GLBT DIGEST - December 20, 2009

**IF YOU CAN'T ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE, CONTACT US AT rays.list@comcast.net and we'll be happy to send the full article.


New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

Gay Rights
On June 17, Mr. Obama signed an administrative memorandum extending some partnership rights to federal workers in same-sex relationships. It allows administration personnel to take leave to care for sick partners and requires the government to recognize their partners as household members when determining overseas housing allocations for State Department employees, among other things.
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/o/barack_obama/presidency/index.html?scp=6&sq=gay&st=cse/


gaymarry, gay-marry
To marry someone of the same sex. Also used hyperbolically to mean to form an unconventional relationship, as in, “I love my new cellphone so much I want to gay-marry it.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/20/weekinreview/20buzz.html?scp=5&sq=gay&st=cse/

=
Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

At 100, Boy Scouts say they're still `essential'
By DAVID CRARY
A fifth-generation Boy Scout, 11-year-old Brad Corr is steeped in all the lore and tradition: the Scout Oath and Scout Law, campcraft and community service, the daily doing of good deeds. If he were recruiting a friend for the Scouts, though, what would be his best pitch? "We got to build catapults and launch pumpkins from them."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/20/AR2009122000027.html/

Why two black D.C. pastors support gay marriage
By Dennis W. Wiley and Christine Y. Wiley
On a beautiful Saturday afternoon a couple of years ago, we entered the sanctuary at Covenant Baptist Church and took our places in front of the altar, just as we had countless times before in our more than 20 years as partners in ministry. We had been united in holy matrimony ourselves in the same spot where we now stood to unite others.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/18/AR2009121802049.html/

Firms expect economic windfall from gay marriage in District
By Sandhya Somashekhar
Robin Sutliff's flower shop is redolent with the ingredients of a perfect wedding place setting: tall stands of white amaryllis, cala lilies imported from South America, summery clusters of yellow-orange orchids. When she imagines the many same-sex couples likely to tie the knot in the District this spring, though, her mind settles on the humble hyacinth.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/19/AR2009121902234.html/

HBO's 'Big Love' to start Season 4 with a gay story line
By Jill Serjeant
Television polygamy drama "Big Love" returns for a fourth season in January with a gay story line that is likely to stir up controversy in Mormon circles where homosexual relations are prohibited. The creators of the HBO cable show, about a polygamous family living in Utah, plan to explore a same-sex relationship between two male characters involved in a fictional breakaway sect at the center of the series.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/18/AR2009121800161.html/

Evangelical church opens doors fully to gays
By ERIC GORSKI
The auditorium lights turned low, the service begins with the familiar rhythms of church: children singing, hugs and handshakes of greeting, a plea for donations to fix the boiler.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/20/AR2009122000036.html/

=
Steve Rothaus
http://www.MiamiHerald.com/gay/
Go to this link for the following articles:

‘I’m gay,’ reveals Welsh rugby star Gareth Thomas
By MATT WITHERS, Wales Online
"I'm a rugby player first and foremost. I just happen to be gay. It's irrelevant"
Rugby star Gareth Thomas today said he hoped he could make a difference to others struggling with their sexuality after disclosing he is gay. The former Wales international full-back said he was grateful for the “amazing response” he had received after describing his fears of how people would react.
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/12/im-gay-reveals-welsh-rugby-star-gareth-thomas.html/

=
Daily Queer News
http://www.dailyqueernews.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

Who's saying what about gay and lesbian issues
Catholic Archdiocese of DC insinuates Jesus says "No" to gay marriage because its like incest & sex with animals
Posted by duy
''It occurred to me to wonder what Jesus would say about the redefining of Marriage that is happening in this country of the last number of years? Many today insist that Jesus never said anything about homosexuality or so-called Gay Marriage.... I am using here the Catholic NAB translation: '[Jesus said] whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) and marries another commits adultery.' (Matt 19:9) ... Now the phrase, 'unless the marriage is unlawful' translates a Greek word πορνείᾳ (porneia). The usual meaning of the word is 'fornication'... many Greek lexicons (e.g. Strongs and also Thayer & Smith) define porneia broadly as 'illicit sexual intercourse' and then go on to define porneia more generally to include, fornication, homosexual activitity, lesbian activity, intercourse with animals, sexual intercourse with close relatives ( as spelled out in Leviticus 18), or sexual intercourse with a divorced man or woman.... So, fundamentally porneia most often means fornication (pre-marital sex) but it can mean other illicit things as well.... Gentiles often called "marriage" what the Judeo-Christians would call incest. There were also difficulties encountered with homosexual unions and other arrangements that the Christian Church could not and would not recognize.... Bottom line: Jesus would say 'No' I have it on the best of authority: Scripture and Tradition speaking through the Magisterium.''
http://www.metroweekly.com/news/last_word/2009/12/archdiocese-of-dc-insinuates-j.html/

Gay marriage is civil rights issue
Shannon Robb – Guest essayist
I was recently told by a man in his 50s that my generation would ruin the country based on our desired societal changes and political beliefs. However, with the recent failure of the New York Senate to pass a gay marriage bill, I disagree with this statement. I am a member of the MTV generation who has only felt increasing disappointment with the failure of New York to advance in an ever-changing nation.
http://rocnow.com/article/essays/2009912200322/

Letters: Marriages need court sanction
The Rev. John Edgar misses the point entirely ("Can't divorce marriage, religion," letter, Monday). He bases his argument against gay marriage on the straw man issues of procreation and children's wishes. This has nothing to do with the civil and legal rights bestowed upon a couple by way of marriage. The combination of marriage with religion is purely an option, as atheists can marry and have the same legal rights as a religious couple. And we don't refer to their marriage as an "atheist marriage," either.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/currents/79743222.html/

American Family Association is selling condoms
by: Lurleen
Well, computer condoms, anyways. American Family Filter can help, whether your concern is for your children who use the Internet, your spouse who spends secret computer time, or your personal struggle against online pornography.I guess actually talking to your spouse about your concerns over their online frolics would be out of the question. As for installing a filter yourself to hinder your own online porn addiction, isn't that like handing the jailhouse keys to the convicts? The idiocy of this ad boggles the mind, but then again it is AFA, so...
http://www.pamshouseblend.com/diary/14559/american-family-association-is-selling-condoms/

=

[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net]
#####