English Catholics defy Vatican?

A Catholic Rebellion?

In contrast to the homophobia of the Pope, Catholic Bishops in England and Wales are urging understanding and acceptance of gay people

By Peter Tatchell, human rights campaigner

The Guardian – Comment is Free - London – 11 December 2008

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/dec/11/gayrights-catholicism?commentpage=1&commentposted=1

A pastoral leaflet authorised by the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales is creating more than a few ripples throughout the Catholic world.

http://www.everybodyswelcome.org.uk/docs/gay.pdf

In a marked departure from the constant stream of anti-gay
denunciations by the Vatican, it urges clergy and churchgoers to be respectful and welcoming towards lesbian and gay people.

The leaflet, which is distributed to dioceses, is entitled:
"What is life like if you or someone in your family is gay or lesbian in their sexual orientation?...and what can your parish family do to make a difference?

Unusually for an official Catholic publication, it acknowledges the "oppression" suffered by homosexuals:

"As a group that has suffered more than its share of oppression and contempt, the homosexual community has a particular claim on the concern of the church."

Indeed, the leaflet includes a disarmingly honest admission of the role played by the Catholic Church in the victimisation and marginalisation of lesbian and gay people. It quotes comments received from lay Catholics during its Listening Day survey:

"The continual message from the church is that homosexuality is so, so dreadful. Our gay son just hasn't stood a chance…My brother is gay; the church has been very intolerant of him."

This frank admission of past failings is brave and honourable, as is the suggestion that Catholics should "express appreciation for the gifts that homosexual Catholics bring to their faith community."

Exuding love, compassion and empathy, the leaflet goes on to advise priests and parishioners:

"Try not to assume that everyone is heterosexual….Avoid stereotyping and condemning….Remember that homophobic jokes and asides can be cruel and hurtful; a careless word can mean another experience of rejection and pain."

The leaflet's suggested reading list of seminal Catholic statements on homosexuality does not, notably, include any statements from the Vatican. It omits all Papal documents denouncing homosexuality and endorsing legal discrimination against lesbian and gay people.

Catholic traditionalists have, predictably, condemned the leaflet's liberal message and accused the English and Welsh Church of defying Vatican orthodoxy.

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/nov/08112602.html

One English critic, Father Ray Blake, has described the leaflet as "troubling" because it does not mention the traditional Catholic teaching that homosexuals should live a life of chastity.

Although I am an atheist and a strong critic of Catholic homophobia (and sexism), I applaud this leaflet. It is a welcome, positive initiative which will bring great comfort to gay Catholics and their families. Its sympathetic, understanding message is a huge improvement
on the stern, uncompromising homophobia of most Vatican pronouncements on homosexuality.

Indeed, I hope the Catholic Church in England and Wales will encourage the Vatican to adopt this leaflet for use by Catholic dioceses worldwide. Its broader dissemination would help counteract the ignorance and prejudice that exists among many clergy and laity.

But I would also add the following caveat: the loving, respectful tone of this pastoral leaflet is undermined by the homophobic content of the Catholic Catechism and by the Pope's frequent endorsement of discriminatory, anti-gay laws. In particular, the Vatican policy of condemning loving, stable same-sex relationships is not only ethically
wrong; it risks undoing the good, kind intentions of this leaflet.

The Catechism, which sets out the basic doctrines of the Roman Church, reflects the pre-scientific ignorance and anti-homosexual prejudice of the medieval era; describing same-sex acts as a "grave depravity" and "intrinsically disordered." It states that lesbian and gay relationships are "contrary to natural law ... and do not proceed from
genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved."

http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/ccc_toc.html

The Vatican identifies homosexuality as a deep-seated personality disorder and psychological flaw; variously condemning same-sex acts as "grave sins….objectively disordered….(and) intrinsically immoral."
Even people who have a gay orientation but abstain totally from sex are condemned by the Pope as possessing a "tendency towards an intrinsic moral evil." In October, the Vatican ruled that chaste gay men should be barred from the priesthood and this month it again vilified same-sex marriages and announced its intention to oppose a UN General Assembly statement calling for the decriminalisation of homosexuality worldwide.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article5268745.ece

The English Church's pastoral leaflet challenges these outdated,
bigoted attitudes. It reflects the growing acceptance of loving,
loyal, long-term lesbian and gay relationships by grassroots
Catholics.

It is also a fitting tribute to the late Cardinal Basil Hume and a
continuation of his valiant, but often tortured and incomplete,
attempts to move English Catholicism towards the acceptance of gay
people and gay human rights.

I know from my personal dialogue with Cardinal Hume in the 1990s that
he was personally pained by the Vatican's intransigent, heartless
homophobia. He tried, as best he could, to distance the English Church
from Rome, with nuanced theological pronouncements that discreetly
differed from those of the Pope. Although his distancing was far too
subtle for my liking, I appreciated his efforts.

It is good to see Cardinal Hume's more gay-sympathetic theology
reflected in this pastoral leaflet. He would be happy and proud.
Congratulations and thanks to the Catholic Bishops Conference of
England and Wales. Now please reform the Catechsim - or publish your
own non-homophobic English version.

J-FLAG Tenth Anniversary Press Release

Kingston – December 10, 2008

December 10, 2008 marks ten years since the founding of the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG), Jamaica’s foremost lesbian, gay and transgender rights advocacy group. The anniversary will be commemorated with a church service on the weekend. As J-FLAG celebrates this milestone, it pauses to reflect on the challenges and successes that have shaped its journey thus far.

Started by a group of 12 business people, educators, lawyers, public relations practitioners, advertisers and human rights activists, J-FLAG was launched in the wee hours of December 10, 1998. The organisation was born out of the need to advocate for the protection of lesbians, gays and transgenders from state-sanctioned and community violence. In this regard, J-FLAG’s call was for the fair and equal treatment of gays and lesbians under the law and by the ordinary citizen.
The organisation’s birth was condemned and decried by most as a foolhardy venture that would result in a backlash against members of the country’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. On the other hand, it was welcomed by a few as a bold attempt to recognise lesbians, gays and transgenders as members of plural Jamaican society.

After ten years of existence, J-FLAG can boast of having survived in one of the most inhospitable environments for gays, lesbians and transgender people. Indeed, much of J-FLAG’s work has revolved around the rescuing of community members from violent situations or attempting to deal with the aftermath of such situations. In fact, the violent death of Brian Williamson, one of the co-founders of J-FLAG—and for years its voice and face—and the recent departure of Gareth Henry, a former programmes manager of the organisation, testify to the dangerous environment in which the organisation operates.

Yet J-FLAG has been able to do what was, ten years ago, unthinkable in Jamaica. It has visited and made presentations on sexuality and human rights to a variety of local and international organisations, including religious, civic and human rights groups as well as tertiary educational institutions and the police. It has also met with and given interviews with radio and newspaper reporters. But perhaps its most significant achievements have been the submission to parliament regarding the addition of sexual orientation as a category for which there should be constitutional protection against discrimination and the assistance, in 2006, to relaunch the Caribbean Forum for Lesbians, All-sexuals and Gays (C-FLAG).

