Private meeting with Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams at convention will address sexuality, ministry
By Mary Frances Schjonberg, July 01, 2009
[Episcopal News Service] Eight members of the Episcopal Church’s House of Deputies are scheduled meet privately with Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams at General Convention in a session that is intended in part to address lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues in the church.
General Convention meets July 8-17 in Anaheim, California, and Williams will be present July 7-9.
The session is not an official convention meeting and thus there has been no announcement of the plans. However, when contacted by Episcopal News Service, the Rev. Canon Michael Barlowe of the Diocese of California confirmed the details.
Barlowe said that he and the other deputies understood the meeting was to be brief and private, but that it was not a secret.
“It’s not a summit or constituted in an official way,” he said. “We don’t expect to issue a communiqué or anything like that.”
Instead, Barlowe said, he hopes the meeting will be a chance for dialogue and a chance for Williams to hear about the ministries of eight Episcopalians whose “significant fundamental characteristic” is “our deep love for the Episcopal Church within the Anglican Communion.” The eight deputies’ lives reflect the broad range of ministry of all Episcopalians, he said.
Barlowe set the meeting in the context of the communion-wide Listening Process, which is intended to hear all sides of the issues concerning human sexuality and the church.
Williams, Barlowe suggested, has not had a chance to hear about the broad range of ministry and leadership in which LGBT Episcopalians are involved.
There’s a larger hope attached to the meeting, according to Barlowe.
“Anytime committed Christians come together, something remarkable happens,” he said. “What comes to the fore is the commitment to be better bearers of the good news of Christ.”
The chance to have such a meeting, he said, is typical of the way leadership in the Episcopal Church seeks ways to move the mission and ministry of the church forward by trying to form partnerships with “other passionate ministers such as Archbishop Rowan.”
Barlowe, who has been a candidate in episcopal elections in the dioceses of California and Newark, said that he first raised the possibility of a meeting with the archbishop when the California deputation was discussing Anglican Communion issues. His colleagues encouraged him to pursue the idea and Barlowe says he sought the support of other LGBT deputies.
When he contacted Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori or House of Deputies President Bonnie Anderson to ask for time with the archbishop, the request came with the backing of many of those deputies, he said.
Jefferts Schori and Anderson, along with their staffs, “graciously” agreed to ask Williams to meet with some deputies and Williams “graciously” agreed, Barlowe said.
Jefferts Schori’s and Anderson’s willingness to help bring about the meeting “is totally consistent with their leadership” of the church and their goal of fostering “serious and respectful conversation,” he added.
The presiding officers did not appoint the deputies, Barlowe said. Instead, he was asked to put the group together. He said he consulted with others and sought deputies who reflected the range of geographic, age, and ministerial diversity of those people who supported the request for the meeting.
In addition to Barlowe, the deputies are:
- Louie Crew, Diocese of Newark;
- the Rev. Canon Lisa Gray, Diocese of Michigan;
- the Rev. Tobias Haller BSG, Diocese of New York;
- Joanne O’Donnell, Diocese of Los Angeles;
- the Rev. Altagracia Perez, Diocese of Los Angeles;
- Rebecca Snow, Diocese of Alaska; and
- Michael Spencer, Diocese of Eastern Michigan.
The Rev. Eric H. F. Law, known for his work in multicultural leadership training, has been helping the deputies prepare for their meeting, according to Barlowe, and Law may attend the session with Williams.
Because they do not all know each other, Barlowe said, the group has been presenting to each other their “ministry biographies.” He called that experience “emotionally powerful.”
“Once again, I’ve been overwhelmed by just how committed the ministers of this church are,” he said, adding that hearing the deputies’ stories “made me incredibly thankful yet again for being part of the Episcopal Church.”
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Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/07/private-meeti…
Federal gay marriage challenge has Hollywood style Reuters
The story of two famous U.S. lawyers from opposite ends of the political spectrum banding together to launch a bold and unexpected fight for gay marriage sounds like it could have been written in Hollywood.
In many ways, it is.
A handful of political filmmakers led by a Democratic consultant have crafted a gay rights challenge they hope will reach the U.S. Supreme Court.
The case which has its first hearing in a federal San Francisco court on July 2 could quickly make gay marriage a national right, or, some veteran gay rights advocates fear, cripple the movement.
