Voices of Witness Africa is a new 30-minute documentary intended to help Episcopalians listen to the views and experiences of Anglicans who are gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) and to emphasize that homosexuality is “not just a North American or European issue,” says the Rev. Cynthia Black.
Co-produced by Black, rector of Christ the King Church in Kalamazoo/Texas Corners, Michigan, and Katie Sherrod, a writer and commentator based in Fort Worth, Texas, the documentary features GLBT Africans who talk about their lives and their relationships with God and the church.
“The voices of LGBT folks from around the world need to be heard,” says Black.
Among those interviewed for the documentary is the Rt. Rev. Christopher Senyonjo, retired bishop of the Diocese of West Buganda in the Anglican Church of Uganda, who leads a study and prayer group for gay Anglicans. “I’m sorry about what the church is saying. God loves you, God loves you,” Senyonjo says in support of GLBT Christians. While he acknowledges that speaking out has been “very risky,” Senyonjo adds, “When you know the truth, it should make you free.”
Although homosexuality is illegal in most African countries, “several people in the film cite cause for hope,” said a news release from the Chicago Consultation, a sponsoring organization of the documentary.
“Many, many years ago, when the townships were in smoke and people were dying, we never thought that we would be where we are now,” Yvonne Daki, manager of iThemba Lam Center of Inclusive and Affirming Ministries in South Africa, says in the documentary. “We will have one day a situation where gay people can speak openly about their sexuality.”
For Black, one of the surprises when working on the documentary was “how willing participants were to have their name and image used publicly, even when they knew their bishop would be receiving a copy of the film, and even when there could potentially be horrific consequences for doing so … Their courage is incredible.”
Sherrod was most impressed how the interviewees’ faith “informs their actions every minute of every day. All of them spoke of God as a intimate part of their lives, a presence who gives them hope and strength in the face of terrible oppression and active persecution, not only by the state, but in most cases by the Anglican church leaders in their country. To witness the depth of their faith was inspiring and humbling.”
“Viewers who have followed the plight of GLBT people in Africa will hear familiar and tragic stories of fear, imprisonment and abuse,” the Chicago Consultation news release said. “However, they may also be surprised by the support and hope voiced by some of the film’s subjects, including African Anglican bishops and priests.”
Black said that much inspiration can be found in the stories of hope that were heard — “hope that one day the church will have moved beyond the issues of sexuality that divide it.”
All the instruments of communion have supported a process of listening to the experiences of homosexual people throughout the Anglican Communion. At the 1998 Lambeth Conference, resolution 1.10 committed all the provinces of the Anglican Communion to a listening process. It was not until 2005 that the Listening Process was officially launched with the appointment of a facilitator who would monitor the work being done, share the results and enable further listening.
The Anglican Consultative Council, the communion’s most representative policy-making body, met in Jamaica in May 2009 and supported the renewal of the Listening Process, which has received a 2.5-year grant from the Satcher Health Leadership Institute at the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia to run five “pilot conversations” around the communion.
The “Voices of Witness Africa” documentary is being released just before the Episcopal Church’s General Convention, which will be held July 8-17 in Anaheim, California. “At the meeting, deputies and bishops will discuss both the church’s mission in the developing world and the inclusion of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people,” the Chicago Consultation news release said. “The film is being mailed in advance to all deputies and bishops. It is also being mailed to all bishops of the Anglican Communion, including those who lead churches that are hostile to GLBT Christians.”
“With General Convention approaching, some people focus on what effect its actions might have on the part of the Anglican Communion that is more conservative than the Episcopal Church,” said Black. “I think the film helps us to remember that there are hundreds of thousands of LGBT folks in the communion who are watching what the Episcopal Church does.”
Further information on the film, including a study guide for use in Episcopal parishes, is available here.
