Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 05/07/2015

“O processo de cura se completa quando você tem a humildade de reconhecer seus erros e de pedir perdão. Se houver a possibilidade de pedir perdão àquele que você machucou, melhor; mais rapidamente o sofrimento se dissolve. Mas se não for possível, não se prenda a isso. Trabalhe para se libertar da culpa e lembre-se de que o perdão está dentro de você. Dê a chance para o Eu superior se expressar e continue sua jornada.”

“El proceso de cura está completo cuando tienes la humildad de reconocer tus errores y de pedir perdón. Si hubiera la posibilidad de pedir perdón a aquel que lastimaste, mejor; más rápidamente el sufrimiento se disuelve. Pero si no fuera posible, no te agarres de eso. Trabaja para liberarte de la culpa y recuerda que el perdón está dentro de ti. Dale la oportunidad al Yo superior para expresarse y continúa tu camino.”

"The healing process is complete when we have the humility to recognize our mistakes and ask for forgiveness. If there is the possibility to ask for forgiveness to the person we have hurt, that’s even better, as the suffering dissolves faster. But if we cannot ask them for forgiveness directly, then we mustn’t get hung up on it. We are working to be free of guilt and to remember that forgiveness is within us. We give the higher self a chance to express itself and continue on our journeys."

Today's Daily Dharma: Good Anger

Good Anger

Anger that is motivated by compassion or a desire to correct social injustice, and does not seek to harm the other person, is a good anger that is worth having.   -  His Holiness the Dalai Lama, "The (Justifiably) Angry Marxist"

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Let Wedding Bells Ring

Via Colgay PRIDE of Columbus Georgia / FB:

"People continue to spew Hate upon us. This takes the cake. Truly sad day for LGBT citizens that we must endure this type of disgusting behavior and hatred. To those who say we shouldn't be all up in your face with our "lifestyle" I say to you we have endured your lifestyle for millenia through PDA, Movies, Weddings, Churches, Social media and so on as well as enduring your hatred. So why should we take a "BACKSEAT" for you today?"

Via FB:

Via AlterNet / FB:

Via JMG: A Very Young Gay Human Of New York

"I'm homosexual and I'm afraid about what my future will be and that people won't like me."
Posted by Humans of New York on Friday, July 3, 2015

Mashable reports:

Sometimes the Internet can be a good place filled with good people. On Friday, Humans of New York photographer Brandon Stanton posted a heartbreaking image of a young boy with the caption, "I'm homosexual, and I'm afraid about what my future will be and that people won't like me." Even 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton left a few inspirational words, writing, "Prediction from a grown-up: Your future is going to be amazing. You will surprise yourself with what you’re capable of and the incredible things you go on to do. Find the people who love and believe in you –- there will be lots of them."

Your day will truly be better if you read the comments. And that's a sentence you won't see very often.

Labels: Humans Of New York, internet, LGBT youth

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Today's Daily Dharma: Wherever the Mind Points, It Goes

Wherever the Mind Points, It Goes

In this historical moment when American democratic ideals of freedom, civility, pluralism, altruism, and individualism make America the most comfortable home on earth for the individual pursuit of enlightenment, it is an essential form of Buddhist practice to participate in politics, to vote, to speak out, to encourage those who agree, to reason with those who disagree. It is wisdom. It is meditation. It is compassion. It is ethics.   -  Sarah Harding, "Won't It Be Grand"

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Via Mrs. Betty Bowers, America's Best Christian / FB:

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 04/07/2015

Quando começa a retirar os amortecedores que te impedem de sentir, e entra em contato com a dor de ter machucado alguém, fique atento para não cair na armadilha da culpa. Às vezes ela é tão grande que você começa a se punir severamente até que não veja outra saída a não ser amortecer de novo.”

“Cuando comienzas a retirar los anestesiadores que te impiden sentir, y entras en contacto con el dolor de haber lastimado a alguien, estate atento para no caer en la trampa de la culpa. A veces ella es tan grande que empiezas a castigarte severamente hasta que no ves otra salida que no sea anestesiarte de nuevo.”

"When we start to remove the layers of numbness that prevent us from feeling, and we get in touch with the pain of having hurt someone else, we must be careful not to fall into the trap of guilt. Sometimes the guilt is so great that we begin to punish ourselves severely, until there is no other choice but to numb ourselves yet again."