Over the ten years of its existence, J-FLAG has stood as a singular voice in Jamaica calling for the respect of lesbians, gays and transgenders as citizens with the same rights and value as heterosexual Jamaicans. For the next phase of its journey, the organisation will continue calling Jamaicans to a deeper understanding of their plurality and their democracy; it will continue seeking to raise the level of debate in the society about the meaning of tolerance and the acceptance of difference. Accordingly, J-FLAG will attempt to forge new relationships with a wider cross-section of organisations committed to strengthening democracy and the promotion of respect for all Jamaicans, regardless of sexual orientation, gender, creed, religion or social status.
-30-

Obama urged to back UN LGBT rights statement

Decriminalisation statement now expected 15 to 20 December

Still time to lobby governments to support UN initiative

LATEST UPDATE on UN General Assembly statement

London UK - 11 December 2008

"I urge Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and the US Congress to speak out in support of the forthcoming UN statement on LGBT human rights," said Peter Tatchell of the British lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) human rights movement, OutRage!

"To draw a line under the homophobic policies of the Bush administration, they need to publicly endorse this UN initiative for LGBT human rights.

"If the US government does not sign up, it will be aligning itself with homophobic non-signing regimes like Iran, Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, Uganda and Belarus," he said.

The presentation of the ground-breaking statement on LGBT issues to the UN General Assembly is now expected to take place between 15 and 20 December (not 10 December, as previously reported). The exact date is yet to be finalised. It partly depends on other UN business.

This means there is still time to lobby governments to sign up and support the UN LGBT rights statement (copy below).

It will be the first time in its history that the UN General Assembly has had before it a statement in support of LGBT human rights.

"The failure of President Bush to approve this UN statement is a shabby betrayal of the humanitarian values that the US claims to represent and defend," added Mr Tatchell.

"The US government often berates Zimbabwe, Burma and Sudan over their human rights violations. These condemnations will ring hollow if the US refuses to support the UN statement. This is a test of the US government's commitment to universal human rights.

"Washington will lose ever more respect and credibility if it fails to endorse this initiative for LGBT human rights," he said.

UPDATE:

UN statement on decriminalising homosexuality and supporting LGBT human rights

There are a number of new developments:

The UN "declaration" is being called a "statement" and technically (in UN terms) is it a statement not a declaration, so it is best to call it a statement in any publicity or media coverage.

The statement is finalised, so the US and other countries cannot claim that it is not finalised and use this as an excuse to explain their non-signature (a copy of the UN statement follows below).

Please note that the recommendations of the UN statement include more than the decriminalisation of homosexuality:

As well as seeking the decriminalisation of same-sex acts, the statement also condemns all human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity, urges countries to protect the human rights of LGBT people and to bring to justice those who violate these rights, and calls for human rights defenders who oppose homophobia and transphobia to be allowed to carry out their humanitarian work unimpeded.

A list of supporting countries (as of now) is below.

Contrary to earlier reports, Australia and Venezuela have signed. Guinea-Bissau was thought to have agreed but has, in fact, not yet signed up. It probably will sign but this is not 100% certain.

France may not now present and read the statement to the UN General Assembly. It might instead hand this task to a developing country (so the statement does not seem a purely western initiative).

CONFIRMED SIGNATORIES SO FAR - MORE PENDING

According to Human Rights Watch, these countries have signed so far:

Andorra, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Venezuela.

FULL TEXT OF THE UN STATEMENT

We have the honour to make this statement on human rights, sexual orientation and gender identity on behalf of [.]

1 - We reaffirm the principle of universality of human rights, as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights whose 60th anniversary is celebrated this year, Article 1 of which proclaims that "all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights";

2 - We reaffirm that everyone is entitled to the enjoyment of human rights without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status, as set out in Article 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 2 of the International Covenants on Civil and Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, as well as in article 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;

3 - We reaffirm the principle of non-discrimination which requires that human rights apply equally to every human being regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity;

4 - We are deeply concerned by violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms based on sexual orientation or gender identity;

5 - We are also disturbed that violence, harassment, discrimination, exclusion, stigmatisation and prejudice are directed against persons in all countries in the world because of sexual orientation or gender identity, and that these practices undermine the integrity and dignity of those subjected to these abuses;

6 - We condemn the human rights violations based on sexual orientation or gender identity wherever they occur, in particular the use of the death penalty on this ground, extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, the practice of torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, arbitrary arrest or detention and deprivation of economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to health;

7 - We recall the statement in 2006 before the Human Rights Council by fifty four countries requesting the President of the Council to provide an opportunity, at an appropriate future session of the Council, for discussing these violations;

8 - We commend the attention paid to these issues by special procedures of the Human Rights Council and treaty bodies and encourage them to continue to integrate consideration of human rights violations based on sexual orientation or gender identity within their relevant mandates;

9 - We welcome the adoption of Resolution AG/RES. 2435 (XXXVIII-O/08) on "Human Rights, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity" by the General Assembly of the Organization of American States during its 38th session in 3 June 2008;

10 - We call upon all States and relevant international human rights mechanisms to commit to promote and protect human rights of all persons, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity;

11 - We urge States to take all the necessary measures, in particular legislative or administrative, to ensure that sexual orientation or gender identity may under no circumstances be the basis for criminal penalties, in particular executions, arrests or detention.

12 - We urge States to ensure that human rights violations based on sexual orientation or gender identity are investigated and perpetrators held accountable and brought to justice;

13 - We urge States to ensure adequate protection of human rights defenders, and remove obstacles which prevent them from carrying out their work on issues of human rights and sexual orientation and gender identity.

ACTION ALERT

The presentation of the statement for the worldwide decriminalisation of homosexuality and for the human rights of LGBT people is now expected to take place at the UN General Assembly between 15 and 20 December.

This means there is still time to lobby governments to sign up and support it.

The list of signatory countries is growing but it is still well short of a majority.

With coordinated, concerted lobbying efforts by LGBT and human rights organisations we can persuade more countries to endorse the UN statement.

Please redouble your efforts to get your local legislators and political leaders to press your government to declare its commitment to support the statement - if it has not done so.

If your government has already announced its support for the UN statement, please use whatever influence you can muster with neighbouring governments that have not yet signed up.

A short lobbying briefing on the UN statement follows below:

UN General Assembly to consider a joint statement urging the decriminalisation of homosexuality worldwide

By Peter Tatchell, human rights campaigner

It will be the first time in its history that the UN General Assembly has been presented with a statement in support of lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) human rights.

Although not binding on the member states, the statement of principle will have immense symbolic value, given the six decades in which homophobic persecution has been ignored by the UN General Assembly.

Note: LGBT human rights have, however, been previously raised in other UN forums and commissions.

Even today, not a single international human rights convention explicitly acknowledges the human rights of LGBT people. The right to physically love the person of one's choice is nowhere directly enshrined in any global humanitarian law. No convention specifically recognises sexual rights as human rights. None offer explicit protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Yet 86 countries (nearly half the nations on Earth) still have a total ban on male homosexuality and a smaller number also ban sex between women. The penalties in these countries range from a few years jail to life imprisonment. In at least seven countries or regions of countries (all under Islamist jurisdiction), the sentence is death, including Saudi Arabia, Iran, Yemen, Sudan, Mauritania and parts of Nigeria and Pakistan.