Future public screenings of Voices of Witness Africa will be held on:
June 5: All Saints Church, Pasadena, California
June 6: Christ Episcopal Church, Dearborn
June 7: Episcopal Divinity School, Cambridge
June 8: All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Chicago
June 10: Church of the Ascension, Silver Spring, Maryland
June 12: Christ Church Cathedral, St. Louis, Missouri
June 14: St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, Houston, Texas
As gaming grows into a more mature artistic medium, elements of the “real world” that were once completely separate from games are creeping in, so make room for the gays and lesbians, everyone! Whether gamers like it or not, the issue of how to treat the gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans-gendered community in games is quickly becoming an area of controversy. The influx of people who live non-traditional lives is forcing game companies to come up with more nuanced policies to deal with gays in games. For example, Bioware dealt with the issue by banning the words “gay” and “lesbian” from their forums, then unbanning them, and Microsoft and Sony have had their own methods of dealing with words and concepts that make some people uncomfortable. A recent post on Ars Technica takes an in-depth look at the issue, specifically, the ad-hoc “Don’t Ask; Don’t Tell” policy many think is the answer to the problem. Basically, the argument goes like this: Games aren’t about your sexuality, so as long as you don’t identify yourself as gay or lesbian in an way, there won’t be a problem… which might make sense to you, but what if you substituted the word “Black” for gay?Censoring certain words from profiles is not only discriminatory, it also creates the idea that there’s something wrong with whatever the word is. The words “gay,” “lesbian” and “queer” present unique problems, however, as they are used as points of pride or as slurs, depending on how they’re being said and who is talking. All of which creates the kind of gray area that you can hardly expect the common Xbox Live citizen to either respect or understand. While using “gay” and “fag” as insults has been around probably since the first online game was ever played, I imagine identifying yourself as homosexual on your profile would open you up to online harassment in a big way, but that’s exactly why gay people should be “allowed” to identify themselves online, if they choose to. I truly believe that if people hang out, game-with and otherwise co-exist with different kinds people, eventually the problem will settle itself. Because, in the end, it’s no big deal. See, gay people are just like you, and you’re just like them, and gay gamers just want to play games, so let’s all chill out and act like humans, eh? See Lesbians And Gays In Gaming G4 TV * Tags = gay mengay newslesbian newstransgenderbisexual
A group of ministers and same-sex marriage opponents filed a request today calling for a citywide referendum on whether the District should recognize gay marriages performed in other states. The group, Stand 4 Marriage, said it will begin collecting signatures to try to force the issue onto the ballot. Earlier this month, the City Council and Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) agreed to recognized gay marriages performed elsewhere. The opponents formally requested today that the Board of Elections convene a meeting to decide whether the issue is eligible for a referendum. If the Board agrees, the opponents will have to collect signatures from 5 percent of registered voters. If an election is called, the legislation will be stayed until that referendum occurs, the opponents say. “The recognition of same-sex marriages in the District of Columbia is a bad idea for our citizens. At a minimum, it should not be allowed without the approval of voters,” said Bishop Harry Jackson, Senior Pastor of Hope Christian Church “Thirty states in America have voted on whether gay marriage should be legalized, and every state has opposed it because legalizing gay marriage has significant consequences for society. It is only right that voters in the District of Columbia also be allowed to vote on this important issue before it is imposed on its residents.” Council member Phil Mendelson (D-At Large), the sponsor of the legislation to recognize gay marriages performed elsewhere, said he is bewildered by Jackson’s strategy. Noting the District’s progressive reputation, Mendelson predicted District voters would reject efforts to stop same-sex marriage. See Recognizing Same-Sex Marriage: Group Calls for Citywide Referendum Washington Post – United States * Tags = gay mengay newslesbian newstransgenderbisexual
By Yael T. Abouhalkah, Kansas City Star Editorial Page columnist
It’s shocking, just shocking, that semi-nude photos of Miss California Carrie Prejean have emerged, right?
Not exactly.
The media have been watching Prejean’s every move ever since, on the Miss USA contest, she essentially came out against gay marriage.
That set off liberal critics — and attracted conservative supporters to Prejean.
This week, Prejean is in hot water because she supposedly breached her beauty contest contract by keeping the semi-nude photos a secret.
So she might lose her crown and her status as runnerup in the Miss USA contest.
Admittedly, it can’t be too shocking that a beauty contestant had some semi-nude photos in her past — photos that Prejean said were taken for a possible career with Victoria’s Secret.
The money quote from Prejean:
I am a Christian, and I am a model. Models pose for pictures, including lingerie and swimwear photos.
Prejean claims the release of the photos are an attack on her pro-Christianity beliefs.
That’s probably true, in part. But the larger reason is that Prejean is famous right now, and she’s going to get attention for this kind of activity — like it or not.
