madam Prime Minister:
I write to you as a concerned citizen of the world who is particularly dismayed by frequent reports of anti-gay violence in Jamaica. I am concerned that anti-gay violence may be under reported by official agencies in Jamaica and that not nearly enough is being done to assure the safety of Jamaica's lesbian and gay citizens.
As a resident of the United States, I live less than two hours by airline from your beautiful nation. As your neighbor, I happen to meet rather a large number of lesbian and gay Jamaicans, both those who continue to live in Jamaica and those who have left Jamaica for the sake of their safety. My friends report to me regularly about horrifying violence and even murder that is waged against gays and lesbians in Jamaica. Some of the violence my friends have witnessed, and some of the violence my friends have experienced. These first hand reports coupled with reports from international human rights agencies and radio and newspaper reports in your own country all confirm that Jamaica is a very dangerous place for same-gender loving people.
Not only is violence against gay people apparently epidemic in Jamaica, but also little seems to be done to change that reality. And, when Jamaican media report anti-gay violence it is often to deny that it is truly a problem or to blame the victims for somehow deserving the abuse.
Whereas it is true that every nation has a right to govern itself without undue interference from outsiders, it is also true that every human being has the right to live safely in her or his own country.
Homosexuality may not be well understood as part of normal sexual diversity in Jamaica, and it may not be embraced as desirable by the culture at large; and yet, gays and lesbians, however misunderstood or unappreciated they might be, still have a right to live their lives as the people they are without fear of violence or death. All people, no matter what racial, ethnic, religious, economic, or sexual minority group they may represent, are entitled to equal opportunity in a society and to equal protection under the law of a society.
Regardless of what any individual believes about human sexuality, surely all people of conscience and character can agree that assault, harassment, and murder are immoral and criminal acts that harm not only the intended victim but all of society.
I appeal to your sense of human kindness and decency and ask that you take firm leadership in protecting lesbian and gay citizens of your country. Increasingly, the world is taking notice of the plight of homosexuals in Jamaica, and your leadership in increasing tolerance and goodwill in Jamaica can only strengthen the relationships between Jamaica and other nations that are concerned with justice for all people.
I call on your government to act in the interest of human rights, full equality, and safety for all. For the sake of the people I know and love in Jamaica, please do all that you can to protect them from hatred and violence.
Yours most sincerely,
Durrell+
The Reverend Canon Durrell Watkins
The Reverend Canon Durrell Watkins, M.A., M.Div.
Sunshine CathedralFort Lauderdale, FL USA
The Most Honourable Portia Simpson Miller
Office of the Prime MinisterJamaica, West Indies
HPM@opm.gov.jm
Madam Prime Minister:
I write to you as a concerned citizen of the world who is particularly dismayed by frequent reports of anti-gay violence in Jamaica. I am concerned that anti-gay violence may be under reported by official agencies in Jamaica and that not nearly enough is being done to assure the safety of Jamaica's lesbian and gay citizens.
As a resident of the United States, I live less than two hours by airline from your beautiful nation. As your neighbor, I happen to meet rather a large number of lesbian and gay Jamaicans, both those who continue to live in Jamaica and those who have left Jamaica for the sake of their safety. My friends report to me regularly about horrifying violence and even murder that is waged against gays and lesbians in Jamaica. Some of the violence my friends have witnessed, and some of the violence my friends have experienced. These first hand reports coupled with reports from international human rights agencies and radio and newspaper reports in your own country all confirm that Jamaica is a very dangerous place for same-gender loving people.
Not only is violence against gay people apparently epidemic in Jamaica, but also little seems to be done to change that reality. And, when Jamaican media report anti-gay violence it is often to deny that it is truly a problem or to blame the victims for somehow deserving the abuse.
Whereas it is true that every nation has a right to govern itself without undue interference from outsiders, it is also true that every human being has the right to live safely in her or his own country.
