Backlash

Here's the national radio campaign launching tomorrow from the "National Organization for Marriage" -- in response to Iowa and Vermont:

Click here to listen

Californians will recognize the same "messaging" that focus groups tell us was successful in the Prop 8 campaign: they're going to teach your children things you don't want them to know and you won't be able to stop them!

This is the messsage that "works" -- so this'll be the message they'll be getting out wherever they can. Never mind that ending marriage discrimination and giving equal protection to gay and lesbian families is the issue here -- that it has nothing to do with education or parental rights.

Do not -- I repeat -- DO NOT underestimate the capacity of those who believe they have sole possession the Absolute Truth to tell whatever lies they need to to acheive their goals.

We've had lots of good news this week but there are miles to go before we rest.
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White House adds Harry Knox to faith-based advisory panel

This announcement came yesterday, but I didn't want to miss the chance to join the "Woo Hoo Harry Knox!" chorus!

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From the AP report ...

President Barack Obama announced the appointments of Bishop Charles E. Blake and Harry Knox on Monday, filling out a 25-person roster that is part of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

The White House office enlists faith and community groups to address four priorities: economic recovery, reducing abortions, encouraging responsible fatherhood and improving interfaith relations. An expanded and tweaked version of a faith-based office begun by President George W. Bush, the office is charged with administering federal grants and advising the White House on policy.

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And here from the HRC website:

WASHINGTON – The Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, announced today that HRC Foundation Religion and Faith Director Harry Knox will join the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, an interfaith council of religious and secular leaders and scholars. The council will be comprised of 25 members, each appointed to serve a one-year term.

“I am humbled by the invitation to join President Obama’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships,” said Harry Knox, director of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Religion and Faith Program. “I hope this council will draw upon the richness of our unique perspectives to advise the president on policies that will improve the lives of all the people we have been called to serve. The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community is eager to help the Administration achieve its goals around economic recovery and fighting poverty; fatherhood and healthy families; inter-religious dialogue; care for the environment; and global poverty, health and development. And, of course, we will support the President in living up to his promise that government has no place in funding bigotry against any group of people.”

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And from me:

Harry Knox is as strong, articulate and faithful a witness to the Gospel as they come—his addition to this panel is a HUGE step forward toward balancing the faith based voices represented in poliitical discourse advising the White House. And as a happily married man (married at All Saints Church in Pasadena, I might add!) he is also a great exemplar for ending marriage discrimination in this country.

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We know the arc of history is long ...

... and that it bends toward justice.

But here's a great overview of just where we are on that arc ... thanks to Elizabeth Kaeton over at "Telling Secrets:"

Vermont. Connecticut. Iowa. Massachusetts. New Hampshire. New York. California ('yes' and then 'no' and now an even stronger 'maybe').

New Jersey, which has had domestic partnership and now civil unions, no doubt, will be next.

Gay Rights Activists are predicting a sweep of the North East (Maine and RI) by 2012.

As of January 1, 2009, NJ, Maine, Hawaii, the District of Columbia, Oregon, Washington, and Maryland have created legal unions for same-sex couples that offer varying subsets of the rights and responsibilities of marriage under the laws of those jurisdictions.

And, this just in: The D.C. Council Tuesday overwhelmingly voted in favor of legislation recognizing same-sex marriages from other states as marriage in the District -- a move lauded by lawmakers as a step toward legalizing gay marriage in the city.

President Obama has pledged a full repeal of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which currently guarantees that no state needs to treat a relationship between two people of the same sex as marriage, even if it is considered a marriage in another state, and further directs the Federal Government not to treat same-sex relationships as marriages for any purpose, even if concluded or recognized by one of the states.

One possible effect of the repeal, as one Lambda Legal lawyer once said to me a decade ago, that the issue of gay marriage will, eventually, be settled by the IRS.
The arc of history is surely bending, ever so slowly, toward justice.

And yet . . . . according to several sources, as of January 1, 2009, thirty states have constitutional amendments explicitly barring the recognition of same-sex marriage, confining civil marriage to a legal union between a man and a woman.

More than 40 states explicitly restrict marriage to two persons of the opposite sex, including some of those that have created legal recognition for same-sex unions under a name other than "marriage." A small number of states ban any legal recognition of same-sex unions that would be equivalent to civil marriage.

Opponents of same-sex marriage swept the last Election Day, with voters in 11 states approving constitutional amendments codifying marriage as an exclusively heterosexual institution.

The amendments won in Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Ohio, Utah and Oregon.

We've come a long way, but we ain't there yet.
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Integrity on Vermont

ROCHESTER, NY--Integrity USA commends Vermont lawmakers for today overriding the governor's veto of a same-gender marriage bill, making the state the fourth in the nation where gay and lesbian couples can now wed.

"This is sign of great hope to all of us working to end marriage discrimination in society and in the church," said Integrity President Susan Russell. "I hope the General Convention of the Episcopal Church will pass similar ecclesiastical marriage-equality resolutions in Anaheim during July."

"This victory in Vermont is a reminder that the Episcopal Church needs to seriously update it's marriage canons and rites," added John Clinton Bradley, Integrity's Acting Executive Director. "If we are going to continue letting our clergy act as agents of the state when performing marriages, we must allow them to marry all couples--heterosexual or homosexual--who are legally entitled to wed."

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I heard the news on the 110-South headed for the pre-renewal of clergy vows rehearsal and let out a big "Woo Hoo!" -- and want to thank our extraordinarily amazing Exec. Director -- John Clinton Bradley -- for taking the "cell-phone heads up ball" and getting this release out. Right now I've got two sermons left to write and a few quiet hours here to write them, so that's where my attention is going. More on things equality later ... Happy Tuesday in Holy Week, everybody!

