Pope Francis said “who am I to judge?” gay people as he discussed one of the most divisive issues affecting the Catholic Church Monday. “I have yet to find anyone who has a business card that says he is gay,” the pontiff said at a press conference on his plane while returning from Brazil, where he talked about a number of subjects. “They say they exist. If someone is gay, who searches for the Lord and has goodwill, who am I to judge?” he added. The official position of the Catholic Church on the issue is that while homosexual desires or attractions are not in themselves sinful, the physical acts are.And now we'll get several days of interpretations of what the Pope really meant.
Pope Francis has said gay people should not be judged or marginalised. Speaking to reporters on a flight back from Brazil, he said: "If a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge him?" He also referred to the teachings of the Roman Catholic church, which say that while homosexual acts are sinful, homosexual orientation is not. The Pope's remarks are being seen as much more conciliatory than his predecessor's position on the issue.UPDATE II: And here's the story from Associated Press, which provides some much needed context.
Pope Francis reached out to gays on Monday, saying he wouldn't judge priests for their sexual orientation in a remarkably open and wide-ranging news conference as he returned from his first foreign trip. "If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?" Francis asked. While stressing Catholic social teaching that calls for homosexuals to be treated with dignity and not marginalized, Francis said it was something else entirely to conspire to use private information for blackmail or to exert pressure. Francis was responding to reports that a trusted aide was involved in an alleged gay tryst a decade ago. He said he investigated the allegations according to canon law and found nothing to back them up. But he took journalists to task for reporting on the matter, saying the allegations concerned matters of sin, not crimes like sexually abusing children.
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Q1: I am a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident in a same-sex marriage to a foreign national. Can I now sponsor my spouse for a family-based immigrant visa? A1: Yes, you can file the petition. You may file a Form I-130 (and any applicable accompanying application). Your eligibility to petition for your spouse, and your spouse’s admissibility as an immigrant at the immigration visa application or adjustment of status stage, will be determined according to applicable immigration law and will not be automatically denied as a result of the same-sex nature of your marriage.(Tipped by JMG reader Lynda)
Q2. I am a U.S. citizen who is engaged to be married to a foreign national of the same sex. Can I file a fiancé or fiancée petition for him or her?
A2. Yes. You may file a Form I-129F. As long as all other immigration requirements are met, a same-sex engagement may allow your fiancé to enter the United States for marriage.
Across the nation's major demographic, political, and religious groups, support for the proposed law ranges from as high as 77% among self-described liberal Americans, and 76% among those with no religious affiliation, to as low as 23% among weekly churchgoers, and 30% among Republicans and conservatives. Other groups showing at least 60% support for legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide include Democrats, adults aged 18 to 34, those who rarely or never attend a church or other place of worship, moderates, Easterners, and Catholics. Others showing less than 50% support include Protestants, adults 55 and older, Southerners, and men.Hit the link for a more detail breakdown of the demos.
Eat
and drink moderately. Cast aside all involvements and cease all
affairs. Do not think good or bad. Do not administer pros and cons.
Cease all the movements of the conscious mind, the gauging of all
thoughts and views. Have no designs on becoming a buddha. Zazen has
nothing whatever to do with sitting or lying down.
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Although homosexual activity is not illegal in Russia, a federal law has been passed that prohibits public actions that are described as promoting homosexuality and “non-traditional sexual relations”. This law could render any homosexual and pro-homosexual statements punishable. Public actions (including dissemination of information, statements, displays or conspicuous behaviour) that contravene or appear to contravene this law may lead to arrest, the imposition of a fine and deportation. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender travellers, as well as their friends and families, have been targets of harassment and violence.RELATED: The US State Department's advisory for Russia contains warnings about "harassment, threats, and acts of violence" against LGBT people, but does not yet note the recent passage of the national ban on "homosexual propaganda." It does note the passage of the earlier regional bans.
Mere verbal assurances from the Russian government that foreigners will be exempt from their repressive laws are not enough,” said Human Rights Campaign (HRC) President Chad Griffin. “The IOC must obtain ironclad written assurance from President Putin. But more importantly, they should be advocating for the safety of all LGBT people in Russia, not simply those visiting for the Olympics. Rescinding this heinous law must be our collective goal.”The HRC is responding to this story.
In June, a law banning "propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations" was passed by Russia’s Federal Assembly and signed into law by President Vladimir Putin. Under the guise of protecting children from "homosexual propaganda," the law imposes fines or jail time to citizens who disseminate information that may cause a "distorted understanding" that LGBT and heterosexual relationships are "socially equivalent." The fines are significantly higher if such information is distributed through the media or Internet.
South Africa's Nobel peace laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu says he will never worship a "homophobic God" and will rather go to hell. The retired archbishop was speaking at the launch of a UN-backed campaign in South Africa to promote gay rights. Archbishop Tutu said the campaign against homophobia was similar to the campaign waged against racism in South Africa. "I am as passionate about this campaign as I ever was about apartheid. For me, it is at the same level," he added.
“NBCUniversal strongly supports equal rights and the fair treatment for all people. The spirit of the Olympic Games is about unifying people and countries through the celebration of sport and it is our hope that spirit will prevail,” NBCUniversal senior vice president of corporate communications Cameron Blanchard told BuzzFeed Friday evening. Human Rights Campaign had raised questions about the coverage plans in a letter to NBC officials earlier this week, with HRC president Chad Griffin writing, “NBCUniversal … has a unique opportunity — and a responsibility — to expose this inhumane and unjust law to the millions of American viewers who will tune in to watch the Games.”Geidner reports that NBC noted that the Olympics are still seven months away and that "specific coverage plans are yet to be finalized." Let's hope that coverage includes much more than the above blanket statement of support.
Usually
we are in a stalemate with our world: 'Is he going to say he is sorry
to me first, or am I going to apologize to him first?' But in becoming a
bodhisattva we break that barrier: we do not wait for the other person
to make the first move; we have decided to do it ourselves.
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Loss
is a fact of life. Impermanence is everywhere we look. We are all going
to suffer our losses. How we deal with these losses is what makes all
the difference. For it is not what happens to us that determines our
character, our experience, our karma, and our destiny, but how we relate
to what happens.
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In written arguments filed with the court, King said the justices should invalidate the state’s ban on gay marriage if they agree to resolve the issue in a lawsuit filed by two Santa Fe men who were denied a marriage license. King, a Democrat who plans to run for governor next year against Republican Gov. Susana Martinez, said New Mexico law effectively doesn’t allow gay marriages although there’s no statutory provision that specifically prohibits, or authorizes, gay couples to be married. “New Mexico’s guarantee of equal protection to its citizens demands that same-sex couples be permitted to enjoy the benefits of marriage in the same way and to the same extent as other New Mexico citizens,” King said in the filing.The state Supreme Court had asked King to respond to the lawsuit, but in yesterday's response, King also said the couple's case should be rejected because it had improperly bypassed lower courts and would set a precedent for direct actions to the high court. Earlier this month the ACLU and the National Center for Lesbian Rights also filed a lawsuit on behalf of six gay couples asking the state Supreme Court to clarify whether same-sex couples can marry in New Mexico.
We
are not born equal, are not created equal. We are born different, and
live different, and die different, because of our different karma. But
there are certain areas where things become equal. There is no
difference in the attainment of enlightenment. When we attain nirvana,
we all are equal.
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