Homosexuality may not be well understood as part of normal sexual diversity in Jamaica, and it may not be embraced as desirable by the culture at large; and yet, gays and lesbians, however misunderstood or unappreciated they might be, still have a right to live their lives as the people they are without fear of violence or death. All people, no matter what racial, ethnic, religious, economic, or sexual minority group they may represent, are entitled to equal opportunity in a society and to equal protection under the law of a society.
Regardless of what any individual believes about human sexuality, surely all people of conscience and character can agree that assault, harassment, and murder are immoral and criminal acts that harm not only the intended victim but all of society.
I appeal to your sense of human kindness and decency and ask that you take firm leadership in protecting lesbian and gay citizens of your country. Increasingly, the world is taking notice of the plight of homosexuals in Jamaica, and your leadership in increasing tolerance and goodwill in Jamaica can only strengthen the relationships between Jamaica and other nations that are concerned with justice for all people.
I call on your government to act in the interest of human rights, full equality, and safety for all. For the sake of the people I know and love in Jamaica, please do all that you can to protect them from hatred and violence.
Yours most sincerely,
Durrell+
The Reverend Canon Durrell Watkins
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Praying for an End to Homohatred
No jokes.
No witty quips or one-liners.
No long stories.
No homilies.
No detailed arguments.
No philosophical ponderings. Not today.
Today I'm just tired. Sad. Worried.
When I think of Jamaica and Nigeria and other places where government, police, religion, and angry mobs all routinely dehumanize gay people and work to erase them from public view and concern, I just wonder when it all will stop. When will people be able to live out loud as the people they are without fear of being killed or raped or beaten? How can we bring civility to civilization?
On other days I can point to military campaigns, political movements, missionary endeavors, and other historical travesties that have led us to this point of mass homohatred in the global south and other areas, but today I don't want to play the anthropologist, the sociologist, the political scientist, or the social analyst. Today I'm just concerned and sad that people living in hiding and others are dying because hatred is so alive and well in our world. Today I'm just praying for change. Maybe that's something. I hope so, because today it's all I have.
No witty quips or one-liners.
No long stories.
No homilies.
No detailed arguments.
No philosophical ponderings. Not today.
Today I'm just tired. Sad. Worried.
When I think of Jamaica and Nigeria and other places where government, police, religion, and angry mobs all routinely dehumanize gay people and work to erase them from public view and concern, I just wonder when it all will stop. When will people be able to live out loud as the people they are without fear of being killed or raped or beaten? How can we bring civility to civilization?
On other days I can point to military campaigns, political movements, missionary endeavors, and other historical travesties that have led us to this point of mass homohatred in the global south and other areas, but today I don't want to play the anthropologist, the sociologist, the political scientist, or the social analyst. Today I'm just concerned and sad that people living in hiding and others are dying because hatred is so alive and well in our world. Today I'm just praying for change. Maybe that's something. I hope so, because today it's all I have.
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Response to Anti-Gay Attack in Jamaica (Released Feb. 16)
Sunshine Cathedral’s Pastoral Response to Anti-Gay Attack in Jamaica
For Immediate Release
We, the pastors of the Sunshine Cathedral, express deep sorrow in response to the attack suffered by three alleged homosexual men in Tropical Plaza, St. Andrew, Jamaica on Wednesday, February 14th, 2007.
According to news reports the three men were trapped in a pharmacy while a mob outside the pharmacy called for the men to be handed over to them. Some in the mob reportedly called for the men to be killed.
As people of faith, we hope for a world where peace prevails over violence and justice wins over oppression and human kindness replaces brutal prejudice. As people who preach and pray for the equality of all people, we are alarmed and grieved by the reports of three men being targeted, threatened, and even injured simply for being suspected of being gay.
Our hearts go out to the men who were terrorized by the mob and we wish the three men safety and recovery from their ordeal. We are also mindful of their families and friends at this time and of all who work to change homophobic attitudes and the violence that results from such attitudes.
