Step in the right direction
http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2011/05/10/Presbyterians_Approve_Gay_Clergy/
"After 33 years of debate, the Presbyterian Church has voted to change its constitution and allow openly gay people in same-sex relationships to be ordained as ministers.
Just two years ago, the majority of the church’s regions voted against ordaining gay candidates.
This year’s vote was 205 to 56, with three abstentions. According to The New York Times, 19 of the church’s 173 presbyterys switched their votes from no to yes in the last few months.
“All of us are surprised,” said the Rev. Gradye Parsons, the church’s Stated Clerk, its highest elected official.
He said the change in tune can be attributed to the growing acceptance of gays and lesbians in the United States, and to church members growing tired of the conflict.
“We’ve been having this conversation for 33 years, and some people are ready to get to the other side of this decision,” he said. “Some people are going to celebrate this day, because they’ve worked for it for a long time, and some people will mourn this day because they think it’s a totally different understanding of Scripture than they have.”
The Presbyterian Church is the latest in a line of mainline Protestant churches to vote to accept gay clergy members and church leaders, including the United Church of Christ, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and The Episcopal Church."
No gay "marriage" yet, but hey...baby steps. I think it's interesting that the split between the "OMG, it's the gay agenda!" people and continuing social acceptance is growing, and the homophobes are steadily losing ground. Do you think that the more mainstream religions are getting the message that they must change or die? People are accepting reality and growing tired of this ridiculous and groundless conflict.
A UU minister I read a while back said that if religion dies in America, religion is to blame for not recognizing the needs of people and adapting to the times. How true. Church attendance is slowly and steadily declining as is agnosticism and atheism. Why? Not because we've become "godless" or less humane as a people, because we are in many ways more humane, more socially conscious as a society than ever. What is "divine" or compassionate about us is in US, not in a building or even in a group. A group can only enable that or not, and a building is just a place to meet.
Also, the feeding of fear by some religion has to stop. Blaming this or that group or people for our mutual ills is extremist thinking at it's worst and most destructive. The right blames the left, fundamentalists blame gays, racists blame another race or color, misogynists blame women...etc. How easily we forget that we share communities, states, countries and most importantly, a planet.
Change is irresistible and inevitable. Change will happen, change is happening. Those who cannot accept it will become social pariahs. They will acquire the outcast status they try to impose upon those they hate.
"After 33 years of debate, the Presbyterian Church has voted to change its constitution and allow openly gay people in same-sex relationships to be ordained as ministers.
Just two years ago, the majority of the church’s regions voted against ordaining gay candidates.
This year’s vote was 205 to 56, with three abstentions. According to The New York Times, 19 of the church’s 173 presbyterys switched their votes from no to yes in the last few months.
“All of us are surprised,” said the Rev. Gradye Parsons, the church’s Stated Clerk, its highest elected official.
He said the change in tune can be attributed to the growing acceptance of gays and lesbians in the United States, and to church members growing tired of the conflict.
“We’ve been having this conversation for 33 years, and some people are ready to get to the other side of this decision,” he said. “Some people are going to celebrate this day, because they’ve worked for it for a long time, and some people will mourn this day because they think it’s a totally different understanding of Scripture than they have.”
The Presbyterian Church is the latest in a line of mainline Protestant churches to vote to accept gay clergy members and church leaders, including the United Church of Christ, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and The Episcopal Church."
No gay "marriage" yet, but hey...baby steps. I think it's interesting that the split between the "OMG, it's the gay agenda!" people and continuing social acceptance is growing, and the homophobes are steadily losing ground. Do you think that the more mainstream religions are getting the message that they must change or die? People are accepting reality and growing tired of this ridiculous and groundless conflict.
A UU minister I read a while back said that if religion dies in America, religion is to blame for not recognizing the needs of people and adapting to the times. How true. Church attendance is slowly and steadily declining as is agnosticism and atheism. Why? Not because we've become "godless" or less humane as a people, because we are in many ways more humane, more socially conscious as a society than ever. What is "divine" or compassionate about us is in US, not in a building or even in a group. A group can only enable that or not, and a building is just a place to meet.
Also, the feeding of fear by some religion has to stop. Blaming this or that group or people for our mutual ills is extremist thinking at it's worst and most destructive. The right blames the left, fundamentalists blame gays, racists blame another race or color, misogynists blame women...etc. How easily we forget that we share communities, states, countries and most importantly, a planet.
Change is irresistible and inevitable. Change will happen, change is happening. Those who cannot accept it will become social pariahs. They will acquire the outcast status they try to impose upon those they hate.