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Discrimination Is Never a Religious Value

3/31/2015

 
From Huffington Post: Discrimination Is Never a Religious Value by Rev. Debra Haffner
We have reached a time when there is no turning back from the full participation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in our society or in our faith communities. The national outrage over the Indiana law is surely a sign that we are approaching a time when sexual and gender diversity will be seen as a blessing that enriches all as surely the Creator intended.

….As the number of corporate , governmental, and sports officials calling for the boycott of Indiana and the repeal of Indiana's expanded so-called Religious Freedom Restoration Act grows daily, we are witnessing in real time the sea change that has occurred in America's acceptance of gay and lesbian people (but not bisexual and transgender people) and marriage equality. If this law had been passed just ten years ago, it is highly doubtful that there would be this type of national engagement and indeed alarm. full article

Cincinnati stands for marriage equality

3/26/2015

 
From WLWT: Council: City of Cincinnati stands for marriage equality
CINCINNATI —On Wednesday, City Council passed a resolution supporting marriage equality and appreciation for the work of Why Marriage Matters Ohio, a grassroots public education campaign to build support for marriage equality in Ohio.  continue
We applaud Cincinnati City Council for their support of this major social justice issue.

Christine Schenk - It was the women who stayed

3/26/2015

 
From NCR: It was the women who stayed by Christine Schenk:
Yesterday was the feast of the Annunciation. While I can't pretend to understand the mystical encounter narrated in Luke's Gospel, Sojourner Truth's take on the story always brings a smile:

"Then that little man in black there, he says women can't have as much rights as men, 'cause Christ wasn't a woman! Where did your Christ come from? Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman! Man had nothing to do with Him."

A bit irreverent perhaps, but as Luke's Gospel tells it, quite true. At the March 8 Voices of Faith program from the Vatican (now available via webcast), British theologian Tina Beattie pointedly noted that the faithfulness of women both opens and closes our Gospel stories. Yesterday's feast marks the beginning of Jesus' earthly sojourn. On Palm Sunday, we commence a weeklong journey remembering Jesus' passion, death and resurrection.

And truly, as Sr. Helen Brancato's painting (above) eloquently reminds us, "it was the women who stayed."  continue

Church of England Appoints Second Woman Bishop

3/26/2015

 
Church Of England Appoints Alison White, Second Woman Bishop In Three Months:

CANTERBURY, England (RNS) The Church of England appointed its second woman bishop on Wednesday (March 25), only two months after it consecrated its first.

Alison White, 58, will become the next suffragan bishop of Hull, following closely on the heels of Bishop Libby Lane, who was consecrated in January as a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Chester. A suffragan bishop is a bishop subordinate to a metropolitan or diocesan bishop.  continue

Francis - where he stands when it comes to women

3/20/2015

 
From NCR: Where Pope Francis stands when it comes to women by Thomas Reese
When it comes to women, Pope Francis has five strikes against him, but he also has some good points.

First strike: He is male. Any man who thinks he has something to say about women to women needs his head examined. The smartest thing men can do when it comes to women's topics is shut up and listen.

Second, he is celibate. Not having sex is not what makes celibates ignorant of women; it is not having a wife to set you straight when you say something dumb.  continue reading

French Parliament Debates Weight Standards for Fashion Models

3/18/2015

 
From New York Times: French Parliament Debates Weight Standards for Fashion Models
NYT - PARIS — France, which often seems to have style and elegance written into its genetic code, is again confronting one of the dark sides of fashion: the glamorization of too-thin women.

The French Parliament is debating legislation that would effectively set minimum weights for women and girls to work as models, a step that supporters of the bill say is necessary to combat the persistence of anorexia.  

If it becomes law — it is backed by President François Hollande’s Socialist government — modeling agencies and fashion houses that employ models whose body mass index measurements do not meet minimum standards would face criminal penalties.  continue
Anorexia is a real problem.  Is our cultural insistence, that beautiful women fashion models must be impossibly and unhealthily thin, part of that problem?  Wouldn't these women be better role-models if their weight was more realistic, more healthy?  The French Government should move forward with this legislation.

Presbyterians embrace marriage equality

3/18/2015

 
From Huffington Post: Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Embraces LGBT-Inclusive Definition Of Marriage
The tide has turned for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender couples seeking to be married in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A).

Following years of debate and introspection, America’s largest Presbyterian denomination has announced a change to its constitution that allows for a more inclusive definition of marriage.

Officially called Amendment 14-F, the new wording in the denomination’s Book of Order will describe marriage as being “between two people.”  continue
With this change, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) becomes one of the increasing number of Christian Denominations embracing a more loving and inclusive interpretation of Gospel Values.  Congratulations.

