Search for "cheap airline tickets on tuesday phone number 1-800-299-7264"

UN Human Rights Council Creates LGBT Watchdog; Orthodox Council Affirms Traditional Teaching on Family; Pope Francis Says Church Should Apologize to Gays; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…lonial-era law criminalizing homosexuality; a petition had been filed by a number of prominent gay individuals. The Court, which had effectively recriminalized homosexuality in 2013 when it overturned a 2009 lower court ruling tossing out the law, sent the measure to the Chief Justice of India, who is considering other “curative” petitions. Rama Lakshmi notes in the Washington Post: Some members of the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Par…

Pope Denounces Gender Colonization; Indonesian Court Considers Islamist Request To Criminalize Homosexuality; Egypt’s Grand Mufti Says No One Has Right to Harm Homosexuals; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…s in the country. Experts presented by the anti-LGBT group at a hearing on Tuesday testified that homosexuality was inherently immoral and went against Indonesia’s state ideology. Later this month, groups and individuals opposed to criminalizing gay sex will testify. Egypt: Grand Mufti says no one has right to hurt homosexuals The Washington Post’s Melissa Etehad reports on July comments by Egypt’s grand mufti Shawki Allam in which “he condemned t…

Ministries of Presence: A Report from Nepal

By Cathleen Falsani

…urage began to wain, I got an email from Chris: “Yo! I leave for Kathmandu Tuesday.” (I was flying from Los Angeles on Wednesday.) “I’ll only be in Nepal for six days, but would love to introduce you to my local friends there.” I could have cried. (Actually, I did a little.) Heuertz might help me make the connections I likely wouldn’t be able to make on my own. A few days later, in the frenzy of the Kathmandu airport with scores of tourists trying…

UPDATED: Oklahoma Personhood Bill Not Dead…

By Sarah Morice-Brubaker

…ma Legislature chose not to pass personhood legislation. The extraordinary number of amendments to this bill makes it clear that the medical issues involved with infertility treatment, contraception, and pregnancy care are far too complex, and that medical decisions and family building are best left to doctors and patients. Personhood is an issue that goes far beyond abortion, and we’re very relieved that Oklahoma has chosen to trust families and…

Six Overlooked Gems from the Future of World Religions Report

By Timothy King

…3.2 million new adherents and “folk religions” (these tend to be small in number and tied to a particular people group or tribe) are likely to see gains of 2.6 million during the same time period. Such numbers are miniscule compared to the projected 61.5 million expected to switch into the “unaffiliated” category by 2050, nevertheless the 197% projected growth rate should turn more than a few heads. Something is causing people to be attracted to…

Record Number of Stealth Creationism Bills Introduced in 2011

By Lauri Lebo

The National Center for Science Education has tracked a record-setting number of nine anti-evolution bills introduced in state legislatures since Jan. 1. The latest is Texas’ HB 2454, which would prohibit an institution of higher learning from “discrimination related to research related into intelligent design.” “PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATION BASED ON RESEARCH RELATED TO INTELLIGENT DESIGN. An institution of higher education may not discriminate…

Why David Brooks Doesn’t Get the Outrage Over AIG

By Louis A. Ruprecht

…ist facing the bewildering array of current economic problems stick to the numbers or engage in psychological analysis? We could do worse than break down the current cast of characters based on that question and that approach. Greenspan was a number cruncher, Brooks observed, and unfortunately for him, human psychology caught up with him in the “housing bubble.” The current debate over Timothy Geithner is being conducted in similar terms. No one d…

How an 1843 Revelation on Polygamy Poses a Serious Challenge to Modern Mormonism

By Benjamin E. Park

…s Smith’s belief in the importance of the doctrine, as well as the growing number of people initiated into the order. And though the prophet tried to stop the rumors from spreading, an increasing number of prominent figures outraged by the alleged practice were dedicated to root out the truth. Among those trying to expose the practice and its participants were Joseph’s brother, Hyrum, as well as his wife, Emma. Then, in May of 1843, in a radical r…

Busy Days For ‘eBay of Prophecy’

By Bill Berkowitz

…rning the end of the world.” In addition to Rapture Ready Wallpaper, and a number of ads for books (Coincidences in the Bible and in Biblical Hebrewby Haim Shore), a very scary graphic novel (Armageddon Now: World War III), videos (“Rapture—End Times”), and dating aids (“Meet Christian Singles”—obviously something that should be done sooner than later), RaptureReady.com’s front page features a slew of bad-news articles with headlines that almost m…

Pence’s Religious Freedom Policy Made ‘LGBQ’ Hoosiers Sick—Literally

By Sunnivie Brydum

…bisexual or “unsure” of their sexual orientation. Researchers compared the number of “unhealthy days” reported by residents of each state, using the CDC definition of “the total number of days in the past 30 that people reported that their physical and mental heath were not good,” according to the press release announcing the study’s findings. The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System does include a question that allows participants to identi…