Friday, January 18, 2013

Via Gay Politics Report:

  • European court rules faith doesn't trump LGBT laws
     
  • The European Court of Human Rights, ruling in several cases testing the rights of people of faith, said religious objections are not sufficient to absolve certain individuals from complying with LGBT non-discrimination laws. "The court showed conclusively that the principle of equality and equal treatment cannot be circumvented with a simple reference to religion," said Sophie in ‘t Veld, vice-president of the European Parliament’s LGBT Intergroup. GlobalPost.com (1/15), Washington Blade (Washington, D.C.) (1/16) LinkedInFacebookTwitterEmail this Story

Via JMG: Dear Abby Dies At 94


Dear Abby advice columnist Pauline Phillips has died at the age of 94. Phillips was known for being one of earliest and most widely-read supporters of gay people.
Phillips’ column competed for decades with the advice column of Ann Landers, written by her twin sister, Esther Friedman Lederer. Their relationship was stormy in their early adult years, but later they regained the close relationship they had growing up in Sioux City, Iowa. The two columns differed in style. Ann Landers responded to questioners with homey, detailed advice. Abby’s replies were often flippant one-liners. She willingly expressed views that she realized would bring protests. In a 1998 interview she remarked: “Whenever I say a kind word about gays, I hear from people, and some of them are damn mad. People throw Leviticus, Deuteronomy and other parts of the Bible to me. It doesn’t bother me. I’ve always been compassionate toward gay people.”
Ann Landers died in 2002. Dear Abby is written today Phillips' daughter, Jeanne.


Reposted from Joe

Via Gray Queers shared The LGBT Project / FB


Via Buddhism on Beliefnet:


Daily Buddhist Wisdom






A mind unshaken when touched by the worldly states, sorrowless, stainless, and secure, this is the blessing supreme. Those who have fulfilled all these are everywhere invincible; they find well-being everywhere, theirs is the blessing supreme.
- (adapted from) Mangala Sutta

Via Tricycle Daily Dharma:

Tricycle Daily Dharma January 18, 2013

Body in Practice

In a sense, all of Buddhist practice takes place here, in this most intimate realm: here, in the family, shoulder to shoulder with fellow workers, beside each other on the cushion. Even alone in a cave, there is no way out of the sense object we call the body. We meet each other face to face, and so have all our teachers and ancestors met each other. In this way have all the Buddhas taught. Hand to sweating hand.
- Sallie Tisdale, "Washing Out Emptiness"
Read the entire article in the Wisdom Collection through January 19th, 2013
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Thursday, January 17, 2013

Via Give a Damn Campaign / FB:


Via 2012 Healing the Planet 2012 / FB:

2012 Healing the Planet 2012 shared a photo:
"To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself." 
~ Thich Nhat Hanh  ~
_(<3)_


"To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself."  ~ Thich Nhat Hanh ~

With Bows of Gratefulness to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States:


Once again on Facebook and other venues, there have been a number of interesting discussions about GLBT people and their incorporation in the Bahá’í Faith. 

Unfortunately nothing is new – the conservatives continue to point out to those of us who already know that the writings say this or that, and appear to have free reign to spew their nonsense (essentially reminding us that we are not welcome). Though they will never really say so, because hiding their disgraceful homophobia behind a wall of the Sacred Writings, appears to give them power and weight. Instead they increasingly engage readers in the same tired discourse related to why the Faith cannot change (which I interpret why they do not want it to change). Meanwhile most of us GLBT folks, friends and family try to engage in other possibilities, trying to show that many other religious communities have found a way to ignore the very same teachings, and are welcoming GLBT people. But alas…

All of this has allowed me to recognize the “wisdom” of the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States in removing my rights as a Bahá’í. In some unintended way, they have given me the opportunity to speak out fearlessly (what do I have to loose now?); investigate alternative truths and embrace Buddhism; to really come to question the need for organized religion at all; and even for the first time in my life question the actual existence of god him/herself…