Homily from the Ordination of Luz Galilea

3/17/2015

 
Saturday in Orlando Florida, Luz Galilea was ordained to the Priesthood. The Ordination Homily was given by presiding Bishop Bridget Mary Meehan (ARCWP):
Mary, Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community, this is the day God has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it as we ordain a woman priest!

Luz Galilea is 50 years old, married with one daughter. She has studied theology in Strasbourg University in France and is now enrolled in theology classes in the university in Bogota.  Luz has ample pastoral experience in her community of "Homo Novo" and in the past in parishes in France and Spain.  continue

Evangelical Christian church - sees the light re: LGBT inclusion

3/17/2015

 
From RNS via Huffington Post: San Francisco's Evangelical City Church Will No Longer Ask LGBT Members To Be Celibate

Senior pastor Fred Harrell Sr. and six board members of City Church, one of the largest members of the Reformed Church in America denomination, wrote in a letter emailed to members Friday:
We will no longer discriminate based on sexual orientation and demand lifelong celibacy as a precondition for joining…

Imagine feeling this from your family or religious community,” the letter states. “‘If you stay, you must accept celibacy with no hope that you too might one day enjoy the fullness of intellectual, spiritual, emotional, psychological and physical companionship. If you pursue a lifelong partnership, you are rejected.’ This is simply not working and people are being hurt. We must listen and respond.  continue
We congratulate City Church for their evolution on this issue and for now taking a more loving approach to gospel values.

LGBT Catholics

3/13/2015

 
Owning our Faith - a documentary short to facilitate a conversation that explores the unique experiences and gifts of LGBT Catholics and which encourages greater inclusion and acceptance of these individuals in the Church.
Owning our Faith: Join the Conversation
YouTube, Web page, Facebook, Twitter

Ohio plaintiff in the marriage equality case

3/12/2015

 
The Washington Blade profiles one of the Ohio plaintiffs in the marriage equality case which will be heard by the US Supreme Court this spring. 
Two years ago when James Obergefell decided to sue the state of Ohio to recognize his marriage to his dying spouse, he didn’t envision his could be the case that decides the fate of marriage equality for the nation.  continue

Religious Women Breaking Down Barriers

3/12/2015

 
From Huffington Post: This Is What A Little Over A Year Of Religious Women Breaking Down Barriers Looks Like
Reverend Libby Lane - the Church of England's first female bishop
Kate Kelly - the movement to ordain women in the Mormon church
M. Hasna Maznavi & Sana Muttalib - the first Women's Mosque in the United States
Women Clergy in the #BlackLivesMatter Movement
Rabbi Angela Warnick Buchdahl - elected head rabbi of New York's historic Central Synagogue
Linda Sarsour - director of the Arab American Association of New York
Malala Yousafzai - world-renowned peace activist and champion of children's rights
Sister Cristina Scuccia - won "The Voice of Italy"
Rev. Amy Butler - the senior minister and first woman to hold the job at the historic Riverside Church
READ MORE about these leaders

Currently women have little voice at the Vatican

3/7/2015

 
From NYT: Women See Themselves as Left Out Amid Talk of Change in Catholic Church by Elisabetta Povoledo
VATICAN CITY — In the first two years of his papacy, Pope Francis has stirred great expectations for change among Roman Catholics who believe that the church has not kept pace with the social transformations of secular society.

Nowhere are those hopes felt more keenly, perhaps, than among women, often the driving force behind local church communities, but who say that their voices remain marginalized. continue

Evan Wolfson speaking at the City Club of Cleveland

3/6/2015

 
Evan Wolfson, Founder & President of Freedom to Marry, spoke today at the City Club on the historical, political and social evolution of marriage equality in the United States: It’s Time For The Freedom To Marry.  Video of Evan's talk is now available on Youtube.

Marriage Equality Comes to Slovenia

3/4/2015

 
Slovenia has become the first Central European nation to approve Marriage Equality.
From Human Rights Campaign (HRC): Marriage Equality Comes to Slovenia
Today, HRC commended the government of Slovenia for passing legislation that will make it the 21st nation to grant full marriage rights to all of its citizens.  continue
The 21 nations with full legal marriage equality are:
2001  Netherlands
2003  Belgium
2005  Spain
2005  Canada
2006  South Africa
2008  Norway
2009  Sweden
2010  Portugal
2010  Iceland
2010  Argentina
2012  Denmark
2013  Uruguay
2013  New Zealand
2013  France
2013  England
2013  Wales
2013  Brazil
2014  Scotland
2014  Luxembourg
2014  Finland
2015  Slovenia

Oprah talks with Sr. Joan Chittister

3/3/2015

 
SUPER SOUL SUNDAY:
Full Episode: Oprah and Sister Joan Chittister


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