The team has political experience, winning referenda in California in particular, and has brought together real-world firepower in the form of Ted Olson and David Boies, the lawyers who faced off in the 2000 election vote recount that led to George W. Bush’s presidency.
What sets them apart is the willingness to take on a court case that advocates steeped in the cause have avoided.
“Patience is a virtue I’ve quite frankly never possessed — if patience is a virtue,” said Chad Griffin, 35, who began his career in the political big leagues more than a decade ago as the youngest person to work on a president’s West Wing staff.
“History is on our side, law is on our side,” added Griffin, who is gay.
Rob Reiner, the “When Harry Met Sally” director and advocate for children’s health, and Bruce Cohen, the producer of “Milk,” a film about the first openly gay elected politician in California, are two of the six-member board of the American Foundation for Equal Rights, founded for the court challenge.
See Federal gay marriage challenge has Hollywood style
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CA AG Brown again says Prop. 8 should be struck down
California Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown once again refused to defend Proposition 8’s ban on same-sex marriage Friday, telling a federal judge that it violated the U.S. Constitution and should be struck down.
Brown made his arguments in response to a federal lawsuit against the state by two gay couples who contend the initiative violates federal due process and equal protection guarantees.
Brown’s willingness to fight a state law that has been upheld by the state’s highest court contrasted sharply with President Obama’s decision this week to oppose a federal challenge to the U.S. Defense of Marriage Act brought in Orange County.
In that case, a married gay couple, Arthur Smelt and Christopher Hammer, has challenged the constitutionality of both Proposition 8 and the 1996 federal law that prohibits extension of federal benefits to same-sex couples.
See AG Brown again says Prop. 8 should be struck down
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Gays being kicked out of military at steady rate
WASHINGTON — A steady number of troops are being discharged from the US military for being gay, according to the latest Pentagon statistics, which show that 619 troops were kicked out last year under the controversial “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that bars homosexuals from serving openly in the ranks.
The figures, which are on par with the previous four years, are bound to spark a new outcry from gay rights advocates who have grown frustrated with President Obama’s unwillingness so far to take steps to lift the ban, despite a campaign pledge to do so.
Of the discharges for the fiscal year that ended September 30, 410 were male and 209 were female, according to the figures obtained by the Globe from Pentagon personnel officials. That compares with a total of 627 discharges in fiscal year 2007; 612 in 2006; 726 in 2005; and 653 in 2004.
The new statistics come to light as the Obama administration comes under growing pressure to use his executive powers to place a moratorium on the discharges while he lobbies Congress to overturn the controversial 1993 law — which was enacted as a compromise after then-President Bill Clinton set off a mutiny when he tried to allow gays to serve openly in uniform.
SEE Gays being kicked out of military at steady rate Boston Globe -See * Tags = gay men gay news lesbian news transgender bisexual
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Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/05/gays-being-ki…
Gays being kicked out of military at steady rate
WASHINGTON — A steady number of troops are being discharged from the US military for being gay, according to the latest Pentagon statistics, which show that 619 troops were kicked out last year under the controversial “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that bars homosexuals from serving openly in the ranks.
The figures, which are on par with the previous four years, are bound to spark a new outcry from gay rights advocates who have grown frustrated with President Obama’s unwillingness so far to take steps to lift the ban, despite a campaign pledge to do so.
Of the discharges for the fiscal year that ended September 30, 410 were male and 209 were female, according to the figures obtained by the Globe from Pentagon personnel officials. That compares with a total of 627 discharges in fiscal year 2007; 612 in 2006; 726 in 2005; and 653 in 2004.
The new statistics come to light as the Obama administration comes under growing pressure to use his executive powers to place a moratorium on the discharges while he lobbies Congress to overturn the controversial 1993 law — which was enacted as a compromise after then-President Bill Clinton set off a mutiny when he tried to allow gays to serve openly in uniform.
SEE Gays being kicked out of military at steady rate Boston Globe -See * Tags = gay men gay news lesbian news transgender bisexual
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New UN plan to boost HIV services targets gay men and transgender people
Two United Nations agencies are launching a plan to provide increased HIV-related information and health services to men who have sex with men and transgender populations, while stressing the need to make universal access to treatment, care and support a reality for all.
The initiative, spearheaded by the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the UN Development Programme (UNDP), comes ahead of the International Day Against Homophobia, observed on 17 May.
