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Condemnation, Condolences in Wake of Orlando Massacre and More

By Peter Montgomery

…a “compassionate” sentence for homosexuals. Sekaleshfar had lectured near Orlando, Florida in April. Canada: Toronto Unity Mosque celebrates 14th all-inclusive iftar The night before the killing in Orlando, nearly 200 people attended Toronto Unity Mosque’s 14th annual all-inclusive iftar – a meal to break the fast during Ramadan — to which it had invited people “regardless of religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, class, dis…

Mike Huckabee, meet Amy Schumer. And, for that matter, Tony Orlando.

By Sarah Posner

…is like the Holocaust and slavery. For Huckabee, Roe v. Wade is out; Tony Orlando is still in. At Huckabee’s campaign announcement speech today in Hope, Arkansas, Orlando, now 71, performed “Yellow Ribbon,” as well as a song he composed for Huckabee, a hackneyed ode to why he loves America, “our home town.” Huckabee is widely seen as the evangelical’s candidate–not an just an evangelical candidate, but the candidate who speaks to and for evangeli…

Orlando Massacre and ISIS: The Illusion of Power

By Mark Juergensmeyer

…d and orchestrated by the central command in Syria. Moreover, a gay bar in Orlando, Florida seems like a strange venue for an ISIS operation. Multiple targets in the heart of Paris and Brussels fit more closely to the modus operandi of the ISIS organization, showing the weakness of the government security apparatus. An attack on a gay bar would not have the same symbolic effect. Though ISIS has persecuted LGBT people in the territory they control,…

Pricey Tickets, Cranky Citizens, and Priests Behind Bars as Philadelphia Prepares For Papal Visit

By Anthea Butler

…to continue to shrink into the insularity and disorganization that caused the Philadelphia Archdiocese to decline so precipitously? It remains to be seen. Meanwhile, faithful Catholics and others who want to see the Pope may be losing heart. 10,000 tickets for the Pope’s Speech at Independence Mall sold out in two minutes on Tuesday, with 394k people trying their best to get a few. Tickets are already being scalped at $100 and up on craigslist. I…

After Orlando: Love Wins, But When?

By Daniel Schultz

…marvel at the brief biographies of the dead I have seen, how many of them floated to Orlando from distant points as though it were their own personal Samarra. It seems a twisted necessity of God to require their souls so abruptly in a place of joy and refuge, a cruel grace that more than a few died with friends and partners. The Lord will no doubt have some questions for me on the day of judgment, but I will have some for him as well. How could y…

Emanuel’s Pulse: A Plea for Black Church–LGBTIQ Solidarity

By J. Kameron Carter

…, the breath of life. They wanted to stop the rapturous dance on the dance floor, the celebrations on the church floor, spirit’s queer communions. In the face of this what is to be done? Of course, we must continue to pressure legislators for sensible and sane gun laws, though as Eric Olson Ghetty remarked on my Facebook feed, “the gun control debate [may have] ended when we decided to do nothing after 27 white children were massacred at Sandy Hoo…

Sacred Geography: A Queer Latino Theological Response to Orlando

By Xiomara Verenice Cervantes-Gómez

…Center approaching. Behind their banner were large letters spelling out, “ORLANDO.” On their float, performing, was Mariachi Arcoiris de Los Ángeles, the world’s first and only LGBTQ mariachi band. I made eye contact with Natalia Melendez as she sang, “Cucurrucucú Paloma,” a Mexican huapango-style song about love, loss, and pain. Tears began to pour down my face and I said to myself: “My people…” As a theologian, I may not have the words to make…

Post-Orlando, Trump Reveals His Soul

By Daniel Schultz

…this is aside from Trump’s own tweets on the subject: Horrific incident in FL. Praying for all the victims & their families. When will this stop? When will we get tough, smart & vigilant? Appreciate the congrats for being right on radical Islamic terrorism, I don’t want congrats, I want toughness & vigilance. We must be smart! What has happened in Orlando is just the beginning. Our leadership is weak and ineffective. I called it and asked for the…

ISIS Claims Responsibility for Orlando Massacre; Legal Gray Area in Jordan Amid Rising Fundamentalism; Push and Pull on LGBT Human Rights at UN; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…he American-born man who massacred dozens of people at a gay night club in Orlando, Florida, reportedly called 911 just before the attack and pledged allegiance to ISIS. CNN reported that the gunman had been interviewed by the FBI in 2013 and 2014 “but was not found to be a threat.” MSNBC reported that the shooter’s father said he had been upset by seeing two men kissing in public. ISIS later claimed responsibility through its news agency, Amaq. A…

Monks With Guns: Discovering Buddhist Violence

By Michael Jerryson

…e of many covert, fully ordained soldiers placed in monasteries throughout Thailand. To these monks, peacemaking requires militancy. Since my initial realization in 2004, I began to look critically at my earlier perspective on Buddhism—one that shielded an extensive and historical dimension to Buddhist traditions: violence. Armed Buddhist monks in Thailand are not an exception to the rule; they are contemporary examples of a long historical preced…