As religious people and as members of the human family, we are appalled by acts of violence and we call on all people, both secular and religious, to remember and respond to what is often called The Golden Rule, which is simply to treat others as one would wish to be treated.
We ask every person of public influence to discourage violence against same-gender loving people. We hope that all people who know of this story will ask themselves, “How would I feel if the men being threatened were my friends, brothers, sons, or grandsons?” We then hope that each person will pause to realize that each of those men is in fact someone’s loved one. And in the name of human decency we hope and pray that attacks motivated by hatred and prejudice will come to an immediate end.
Finally, we applaud the law enforcement personnel who defended the men who were under attack. We hope the civil authorities will continue to work for the safety and welfare of all people. We are thankful that the men were saved from the mob’s intentions. And we hope that all who live in the fear of violence because they are or are suspected of being homosexual will remain strong and will one day soon be able to live their lives without the threat of abuse.
The Sunshine Cathedral Metropolitan Community Church affirms the sacred worth of all persons and promotes equality and human rights as core religious values. Additional comments will be released from both Sunshine Cathedral and Metropolitan Community Churches.
/Signed/
The Right Reverend Grant Lynn Ford and The Reverend Canon Durrell Watkins
on behalf of the Canon Circle of the Sunshine Cathedral
954.462.2004 (office) 954.462.7070 (fax)
Email contact: Durrell@Sunshinecathedral.org
For Immediate Release
We, the pastors of the Sunshine Cathedral, express deep sorrow in response to the attack suffered by three alleged homosexual men in Tropical Plaza, St. Andrew, Jamaica on Wednesday, February 14th, 2007.
According to news reports the three men were trapped in a pharmacy while a mob outside the pharmacy called for the men to be handed over to them. Some in the mob reportedly called for the men to be killed.
As people of faith, we hope for a world where peace prevails over violence and justice wins over oppression and human kindness replaces brutal prejudice. As people who preach and pray for the equality of all people, we are alarmed and grieved by the reports of three men being targeted, threatened, and even injured simply for being suspected of being gay.
Our hearts go out to the men who were terrorized by the mob and we wish the three men safety and recovery from their ordeal. We are also mindful of their families and friends at this time and of all who work to change homophobic attitudes and the violence that results from such attitudes.
As religious people and as members of the human family, we are appalled by acts of violence and we call on all people, both secular and religious, to remember and respond to what is often called The Golden Rule, which is simply to treat others as one would wish to be treated.
We ask every person of public influence to discourage violence against same-gender loving people. We hope that all people who know of this story will ask themselves, “How would I feel if the men being threatened were my friends, brothers, sons, or grandsons?” We then hope that each person will pause to realize that each of those men is in fact someone’s loved one. And in the name of human decency we hope and pray that attacks motivated by hatred and prejudice will come to an immediate end.
Finally, we applaud the law enforcement personnel who defended the men who were under attack. We hope the civil authorities will continue to work for the safety and welfare of all people. We are thankful that the men were saved from the mob’s intentions. And we hope that all who live in the fear of violence because they are or are suspected of being homosexual will remain strong and will one day soon be able to live their lives without the threat of abuse.
The Sunshine Cathedral Metropolitan Community Church affirms the sacred worth of all persons and promotes equality and human rights as core religious values. Additional comments will be released from both Sunshine Cathedral and Metropolitan Community Churches.
/Signed/
The Right Reverend Grant Lynn Ford and The Reverend Canon Durrell Watkins
on behalf of the Canon Circle of the Sunshine Cathedral
954.462.2004 (office) 954.462.7070 (fax)
Email contact: Durrell@Sunshinecathedral.org
Friday, February 16, 2007
Say it with me: Gay is good
I'm no follower of sports. I'm a homosexual. That means I'm exempt from watching sports. I don't even like the "gay" ones, like ice skating. Power drinking, competitive sleeping, professional bubble bath taking...these are my ideas of sports (though, I don't expect crowds to cheer me as I play them).
