…off the southern tip of Spain. United Kingdom: Former Tory leader opposes ‘promotion’ of homosexuality in schools Lord Norman Tebbit, a former Conservative Party chair, spoke out against “promotion” of homosexuality in the schools, saying “I think it is damaging to children to introduce uncertainty into their minds.” Kenya: Activist profiled The Star’s Lydia Matata wrotes about gender non-conforming activist Joji Baro. China: Most LGBT people fear…
…of Islam that celebrates queerness” Catholic Church: South African bishop promotes reparative therapy, Brazilian promotes acceptance South African Cardinal Wilfrid Napier announced on Twitter earlier this month that he is reading “Reparative Therapy of Male Homosexuality: A New Clinical Approach,” by the late advocate of reparative therapy Joseph Nicolosi. His August 1 tweet called the book “a challenging work on a subject of great importance.” T…
By Randall Balmer, Anthea Butler, Evan Derkacz, Jeff Sharlet, and Diane Winston
…But the center is an assertion, not a fact; an etiquette, not a place. Its code, its theology, is most fully embodied in Americanized Arminianism—a Protestant tradition of good works and propriety, “distinguished liberals” and polite realpolitik. “Arminian moralism,” notes historian Charles Sellers in his study of Finney’s age, The Market Revolution, “sanctioned competitive individualism and the market’s rewards of wealth and status.” It did not e…
…er return,” Mr. Karimov said. Catholic Church: Some conservatives upset by welcome to Luxembourg’s gay married prime minister The prime minister of Luxembourg, the first European national leader who is married to a same-sex partner, was officially received by the Vatican during a meeting between the pope and EU leaders, news of which bothered some conservative Catholics. Some Catholic observers noted the contrast with the Vatican’s rejection of a…
…asn’t figured into my consciousness since childhood when I was making hand-turkey paintings and participated in grade-school re-enactments complete with construction paper Pilgrim hats and Native American feather headdresses. Throughout my adult life I’ve struggled with the meaning of the Thanksgiving holiday as a familial celebration while being completely aware of the injustices suffered by the Wampanoag and Native Americans in general. As other…
…to risk placing him in a parish. A British gay man escaped extradition to Turkey, where was charged and convicted in absentia of raping a Turkish man, based on the “inherently inhuman and degrading” prison conditions he would likely experience. The defendant has testified that when he had been detained in Turkey before the trial he had been forced to convert to Islam. Ireland: Church of Ireland rejects call to consider same-sex ceremonies At its…
…fear of reprisal. I haven’t heard clarification on that before, and it was welcome news. What they can’t do is organize efforts to oppose the Church’s stated position or change its policy. It’s not exactly “live and let live,” but it’s a huge leap forward over some previous LDS leaders’ statements on same-sex marriage, such as when Pres. Boyd K. Packer warned in 2010 that “If we’re not alert, there are those today who not only tolerate but advocat…
…rse metropolises in the world. While we make much of the rise of China and Turkey, for example, consider that these are societies with long histories, including great stretches as dominant regional or global powers. Dubai, on the other hand, has come up from out of nowhere and accelerated past much of the Middle East. Of course the city is frequently derided for being shallow, superficial, overly concerned with wealth, and interested only in the m…
…orced local cultures to change. (Ataturk and Reza Shah, secular leaders of Turkey and Iran, obligated women to uncover their heads and men to change how they covered theirs; in Turkey, some who refused to change their clothes were executed). This merry-go-round is getting nauseating. After June 30th, people wondered whether Algeria was Egypt’s fate, or whether something worse is around the corner. In Today’s Zaman, I argued that Pakistan might be…
…ather than saying something, no matter our religion. Costa Rica: Activists Promote Marriage Equality Bill Opposed by Evangelical Lawmakers Equality activists are promoting new marriage equality legislation, which is backed by deputies from different parties, though one of the lawyers supporting the bill acknowledged that it might be blocked by evangelical lawmakers who have to date prevented other attempts. Tunisia: Court Jails Students on Sodomy…