See the global survey of homophobia, published by the International Gay and Lesbian Association:
http://www.ilga.org/news_results.asp?LanguageID=1&FileCategoryID=9&FileID=1165&ZoneID=7
and
http://www.ilga.org/statehomophobia/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2008.pdf

The UN decriminalisation statement will be tabled in the General Assembly with the backing of all 27 member states of the European Union and of other countries in Africa, Australasia and Latin America.

South Africa and the US are among the many countries that have not indicated their backing.

In the run up to the presentation of the statement in the UN General Assembly, more countries that have not signed up so far are likely to confirm their support.

An all-out lobbying effort in the next week will increase our chances of a large roll-call of UN member states in support of the statement.

See an bline,hear an deaf. (Not everything that is seen or heard must be shared with others.)

“Me, Miss, me Miss,” cries the student, excitedly seeking to give what he believes is the correct response, to show his knowledge. So often too, as adults, in our desire to demonstrate how much we know we are often quick to share stories that “I know...I was there, saw it with my own eyes.”

Fuelled by our desire to stand tall and look good in the eyes of the ones with whom we are sharing, we often forget the implications of the sometimes intensely personal information that we are so eager to share. Many times we forget that the information which we are so keen to pass on may hurt someone’s feelings, may jeopardize someone’s relationship, may cause disaffection with family and friends and may even endanger one’s life. Sadly, our motivation in such situations is to come across as being aware, knowledgeable...even superior.

The exhortation to exercise discretion, ‘See an bline, hear an deaf’ is one that we would do well to heed. Sometimes, there is virtue in being quiet, even feigning ignorance. It just may make the difference between life and death. ”

***

Help me remember that while speech may be silver, silence is considered golden. In the noise and the rush of life, let me recognize that in silence I can find peace.

30 –

Laje © 2008

Rev Says

Colleagues:

A blessed and holy week to you all.

Peace
During the season of advent, many Christian churches will light an advent candle each of the four Sundays preceding Christmas. This Sunday, the first advent candle will be lit and this first candle will remind believes of peace and how the coming of Jesus Christ was a statement about peace. Christ was offered to the world as the bearer of peace.

Any cursory analysis of the state of affairs in our nation and globally will reveal that human beings have been making futile attempts at peace. We talk about peace, but many of our activities bring wars. In Jamaica, the social condition of so many of our people is a major issue when we analyze the rising crime and violence in our society. Peace has indeed eluded us.

Could it be that we do not have the peace we are seeking because we think more about peace as an external reality rather than an internal one? Peace begins first as a state of mind and then as an outgrowth of our inner being. Peace must begin with our sense of contentment with the self, at least our recognition of who we are as a specially created human being. Are you living in peace with yourself, your neighbours and with your God? When we are able to get in touch with our inner selves and accept ourselves as made in the image of God and that we can accomplish much, then we can confess that we have been equipped with foundational apparatus hat can enable us to become the bearers of peace to a troubled world. This Christmas, let us remember that the Christ-child came to bring peace and let us seek to be bearers of peace.

Peace

Gay humanists condemn Vatican's stance on universal decriminalisation

The Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association (GALHA) has condemned the Vatican's opposition to a declaration against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

The declaration, which is officially supported by the European Union, is due to be presented to the UN General Assembly later this month.

Monsignor Celestino Migliore, the Holy See's permanent observer at the UN, claims the declaration could be used to force countries to recognise same-sex marriage.

"If adopted, they would create new and implacable discriminations," he said.

"For example, states which do not recognise same-sex unions as 'matrimony' will be pilloried and made an object of pressure."

More than 80 countries outlaw same-sex relations in all circumstances.

The maximum punishments range from a few years jail to life imprisonment.

In nine countries, or regions of countries, the mandatory punishment for homosexuality is death by execution.

There is no mention of same-sex marriage in the UN declaration. Only a handful of countries recognise gay and lesbian marriages, among them Canada, Belgium and South Africa.

GALHA’s secretary, David Christmas said the Vatican's stance is ludicrous.

“The accusation that it is in some way discriminatory to attempt to counteract the prejudice and hatred which exists in over 80 countries that outlaw same sex relations, would appear to be yet another example of the Vatican turning logical thinking on its head," he said.

The Vatican has backed their UN observer.

"It's not for nothing that fewer than 50 member states of the United Nations have adhered to the proposal in question while more than 150 have not adhered. The Holy See is not alone," a spokesman said.

Rev Says

Colleagues,

I hope you have been having a good week so far. May God continue to bless your day and weekend.


Reflections on The Prodigal Son
St. Luke 15: 11-32

Christmas is coming; it is just around the corner and for many of us this will be a period of great delight. For others it will be a time of sadness and loneliness. What can you do to minimize the sadness of the other?

There is an opportunity to offer service to others and to touch the lives of the other in wonderful ways. Some lessons come to us as we reflect on the parable of the Prodigal son. I believe we all know this story. In this parable, we see a young man dying from hunger, dying from shame and dying for home. He could not bear the shame, consequences of his actions or his choices. He was ashamed that he was feeding the swine. Further he longed for home, a place of sanctuary; he was dying for home, dying to belong to community. He was isolated from community. He was dying to belong to community.

Many persons are dying from hunger, shamefulness and are in need of community. Can we offer friendship in the spirit of Christian love to those who are ashamed, hungry, sad and lonely? We can offer community through our church and homes. Community might mean restoration, offering refuge or refreshing company. We need to hear from God the call to build community this Christmas.

We at SCJ can build this church community into a haven of rest, a sanctuary of caring, concern, a true community of Faith, Hope and Love. The challenge we face is to show others the light. This must be done through our individual and collective witness. There are persons who have gone astray just like the Prodigal son. As we offer them friendship and fellowship, we might help them to experience a sense of restored dignity.

Blessings,
Rev

Vatican's anti-gay witch-hunt continues

The Pope's plan for psychological tests to purge gay men from the priesthood is a new low

By Peter Tatchell, human rights campaigner
The Guardian - Comment is Free - London - 20 November 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2008/nov/20/comment-vatican-gay-testing-priests


The Vatican has announced the "psychological screening" of all new applicants for the priesthood, in a bid to weed out men who are deemed to be psychologically flawed. It has taken this initiative following the widespread sexual abuse of children by its clerics.

www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/vatican-moves-to-bar-gay-priests-14046126.html

In a diversionary tactic to deflect attention from the child sex abuse scandal, one of the main aims of these psychological tests is to weed out gay men, not paedophiles.

The Vatican identifies homosexuality as a deep-seated personality disorder and psychological flaw; condemning same-sex acts as "grave sins," "objectively disordered", "intrinsically immoral" and "contrary to natural law." Even men who have a gay orientation but abstain totally from sex are condemned by the Pope as possessing a "tendency towards an intrinsic moral evil."

Accordingly, the Vatican's Congregation for Catholic Education has issued a new document, Guidelines for the Use of Psychology in the Admission and Formation of Candidates for the Priesthood.

It proposes psychological tests to root out men with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies" from seminaries.