Today's Daily Dharma: American Buddhism Calls for Participation

American Buddhism Calls for Participation

In this historical moment when American democratic ideals of freedom, civility, pluralism, altruism, and individualism make America the most comfortable home on earth for the individual pursuit of enlightenment, it is an essential form of Buddhist practice to participate in politics, to vote, to speak out, to encourage those who agree, to reason with those who disagree. It is wisdom. It is meditation. It is compassion. It is ethics.   -  Robert A. F. Thurman, "The Politics of Enlightenment"

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First Ladies of Disco - Show Some Love Official Video Debut

Via JMG: SCOTUS Fallout: Decade-Old Pride Image Spawns Death Threat For Photographer

Via the Washington Post:

More than a decade ago, photographer Ed Freeman set out to capture the gay rights struggle in a photograph for the cover of Frontiers, a gay magazine. To do so, he relied on an image — the flag-raising at Iwo Jima — that has been imitated and adapted countless times since it was captured in the midst of one of America’s bloodiest battles. [snip] More than a decade after his adaptation of the photograph was published, it circulated on social media following the Supreme Court’s decision Friday to allow same-sex marriage in all 50 states. That prompted a backlash against Freeman — including a death threat he says he reported to the FBI. “He said if he ever saw me, he’d kill me,” Freeman said in a phone interview. “I got swamped with vitriolic hate mail.” Freeman said there is “no way in hell” that he meant his adaptation of the Iwo Jima image to be provocative. “This picture was just a flashpoint for a lot people who are looking for a reason to lash out, so I guess I get to be the whipping boy,” he said. “I’m fine with that if that’s what it takes.

Haters are going nuts on Twitter.

Labels: crackpots, gay Pride, marriage equality, SCOTUS

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: POLL: Majority Backs SCOTUS Rulings

Via YouGov:

The opposition to legal same-sex marriage is both partisan and generational. Two-thirds of Republicans oppose same-sex marriage, as does a majority of those 65 and older. Two in three Democrats and adults under 30 are in favor. Some of the opposition is clearly religious: 57% of those who say religion is very important to them oppose the ruling (a third approve). Among Catholics, there is a close division with nearly half approving. There is more support in the Northeast and West than there is in the Midwest and South.

But same-sex marriage has already become part of the American landscape. 44% say they know a gay or lesbian married couple. More than half of those with higher incomes and half of women do, but only 29% of African-Americans say they know a gay or lesbian couple that is married. Those who know a same-sex married couple approve of the Court’s ruling by two to one. While many people know a same-sex married couple, only 7% have attended a same-sex wedding. Three times as many Democrats (11%) as Republicans (3%) and eight times as many liberals (16%) as conservatives (2%) have done so.

46% of all Americans say they'd attend a same-sex wedding.

Labels: Obamacare, Obergefell, polls, SCOTUS

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via Tricycle: May I Become an Island

To the Buddhas residing in all directions
With my palms pressed together I make this request
Please continue to shine the lamp of Dharma
For living beings lost and suffering in the darkness of ignorance.

May I become an island for those seeking dry land
A lamp for those needing light,
A place of rest for those who desire one,
And a servant for those needing service.

From Guide to the Bodhisattiva's Way of Life by Shantideva, © 2002 by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso and New Kadampa Tradition. Reprinted with permission of Tharpa Publication, www.tharpa.com.
Image: Buddha statue in the town of Akurala, on the southwest coast of Sri Lanka, after the tsunami. Photo by contributing editor Jeff Greenwald who is in Sri Lanka working with the Mercy Corps relief agency.

West Wing Week: 07/03/15 or, “Amazing Grace”

Via Purple Clover / FB:

Kids React to Gay Marriage Ruling

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the day 02/07/2015

“Nosso destino é construído através de cada pensamento, cada palavra e cada atitude - tanto o destino pessoal quanto o destino coletivo. Nossas ações determinam nosso futuro. A cada instante temos a chance de escolher entre ações que nos afastam ou ações que nos aproximam da nossa própria liberdade.”

“Nuestro destino se construye a través de cada pensamiento, cada palabra y cada actitud - tanto el destino personal como el destino colectivo. Nuestras acciones determinan nuestro futuro. A cada instante tenemos la oportunidad de elegir entre acciones que nos alejan o acciones que nos acercan a nuestra propia libertad.”

“Our destiny is created through every thought, word and action. This can be said for both our personal and collective destiny. Our actions determine our future. Every moment, we have the opportunity to choose between actions that will either take us further away from or bring us closer towards our own freedom.”