So, it will come as no surprise that until yesterday I had never even heard of Tim Hardaway. But there on my email news was the story of how this athletic superstar, Tim Hardaway, proudly announced in an interviewed that he hates gay people! Hates. Of course, as unenlightened as his view is, he had even more to say. In the end, he didn't seem like a very nice person and many of his associates who do want to be nice people, or who at least want to be viewed as nice people, distanced themselves from him.
The days when public figures can openly declare their hatred of entire groups of people is coming to an end (thank gods). People may continue to judge and condemn others because of racial, ethnic, or religious differences or because of sexual orientation, but they can no longer be celebrated for their bigotry. That's not just who we want to be. We want being human to mean something a bit nobler than that. Hallelujah!
Now, who cares if some ball bouncing celebrity can't cope with the diversity of the human family and thinks he has the right to say so across the air ways? Well, we all should as it turns out. When people of influence inject hatred and intolerance into the lifestream of society, it infects others. When enough people are sick with the disease of hatred, they behave reprehensibly. For example, on Valentine's Day in Jamaica, a few young men in a pharmacy were thought to be gay and were harassed as a result. One thing led to another and an hour later the police are gasing a crowd of 2000 people in order to get the men out safely. One of the men was beaten and some members of the mob hurled degrading and dehumanizing insults (and at least one stone) at the young men. The crowd demanded that the men be released to them and at least one person in the crowd called for the men's deaths!
One woman went so far as to blame the victims of the mob violence! She said the dress and demeanor of the men amounted to "flaunting" their sexuality, and in her mind, that justified gang violence and attempted murder.
The Hardaway incident and the Jamaican incident were unrelated, but then again, not. When clergy, politicians, parents, and celebrities preach and promote hatred, they are creating an atmosphere where the "other" is viewed as subhuman, and once a person is no longer a person in the eyes of potential attackers, there is nothing to prevent rabid violence. When people like Hardaway (or the pope or a political candidate or radio "shock jock" or a hyper-religious blood thirsty Hollywood film-maker, etc.) dehumanize gay people, they encourage ignorance, hatred, and violence.
Never mind "Love your neighbor." I'll settle of the Golden Rule. Treat others the way you want to be treated. I bet Hardaway doesn't want people to say that a cultural or subcultural group to which he belongs is detestable. I bet no one in the crowd on Valentine's Day would have wanted to trade places with the young men in the pharmacy. You don't have to understand others, agree with others, or like them. But why publically vilify, humiliate, or threaten them? When we deny the humanity of others, we diminish our own. So yes, Mr. Hardaway, I do hold you responsible for some of the homohatred in the world. But not just you...anyone and everyone who uses influence to degrade and damage the lives of others. Let's just fix all this foolishness right now...say it with me, "Gay is Good." And so it is.
So, it will come as no surprise that until yesterday I had never even heard of Tim Hardaway. But there on my email news was the story of how this athletic superstar, Tim Hardaway, proudly announced in an interviewed that he hates gay people! Hates. Of course, as unenlightened as his view is, he had even more to say. In the end, he didn't seem like a very nice person and many of his associates who do want to be nice people, or who at least want to be viewed as nice people, distanced themselves from him.
The days when public figures can openly declare their hatred of entire groups of people is coming to an end (thank gods). People may continue to judge and condemn others because of racial, ethnic, or religious differences or because of sexual orientation, but they can no longer be celebrated for their bigotry. That's not just who we want to be. We want being human to mean something a bit nobler than that. Hallelujah!
