Posts by pwsbuilder
Proposed North Carolina Law Is An Affront To Religious Liberty
On Monday the North Carolina Senate voted to override Governor McCrory’s veto of SB2, a bill that would authorize government officials across the state to refuse to perform marriages or even issue marriage licenses when they have a religious objection. As a pastor, I consider this bill an affront to both the dignity of all North Carolinians…
Read MoreAt The End Of The Day: A Journey Towards Affirmation
I’m sorry! I had no idea. How could you? You only answer questions. You never ask any. This bit of dialogue from the film At The End Of The Day gets to the heart of its message. At The End Of The Day a dramatic comedy about a conservative Christian professor who experiences a profound…
Read MoreIreland Agrees to Self-Declaration for Gender Recognition Bill
Yesterday (Wednesday 3rd June), the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton, T.D. announced that, following the agreement of Cabinet, the application process under the Gender Recognition Bill will, for people aged 18 years or more, be based on the person’s self-declaration by way of a statutory declaration. The Bill will also no longer contain the controversial…
Read MoreInfluenced By Catholic Upbringing, Artist’s “Queer Icons” Offer Windows To God
For many Christians, icons are windows to God. They make the Ultimate accessible through divinely-inspired human artistry. Worldly subjects–almost exclusively holy people and their environments–draw readers outward and upward, beyond what is present, towards what is Holy. Artist Gabriel Garcia Roman’s icons of queer and trans* people of color achieve similar ends for me, employing real people…
Read MoreThe Wholeness Of The Body Of Christ: Marriage Equality, Christian Unity, & Mainline Decline
Last month, Adam Hamilton shared this post about marriage equality in the United Methodist Church. Hamilton is a public figure, an authoritative voice not just within his own denomination, but within all of mainline Protestantism. He’s a popular author and speaker, and having grown his church to ‘mega’ status—mostly unheard of outside of fundamentalist circles—his voice carries.…
Read MoreIreland Answers Pope Francis’ Question: Who Am I To Judge?
As Cardinals stay mum, youth move on Ireland’s historic vote approving gay marriage is a major blow to the Roman Catholic Church. With American Cardinals like Timothy Dolan and Sean O’Malley, and Archbishop Charles Chaput staying mum on the issue, failing to give interviews; the Church’s youth move on. Catholic youth want a different Church…
Read MoreFour Double Standards In The Josh Duggar Scandal
By now you have likely heard the tragic news of the Josh Duggar scandal. Here’s a quick recap: The eldest son of the Duggar family, the stars of TLC’s television series “19 Kids and Counting,” has admitted to sexually abusing some of his younger sisters and other children as a teenager. As news of the…
Read MoreWill “Third Way” Move United Methodist Church Toward LGBTQ Inclusion?
The body of Christ includes Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) persons. All around the world, and throughout the course of history, the church has baptized queer babies, raised them in the faith, and relied on their many gifts, skills, talents, resources, and passion as it has sought to be food for the world.…
Read MoreWhy The Reformation Project’s Atlanta Conference Will Start With A Racial Justice Institute
In her keynote address at The Reformation Project’s D.C. Regional conference last November, Rev. Allyson Robinson exhorted Christians in the affirming Church to consider and overcome the “temptation to power,” the temptation to think the LGBT issue is the only gospel issue we should focus on. She asked what kind of Church will we become,…
Read MoreLay Catholics In Ireland Bring About Marriage Equality
Today, headlines around the world announced Catholic news from two different parts of the globe. While seemingly disparate, these headlines share an important theme. In Ireland, one of the most Catholic nations on earth, hundreds of thousands voted overwhelmingly in a general referendum to enact marriage equality for lesbian and gay couples. In El Salvador,…
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