Estimates of the number of gay men in Catholic seminaries and the priesthood typically range from 25 percent to 50 percent, according to a review of research in the US by the Rev. Donald Cozzens, author of The Changing Face of the Priesthood. A similar proportion of priests is thought to be gay in the UK and Europe, including a number of bishops and cardinals.
http://catholicexchange.com/2002/03/21/95251/
http://www.religioustolerance.org/hom_rcc.html

The new Vatican document states that seminary candidates should undergo psychological evaluations whenever there is a suspicion of personality disturbances or doubts about their ability to live a celibate life, such as any manifestation of masculine weakness or a homosexual orientation.

When assessing a candidate's ability to be celibate, the Vatican document insists that "it is not enough to be sure that he is capable of abstaining from genital activity" but that it is also necessary "to evaluate his sexual orientation".

It advises that would-be priests must have "a positive and stable sense of their own masculine identity."

Surely all this makes Pope Benedict himself a prime candidate for psychological testing and exclusion? After all, he wears a dress, loads of jewellery, Prada shoes and has a penchant for high church, high camp ritual and theatrics. While I don't want to indulge in stereotypes, Benedict is not exactly macho. In fact, he's quite effeminate. He is also surrounded exclusively by men, has an unusually young and handsome
male private secretary and has no known close friendships with women.
http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2008/04/21/amd_pope-gaenswein.jpg

He would not be the first gay Pope. There have been several others, most scandalously
Pope Julius III (1487 to 1555), who was more a pederast than a homosexual. He took a 13 year old boy as his lover and made him a cardinal at the age of 17, showering him with such wealth that he became one of the richest men in Europe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Julius_III
http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/julius_III.html

Anyway, I digress.

Commenting on the new Vatican document, Cardinal Grocholewski, prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, advises:

"The candidate does not necessarily have to practice homosexuality. He can even be without sin. But if he has this deeply seated tendency, he cannot be admitted to priestly ministry precisely because of the nature of the priesthood, in which a spiritual paternity is carried out. Here we are not talking about whether he commits sins, but whether this deeply rooted tendency remains...It's not simply a question of observing celibacy as such. In this case, it would be (required for him to have) a heterosexual tendency, a normal tendency."
www.catholicherald.co.uk/articles/a0000409.shtml

This indicates a serious hardening of Vatican homophobia. It reverses the previous Catholic stance that only same sex acts are wrong, not the homosexual condition itself.

Cardinal Grocholewski elaborated:
"In a certain sense, when we ask why Christ reserved the priesthood to men, we speak of this spiritual paternity, and maintain that homosexuality is a type of deviation, a type of irregularity, as explained in two documents of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith....Therefore it (same-sex love) is a type of wound in the exercise of the priesthood, in forming relations with others. And precisely for this reason we say that something isn't right in the psyche of such a man. We don't simply talk about the ability to abstain from these kinds of relations."

The Vatican is recommending that the people who do the testing should have "solid human and spiritual maturity", and a "Christian concept of the human person, sexuality, the priestly vocation and celibacy". In other words, conformity to homophobic Catholic doctrine takes precedence over professional qualifications.

It is now revealed that the Catholic Church in England and Wales has jumped the gun. They have already introduced psychological tests for candidate priests.

Who conducts these tests? What are their qualifications? Have the tests been vetted and approved by a professional psychological authority? What is their scientific validity and reliability? Do they operate within a professional code of conduct? Is there sufficient protection for vulnerable applicants exposed to these procedures? Even if candidates consent to being tested, is that sufficient? These are questions the Catholic Church has not answered.

The Vatican's new policy aimed at excluding gay men from the priesthood is bigoted and hypocritical. It will encourage dishonesty, fuel homophobia and lead to Vatican sex spies snooping on trainee priests.

If these rules had existed in the past, many existing archbishops and cardinals would have never been allowed to enter the priesthood. Given the high proportion of gay clergy in senior positions in the Vatican, this new policy is rank hypocrisy.

Instead of paving the way for witch-hunts and purges of gay seminarians, the Pope should concentrate on rooting out child sex abusers. Sadly, the fundamentalists in the Vatican have often chosen to protect paedophile priests, while hounding gay clergy. Shame!

Donations are requested to help Peter Tatchell's campaigns promotinghuman rights, democracy and global justice. Peter is unpaid and receives no grants. He depends on donations from friends and supporters.

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More Reflection by Rev. Durrell Watkins

Seicho-No-Ie founder, Dr. Masaharu Taniguchi wrote, "Praise yourself the same way you would praise others… [and thus] bring out the God who dwells within you."

Within the Christian tradition there are examples of scripture being used to uphold class privilege, keep races divided, subjugate women, justify the brutality of war, demonize same-gender loving people, and insist that only people who agree with certain constructed religious beliefs are acceptable to God. These examples have contributed to violence, pain, and suffering in our world.

I believe the reason we have used religion to condemn, control, exclude, or vilify others is because we have not learned to affirm, accept, and celebrate ourselves. When we feel small, wounded, or separate from the Whole, then we become afraid and even desperate. To feel less insignificant, we look for an "Other" to judge harshly so that in comparison we will feel better. And if we can persuade ourselves that judging the "Other" is actually being true to a divine plan, then we are less likely to be bothered by the emotional violence we're committing. We convince ourselves that we are doing God's will by opposing, rejecting, or trying to assimilate the "Other." We now not only feel superior to the Other, we also have the added pride of doing so for the sake of a Higher Power!

Obviously, such an attitude will create resistance and resentment. There has to be a better way!

The better way is to accept our own sacred value and innate dignity. If we can truly accept who we are, then we have no need to condemn, belittle, or reject others. Religion then ceases to be an "insurance" card protecting us from after life torments, and it stops being a status symbol to be used against those who are non-religious or who are differently religious. Religion is one of the ways that we find community, express hope, and celebrate life; and we're free to allow others to find community, express hope, and celebrate life in whatever way is meaningful to them.

The salvation (wholeness, sense of security, feeling truly "OK") we are looking for isn't to be found in being "right" (while believing everyone who disagrees with us is "wrong"). Salvation is trusting our sacred value. Once we can see the innate holiness within ourselves, the divine presence some might say, then we can see that same holiness in others…in ALL others. Our job isn't to convert others, but to awaken to our own divine potential. When we truly trust our divine potential, we are far more likely to trust the divine potential in others. This is how we can love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22.39; Leviticus 19.18).

Ephebophilia vs Paedophilia & Male Homosexuality

In light of the increase in cases of child molestation and alleged buggery of young boys here in Jamaica it begs the question of what is it are we faced with really? Is it predatory actions by adult gay males to boys or is it ephebophilia? which is separate from paedophilia and male homosexuality.

Ephebophilia or hebephilia refers to the sexual preference for adolescents around 15-19 years of age. Experts use specific terms for age preferences: ephebophilia to refer to the sexual preference for late adolescents, hebephilia to refer the sexual preference for pubescent persons, and pedophilia to refer to the sexual preference for prepubescent persons. The term pedophilia, however, has also been used colloquially to refer broadly to sexual interest in minors, regardless of their level of physical development.

Ephebophilia is not listed as a paraphilia in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR), unlike pedophilia, which is categorized as a disorder in the manual.

