Camille is a twentysomething working in the LGBT nonprofit industry. She runs an LGBT news blog at gaywrites.org.
The United Methodist Church is not ready to embrace same-sex unions. But a few of its members are. And while they’ve been quietly defying church law for years in order to grant LGBT people the respect, rights, and love they deserve, the story of one pastor who risked his career to celebrate his son’s marriage is finally making bigger waves. This case began back in 2012, when Rev. Thomas Ogletree, a former dean of the Yale Divinity School and a renowned author on Christian ethics, presided over his son’s wedding to another man. Upon reading the wedding announcement in the New York Times, some Methodist clergy, led by Long Island-based Rev. Randall C. Paige, filed a complaint against Ogletree, resulting in what would have been a church-based case against him. Ogletree would have faced a UMC canonical trial Monday to determine his fate — which could have been as severe as a defrocking from the church, the punishment faced by Rev. Frank Schaefer in December when he, too, officiated his son’s same-sex wedding. Methodist practice tends to cling especially tightly to the church law saying that homosexuality is “incompatible with Christian teaching,” and apparently participating in a same-sex union is equally detestable by association. But instead of going forth with a punishment, Bishop Martin McLee announced at a news conference that the charges against Ogletree would be dropped. Read more
The next big civil rights hurdle for the LGBT community is full equality for transgender people, and as always, some Christian conservatives take this as a personal threat. And this exchange between two dangerously ignorant Christian men is one of the most disrespectful, downright threatening viewpoints I’ve heard in the debate so far. An increasing number of states are considering laws like California’s SB 1266, which allows transgender students to use whatever school restrooms and athletic facilities best correspond with their gender identity. Religious conservatives are terrified by the idea, regularly launching smear campaigns and repulsive ads that demonize transgender people and cast them as predators — with absolutely no evidence to back up these claims. That’s right: While the most common argument against trans-inclusive school bathrooms is that boys will pretend to be transgender in order to see girls changing, there are no documented examples of this ever happening in any school. It’s a made-up problem. It doesn’t exist. But that hasn’t stopped Christian talking heads from theorizing about what will go wrong if transgender students are allowed to use the restrooms of their choice. Right Wing Watch recently grabbed a video clip of Pastor Jack Hibbs interviewing Brad Dacus, president of the hyper-conservative Pacific Justice Institute, about laws like California’s. In a short minute and a half, they degrade trans students, young women, and even young men in the chilling way that only old Christian dudes can do. Watch below: Read more
A gay vicar with the Church of England has publicly and openly committed to marrying his same-sex partner, even though it will likely cost him his position in the clergy. Father Andrew Cain announced his engagement to Stephen Foreshew, his partner of 14 years, on Valentine’s Day. Foreshew is not only a man, but also an atheist, therefore a big double no-no for marriages within the Church. But Cain knows the risk he’s taking — namely the likelihood that he’ll lose his job — and he’s determined to proactively speak out about it rather than hide from the reality of his situation. And that certainly makes him all the more threatening to the Church. Read more
![Christian Columnist: Liberal Activists Are Like Men in ‘Trench Coat[s] Trying to Give Candy to a Child’](https://wp-media.patheos.com/subdomain/sites/8/2014/02/GayActivists.png)
The editors at the Kingsport Times-News in Tennessee must be really starved for content. For the third time in the past nine months or so, they’ve published a grossly homophobic column by resident Mark Atkins, who seems to have made it his personal mission to spread as much vitriolic slander about gay people, trans people, and women as possible. In his past writings, he’s said that homosexuality is a disorder and that consensual pre-marital sex will essentially destroy civilization. This time, he’s after anyone who’s okay with gay people at all, comparing them to abusers and pedophiles. Hemant has written about this guy before — here and here — and like Atkins’s previous editorials, this one’s not available online. Here’s a picture of the latest clip: The gist of the piece is this: “Openly gay men will always creep out straight men.” That’s the actual, verbatim thesis statement. Some highlights: Read more
