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NEWS ITEMS AFFECTING GAYS AND LESBIANS
FOR 2006 - JANUARY to MARCH
Sponsored link.
In the following, "SSM" refers to "same-sex marriage."
News of 2006-JAN:
 | 2006-JAN-23: Canada: New federal government elected: The Canadian
public voted the Liberal Party out of office and elected a Conservative
Party minority government. The Conservatives are opposed by three
liberal-leaning parties: Liberal, Bloc Quebecois (a separationist party) and
the New Democratic Party (a socialist party). The conservatives plan to
increase military spending, increase the age of consent for sexual
activities by two years, terminate the right of same-sex couples to marry,
lower income tax rates for the wealthy, increase income tax rates for the
poor, and extensively modify Canada's universal health care plan. |
| 2006-FEB-07: Canada: Vote on SSM delayed: On the first day of the
election campaign, Conservative leader Stephen Harper promised to start the
process of stripping the right to marry from same-sex couples as the first
order of business of the new session of Parliament. On 2006-JAN-27, before
he was sworn in as the new Prime Minister of Canada, he reneged on the
promise and said : "I've simply said we'll be doing it [sometime] in the life of
the Parliament. I would prefer to do it sooner rather than later, but not
immediately." Vic Toews, the new Justice minister said on 2006-FEB-07
that he will try to build a consensus on SSM where possible. This appears to
be an impossibility because a substantial minority of Canadian adults, and
an even larger minority of Members of Parliament oppose SSM. He said that a
motion outlawing SSM will almost certainly be shelved until 2006-Fall. The
defeat of the government and a new federal election is expected before the
end of 2008. 1 |
| 2006-FEB-07: USA: About the movie
Brokeback Mountain: Although this movie is most frequently described
as involving the romantic and sexual relationship of two homosexual cowboys,
the characters are actually portrayed as bisexuals. They are married with
children. Fr. Tom Condon, OP, student master for St. Martin de Porres
Province of the Dominicans, a Roman Catholic order, describes the movie as
portraying: "Two sheep-tending cowboys in
1960s Wyoming find themselves unexpectedly falling in love and suffering the
heartbreaking consequences, keeping their relationship a secret for 20 years."
2,3 The movie received
eight Academy Award nominations -- more than any other 2005 movie. It has
been condemned by most religiously conservative commentators.
More info. |
| 2006-FEB-18: MO: Lesbian accepted as foster parent: Rominger
Legal reports that: |
"In the first such case in Missouri, a Jackson County judge ruled
Friday that the state could not deny a lesbian a foster parent license.
There was no dispute that Lisa Johnston was well qualified, but the
state contended she lacked 'reputable character' because her sexual
relationship with another woman broke state law. So the state denied the
license." 4
The state law that criminalizes same-sex
consensual behavior between adults is clearly unconstitutional because of
the U.S. Supreme Court's 2003 ruling in Lawrence v. Texas. Lisa Johnson
said: "I'm overwhelmed with joy. I feel like we were heard." She and
her partner Dawn Rogniski issued a jpomt statement praising the judge for
seeing that the ban in Missouri hurts children, It said: "This is a
victory for all the children in the Missouri foster care system." The
state plans to appeal and to ask that the court's decision be stayed until
its appeal is heard. A Department of Social Services spokeswoman said that
they were "disappointed by the decision ... and its implications for the
state of Missouri." If this decision, and a similar one in Arkansas, are
upheld on appeal, then there would be no states left which forbid gay and
lesbian foster parents. 4
| 2006-FEB-21: MO: "Love Won Out"
conference met with vandalism and protests: Focus on the Family,
a Fundamentalist Christian group from Colorado Springs, CO, is holding a "Love
Won Out" conference in St. Louis on FEB-25. They are expecting over
1,300 attendees from at least 23 states. The conference theme is "Change
is possible." The conference teaches a belief
system common among religious conservatives that homosexuality is
chosen, abnormal, unnatural and changeable, and is caused by poor parenting
or childhood molestation. These beliefs conflict with statements by all of
the large mental health associations. The hosting
church has been vandalized. Protests by gay-positive groups are planned. A
billboard has been defaced with paint. Conference host, Mike Haley,
said: "Offering people the freedom to change is not something that should
be derided or attacked. While we often hear the homosexual community calling
for 'tolerance,' there seems to be little tolerance left over for us."