This officially sanctioned homophobia by the Bahá’í leadership and majority of the Bahá’ís themselves, was for me, the final nail in the coffin  --no women on the UHJ was a major one, birth control, length of your hair, and some other weird and funky rules the Aqdas appears to be ready to implement -- that until then I was willing to forgo, and I like others accepted the official answer for etc… but now seeing that the shunning of science, reason and any sense of compassion for GLBT people is official, my concerns for all sorts of other oddities in the Faith opened up.  And the Faith looks like a cult or at best, silly, irrelevant and terribly sad…

To be honest, before having been defrocked, I was probably headed this way anyway… I had pretty much had it with the Bahá’ís in my community. I had made a couple of visits to the Shrines in Israel to pray and reflect and was treated coldly. Their officially sanctioned homophobia accelerated a process that I rather think was underway within anyway. So ian a funny way, their disgraceful act of showing me the door only allowed me to escape their cage.  A Fulbright research trip to Nepal and encounter with the Sacramento Buddhist Mediation Group confirmed what I was looking for -- a home, a refuge a sangha, that no Bahá’í Community has ever offered me. 

Removing my status as a member of the Bahá’í community unless I undergo some sort of treatment and divorce my husband, I think was intended to be a form of punishment for being a happy, open, and honest gay man.  But I rather think it has had the opposite effect, it has liberated me, made hundreds of people I know and love turn away from a religion that once held such promise, that once was held up to be progressive, loving and tolerant, and has shown the world that the Faith actually is no better than many of the other homophobic religions or cults it seeks to compete with.

So it is I offer bows of gratefulness to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States; may they liberate more and more people as time goes on!

Namaste! 

Via Buddhism on Beliefnet:


Daily Buddhist Wisdom






The true principle is that even reality is not really real, and even falsehood is not unreal. It is not something calculable. Like space, it cannot be cultivated. If any intellectual fabrication occurs in the mind, then it is governed by measurements. This is like divination signs they are governed by metal, wood, fire, and earth. It is also like sticky glue; the kind demon can grab you, stuck in five places, and go home freely.
- Pai-chang

Sean Chapin - "Just Believe" (an It Gets Better song)


Via Tricycle Daily Dharma:

Tricycle Daily Dharma January 17, 2013

Our Highest Intentions

No matter what situation we find ourselves in, we can always set our compass to our highest intentions in the present moment. Perhaps it is nothing more than being in a heated conversation with another person and stopping to take a breath and ask yourself, 'What is my highest intention in this moment?' If you can have enough awareness to take this small step, your heart will give you an answer that will take the conversation in a different, more positive direction.
- Jack Kornfield, "Set the Compass of Your Heart"
Read the entire article in the Wisdom Collection through January 18th, 2013
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Marriage Equality USA Op-ed: Dear Conservative Christians: It's OK to Evolve on LGBT Equality

Advocate op-ed on the selection and withdrawal of a pastor to give the benediction at the inauguration, and replacement by an LGBT-affirming Episcopalian priest.

"...We do live in a society that should welcome vibrant discourse on a variety of subjects. But when it comes to affirming the human dignity of an individual, there is no room for compromise. It’s not up for discussion.

"That’s why, on second glance, something was very wrong with the initial selection. The problem was not merely a difference of opinion on an 'issue,' but rather, that the prayer to our nation would be offered by a man who might not fully affirm the human dignity of all Americans.

"...Christianity does not have to be exclusive of LGBT equality, and when it is, people are leaving the church.

"...As public opinion shifts, churches that do not fully affirm LGBT people will leave many in their flock behind. Scripture that is void of compassion is merely words, and our ability to have compassion for every human being is critical to our faith and in an increasingly diverse world.

"...The exclusion of Reverend Giglio is not a matter of banishing conservative theology from the public square; it is a matter of the public demanding more from our churches — more compassion, more understanding, and more dialogue about our biblical texts.