“The case is clear and urgent,” said Jeffery O’Malley, Director of UNDP’s HIV group. “If we are going to make universal access for sexual minorities a meaningful reality, we must work towards ending homophobia and transphobia. We must address the legal and policy barriers.”
In a news release issued today, the agencies noted that in many parts of the world, HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men is more than 20 times higher than in the general population.
In addition, studies show that HIV prevention services reach only one tenth to one third of people who engage in male homosexual activity. At the same time, there is growing evidence that the majority of new infections in many urban areas are among men who have sex with men.
“Yet, these same groups have limited access to HIV-related information and health services due to discrimination, violence, marginalization and other human rights violations,” the agencies stated. “In many countries, they still face criminal sanctions and lack access to justice.”
Paul De Lay, acting Deputy Executive Director at UNAIDS, stressed the need for rigorous monitoring by countries of the evolution of their epidemics, and for tailoring national responses to the needs of those most at risk.
“In many settings this will be men who have sex with men,” he said, adding that responses must be based on local epidemiological and social realities to be effective.
The plan being launched – the UNAIDS Action Framework: Universal Access for Men who have Sex with Men and Transgender People – outlines several factors that impede access to HIV services, such as unwillingness on the part of governments and donors to invest in the sexual health of sexual minorities.
It also sets out how UNAIDS will work towards achieving universal access through three main objectives – improving human rights, strengthening the evidence base through better data, and reinforcing capacity and promoting partnerships to ensure broader and better responses.
In a message to mark the International Day, UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé called for greater efforts to end homophobia and ensure the barriers that stop access to HIV services are removed.
“I urge all governments to take steps to eliminate stigma and discrimination faced by men who have sex with men, lesbians and transgender populations. They must also create social and legal environments that ensure respect for human rights and enable universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support,” he stated.
Mr. Sidibé added that while governments committed in the 2006 UN Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS to removing legal barriers and passing laws to protect vulnerable populations, more than 80 countries still have legislation that prohibits same sex behaviour.
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California’s Carrie Prejean Joins Movement Against Gay Marriage
When Miss California appeared Friday night on CNN (above), she insisted she wasn’t a poster girl for the movement against gay marriage—just a beauty pageant contestant answering a tough question.
But U.S. News Whisperer Paul Bedard reports that Carrie Prejean has now officially joined the movement. She’s coming to D.C. tomorrow to unveil a new ad by the National Organization for Marriage
that focuses on her Miss USA experience.
The National Organization for Marriage describes the ad this way:
“No Offense,” the next ad in NOM’s $1.5 million national ad campaign, will be previewed for the media. What happens when a young California beauty pageant contestant is asked “do you support same-sex marriage?” She is attacked viciously for having the courage to speak up for her truth and her values. But Carrie’s courage inspired a whole nation and a whole generation of young people because she chose to risk the Miss USA crown rather than be silent about her deepest moral values. “No Offense” calls gay marriage advocates to account for their unwillingness to debate the real issue: gay marriage has consequences.
The National Organization for Marriage’s first ad has gotten a lot of news attention: See California’s Carrie Prejean Joins Movement Against Gay Marriage
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Wedding expo targets same-sex couples
SHELTON - When Cindy Sproul and her partner decided to get married nine years ago, they noticed that there were no openly gay-friendly resources online to help them plan the occasion.
So they created their own.
RainbowWeddingNetwork.com, a national gay and lesbian wedding resource, provides access to a database with the names of hundreds of companies and organizations screened for their willingness to help same-sex couples plan their weddings.
In a month, the site received a million hits, and the two women knew they had found their niche.
They also began organizing wedding and family expos nationwide, bringing together business professionals, advocates, community leaders, and allies. They put on the second “Same Love, Same Rights” wedding Expo in the state Sunday at the Courtyard by Marriott.
About 35 vendors and organizations gathered, catering to a crowd of 200 area residents.
“You can’t imagine how happy we are that there are events like this,” said Jim Cassidy, a Seymour resident who stopped by with his partner, Louis O’Leary.
“We are planning a big wedding, and to walk through here and know that everybody is OK with the fact that two guys are getting married, it’s just such a relief.”
The couple can now tie the knot thanks to the state Supreme Court’s October ruling allowing gay couples in the state to marry. See Wedding expo targets same-sex couples
Shelton Weekly, CT -
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