5 |
| 2006-FEB-26: Canada: Priests issue letter against Catholic teaching:
Nineteen priests from the dioceses of Montreal, Saint-Jean-Longueuil,
Gatineau and Gaspe in Quebec, Canada, issued a letter denouncing the Roman
Catholic Church's teaching on rejecting men with a homosexual orientation
for seminary training, and opposing same-sex marriage. It was published in
the French language newspaper La Press with the headline "Enough
is enough." The letter criticizes the Church teaching that homosexual
orientation is disordered; it suggests that this leads to homophobia and is
grossly outdated. LifeSiteNews, a Roman Catholic pro-life group that
opposes equality in marriage, reported that:
"Canon Lawyer Peter Vere told LifeSiteNews.com that the situation is
now beyond local bishops and that the faithful should contact the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to express their concerns.
Noting that the story on the dissent has made international news, Vere
said, 'It's no longer just a scandal for a particular diocese. It is a
scandal for lay people who are legitimately confused by the antics of
these priests, who will likely mistake silence (on the part of the
bishops) for consent.' 'At this point I would encourage people to write
the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) because it no
longer concerns priests or bishops but concerns a direct attack on the
faith and morals of the Catholic Church,' Vere added."
6
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| 2006-MAR-03: USA: Conservative Jewish committee
to vote on homosexuality: The Committee on Jewish Law and
Standards consists of 25 U.S. rabbis and lay
leaders from the Conservative tradition of Judaism. The three largest
traditions are Reform, Conservative and Orthodox; the conservative wing is
comparable to mainline denominations in Christianity. They have been under
pressure from the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, from some
rabbis and from rabbinical students to revisit their 1992 anti-homosexual
decision,
The
committee convened in Maryland during the week of
2006-MAR-05. 7 They were
unable to reach any kind of consensus, agreed to disagree, and to meet again
in 2006-DEC. 7 More
details. |
| 2006-MAR-07: OH: Candidate for U.S. Senate
wants to execute gays: Merril Keiser, Jr. is a truck driver with no
previous political experience. He is running for the U.S. Senate as a
Democrat. He is quoted as saying: "Just like we have laws against murder,
we have laws against stealing, we have laws against taking drugs we should
have laws against immoral conduct." The immoral conduct to which he is
referring is apparently homosexual behavior, which he would like to make a
capital crime. He also is quoted as saying: "I believe that the United
States has been moved in a Godless direction by the courts. To get good men
on the court, we need good senators." He also favors support of Israel,
prayer in the public schools, to make forced conversion of Muslims to
Christianity part of the war on terror. He also opposes the United Nations
and abortion on request. 8 |
| 2006-MAR-10: MA: Boston Catholic Charities
terminating all adoptions: Boston Catholic Charities has provided
adoption services since the mid 1980s in Boston and surrounding area. A
recent state law would have required them to consider gays and lesbians on
an equal basis with homosexual singles and couples. Since the Roman Catholic
Church teaches that homosexuality is a disordered state, they were faced
with a dilemma. The 42 member board had voted unanimously during 2005-DEC to
continue its policy of considering gay households for adoptions.
Earlier in March, Massachusetts' four Catholic bishops said that the state
law threatens the church's religious freedom by forcing it to act immorally.
In protest to the Bishops' statement, eight members of the board resigned.
Rather than treat all clients equally, or ask
for a special exemption from the state, the organization decided --
presumably under pressure from the Bishops and against the will of its own
board -- to terminate all future adoptions when its contract with the state
ends. Rev. J. Bryan Hehir and trustees chairman Jeffrey Kaneb wrote
in a joint statement: |
"The world was very different when Charities began this ministry at
the threshold of the twentieth-century. The world changed often and we
adapted the ministry to meet changing times and needs. At all times we
sought to place the welfare of children at the heart of our work. But
now, we have encountered a dilemma we cannot resolve." 9
| 2006-MAR-21: Episcopal bishops issue anti-racism letter: The House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church, USA held their spring retreat
starting on MAR-17 at the Kanuga Camp and Conference Center in North Carolina.