Pedophilia or paedophilia has a range of definitions as found in psychology, law enforcement, and the popular vernacular. As a medical diagnosis, it is defined as a psychological disorder in which an adult experiences a sexual preference for prepubescent children.According to the DSM, pedophilia is specified as a form of paraphilia in which a person either has acted on intense sexual urges towards children, or experiences recurrent sexual urges towards and fantasies about children that cause distress or interpersonal difficulty. The disorder is frequently a feature of persons who commit child sexual abuse.

Nicholas Groth is a pioneer in the scientific study of sexual offenders against women and children, who has treated over 3000 child molesters over the course of two decades. A former director of the Sex Offender Program at the Connecticut Department of Corrections, Groth is the author of Men Who Rape: Psychology of the Offender, a work widely regarded as a classic textbook on the psychology of sexual violence.

He concurred in a recent debate on homosexuality vs paedophilia that Homosexuality and homosexual pedophilia are not synonymous. In fact, it may be that these two orientations are mutually exclusive, the reason being that the homosexual male is sexually attracted to masculine qualities whereas the heterosexual male is sexually attracted to feminine characteristics, and the sexually immature child’s qualities are more feminine than masculine. . . . The child offender who is attracted to and engaged in adult sexual relationships is heterosexual. It appears, therefore, that the adult heterosexual male constitutes a greater sexual risk to underage children than does the adult homosexual male.

The general belief in the stereotype that "Homosexuals are dangerous as teachers or youth leaders because they try to get sexually involved with children" or that "Homosexuals try to play sexually with children if they cannot get an adult partner." is very real in our scenario.
Let's hear your views.

Please follow up on this on Homosexuality versus Pedophilia article.

More reading
PAEDOPHILIA AND HOMOSEXUALITY,
Child Molestation by homosexuals and heterosexuals HOMILETIC & PASTORAL REVIEW
The Debate Link's Blog

(some excerpts taken from Andrew Sullivan's post on The Debate Link)

Legislation, Crime, Abortion, Gay rights; and Jesus - the end of the law

by Lucien Jones

Where are you in the debate on hanging, abortion, and gay rights? The first two are raging in my country. The other is a major issue in the USA ever since California voted to overturn gay marriages on the day Obama won the presidential elections. Jamaicans are overwhelmingly in favor of retaining the the death penalty on our statutes, and our Parliamentarians are currently debating the issue. And with good reason. Just this week, one of our daily newspapers, in reporting on the murder and sodomising of a young boy, the gang rape of a woman and the murder of three women describes the situation as something, " Out of Hell". Lately citizens, seemingly tired of the security forces inability to curb the crime wave, have taken to " chopping up", gunmen whenever they can. Fighting back, while many others cower in deep fear of being the next abduction, rape, or murder victim. This is not a good place for a nation to be in, and our leaders have no answer to these brazen, wicked and apparently unstoppable gunmen. Therefore, in the view of some, legislation is at least one answer.

On another front, some public health professionals have been seeking to amend the Abortion Act, so that it is no longer a crime to perform such a procedure. They argue that this action would prevent the many deaths now resulting from unsafe abortions. Others also in favor, argue that, this should be a matter of an individual choice by the pregnant mother, especially in cases of rape and where carrying the pregnancy would constitute a grave threat to the mother's life. A position accepted by at least one church denomination. Those in opposition argue that life begins at conception, and therefore, any act to terminate the pregnancy, at any stage, is tantamount to murder. Both sides see the passage of legislation as very significant in going forward on this issue.
Gay marriage would never see the light of day in this " not in my cabinet" country. So it is not an issue. What is definitely an issue here is the retention of the buggery act as one way of ensuring that homosexuals do not " pass their place" in this society. Again legislation is seen as one way, and a significant method, of curbing the unseemly behaviour of these group.

So what did the Lord , who is in front of us, beside us, and behind us, say this week about these " hot button" issues.
The first was a still small voice from within. "Be careful you do not place too much focus on solving the problem of murder and violence that you get distracted and forget to seek to know Me better". I am dead serious. That's what I heard. And so about crime, so about road safety and even this Internet Ministry. "Be careful, lest you get distracted". When? Today. This evening. I went to the 7:30 am service but had to leave early - caught the wonderful sermon by one of our young people -to attend a service at another church on World Remembrance Day for Road Crash Victims. So I missed participating in the Eucharist -Holy Communion. Very badly. Thank God that the evening service, on the third Sunday of the month, is a Communion service. So as I prepared to leave and on my way down the Lord spoke to me about distractions. You would not believe also that my cell phone began vibrating, just at the start of the service. In keeping with God's message of distraction - I should have turned it off anyhow - I ignored it, arguing that any emergency would have to wait until the end of the service. Turned out that the person's phone had triggered the call by 'accident'.

Follow the rest on Luciens Blog (fairly extensive post)

About Lucien: Member of the congregation of the St.Andrew Parish Church ( Anglican)in Kingston Jamaica.Invited to a Haggai International Evangelistic Training Seminar in Singapore, and began writing home to a Christian friend about how the colleagues I had met, really loved the Lord Jesus. And thus began this Internet Ministry some three years ago, and which comes out weekly on a Sunday night, and which has expanded tremendously with God's help.

No communion for Obama supporters

By MEG KINNARD

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - A South Carolina Roman Catholic priest has told his parishioners that they should refrain from receiving Holy Communion if they voted for Barack Obama because the Democratic president-elect supports abortion, and supporting him "constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil."
The Rev. Jay Scott Newman said in a letter distributed Sunday to parishioners at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Greenville that they are putting their souls at risk if they take Holy Communion before doing penance for their vote.
"Our nation has chosen for its chief executive the most radical pro-abortion politician ever to serve in the United States Senate or to run for president," Newman wrote, referring to Obama by his full name, including his middle name of Hussein.
"Voting for a pro-abortion politician when a plausible pro-life alternative exists constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil, and those Catholics who do so place themselves outside of the full communion of Christ's Church and under the judgment of divine law. Persons in this condition should not receive Holy Communion until and unless they are reconciled to God in the Sacrament of Penance, lest they eat and drink their own condemnation."
During the 2008 presidential campaign, many bishops spoke out on abortion more boldly than four years earlier, telling Catholic politicians and voters that the issue should be the most important consideration in setting policy and deciding which candidate to back. A few church leaders said parishioners risked their immortal soul by voting for candidates who support abortion rights.
But bishops differ on whether Catholic lawmakers - and voters - should refrain from receiving Communion if they diverge from church teaching on abortion. Each bishop sets policy in his own diocese. In their annual fall meeting, the nation's Catholic bishops vowed Tuesday to forcefully confront the Obama administration over its support for abortion rights.
According to national exit polls, 54 percent of Catholics chose Obama, who is Protestant. In South Carolina, which McCain carried, voters in Greenville County - traditionally seen as among the state's most conservative areas - went 61 percent for the Republican, and 37 percent for Obama.
"It was not an attempt to make a partisan point," Newman said in a telephone interview Thursday. "In fact, in this election, for the sake of argument, if the Republican candidate had been pro-abortion, and the Democratic candidate had been pro-life, everything that I wrote would have been exactly the same."
Conservative Catholics criticized Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry in 2004 for supporting abortion rights, with a few Catholic bishops saying Kerry should refrain from receiving Holy Communion because his views were contrary to church teachings.
Sister Mary Ann Walsh, spokeswoman for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said she had not heard of other churches taking this position in reaction to Obama's win. A Boston-based group that supports Catholic Democrats questioned the move, saying it was too extreme.
"Father Newman is off base," said Steve Krueger, national director of Catholic Democrats. "He is acting beyond the authority of a parish priest to say what he did. ... Unfortunately, he is doing so in a manner that will be of great cost to those parishioners who did vote for Sens. Obama and Biden. There will be a spiritual cost to them for his words."
A man who has attended St. Mary's for 18 years said he welcomed Newman's message and anticipated it would inspire further discussion at the church.
"I don't understand anyone who would call themselves a Christian, let alone a Catholic, and could vote for someone who's a pro-abortion candidate," said Ted Kelly, 64, who volunteers his time as lector for the church. "You're talking about the murder of innocent beings."
---
On the Net:
St. Mary's Catholic Church: http://www.stmarysgvl.org/
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops: http://www.usccb.org/