Now, who cares if some ball bouncing celebrity can't cope with the diversity of the human family and thinks he has the right to say so across the air ways? Well, we all should as it turns out. When people of influence inject hatred and intolerance into the lifestream of society, it infects others. When enough people are sick with the disease of hatred, they behave reprehensibly. For example, on Valentine's Day in Jamaica, a few young men in a pharmacy were thought to be gay and were harassed as a result. One thing led to another and an hour later the police are gasing a crowd of 2000 people in order to get the men out safely. One of the men was beaten and some members of the mob hurled degrading and dehumanizing insults (and at least one stone) at the young men. The crowd demanded that the men be released to them and at least one person in the crowd called for the men's deaths!
One woman went so far as to blame the victims of the mob violence! She said the dress and demeanor of the men amounted to "flaunting" their sexuality, and in her mind, that justified gang violence and attempted murder.
The Hardaway incident and the Jamaican incident were unrelated, but then again, not. When clergy, politicians, parents, and celebrities preach and promote hatred, they are creating an atmosphere where the "other" is viewed as subhuman, and once a person is no longer a person in the eyes of potential attackers, there is nothing to prevent rabid violence. When people like Hardaway (or the pope or a political candidate or radio "shock jock" or a hyper-religious blood thirsty Hollywood film-maker, etc.) dehumanize gay people, they encourage ignorance, hatred, and violence.
Never mind "Love your neighbor." I'll settle of the Golden Rule. Treat others the way you want to be treated. I bet Hardaway doesn't want people to say that a cultural or subcultural group to which he belongs is detestable. I bet no one in the crowd on Valentine's Day would have wanted to trade places with the young men in the pharmacy. You don't have to understand others, agree with others, or like them. But why publically vilify, humiliate, or threaten them? When we deny the humanity of others, we diminish our own. So yes, Mr. Hardaway, I do hold you responsible for some of the homohatred in the world. But not just you...anyone and everyone who uses influence to degrade and damage the lives of others. Let's just fix all this foolishness right now...say it with me, "Gay is Good." And so it is.
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Happy Queer Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day. People all over rush to wedding chapels to get married on this day of romance. Well, those who have the option of getting married do anyway.
A statistically significant number of people are physically and emotionally attracted to people of the same-sex. This has always been true and its true cross-culturally.
People naturally enough form supportive relationships wherein they care for one another and share their lives together. I see no legitimate reason to place legal restrictions on loving, consensual relationship regardless of the genders that make them up. Covenantal fidelity makes a marriage, not gender. To define marriage as being between one man and one woman shows that it ain't necessarily so. If it was self-evident, it wouldn't require legislation!
In some states in th U.S., bi-racial marriage was illegal (well into the last century even!). Surely we look back on that time of ignorance and bigotry with shame and embarrassment today. Now it wouldn't occur to most reasonable people that the race/races of a couple made a marriage more or less legitimate. One day we will have similar enlightened tolerance regarding same-gender loving couples who wish to legally wed.
This is really a human/equal rights issue. Strange to bring it up on the day of romance. But, until same-gender loving people have equal access to the responsibilities and benefits of marriage wherever they happen to live, romance will remain a socio-political issue that must be brought up time and again until there is truly "liberty and justice for all."
May love prevail! Happy Valentine's Day.
A statistically significant number of people are physically and emotionally attracted to people of the same-sex. This has always been true and its true cross-culturally.
People naturally enough form supportive relationships wherein they care for one another and share their lives together. I see no legitimate reason to place legal restrictions on loving, consensual relationship regardless of the genders that make them up. Covenantal fidelity makes a marriage, not gender. To define marriage as being between one man and one woman shows that it ain't necessarily so. If it was self-evident, it wouldn't require legislation!
In some states in th U.S., bi-racial marriage was illegal (well into the last century even!). Surely we look back on that time of ignorance and bigotry with shame and embarrassment today. Now it wouldn't occur to most reasonable people that the race/races of a couple made a marriage more or less legitimate. One day we will have similar enlightened tolerance regarding same-gender loving couples who wish to legally wed.