Today's Daily Dharma: The Acknowledgment of Suffering Is a Gift

The Acknowledgment of Suffering Is a Gift

As the early Buddhist teachings freely admit, the predicament is that the cycle of birth, aging, and death is meaningless. They don't try to deny this fact and so don't ask us to be dishonest with ourselves or to close our eyes to reality. As one teacher has put it, the Buddhist recognition of the reality of suffering, so important that suffering is honored as the first noble truth, is a gift, in that it confirms our most sensitive and direct experience of things, an experience that many other traditions try to deny.   -  Thanissaro Bhikkhu, "Lost in Capitulation"

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Pink Moon: A Short Film About LGBTQ and Reproductive Rights

The 'Queens' of Camp Comedy 'What A Performance' - Williams, Grayson, Everett

How gay men used to speak - A short film in Polari

JMG Quote Of The Day - Evan Wolfson

 

"I always believed we would win, but what a joy and relief it was when our victory came. As I read the Supreme Court opinion, as I followed the stories across the country of couples getting married, and as so many people wrote me with wonder, attaching pictures of their families, their kids, their weddings ... well, I cried and cried again.
"We won. We did it. The freedom to marry is now the law of the land throughout our whole country. At long last, loving and committed same-sex couples are able to share in the joy, the protections, the vocabulary, and the institution of marriage.
"We've been fighting this campaign for decades, and not a single step has come easily. To overcome the obstacles and to seize the opportunities, with stumbles and then successes, we built a machine that could guide and leverage a movement, driving a strategy — and machines take fuel. Without your support, this transformation and triumph would not have happened.
"And our win is America's win. Love won. We all did.
"Now — as Freedom to Marry prepares to wind down — we must remember that there's still much work to do in our own LGBT movement and in the broader movements we are part of.
"I am grateful to my incomparable Freedom to Marry team, our close movement colleagues, the entire family of supporters and partners in the work, our allies, and our country. How lucky we are to see our work rewarded with the change and victory we sought and deserved.
"All that's left is to say, with all my heart, is congratulations — mazel tov! — and thank you." - Freedom To Marry founder Evan Wolfson, via email.

Labels: activism, American history, Evan Wolfson, Freedom To Marry, LGBT History, LGBT rights, marriage equality, SCOTUS

Reposted from Joe Jervis

#LoveWins: A celebration of the freedom to marry

President Obama Reacts to Historic Supreme Court Decision on Gay Marriage

Via AlterNet / FB:

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the day 02/07/2015

“Nosso destino é construído através de cada pensamento, cada palavra e cada atitude - tanto o destino pessoal quanto o destino coletivo. Nossas ações determinam nosso futuro. A cada instante temos a chance de escolher entre ações que nos afastam ou ações que nos aproximam da nossa própria liberdade.”

“Nuestro destino se construye a través de cada pensamiento, cada palabra y cada actitud - tanto el destino personal como el destino colectivo. Nuestras acciones determinan nuestro futuro. A cada instante tenemos la oportunidad de elegir entre acciones que nos alejan o acciones que nos acercan a nuestra propia libertad.”

“Our destiny is created through every thought, word and action. This can be said for both our personal and collective destiny. Our actions determine our future. Every moment, we have the opportunity to choose between actions that will either take us further away from or bring us closer towards our own freedom.”

No Senado, projeto cria lei semelhante à determinação do CNJ garantindo a conversão de união estável entre pessoas do mesmo sexo em casamento civil. Opine sobre a proposta http://bit.ly/1HsEoD4

Veja um breve histórico sobre a regulamentação do casamento civil entre pessoas do mesmo sexo no Brasil http://bit.ly/1JoK3JK

Today's Daily Dharma: Liberation Through Suffering

Liberation Through Suffering

It is very hard to extract some sort of enduring positive gain from dharma practice without taking a really thorough look at your own mind. The first step is a very close look at the nature of suffering: seeing what suffering is and getting to know our own suffering. It is through that deep intimacy with our own suffering that there is liberation.   -  Willoughby Britton, "Meditation Nation"

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Via Nieuwhof: Some Advice on Same-Sex Marriage for US Church Leaders From a Canadian

On Friday, the US Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples can now marry in all 50 states, setting off a flurry of reaction by Christians and virtually everyone else on social media and beyond.