"While I have and continue to appreciate the president’s efforts to reach across the aisle, it is clear that his inaugural committee initially missed the mark on this one. It isn’t a problem to have an evangelical conservative give the benediction, but at the very least, a pastor who blesses our nation must fully affirm the human dignity of all Americans — that includes lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans."

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Via God Bless the President of the United States / FBP:


Via Democratic Party's FBP:


Via JMG: Quote Of The Day - Chuck Hagel


 
"I fully support the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 and value the service of all those who fight for our country. I know firsthand the profound sacrifice our service members and their families make, and if confirmed as Secretary of Defense, I will do everything possible to the extent permissible under current law to provide equal benefits to the families of all our service members." - Chuck Hagel, in a letter to Sen. Barbara Boxer.
Huffington Post has a reaction from Log Cabin Republicans head Gregory Angelo.
"For years the Pentagon has been dragging its feet with regard to extending benefits to the families of gay service members. To ensure that action is taken on this front, we need to be sure that there is a champion for our cause at the helm of the defense department. There is nothing in Hagel's record to suggest he will be that champion. "While Senator Hagel's recent professed support for gay military families is encouraging, it stands at odds with his record of opposition to the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell and his broader record of opposition to equality for gay and lesbian Americans. We look forward to the confirmation hearings when the Senator will be able to explain his apparent epiphany in greater detail. We continue to remain cautious about his nomination until that time."

Reposted from Joe

Via JMG: Today In Christian Love™


"If we embrace homosexuality, we'll destroy society, we'll destroy families, we'll destroy everything. It's not just that God hates homosexuals, there's a reason why he hates it. If you break natural laws-- you say you don't believe in gravity, you jump off a building, you're gonna die. Homosexuality has consequences and God designed those consequences. The word of god is quite clear. He's destroyed every culture that has embraced homosexuality. The sin is similar to that of cannibalism and child molestation in the sense that it's a sin against society. I'm calling for discrimination against adulterers, rapists, murderers, homosexuals. Yes, we must discriminate as a society. God's law to the civil magistrate in terms of homosexuality says you should remove the abomination from the land." - Colorado Pastor David Beuhner, speaking to a local television station. (Tipped by JMG reader Dennis)


Reposted from Joe

Via Buddhism on Beliefnet:



Daily Buddhist Wisdom






All the wealth you've acquired from beginningless time until now has failed to fulfill all your desires. Cultivate therefore this wish-granting gem of moderation, O fortunate ones.
- Milarepa, "Drinking the Mountain Stream"


Via Tricycle Daily Dharma:

Tricycle Daily Dharma January 16, 2013

Revealing What is Hidden

Meditation, simply defined, is a way of being aware. It is the happy marriage of doing and being. It lifts the fog of our ordinary lives to reveal what is hidden; it loosens the knot of self-centeredness and opens the heart; it moves us beyond mere concepts to allow for a direct experience of reality. Meditation embodies the way of awakening: both the path and its fruition. From one point of view, it is the means to awakening; from another, it is awakening itself.
- Lama Surya Das, "The Heart-Essence of Buddhist Meditation"
Read the entire article in the Wisdom Collection through January 17th, 2013
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Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Via JMG: Rep. John Boehner Secretly Ups The House DOMA Defense Budget To $3 Million


Zack Ford has the story at Think Progress:
Late Monday, House Democrats learned that the Republican leadership had once again secretly renegotiated its contract with attorney Paul Clement to defend the anti-gay Defense of Marriage Act at the Supreme Court. This is the third time the contract has been adjusted, raising total costs to $3 million from the original $500,000 cap.   Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) both sit on the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG), the House body intervening to defend DOMA in court in lieu of the Department of Justice’s decision not to. However, they did not find out about BLAG’s new agreement with Clement until after it had already been finalized.
Hit the link for Pelosi's pissed off letter to Boehner.


Reposted from Joe