This is really a human/equal rights issue. Strange to bring it up on the day of romance. But, until same-gender loving people have equal access to the responsibilities and benefits of marriage wherever they happen to live, romance will remain a socio-political issue that must be brought up time and again until there is truly "liberty and justice for all."
May love prevail! Happy Valentine's Day.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
The Sin is NOT Homosexuality by Debra Haffner
The following web log posting is from the Reverend Debra Haffner (debrahaffner.blogspot.com). I share her thoughts because they are brilliant. And, because I am proud to say that she was one of my seminary professors (she taught my human sexuality course). Rev. Haffner is a Unitarian Universalist minister with a Master of Divinity degree from Union Theological Seminary and a Master of Public Health degree from Yale. Enjoy her wise words below:
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
The Sin is NOT Homosexuality
I've read a lot of the news reports on Rev. Barnes' resignation from his megachurch after he "confessed" his homosexuality. They all quoted a religious leader on the right who declared homosexuality a sin, and several stated their belief that homosexuality was a choice. None directly quoted a religious leader who flatly countered these positions. Let me do that here.
There is no sin in being homosexual or in engaging in same sex eroticism in a loving, just relationship. The sin is homophobia, the denigration of our neighbors because they are physically and emotionally attracted to people of the same sex. The sin is heterosexism, the presumption that heterosexuality is normative for all people and morally superior. The sin is forcing people to deny their God-given gift of their sexuality and to suffer to try to live their lives in a way that is antithetical to who they really are. The sin is violence and discrimination against GLBT persons and denial of their civil rights. The sin is when any of us, whether heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual, violate our commitments to our partner and hurt our families. The sin is making sexual decisions that hurt us and hurt others.
Reverends Haggard and Barnes are primary evidence against the myth that people choose their sexual orientation. Both confess that they have struggled with their same sex attractions their whole lives. They tried to pray it away; they tried to marry it away; they tried to make it go away by having sex with women they loved; they tried counseling to make it go away. From the news reports, it certainly seems that they did everything they could to "change."But, they couldn't. No more than I could change my sexual orientation...or you change your's. It's time for the churches that condemn homosexuality to learn that lesson. It's time for the congregants to think through what it means to "love your neighbor as yourself."
I am reminded of this line from I believe Meister Eckart, "When will grown men and women stop believing in a God that makes them sad? It is a lie, any talk of God that does not comfort you."
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
The Sin is NOT Homosexuality
I've read a lot of the news reports on Rev. Barnes' resignation from his megachurch after he "confessed" his homosexuality. They all quoted a religious leader on the right who declared homosexuality a sin, and several stated their belief that homosexuality was a choice. None directly quoted a religious leader who flatly countered these positions. Let me do that here.
There is no sin in being homosexual or in engaging in same sex eroticism in a loving, just relationship. The sin is homophobia, the denigration of our neighbors because they are physically and emotionally attracted to people of the same sex. The sin is heterosexism, the presumption that heterosexuality is normative for all people and morally superior. The sin is forcing people to deny their God-given gift of their sexuality and to suffer to try to live their lives in a way that is antithetical to who they really are. The sin is violence and discrimination against GLBT persons and denial of their civil rights. The sin is when any of us, whether heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual, violate our commitments to our partner and hurt our families. The sin is making sexual decisions that hurt us and hurt others.
Reverends Haggard and Barnes are primary evidence against the myth that people choose their sexual orientation. Both confess that they have struggled with their same sex attractions their whole lives. They tried to pray it away; they tried to marry it away; they tried to make it go away by having sex with women they loved; they tried counseling to make it go away. From the news reports, it certainly seems that they did everything they could to "change."But, they couldn't. No more than I could change my sexual orientation...or you change your's. It's time for the churches that condemn homosexuality to learn that lesson. It's time for the congregants to think through what it means to "love your neighbor as yourself."
I am reminded of this line from I believe Meister Eckart, "When will grown men and women stop believing in a God that makes them sad? It is a lie, any talk of God that does not comfort you."
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