Keith Olbermann speaks out against Proposition 8

Capital punishment and Christianity (Letter to the Observer Editor)

Originally Published Sunday, November 09, 2008

Dear Editor,

The crucifixion of Jesus Christ is the most celebrated capital punishment throughout human history. Roughly one-third of the current world population, or 2.04 billion persons, see the death of Christ as the central element of
their faith.

It is essential to note that Christians generally believe that Jesus was an innocent victim of an unjust judicial system. It would seem logical therefore, that Christians would at least preface any support for capital punishment with a call for a reasonably equitable and efficient judicial system.

Jesus was also asked for his opinion on capital punishment. 'Bright', religious fanatics 'caught' a woman committing adultery and brought her to Jesus to test his loyalty to the Law. Instead of speaking to the Law, Jesus spoke to justice. Many 'bright' theologians often ask, how is it that you can catch a woman in adultery by herself? Where was the man? If capital punishment is good for the goose, isn't it good for the gander as well?

Today, 'dunce' people ask, how can poor people afford to import so many guns? Where are the financiers? What is to prevent them from giving more guns to other poor people to continue the cycle of murderous mayhem? And who created the context that has made so many persons so susceptible to the urge to kill? Will these conditions still exist after the hangings and will more people be murdered?

Marcus Garvey has said that religion is the greatest civilising agency. When we juxtapose the density of churches in this country with the frequency of murders we experience, then perhaps we should all revisit Jesus' indictment of the fundamentalist legal and religious zealots of his day and hear him say once again, since you are so innocent, fling nuh!

Stanley Redwood
stanley_redwood@yahoo.com

Some MPs still battling with 'conscience'

How will they vote on the death penalty?
THE Bruce Golding-led Jamaica Labour Party Administration has indicated that a resolution calling for a conscience vote on the death penalty is soon to be put before the Jamaican Parliament.

The motion, which was drafted by the Attorney General's Department, is now ready for presentation to the House. It is however not certain when it will be laid.
Hanging remains on the law books although no one has gone to the gallows since 1988. Chapter 3 section 14 of the constitution, addressing the issue of capital punishment, says "No person shall intentionally be deprived of his life save in execution of a sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence of which he has been convicted".

One of the most common responses to any upsurge in crime is usually a call for the resumption of hanging, which international and local rights groups have urged the Government to resist.

Senator AJ Nicholson, the former attorney general and minister of justice, has said that the time is ripe for both the Government and the Opposition to decide whether or not capital punishment should resume. The Government has indicated its willingness to take a conscience vote on the matter in Parliament.
In a 'free conscience vote', the House of Representatives on January 30, 1979 voted for the retention of the death penalty, but the Senate later voted for a limited suspension.

PNP Maxine Henry-Wilson: MP, St Andrew South Eastern"I haven't made up my mind yet. I'm undecided."

PNP Dr Omar Davies: MP, St Andrew Southern "I'm for the law."
PNP Roger Clarke: MP, Westmoreland Central "I am still consulting with my constituents."

JLP Derrick Smith: MP, St Andrew North Western "My position hasn't changed; once you find them guilty, accelerate the appeal and put them away 'effectively'.

JLP Pearnel Charles: MP, Clarendon North Central "I follow the law until it is changed."

JLP Edmund Bartlett: MP, St Andrew Eastern "I support the death penalty for crime. Whatever issues I may have are with regard to the means of executing it."

BOOK REVIEW: BULLETPROOF FAITH: A Spiritual Survival Guide For Gay And Lesbian Christians

If you are a gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender Christian, how do you feel when someone calls you a fag, a dyke, a sissy, a pansy, or any other hateful, derogatory name? How do you feel when others, such as family members, and even professing Christians, seek to deprive you of civil rights and call you an abomination in the eyes of God? How do you feel when clergy preach against you and what they call your “homosexual lifestyle” and demand that you give up “the sin of homosexuality” in order to become “right with God” or else you’re going to hell? How do you feel when even family members discriminate against you, and make it very clear that they don’t accept you for who you are?

Now, how do you handle those feelings, and what do you think about the person hurling one or more of those epithets at you? I guarantee that after you read Bulletproof Faith: A Spiritual Survival Guide For Gay And Lesbian Christians, by the erudite and eclectic Rev. Candace Chellew-Hodge, you will finally understand the psychological and spiritual strategies that you may employ to not only neutralize the effects of the hurt that you understandably feel, but translate those insults and that hurt into further psychological and spiritual growth, as well as help move the struggle for full and equal civil and sacramental rights for GLBT people forward.

As Rev. Chellew-Hodge writes: “Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people are in exile—cast out from our homes, our churches, our jobs, and our society. We are ostracized and oppressed by dogma, tradition, and legislation. We are a wounded and outcast people, desperate for a word of hope from the one who loves us most.” (Pp. 151-152)

Fortunately, this book that is one of a kind gives concrete methods by which GLBT people can both contend with personal and institutionalized homophobia and also lead happy lives while so doing! Rev. Chellew-Hodge uses her own considerable experiences, other eclectic sources, and her keen insights that puts into a healthy perspective essential psychological and spiritual coping mechanisms that is a breath of fresh air in dealing with the sufferings, heartbreaks, and anxieties attendant upon attacks by those who seek to both demean and distort both the Bible and the reality of GLBT people’s sexuality and very lives.

When one is castigated by virtually all institutions within society, as well as by one’s family, neighbors, pastors, and strangers for who he or she is, and is threatened with being rejected at a moment’s notice for the same reason, one is understandably defensive, angry, and afraid. Indeed, the psychological damage such exclusion and oppression engenders can be overwhelming, and cause much emotional turmoil, often resulting in disengagement from others, self-destructive behaviors, assorted emotional illnesses, and even self-loathing.

The GLBT Christian is likely to suffer from such oppression at least as much as the GLBT non-Christian, as he or she has long been exposed to spiritual vilification with hateful messages that tell him or her that God can’t possibly love that person; that person is going to hell if he or she doesn’t repent of “the sin of homosexuality”; the “homosexual lifestyle” is an abomination before God; that person is an abomination before God; the destruction of society is largely due to his or her very existence. How is the GLBT Christian to deal with such vilification, oppression, discrimination, and hate and the emotional feelings that they engender?