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Monday in Holy Week: “No Good Deed Goes Unpunished”

“No good deed goes unpunished” was something I grew up hearing my Aunt Gretchen say – usually with a frightening degree of relish in her voice and usually as she was launching into a long, gossipy story involving one of her Altar Guild or Daughters of the King cronies.

Thinking back, “see these Christians, how they love one another” was not exactly what got modeled for me in my early growing-up days in the church … it was more like “see these Christians, how they fight and argue over things like women priests and prayer books, over who gets to sit in which pew and sing which hymn.”

And so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that “No good deed goes unpunished” comes to my mind as an appropriate sub-title of the gospel story appointed for this Monday in Holy Week – the story of the woman whose extravagant outpouring of precious perfume as a gift to Jesus earned her a tongue lashing from his disciples.

The good deed – the gift she offered – was judged and rejected by those surrounding Jesus who thought she should have made a different choice. In John's version it is Judas who protests. In Mark it says, “The disciples were infuriated with her.” Matthew says, “They murmured against her.” (And if I got to choose I think I’d pick the nice honest infuriation anytime over a bunch of murmuring going on!) Either way, her best offering was deemed unacceptable by the community that surrounded Jesus … there was no way they were going to let her good deed go unpunished.

And then Jesus intervened.

“Let her alone. Why do you criticize her?” he asked – and then challenged them to look beyond their “either/or” mind-sets and embrace what we like to call “both/and” thinking – that feeding the poor is always important but so is taking care of each other: that in doing what she did – offering what she offered – she gave not only a gift to Jesus but an example to us of risking to give abundantly, to love extravagantly.

What an example for us to claim on this Monday in this Holy Week. And what an antidote to the “either/or” challenges that seem to face us every time we turn around – not to mention the “no good deed unpunished” contingent who are all too ready to leap in at a moment’s notice with what we shoulda, coulda, oughta done instead …

The climate of polarization that currently grips both the American Culture and the Anglican Communion is a prime example. A friend and parishioner shared with me the recent experience of being part of a day of dialogue that brought together folks from different congregations and contexts for “conversation across the divide.” They started by going around the table and naming what were, for them, Jesus’ core moral values.

“Peace” said my friend. “Not at any price,” immediately retorted a woman across the table from her, “what about security?” – throwing down the “either/or” gauntlet … and letting her know it was going to be a long day across the divide!

The idea that we have to choose between peace and security is, I believe, a false dichotomy that puts us in “either/or” land – but it is a place where many people dwell: like the disciples either murmuring at or infuriated by those of us who have a different perspective.

Bridging that divide is tough – hard, hard work – but it’s work we’re called to do. And, I’m happy to report, its work my friend hung in there and gave it her best shot for the rest of the weekend. Were any minds changed? I suspect not – but – like the woman who anointed Jesus -- she did what she could.

In the wider Anglican Communion and here at home in the Episcopal Church the either/or du jour seems to be “justice or unity.” Can we find a way to respect the dignity of every human being and fully include all of the baptized in the Body of Christ and still maintain unity? And there are LOTS of good deeds not going unpunished as those working, striving, strategizing and advocating for a way forward through the hard ground of our differences run up against just how hard it is to hear the “both/and” voice over all the “either/or” shouting.

The prayer that began our worship is full of “both/ands” -- joy and pain/glory and crucifixion/the way of the cross and the way of life and peace. For the “way of the cross” is by its very nature a both/and – a way we walk throughout our spiritual journey and a way we walk in a most intentional way this Holy Week.

May we be given the grace in these holy days ahead to walk with the sure and certain knowledge that the One who walked this way ahead of us walks along with us as well. And may we be given the grace to treat each other gently along the way – letting the good deeds of others go unpunished as we work to proclaim together the Good News we have been given to share. Amen.
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OPENING DAY!

Let the games begin!
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GO, DODGERS!!!

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Just because you're not paranoid ...

... doesn't mean there aren't people out to get you!

From Doug LeBlanc's story -- filed April 3 with The Living Church -- this little bit of Fun Facts to Know & Tell About the Agenda of the Orthodite Right:

[TLC] The Anglican Church in North America is unlikely to be recognized by the See of Canterbury, a leader of the American Anglican Council said on April 1.

“We do not believe that Canterbury will recognize us, at least while the current archbishop is still in office,” said the Rev. J. Philip Ashey, the AAC’s chief operating officer and chaplain, in a brief speech in the suburbs of Richmond Va.
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Fr. Ashey compared the AAC to the Special Forces of the U.S. military. “Like Special Forces, we go behind the scenes and we blow up things,” he said.
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So there you have it.
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I used to get accused of hyperbole (imagine!) when I said the AAC crowd was ready to split the church if they couldn't recreate it in their own image. Turns out "split" was too light a thing ... now, by their own verbiage, they're in the "blowing things up" business.
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And we care about this because????
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Because these guys are like ants planning to show up at our picnic. No longer members of The Episcopal Church, they are planning to show up in Anaheim to "assist the orthodox" ... at least according to the 3/20/2009 issue of the AAC Weekly Update:

Pray for the orthodox bishops, clergy and laity who will be deputies to General Convention. The AAC will be there to assist the orthodox in their witness. .

Assist "the orthodox"?? Like with "special forces" working "behind the scenes" to "blow things up?"

Remember that the next time some well meaning "moderate" says, "Well, maybe if we just wait a little longer -- do a little more theology -- have some more dialogue."

Been there -- done that -- got the B033 tshirt.
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Time to MOVE ON ... and that's what we'll be asking our bishops and deputies to do in Anaheim in July -- ants at the picnic and Special Forces notwithstanding.
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