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Norwegian Catholic Church May Stop Civil Marriages; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…was not generating much joy among LGBT Catholics. Shine quotes Jesuit Fr. Antonio Spadaro: “The apostolic exhortation is not just the last step of a long process. It is going to be another starting point.” Shine also cites Sr. Christine Schenk’s commentary from National Catholic Reporter: “The most distressing aspect of Amoris Laetitia is that it fails to incorporate the experiences of LGBT Catholics who also live deeply loving, holy and committe…

Trump’s Evangelical Support in the Gut, not the Theology

By Donovan Schaefer

…posed that the budget for the border patrol has to be doubled. Congressman Santos responds: “Double the border patrol. Sounds good. Sounds tough. Why not triple it?” Santos’s answer tells us something about the way politics is done in the U.S. today, and it helps us solve a puzzle at the heart of the extraordinary candidacy of Donald Trump. The puzzle is this: how can a twice-divorced candidate with a history of pro-choice leanings, no clear inter…

California Tribes Denounce Catholic Church’s “Fraud” and “Blatant Fabrication” on Serra Sainthood

By Peter Montgomery

…for the natives. That official line on Serra was denounced as a “fraud” by Antonio Gonzales, Director and United Nations Liaison for American Indian Movement West. Another speaker called the Church’s claims about Serra “a blatant fabrication.” The activists have essentially been ignored by the church. Gonzales read a statement by Valentin Lopzez, chairman of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band recounting the multiple letters and petitions tribes have sent…

The ‘Charlie Charlie Challenge’ and Teenage Yearning for Supernatural Encounters

By Joseph Laycock

…ardly surprising that Catholic priests, including the famous exorcist Jose Antonio Fortea, have condemned Charlie as demonic. Muslim clerics in several countries also have weighed in, speculating that Charlie could be a dangerous jinni. However, branding Charlie as a demon appears only to make him more appealing. Ellis notes that use of the Ouija board has a structure similar to exorcism, in which an entity is called forth, named, questioned, and…

Global LGBT Recap: World Vision Caves, World Congress of Families Vamps, God Weeps

By Peter Montgomery

…ent demonstration by LGBT rights supporters was attacked by a crowd of thousands, which included Orthodox priests, according to Democracy & Freedom Watch. Georgia’s treaty with the EU, the Association Agreement, has become entangled in this debate, as Orthodox activists see it as promoting gay rights. The treaty, which is expected to be signed by June this year, will include criteria like guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights, resp…

Is the Pope Francis Media Honeymoon Over?

By Sarah Posner

…tation. On Tuesday (Jan. 7), another Jesuit and papal confidante, the Rev. Antonio Spadaro, wrote to a leading Italian daily to protest that Francis has no intention of “legitimizing any behavior that’s inconsistent with the doctrine of the church.” Spadaro said any other reading was an effort at “manipulation.” Even as it becomes clear that Francis has done (or even could do) little to change church teaching on homosexuality, at the Advocate, wh…

Anti-Gay Celebration in Uganda; Weddings in England; ‘Francis Effect’ at the Vatican

By Peter Montgomery

…other efforts that would extend rights to LGBT Peruvians. The Blade quotes Antonio Capurro, director of Plural Perú, praising Vega: “We salute the immediate response of the public defender, that has been together with the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, one of the premier public institutions in defense of equal rights for same-sex couples,” Capurro told the Washington Blade. “Setting aside religious beliefs to offer citizenship and rights t…

Manufactured Outrage Over ‘Godless’ Democratic Platform [UPDATE]

By Peter Montgomery

…s not enough for the word-counters at Fox News, who demand to know why the number of uses of “God” has dropped. In response, Sen. Dick Durbin took on the insinuation that the platform revision somehow proved that Democrats are anti-God: Well, I can just basically tell you that if the narrative that is being presented on your station and through your channel and your network is that Democrats are godless people, they ought to know better, God is no…

Palin Cries ‘Blood Libel’: Can Words Harm Us?

By Susannah Heschel

…of Venice, for example, presents Shylock seeking not a pound of flesh from Antonio, but, as a Zionist, appropriating land from Arabs. The Middle East blood libel has evolved to include charges of Jews drinking Arab blood, serialized television programs about ritual murder, newspaper columns, and cartoons—frequently published with official government approval. Some are Guilty, but All are Responsible Sarah Palin accused her critics of practicing a…

Burma’s Spirit Festival, and More in This Week’s Global LGBT Roundup

By Peter Montgomery

…was forced to apologize to gay rights activists last year after imposing a sanction on the U.S. Episcopal Church following its ordination and marriage of LGBT people. The Episcopal Church was banned from representation on key bodies and barred from voting on issues relating to doctrine or strategy for three years. But the sanction drew dismay among Liberal Anglicans. Michael Curry, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, lamented that the ban br…