This excellent book fills a much-needed gap in the literature! It shows the seamless reconciliation between being a Christian and being a GLBT person; provides down to earth practical advice and coping strategies for the GLBT Christian. Other books that seek to show that reconciliation deal with assorted Scripture verses that are erroneously used by many professing Christians seeking to prove that homosexuality is a sin, and there are many such excellent books available to all Christians, Gay and Straight (A list of many of them can be found in the Appendix of her book.), that finally lays to rest any such erroneous contention.

It is this one book, however, which meets a need that no other book of which I’m aware even addresses. That is, it provides down to earth, concrete, ways of thinking and interacting with one’s oppressor whereby the GLBT Christian can neutralize the devastating effects of homophobia on the one hand and on the other hand also improve the quality of his or her psychological and spiritual life.

Rev. Chellew-Hodge shows an easy familiarity with the Bible, learning and rejoicing at least as much in the questions it poses as in the answers it gives, and highlights its essence as it applies to GLBT Christians without either torturing certain seemingly offending passages or relegating the Bible to some idolatrous embodiment of God, Who is best and most confidently seen in one’s very own life experience that, she affirms, is the only viable means by which to sustain and reinforce our faith.

This very well written, easily readable book delivers on its promise that it: “…empowers readers to withstand even the most aggressive assaults without fear, doubt, or anger by providing a useful working knowledge of biblical history; solid, proven tactics that can be used successfully when faced with an attack; spiritual practices…that enhance and strengthen faith; practical tools to discover one’s ‘authentic self’... [and] guidance on how to turn attacks into opportunities for spiritual growth.”

Indeed, I feel confident in saying that every GLBT Christian who reads this book will approach his or her spiritual life, the world, and those perceived as his or her “enemies,” in a new, refreshing way that will most assuredly redound to the benefit of his or her emotional and spiritual health.

Bulletproof Faith: A Spiritual Survival Guide For Gay And Lesbian Christians is truly a life-changing book! It provides psychological and “Spiritual Survival Tips” that will open the eyes of the reader to productive ways of experiencing, processing and handling homophobic attacks, virtually guaranteeing that his or her life will be immeasurably improved.

If you read only one book this year, Bulletproof Faith: A Spiritual Survival Guide For Gay And Lesbian Christians, should be that book!

Click This Link To Purchase The Book.

Vatican approves new tests to weed out 'gay' priests

Men who aspire to the priesthood may face psychological tests to check whether they are homosexual.
Despite the fact that Roman Catholic priests are celibate, the church under Pope Benedict XVI has become hostile to people with homosexual desires being ordained.
The Vatican has approved psychological tests to weed out those with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies" or "uncertain sexual identity" in a new document, Guidelines for the Use of Psychology in the Admission and Formation of Candidates for the Priesthood.
"In all too many cases psychological defects,sometimes of a pathological kind, reveal themselves only after ordination to the priesthood.
"Detecting defects earlier would help avoid many tragic experiences," according to the guidelines, which were issued by the Vatican's Congregation for Catholic Education.
"Those who today ask admittance to the seminary reflect in a more or less accentuated way the unease of an emerging mentality characterised by consumerism, instability in family and social relationships, moral relativism, erroneous visions of sexuality and a systematic negation of values, especially by the media."
The tests must be voluntary, but refusing to undergo one would likely bar you from the priesthood.
In May a senior Vatican official wrote to every bishop of the Roman Catholic Church reiterating that the ban on gay men entering seminaries to train for the priesthood applies to all such institutions.
Pope Benedict XVI approved the letter from the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.
It confirms that candidates from the holy orders and missionary seminaries and "all houses of formation for the priesthood, including those under the "Dicasteries for Eastern Churches, for the Evangelisation of Peoples, and for the Institutes of Consecrated Life" are subject to the gay ban.
The Cardinal said he was responding to various queries about the rules, which were set out under Benedict in the 2005 document Instruction Concerning the Criteria for the Discernment of Vocation with regard to Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in view of their Admission to the Seminary and to Holy Orders.
"The Church, while profoundly respecting the persons in question, cannot admit to the seminary or to holy orders those who practise homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture'.
"Such persons, in fact, find themselves in a situation that gravely hinders them from relating correctly to men and women.
"One must in no way overlook the negative consequences that can derive from the ordination of persons with deep-seated homosexual tendencies.
"Candidates who show a homosexual tendency will not be allowed into the priesthood unless they can demonstrate that they have been able to remain chaste for at least three years."
The Vatican's current stance on homosexuality dates back to 1961 where a ruling said that being gay was a "perverse inclination."

Rev Says

Dear Colleagues,

I hope you are keeping dry and warm on this rainy October morning. I trust you will experience God's goodness and grace today and always. Here is my weekly meditation:

Our Heritage of Faith

He has brought me to his banquet hall, And his banner over me is love.
Song of Songs 2:4

Nearly two weeks ago we celebrated National Heritage Week and this culminated in the celebration of National Heroes Day. As a nation, we called to remembrance the many sons and daughters of this fair isle who have laboured in multiple ways in the pursuit of the well-being and welfare of this nation. In the process these men and women have displayed elements of heroism.
We should never forget from whence we are coming. There are foundational concepts and elements that have served us well. One of these which is important in this nation is our sunny faith in God and the belief in the eventual triumph of good over evil in the final analysis. We have this tremendous legacy of reaching upward and outward as we seek after the Holy Spirit recognizing that we can be energized, equipped and empowered by God and thus accomplish much more with our lives in the pursuit of human betterment, wholeness and well-being.

As we call to remembrance the faith that has nurtured us, let us not romanticize, patronize, commercialize or demonize this faith. Let us allow our faith in God to inspire us to reach further and do more. Sure, our faith might have been tested and tried and we might no longer believe in the Sunday school concept of God.

But deep within we have experienced the reality of the Spirit. We have been touched by the loving embrace of God and despite the fact that we have multiple questions, sometimes even elements of uncertainty cloud our minds, one thing we can be assured of is that God’s banner over us is love.

So let us love the Lord and the things of God and let us seek to be ambassadors of this God whose banner over us is love. Yes our heritage is one of faith in God and the things of God. We can be faithful to this glorious heritage in new and different ways. May God give you the Grace and the enabling to continue serving and brightening the corner where you are.

Blessings,

Rev

Frightening Abductions cause for concern

With the spike in abductions of children and teens there is growing cause for concern, the cartoonist is right on about that.

Sowing and Reaping

Sowing and Reaping
“…One will reap only what one sows.” [St. Paul, Galatians 6.7]
Every gardener knows that what you plant and nurture is what will reproduce for you. It works in consciousness, too, doesn’t it? To focus on what is good, hopeful, loving, or healing means that we will experience more of that Good in our lives. The more aware of and grateful for the Good in our lives we become, the more joyous we will tend to be.

When we plant and nurture seeds of joy, joy is what will reproduce in our experience. We can’t sow negativity, gossip, untruths, or insults and expect to get anything back other than what we’ve been spreading. However, if the seeds we spread are hope, goodwill, praise, and friendship, we’ll be sure to reap a bumper crop of blessings.
Today I sow seeds of joy and goodwill and I know that wonderful blessings are on their way to me.

