Friday, April 6, 2007

DISCRIMINATION: a nasty habit

I found this on the internet:

Lesbian Couple in Wyo. Denied Communion
Apr 5, 01:22 PM EST
By KATHLEEN MILLER - Associated Press Writer

GILLETTE, Wyo. (AP) -- Leah Vader and Lynne Huskinson, a lesbian couple who got married in Canada last August, sent a letter recently to their state legislator decrying a Wyoming bill that would deny recognition of same-sex marriages. The lawmaker read the letter on the floor of the Legislature.
Soon after, the local paper interviewed the couple on Ash Wednesday and ran a story and pictures of them with ash on their foreheads, a mark of their Roman Catholic faith.
It wasn't long after that that the couple received a notice from their parish church telling them they have been barred from receiving Communion.
"If all this stuff hadn't hit the newspaper, it wouldn't have been any different than before - nobody would have known about it," said the couple's parish priest at St. Matthew's, the Rev. Cliff Jacobson. "The sin is one thing. It's a very different thing to go public with that sin."
Click the title for full story
The end of the article:
"Vader said the couple never made any secret of their relationship. She pointed to statuettes of two kissing Dutch girls in front of their single-wide trailer home. She also said that the couple posed for a church directory family photo with Vader's children from a previous marriage, and that the church has sent mail to both of them at the same address for years.
Huskinson questioned why Catholics having premarital sex and using birth control are not barred from receiving Communion, too. But the parish priest said the difference is this: The other Catholics are "not going around broadcasting, `Hey I'm having sex outside of marriage' or `I'm using birth control.'"

I grew up as a Catholic, and I do follow the philosophy of Jesus, but I just can't cope with a Chruch that is acting this way! I can't believe that this Church wants to make John Paul II a saint, when he was the most homophobic Pope in history! I can't believe that Hate is a family value, much less a Christian value. I can't believe when they tell us that GOD hates homosexuals, when according to them, GOD created each and EVERYONE of US.

Today, I am a PROUD FORMER CATHOLIC simply because I know that Jesus Christ wouldn't have acted the way the Church is doing it.
And I know if we want a different future, we have to start teaching our children to accept and to not discriminate. Check out this videos on YouTube. It is an experiment a teacher did with third graders, and there is a big lesson there. Kids are what we teach them. Let's stop discrimination.
A Class Divided, Part 1
A Class Divided Part 2
A Class Divided Part 3
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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Sally

I totally agree with you. The way the Christian Church (or basically most other homophobic religious organisations)discriminate against gay people is despicable.

I don't really consider these organisations religious/spiritual anymore, to me they sound more like political organisations desperately seeking to retain or recruit new members to make up for dwindling numbers. I don't feel they reflect Christ's teachings or Christianity as such, instead, they preach their own brand of faith (called Churchianity.)

I don't really keep up with what the Vatican says, but I think Pope Benedict sounds more homophobic than Pope John Paul 2 (though don't get wrong they are both on the extreme end of homophobia.) I read in a Times article that he was planning to ban gay priests from the Catholic Church because they were seen to not have "masculine" enough sexual identity. I don't know where they can find justification for that in Christ's words.

Some of my gay Christian friends were telling me how they were ostracised when people in their congregation became aware of their sexual orientation. I find that unbelievable that they can react in that way to a group of young people so dedicated to the church just because they are in disagreement with one aspect of their lives.

I believe that there's only one higher power and that all religions are but different paths to the same destination.

Personally, I'd have to say I'm more of a spiritual person than a religious person. Organised religion really doesn't work for me so I more or less pick and choose the most positive, least misinterpreted and corrupted aspects from Christianity,Hinduism and Buddhism that work for me.

Though I've got to say with more gay-friendly and inclusive churches out there I feel that there is some hope of a more understanding and better world. That enlightened opinion does exist, though in very small amounts. Those that see us through our souls rather than our physical bodies are slower to discriminate. Recently, a newspaper article asked various priests who had performed same- sex weddings what had prompted them to do so. One comment that really made an impact on me was one by a Hindu priest who said that from what he'd studied he realised that "marriage was a union of two souls, and a soul is neither male or female."

Totally off topic, but something that really annoys me is the way that a lot of straight people casually use the phrase "that's so gay." I've heard it from ordinary people to people who are gay rights activists. Most of the time I guess they probably don't mean it in an offensive way, but it sounds very homophobic. As a straight person of a brown complexion, I know if someone said "that's so black/brown/(any racial identity)in a derogatory manner,I'd be offended.

I've asked some of my gay and lesbian friends what they think about this expression, though some of them are rightly insulted others think I should just lighten up because they use it themselves. And that if there wasn't any bad feeling or intention behind it, then there's nothing wrong with it. Maybe i'm too sensitive, but I don't know in a world that is still homophobic and racist I don't think it's appropriate and it shouldn't be encouraged.

Then when I ask straight people who are big time users of this phrase what they mean by it and why they use it they just say that for them it means "uncool" and other negative words. When I tell them that the word "gay" is more commonly known as a sexual orientation, and how would they feel if someone used their identity in a derogatory manner. And their usual response ranges from, "my gay friends don't seem to mind. You must be in the closet" or "well you sound like you're gay." I don't mind, but seriously is that the best they can come up with.

Sorry, I tried my best to keep this short. Though it's kind of hard when you post such interesting articles. :)

Sasha

BTW thanks for replying to my last post. I didn't think you would because it was way too long and kind of boring. I guess I just get kind of carried away when i'm posting online.

April 6, 2007 at 11:24 PM
Sally said...

Thanks again Shasha for your comment.
Like you, I also feel more spiritual, but I can't stand religion and church anymore. About Benedict, he will probably be evaluated as even more homophobic than JP2, just because of the stuff that he was in charge of when JP2 was alive. But my point is that at least Benedict is not a candidate for Sainthood. The church was very strict when processing someone to be a saint, and with JP2 are doing it as a result of marketing research! He was a very popular guy, and because they are asking "Santo Subito" on his funeral then they are changing the rules?
Yes, they need miracles to cover the lack of real christianity in the church, because I'm sure they know Jesus would have not really approve of their teachings and attitudes.
With time, I know I've become more sarcastic and skeptical and it is very hard for me to believe in anything but myself.
I think it is the safest thing to do and the one that will leave me less disappointed,
Thank you so much for your insightful comment!
I appreciate very much you coming to visit my blog!

April 7, 2007 at 8:36 AM

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