Ed Stetzer wrote a helpful background post to the shift in opinion that led to the decision and included links to a number of other leading articles in his post.

The social media reaction ranged from surprising to predictable to disappointing to occasionally refreshing.

I write from the perspective of a pastor of an evangelical church in a country where same sex-marriage has been the law of the land for a decade.

That does not mean I hold any uniquely deep wisdom, but it does mean we’ve had a decade to process and pray over the issue.

I hope what I offer can help. It’s my perspective. My fingers tremble at the keyboard because my goal is to help in the midst of a dialogue that seems far more divisive than it is uniting or constructive.

There will be many who disagree with me, I’m sure, but I hope it pulls debate away from the “sky is falling/this is the best thing ever” dichotomy that seems to characterize much of the dialogue so far.

The purpose of this post is not to take a position or define matters theologically (for there is so much debate around that). Rather, the purpose of this post is to think through how to respond as a church when the law of the land changes as fundamentally as it’s changing on same-sex marriage and many other issues.

Here are 5 perspectives I hope are helpful as church leaders of various positions on the subject think and pray through a way forward.

Make the jump here to read the 5 Points

YAASSS MARRIAGE EQUALITY

Not Alone (Alternate Version)

1st Grader Backs Down Homophobe Street Preacher

Via JMG: AUSTRALIA: Parliament Might Hold Free Vote On Same-Sex Marriage In August

Via Reuters:

Australia will soon decide whether to legalize same-sex marriage under a cross-party bill which may allow parliament members to vote according to their conscience, rather than along party lines, media reported on Wednesday. The debate over whether to follow countries like the United States and Ireland in recognizing same-sex marriage has strained relations between Australia's socially conservative Catholic Prime Minister Tony Abbott and members of his Liberal Party in favor of the change. A cross-party bill, sponsored by two Liberal Party lawmakers is expected to go to the federal parliament on Aug. 11, Sky News Australia said. There is speculation that Abbott may appease his own party members by allowing them the freedom to vote independently, in recognition that they favor the legislation. Abbott's sister is engaged to a woman and has called for bipartisan agreement.

The first day of spring in the southern hemisphere is September 23rd.

Labels: Australia, marriage equality, Tony Abbott

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: US Virgin Islands Fall In Line

The Virgin Islands have become the final US territory to comply with SCOTUS.

Governor Kenneth Mapp has announced that he’s currently working on an executive order to direct government agencies and departments to follow the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 26 ruling in favor of same-sex marriage. Mapp made the announcement during a Tuesday morning press conference at Government House, stating that upon taking office in January, he swore to uphold the laws of the land. “The Government of the Virgin Islands as a civil society can no longer discriminate on marriage,” Mapp said. “The nation has arrived, pursuant to the Supreme Court’s ruling, at full marriage equality — when two consenting adults appear for a marriage license and apply for that license, civil society is required to respond. And so persons of the same-sex can be married in the U.S. Virgin Islands.” The governor stressed that the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling does not force churches and ministers to perform same-sex or any other kind of marriage, however as the territory’s leader, he must abide by the law.

The territory has a population of 106K.

Labels: marriage equality, SCOTUS, Virgin Islands

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: Bilerico Project Calls It Quits

Long-running LGBT group blog The Bilerico Project has called it quits after eleven years. Founder Bil Browning writes:

Projects are meant to be temporary and so was Bilerico Project. After more than a decade, it's time to wrap up our experiment. The media landscape has changed dramatically over the past decade and so have our lives and the LGBT movement itself. It's time to turn the page and start something fresh in this new environment. My first post in 2004 was a quote from Margaret Meade. "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." I think we've done our part to make the world a better place. This will be my last post on Bilerico Project. The site will be archived at bilericoproject.com so that all 31,000+ posts will still be available for readers. It's been a long strange journey and I've loved every single moment of it, but the time has come to end the project and call it a success.

From JMG: "In the early years of this here website thingy, there were only a handful of us doing LGBT news aggregation and commentary before behemoths like Buzzfeed, Huffington Post, and other major sites launched LGBT verticals. Bilerico now joins Mike Rogers, Pam Spauding, Andrew Sullivan, and John Aravosis in LGBT blogging history. Hail to the independents."

