South of the Boarder ‘Mass’ Resistance
March 13, 2010 by James Hipps · 2 Comments
Looks like the U.S. isn’t the only place to meet “mass” (Catholic pun intended) resistance to marriage equality.
According to various reports:
A total of five same-sex couples married in Mexico City on the first day they were legally able to do so, but at the same time, several dozen protesters gathered outside, chanting anti-gay slurs all while Mexico’s President, Felipe Calderon has brought a challenge to Mexico City’s new law allowing gay couples to wed to the Mexican Supreme Court.
Backing the President is the Roman Catholic archdiocese of Mexico City who released a statement against equality which included an attack against Mexico City’s Mayor, Marcelo Ebrard.
“He does not hide his aversion to the church and to the majority that he governs who profess Christian faith and reject the perversion of their most respected and cherished values, the family,” the church said.
Nothing like holding discrimination as a “cherished” value!
Dutch Gays Communion OK Now!
March 3, 2010 by Jason Shaw · 1 Comment
Direct from Amsterdam, news reaches me that Dutch gay rights groups, have today called for all the recent and ongoing protests against a Catholic church southwest of Amsterdam come to an end after it said it would no longer seek to bar homosexuals from taking communion.
The Sint-Jan church in Den Bosch says it will leave it up to believers to decide whether they are ready to receive communion. Mass at the church on Sunday was disturbed by protests. The demonstrations were started last month when an openly gay man in a nearby village was chosen for a prominent role during Dutch carnival celebrations but was refused communion by his local priest — offending many in the village.
Most Dutch people support gay rights, it’s one of the most liberal countries in Europe, where they have a progressive attitude and a the willingness of the majority to accept diversity.
Jason Shaw, Brighton, England.
Gay Agenda.com’s UK correspondent.
Jason’s blog is The Seafront Diaries, tales of English life, a smile, a joke and a slice of lion cake!
Politicians Can’t Be Catholic!
February 19, 2010 by Jason Shaw · Leave a Comment
You can’t be a considered a good catholic if you support gay marriage, or you support equality, according to a top Italian cardinal “It’s impossible to consider oneself a Catholic if that person in one way or another recognizes same-sex marriage as a right,” says Cardinal Carlo Caffarra of Bologna.
L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper, printed part of a doctrinal note the cardinal released on 14 February entitled “Marriage and Homosexual Unions.” the report which appears in full on the archdiocese’s website, is aimed at helping enlighten Catholics in public office so that “they would not make choices that would publicly contradict their affiliation with the church,” .
He states that catholic politicians must promote the church and the common good “(They) have a serious duty to make sure their beliefs, thoughts and proposals concerning the common good are consistent. It’s impossible for the Catholic faith and support for putting homosexual unions on equal footing with marriage to coexist in one’s conscience — the two contradict each other,” said the cardinal in the special note.
According to the cardinal, it would be far more serious if a catholic politician who votes in favor of a law that supports gay marriage, he said. “This is a publicly and gravely immoral act,”
If a Catholic official were to ever implement or enforce such a law, “God forbid, we will, at the proper moment, give the necessary directives,” one wonders what such directives would be?.
The Cardinal, holds a number of positions of power within the church, including being a member of the Pontifical Council for the Family, the Pontifical Academy for Life and the Vatican’s highest tribunal, known as the Supreme Court of the Apostolic Signature. He believes the consequences of same-sex marriage would be “devastating.” adding in the report “One of the pillars of our legal order — marriage as a public good — would crumble,”
“The state’s legal order must not be neutral on marriage and homosexual unions just as it can’t be (neutral) on the common good: society owes its survival to families founded on marriage, not homosexual unions”
Jason Shaw, Brighton, England.
GayAgenda.com’s United Kingdom correspondent.
Jason’s blog The Seafront Diaries takes a lid of the life in the slow lane, word loss and finding grey in the bush!
Hundreds Protest Outside of St. Louis’ Cathedral Basilica
November 30, 2009 by Gay Agenda News Team · 1 Comment
Grey skies framed the Neo-Byzantine dome of St. Louis’ Cathedral Basilica on Nov. 29 as hundreds of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender (GLBT) and allied supporters protested the archdiocese’s donation of $10,000 to the successful effort to reverse marriage equality in Maine.
The protest, which took place on the public portion of sidewalk in front of the New Cathedral, was organized by St. Louis based GLBT rights organization, Show Me No Hate. A smaller contngent of protesters was on hand for morning mass and the organization plans to rally outside the iconic edifice each Sunday throughout Advent — the period of preparation and waiting for Christmas.
In response to the protest, St. Louis Archbishop Robert Carlson issued a statement saying that the donation came from a “special needs fund” endowed from “private gifts.” According to Carlson, the fund is not used for formal church operations and can be used at the archbishop’s discretion.
“No longer will we tolerate the religious funding of hate,” stated Show Me No Hate founder Ed Reggi. “The Archbishop showed no mercy for the poor, sick and homeless in St. Louis. The $10,000 Carlson wired to Maine could have helped the empty food pantries and local toy drives this Christmas season.”
VA & MD Gov’s Denounce Catholics on Marriage
November 24, 2009 by James Hipps · 2 Comments
Virginia’s Governor Tim Kaine and Maryland’s Governot Martin O’Malley are both Catholics, but that’s not the only thing they have in common. They have both come out and openly criticized the Catholic church’s position on the marriage equality proposal being considered in D.C.
The announcements from the Governors came earlier today during a broadcast segment aired on WTOP radio in Washington D.C..
The D.C. council is expected to approve same-sex marriage next month, and the Catholic church has threatened to stop providing services to city to run homeless shelters and cut off other social services, and possibly redirecting those tax-exempt funds to help fight against ending marriage discrimination.
Although it’s uncertain how much, if any impact the Governor’s denouncements will have, it is a move that should be applauded by all who support equality.