Today’s devotional prepared by Durrell Watkins

"Surely I come quickly, AMEN."

(Revelation 22:21)
How sweetly solemn is the addition of that "AMEN." There is no mistake about it. The response from the heart of the Church comes at once, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus." Meanwhile, be the time short or long, circumstances easy or difficult - and surely they will be difficult - "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. AMEN" (verse 21) is sufficient for each fainting heart.
Surely the coming of the Lord draws very nigh. An earnest spirit of expectation is upon the hearts of His people. Events in the world, happening with bewildering rapidity, proclaim the fact that the events narrated in The Revelation from chapter 4, are soon to begin. How happy it is that before that time arrives Christ will come for His Church. "A little while, and He that shall come will come and will not tarry" (Hebrews 10:37). How sweet and happy is our prospect. (A.J. Pollock - Things Which Must Shortly Come to Pass - 1918)

"EVEN SO, COME, LORD JESUS."

Glad to be alive and recovering well after attack

One of the brothers recovering after he was released from hospital

A 27 year old lesbian and her two brothers were the victims of an open gunfire assault on their persons earlier this year (August 29th) in South Central Jamaica. A day after the passage of hurricane Gustav the victim and her siblings were in the drizzling rain in search of a bunch of car keys that had gone missing. She noticed two men seated by a fence post near a walkway adjacent to their home.

The rain started and the woman and her brothers sought shelter on the car porch, her 7 year old daughter was inside the house and the other family members were away. Upon approaching the porch sounds of gunshots began to ring out and she soon realised she was hit in the right side of her abdomen, it penetrated her kidney and exited her body, she proceeded to run into the house and was struck twice, on the left buttocks and leg, she fell and played dead, where she called the police from her cell phone while in that lying position.

The gunmen were overheard saying "yes we get di lesbian, but the battyman dem get weh" they were intent on finishing the job and were in search of the two males. Her brothers were not known to be gay but guilt by association was the motive as presented to us in the victim's account of the incident.As for the brothers, one was shot five times and the other three. They made their way with the help of friends to the hospital for treatment. Our lesbian victim by now had managed to drag herself into the house after calling for help from onlookers & hiding her daughter under clothing and sheets with a breath-hole and instructed her to remain there until the police arrived.

The neighbours and onlookers were unsympathetic and were even expressing no remorse for the act being done to the victims. They accused her of being a lesbian and that the family was condoning it, so all of them should have been killed. One of her brothers was even taunted at work by his coworkers about the incident that his lesbian sister should have died.The police were helpful in this matter, they took the victim to the hospital and visited her afterwards there where she underwent an operation to remove a kidney and a damaged section of her liver. She was unable to walk at the time but is Glad to be alive and recovering well.

She has done follow up treatment and tests as her doctor has ordered. She has relocated to family and friends who are very supportive. The brothers have also received medical attention and had the bullets removed and are recuperating. One of the gunmen was captured after the police picked up on intelligence that he was boasting about the incident, he has previous charges pending of other shootings in and around the area. (not of LGBT people) the other is still in the run.

The case is to be mentioned again soon in court.Naturally she is scared to go to court as she is in fear of her life and knowing the holes in the witness protection program she is not willing to pursue the issue presently until she is physical able to she says. Her performance on her job has been affected so her income has depleted but she is cheerful non-the-less. She is thinking about what is her next step.

Since then all is going well with her and her brothers as they rebuild their lives.

Peace.

(photos now loaded with permission)

"Now is the accepted time behold, now is the day of salvation."

"It's unsinkable!" That was the proud boast made by the builders of the Titanic, the magnificent ocean liner that on April 14, 1912, went down during its maiden voyage. Most of the 2,100 passengers were sent to their deaths. In an article for the Danish magazine Evangelisten, Ingvald Andersen told about one of the passengers, John Harper, who was a fervent witness for Christ. According to a survivor, on the evening of the disaster John had led a young Englishman to faith in the Saviour.

Soon afterward, John went for a walk on the deck with his daughter and a niece. As they were admiring the spectacular sunset, Harper said, "It is going to be beautiful in the morning." For him and any other Christian who died that night, the next morning was beautiful.

Theirs was sunrise on their first day in heaven. Andersen, as he related all of this, urged his readers to be certain of their own relationship to Jesus. No matter how safe and serene your life may be, it can end in shipwreck at any moment. So if you have never done so, you need to do as that young Englishman did - accept Christ as your Saviour NOW.

Then regardless of when or how you die, yours will be sunrise in heaven. (VCG)

When life is over and daylight is past,
In heaven's harbour my anchor is cast,
When I see Jesus my Saviour at last,
Oh, that will be sunrise for me!(Poole)
Salvation deferred too long
Becomes the tragedy of too late.

Too Busy to Keep a Solemn Charge?

"Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle; and, behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man unto me, and said, keep this man . . . And as thy servant was busy HERE AND THERE, he was gone . . ." (1 Kings 20:39,40)

What a sobering moral principle quoted above. A man was charged with the keeping of another. Other responsibilities, however, intruded taking his valuable time from guarding his charge - "Thy servant was busy here and there." It was then, in the midst of the busy 'heres and theres' that the one to be kept was found to be gone. The ruinous press of other activities allowed that most important service to go unheeded. With each child God gives parents He also gives a most solemn charge to keep that child. ". . . Take this child away, and nurse him for me. . . ."
(Exodus 2:7).

Be careful dear parents that your lives do not become so busy with all those "heres and theres" that you morally lose your children in the press of the constant demands made for your time. If you lose your children because of the care of other matters and they are as it were, gone, then gone too are the priceless opportunities to mold them in faith and love for your Lord Jesus.
(The Christian Shepherd - June 2008)

Well said.......Oh, no, not the clergy too! (Letter to the Observer's editor)

Dear Editor,
Many of our churches have not yet abandoned the shackles of colonialism, which created a type of violence from which some church leaders have not yet been liberated from a theology that was oppressive. It is not surprising to hear that a clergyman offered his services to be involved in hanging people.

An Anglican priest, the Rev Michael Lapsley, SSM from South Africa, delivered a succint and cogent argument against capital punishment. Fr Lapsley was the victim of a mail bomb during the apartheid era, which left him without hands, blind in one eye and with his hearing impaired.
My brother Anglican priest had audience with Oliver Tambo who reiterated that they were forced into the armed struggle, and Tambo admitted that "necklacing" was unacceptable. Fr Lapsey concluded that it was not a time for killing, but for healing.

It is not a time for war, it is a time for peace. It is not a time to keep silence, it is time to speak. We must love our neighbours as ourselves, but what happens if we do not love ourselves? What hope is there of loving the other if our experience of life has made us feel worthless? The same way apartheid damaged many

South Africans spiritually, colonialism had the same effect on the Jamaican psyche. The churches in Jamaica cannot create a neighbourly society if they continue to rest in prophetic retirement. The clergy cannot be agents of transformation if they participate in the culture of state violence.

Revd Canon Ernle Gordon
St Mary's Rectory
Kingtson 20
gordfm@yahoo.com

hhhmmm interesting

Interesting the church leaders' cry for blood.