D.C. Council member Marion Barry (D-Ward 8), the only council member to vote against the bill today to legalize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere, predicted today there could be a “civil war” in the District if the Council decides to take up a broader gay marriage bill later this year.
“All hell is going to break lose,” Barry said while speaking to reporters. “We may have a civil war. The black community is just adamant against this.”
Barry made his remarks a few hours after a group of same-sex marriage opponents, led by black ministers, caused uproar in the Wilson Building after the Council voted 12 to 1 to recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere. They caused such a ruckus that security guards and police had to clear the hallway. The protesters shouted that council members who voted for the bill will face retribution at the polls.
Although he has been a longtime supporter of gay rights, Barry said he voted against the bill to satisfy his constituents in Southeast Washington.
“What you’ve got to understand is 98 percent of my constituents are black and we don’t have but a handful of openly gay residents,” Barry said. “Secondly, at least 70 percent of those who express themselves to me about this are opposed to anything dealing with this issue. The ministers think it is a sin, and I have to be sensitive to that.”
The film “Voices of Witness Africa” will be shown at St. John’s at 7:30 pm on Sunday May 10. One of the filmmakers, the Rev. Cynthia Black of Kalamazoo, MI, will be there for this premier showing.
As long ago as 1978, the Lambeth Conference of Anglican Communion bishops urged the church to listen to Anglicans who are gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT). Now a powerful new half-hour documentary film, Voices of Witness Africa, helps Episcopalians keep the church’s commitment to listen.
As we move toward the Episcopal Church’s General Convention this summer, issues involving full inclusion of all the baptized, including LGBT people, will once again be front and center. Much of the U.S. Episcopal Church, like our secular society, has moved toward full inclusion — but this impulse encounters deep resistance from other parts of the Communion where homosexuality is viewed as a foreign, perhaps imperialist, import. VOWA dispels any claim that there are no LGBT Africans — and gives us an opportunity to listen to their hopes and fears. See www.saintjohnsf.org
The California state Supreme Court has one month left before it issues its decision on attempts to over turn a voter-approved ban on same-sex marriages in California.
Organizers for same sex marriage are preparing for Court’s decision by organizing “Day of Decision” rallies in communities throughout the state.
The Web site, www.dayofdecision.com, informs supporters that decisions are announced Mondays and Thursdays.
“Whatever the decision, we must act,” the Web site states.
If the Supreme Court rules as expected to allow the ban on same-sex marriage enacted by voters in November to stand, the group will gather to ensure, “our angry voices are heard around the nation.”
If the Supreme Court rules the ban is illegal, the group will gather to “celebrate a positive decision and attempt to spread its impact,” the Web site states.
“Your civil rights matter and the world needs to hear what you have to say,” the promo states.
”It’s a race and a class struggle on this. If 51 percent of the people in D.C. are African-American and you have a unanimous vote by the city council on this, somebody’s not listening to the people…. The black ministers are irate that they are being shut out. They feel like nobody’s listening to them.”
Harry Jackson, a African-American evangelical church leader from Bowie, Maryland who is doing his best to ride his anti-gay marriage agenda to national fame and significance among social conservatives. He has repeated alleged that the interests of the black community and gay community are incompatible on the basis of his religious beliefs; defining the civil rights movement as belonging only to black Americans; and spreading misinformation that somehow that the entire gay rights movement is elitist and racist. His arguments, of course, do not allow for the existence of proud, gay African-Americans or that there are even voting members of the DC council who also happen to be black. Jackson has scheduled a protest for Tuesday, 10am, at Freedom Plaza against same-sex marriage recognition being adopted in any form by the DC City Council. (Washington Post)
Steve Schmidt, a top adviser to Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) 2008 presidential campaign, today laid out the case for gay marriage, warning that the GOP will continue to lose young voters and the Northeast as long the party opposes it.
At a meeting in Washington of the Log Cabin Republicans, a gay rights GOP group, Schmidt dismissed conservative arguments that allowing gay marriage would weaken the institution, as well as objections from religious conservatives, warning that they could turn the Republican Party into a “sectarian” party.
“For the party to be seen as an antigay, that is injurious to its candidates in places like California and Washington and New York,” Schmidt said.
He called heterosexual marriage “a tradition,”not a “creed.”