It was a six day
closed-door session.
10
The Rt. Rev. John L. Rabb, Bishop suffragan of Maryland, suggested that a
pastoral letter be issued on a topic on which all of the bishops can agree: the
sin of racism. The timing was certainly fitting,
because the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
occurred on 2006-MAR-21 during their meeting.
The intent is that the letter be read to each Anglican congregation. It says
in part:
"Racism is a radical affront to the good gift of God, both in the
creation described in Genesis, and in the reality of the incarnation. If we
judge one class or race or gender better than another, we violate that
desire which God has made. And when our social and cultural systems
exacerbate or codify such judgments, we do violence to that which God has
made." 11
|
It uses important words and phrases like:
| Justice, |
| All, |
| Shalom, |
| Diversity, |
| "...strive for justice and peace among all
people, and respect the dignity of every human being," |
| "Empower all members of God's human family." |
| "...discover the riches of God's diverse
creation, especially in those who differ from us." |
| "mission of justice, reconciliation, and
unity." |
| "our commitment to the fundamental covenant
each of us entered into at the moment of our baptism." |
However, when the letter refers to specific types of discrimination, they
include race, gender, classism, and national origins. Discrimination based on
sexual orientation became the 800 pound (360 kg) gorilla in the room: all the
bishops were undoubtedly very much sensitized to its overwhelming presence, but
it was ignored. Some Anglicans might find this quite offensive. Instead of being
a unifying step, the letter may turn out to be divisive.
References:
- Sean Gordon: "Toews pledges speedy gun-crime clampdown," Toronto
Star, 2006-FEB-08, Pages A1 & A6.
- Tom Condon, "Brokeback Mountain," Faith and Film, at:
http://www.domlife.org/
- "Nominees: Brokeback Mountain," Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences, at:
http://www.oscar.com/
- Joe Lambe And John Shultz, "Judge OKs gay foster parent," The Kansas
City Star, MO, 2006-FEB-18. Online at:
http://www.romingerlegal.com/
- "Conference on Homosexuality Met with Vandalism, Protests; Despite
Controversy, Record Attendance Anticipated at Saturday Event," U.S.
Newswire, 2006-FEB-21, at:
http://releases.usnewswire.com/
- John-Henry Westen, "Quebec Priests Bash
Church on Homosexuality - Real Problem is the Bishops, LifeSiteNews Publishes
All Names of Rebellious Priests," LifeSiteNews, 2006-FEB-27.
- Jennifer Siegel, "Conservative Rabbis To
Vote On Gay Issues," The Forward weekly publication, 2006-MAR-03, at:
http://www.forward.com/
- "Democrat for Senate: Death penalty for
practicing 'gays.' Candidate says incumbent Republican not advocating biblical
values enough," World Net Daily, 2006-MAR-07, at:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/
- Steve LeBlanc, "Boston Catholic Charities
Halt Adoptions," Associated Press, 2006-MAR-10, at:
http://my.earthlink.net/
- "Presiding Bishop Encouraged by Bishops' Meeting," The Living
Church, 2006-MAR-29, at:
http://www.livingchurch.org/
- Text of the pastoral letter, English version: "The
Sin of Racism: A Call to Covenant. A
Pastoral Letter from the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church,"
2006-MAR, is online at the Episcopal News Service, at:
http://www.ecusa.anglican.org/ It is also available in Spanish at:
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/
Notice:
In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. sec 107: The news items
contained in the above hyperlinks are provided without profit by the
Ontario Consultants for Religious Tolerance, PO Box 27026, Kingston ON
Canada K7M 8W5, and are intended to be available to anyone
interested in the topics included, for educational purposes only. Any
editor, author, Webmaster, writer, publisher, news service, etc. that
objects to being part of this listing may request that future works be
excluded. We will also attempt to delete previous entries from the
same source.
Copyright © 2006 by the Ontario
Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Originally written: 2006-FEB-08
Latest update: 2006-JUN-12
Compiler: B.A. Robinson
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