Labels: activism, Bil Browning, Bilerico, blogging

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the day 01/07/2015

“A máscara não tem nenhum comprometimento com a verdade. A vítima, por exemplo, sofre muito, mas esse sofrimento não tem nada a ver com sua dor original. É apenas mais um mecanismo de defesa, uma forma de fugir da dor. Esse sofrimento é completamente desnecessário, ele não serve para nada, pois é um falso sofrimento.”

“La máscara no tiene ningún compromiso con la verdad. La víctima, por ejemplo, sufre mucho, pero este sufrimiento no tiene nada que ver con su dolor original. Es solo un mecanismo de defensa más, una forma de huir del dolor. Este sufrimiento es completamente innecesario, no sirve para nada, ya que es un falso sufrimiento.”

"The mask has no commitment to the truth. The victim, for example, suffers a lot, but this suffering has nothing to do with one’s original pain. It's just a defense mechanism to escape the pain. This suffering is completely unnecessary. It serves no purpose since it is a false suffering."

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the day 30/06/2015

“A identificação com a mente agitada gera o estado que conhecemos como ‘loucura’. Muitos acreditam ser “normais” porque não falam sozinhos ou não quebram coisas, mas isso não é sinal de sanidade. Existem estados diferenciados de loucura. Algumas pessoas aparentam ser normais, mas internamente são completamente loucas. Me refiro a uma falta de eixo que se manifesta por não sabermos quem somos. Nesse estado de identificação com a mente, é muito comum tomar o real como irreal e vice-versa. E esse tipo de loucura é muito normal”.

“La identificación con la mente agitada genera el estado que conocemos como "locura". Muchos creen ser "normales" ya que no hablan solos o no rompen cosas, pero esto no es signo de sanidad. Existen estados diferentes de locura. Algunas personas aparentan ser normales, pero internamente están completamente locas. Me refiero a una falta de eje que se manifiesta por no saber quiénes somos. En este estado de identificación con la mente, es muy común tomar lo real como irreal y viceversa. Y esta clase de locura es muy normal”.

“Identification with an agitated mind generates the state that we call ‘madness’. Many people believe they are ‘normal’ because they don’t talk to themselves and they don’t break things, but this is not a sign of sanity. There are different states of madness. Some people seem to be normal, but inside they are completely mad. I am talking about a lack of centeredness which occurs when we don’t know who we are. In this state of identification with the mind, it is very common to mistake reality for something unreal and vice versa. This type of madness is very common”.

Today's Daily Dharma: May I Be of Service

May I Be of Service

May I become an island for those seeking dry land A lamp for those needing light, A place of rest for those who desire one, And a servant for those needing service.   -  Shantideva, "May I Become an Island"

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Dad Bikes 545 Miles For Gay Son

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/30/davey-wavey-aids-lifecycle_n_7696946.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000050

Via JMG: White House Lights Planned For Months

Politico reports that the idea to bathe the White House in rainbow lights was conceived months ago.

SPOTTED, at 4 a.m. Sat. at the White House: Jeff Tiller, 32, the White House director of specialty media (includes LGBT outreach) and former press-advance marvel, who had the inspired idea of bathing the North Portico (“The President’s Front Door”) in rainbow lighting. The crowds were gone, sunrise was coming, and the lighting contractors who had installed the rainbow were long asleep. After spending the night at the White House in a lawn chair, Jeff climbed downstairs to the tradesman entrance to unplug the lights that he had conceived of months earlier.

You can thank Tiller on Twitter. (Tipped by JMG reader Mike)

Labels: American history, SCOTUS, White House

Reposted from Joe Jervis

JMG Headline Of The Day

 

Via Media Matters:

On June 26, the Supreme Court issued a decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, holding that the Fourteenth Amendment requires that states issue marriage licenses to same sex couples. Conservative media and the National Rifle Association (NRA) quickly seized on the decision to draw a parallel with concealed carry reciprocity, a top federal legislative priority of the NRA. Reciprocity legislation, also known as federally mandated concealed carry, would force states to recognize permits to carry concealed guns issued by other states, regardless of what the issuing state's standards are for issuing permits. Reciprocity legislation has been introduced in both chambers of the U.S. Congress, but conservative media and the NRA view Obergefell as an opportunity to argue that the Constitution extends at least some right to reciprocal permit recognition regardless of whether Congress acts. The problem with that argument, however, is that the 2008 landmark Supreme Court case District of Columbia v. Heller limited the scope of the Second Amendment right to gun possession to people's homes.

Labels: gun nuts, guns, Obergefell, SCOTUS

Reposted from Joe Jervis