Leading researchers on religion and politics today released the results of an in‐depth survey of
Mainline Protestant clergy political engagement during the 2008 election season, attitudes on social and economic issues, and the public role of the church. The Mainline Protestant Clergy Voices Survey (CVS), conducted by Public Religion Research, is the largest survey of mainline clergy in seven years, and the broadest ever in scope. Mainline Protestants, who make up 18 percent of all Americans and nearly a quarter of all voters, have been trending Democratic in recent years, but remain fairly evenly divided in their political behavior.
“Mainline Protestants are probably the most under‐examined major religious group in the United States,” said Dr. Robert P. Jones, President of Public Religion Research. “That’s especially surprising when you consider that they occupy so much of the vital middle ground in American politics.” Jones said that Mainline Protestants, once the religious bedrock of the Republican Party, are now an important swing constituency that has been moving slowly but steadily away from the GOP since the early 1990s. He said the new survey will be invaluable in helping us understand Mainline Protestants’ role in the American religious landscape by shedding light on the attitudes and political engagement of mainline clergy.
“Mainline clergy are highly educated, political interested, and socially engaged,” said Jones. “They are strong supporters of church‐state separation, but they are also interested in being more personally involved on social and political issues.”
The CVS surveyed senior clergy from the seven largest mainline denominations: United Methodist Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, American Baptist Churches USA, Presbyterian Church USA, Episcopal Church, United Church of Christ, and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). The survey found significant differences across the denominations on religious and political measures.
Among its findings on social and political issues:
Mainline clergy are much more likely to identify as liberal and Democratic than conservative or Republican. Almost half (48%) of all mainline clergy identify as liberal, compared to about one‐third (34%) who say they are conservative. A majority (56%) of mainline clergy identify with or lean towards the Democratic Party, compared to roughly one‐third (34%) who claim a Republican affiliation, a 22‐point gap. Clergy political leanings vary considerably by denomination. Three quarters (74%) of UCC clergy identify as liberal, compared to less than a third (32%) of ABCUSA clergy.
Mainline Protestant clergy are broadly supportive of government’s role in addressing social problems such as unemployment, poverty and poor housing. More than three‐quarters (78%) agree that the federal government should do more to solve social problems, and more than 4‐in‐10 strongly agree.
Mainline clergy are strongly supportive of government action in the areas of health care and the environment. More than two‐thirds (67%) of clergy agree that government should guarantee health insurance for all citizens, even if it means raising taxes. And nearly 7‐in‐10 (69%) clergy say that more environmental protection is needed, even if it raises prices or costs jobs.
On a broad range of issues, mainline clergy affirm equality for gay and lesbian Americans. Roughly two‐thirds of mainline clergy support some legal recognition for same‐sex couples (65%), passing hate crime laws (67%), and employment nondiscrimination protections for gay and lesbian people (66%). A majority (55%) of mainline clergy support adoption rights for gay and lesbian people.
Mainline Protestant clergy are strong advocates of church‐state separation. A majority (65%) of mainline clergy agree that the U.S. should “maintain a strict separation of church and state.” Mainline clergy are more worried about public officials who are too close to religious leaders (59%) than about public officials who do not pay enough attention to religion (41%).\
Mainline clergy are more likely to publicly address hunger and poverty and family issues than controversial social issues. More than 8‐in‐10 clergy say they publicly expressed their views about hunger and poverty often in the last year, and three‐quarters say they addressed marriage and family issues often. Only about one‐quarter (26%) say they often discussed the issues of abortion and capital punishment.
The survey also includes findings on religious measures, including clergy religious self‐identification (mainline, evangelical, born‐again), their views on the interpretation of scripture, and the relative importance of evangelism and social action.
Dr. John Green, Director of the Bliss Institute for Applied Politics at the University of Akron, served as advisor to the project and supervised its data collection. Green also participated in two of the earlier studies of mainline clergy in 1989 and 2001 upon which this new survey builds.
“This survey adds significantly to our knowledge and understanding of mainline clergy,” said Green. “Scholars of religion as well as journalists and interested activists will benefit from the information and insights it offers.”
The survey, which was conducted by mail, contained over 250 separate questions and generated
2,658 respondents with a response rate of 44%. The Mainline Protestant Clergy Voices Survey was funded by the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund.
