DMU-LGBT Working Together 2015
tinyurl.com/6uwce9ou8y200.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbbmAYauZj4&feature=youtube_gdata
Daily Archives: February 14, 2015
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United Methodist Church Makes Small Step Toward Accepting Same Sex Marriage
United Methodist Church Makes Small Step Toward Accepting Same Sex Marriage
The United Methodist Church is taking a small step towards becoming a more welcoming place for LGBT people.
The Connectional Table, a global church body tasked with articulating a vision for the UMC, has supported a proposal that would make sure clergy members aren’t defrocked for officiating same-sex weddings or coming out as gay.
According to United Methodist News, the affirmation taken on Tuesday wasn’t a formal vote. The legislation will be need to be finalized when the Connectional Table meets in May and then approved by the 2016 meeting of the General Conference, the highest lawmaking assembly in the church.
While on the one hand removing punishments for clergy who are supportive of LGBT rights, the proposal also reaffirmed the UMC’s doctrine on homosexuality. The text notes that the church “historically has not condoned the practice of homosexuality and has considered the practice incompatible with Christian teaching.” It also says that the UMC should still be banned from using church funds “to promote the acceptance of homosexuality.”
Rev. Kennetha J. Bigham-Tsai, a Connectional Table member, said the draft proposal highlighted a “third way” for the church to come to an agreement about homosexuality.
“We’ve tried to allow some exercise of conscience, to allow for varying beliefs, to allow for varying practices within different contexts,” she said, “and to open a space for grace where people can live together in unity with their different beliefs.”
With more than seven million members in the United States alone, the UMC has been struggling in recent years to come to an agreement about how to minister to LGBT people. UMC clergy members in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and New York have recently come under fire for officiating at same-sex weddings. In January, the UMC decided not to put a retired bishop on trial for blessing a same-sex union in Birmingham, Alabama.
Methodist minister Rev. Frank Schaefer was defrocked in 2013 for officiating at his son’s wedding. Although he was reinstated in the fall of 2014, he still believes the church has a long way to go in terms of welcoming LGBT people.
Schaefer told The Huffington Post that the Connectional Table’s proposal has the potential to be adopted at the General Conference in 2016. But he couldn’t agree with the idea of a “third way” proposal, since he says it wouldn’t remove “harmful and discriminatory language” that teaches that homosexuality is a sin.
“It was the harmful language… that led my gay son to believe that he is a freak and that there was no place in the church (and in heaven) for him. And since faith was important to him, it thrust him into a spiritual crisis that almost caused him to take his own life. My son is not an exception,” he said. “There are thousands of LGBTQ teens and adults in the United Methodist Church who are being harmed-spiritually abused-in this way even today. We are past the time to compromise.”
Ten Great Gay Love Songs To Crack The Toughest Cynic
Ten Great Gay Love Songs To Crack The Toughest Cynic
What better time to celebrate these ten glorious gay love songs than Valentine’s day? And if you’re feeling a little scorned by love these days, don’t worry, they don’t all have happy endings.
Rufus Wainwright – “The Art Teacher”
“He asked us what our favorite work of art was / Never could I tell him it was him.” OK, you got us with that one. This song is technically sung from the perspective of a woman, but Rufus makes it plenty gay. And we love it.
Matt Alber – “Handsome Man”
A handsome man who also brings you coffee, OJ, a cinnamon bun and and almond croissant?! Too much. Where do we sign up?
Sufjan Stevens – “The Predatory Wasp Of The Palisades Is Out To Get Us!”
Though not explicitly a gay love song, this tune will tug at your nostalgic heart strings with lyrics like “Oh how I meant to tease him / Oh how I meant no harm / Touching his back with my hand I kiss him…I can’t explain the state that I’m in / The state of my heart, he was my best friend / Into the car, from the back seat / Oh admiration in falling asleep.”
Hercules and Love Affair ft. John Grant – “I Try To Talk To You”
Sometimes love is best expressed in interpretive dance.
Sam Smith – “Nirvana”
Sam has spoken publicly about the fact that his Grammy Award-winning album In The Lonely Hour was written post-breakup. But his track “Nirvana” captures some of the good times in spite of impending heartbreak.
Cosmo Jarvis – “Gay Pirates”
Life as a pirate isn’t easy. Life as a gay pirate is even tougher.
R.E.M. – “Be Mine”
If anyone ever wrote us a song like this, it’d be checkmate in one move.
Broken Social Scene – “I’m Still Your Fag”
Here’s a goth-meets-jock love story that is just chock full of tenderness.
Mashrou’ Leila – “Shim El Yasmine”
Out Lebanese singer Hamed Sinno fronts Mashrou’ Leila, and on this track, sings about a past lover he wanted to introduce to his parents. Even without being able to understand the lyrics, it’s a hauntingly beautiful tune.
Indigo Girls – “Power of Two”
The pronouns may be neutral in “Power of Two,” but it’s understood that the song is written about two women. Regardless, it’s a love song worthy of everyone.
Dan Tracer
Both Sides Claim Victory In Trial Over Houston LGBT Protections: VIDEO
Both Sides Claim Victory In Trial Over Houston LGBT Protections: VIDEO
Both sides are claiming victory after the jury reached a mixed verdict Friday in the trial over a petition to repeal Houston’s Equal Rights Ordinance.
But we won’t know which side is right until the judge issues a final ruling about how many valid signatures are on the petition. And even then, the decision is likely to be appealed.
The Houston Chronicle reports:
The ruling is not final, and a judge will now consider the jury’s findings about the work of more than 100 circulators of the petition that the city rejected last summer, citing overwhelming notary and signature-gatherer errors.
District Judge Robert Schaffer was not present for Friday’s ruling after nearly six days of jury deliberation. Attorneys on both sides said he will now begin counting which signatures are valid to see if opponents have reached the needed 17,269-signature threshold. Schaffer retains wide legal discretion in what he deems valid.
The jury’s ruling Friday will trigger a series of legal dominoes that, eventually, will yield a definitive answer: The judge will count the signatures, issue a decision on whether the petition is valid and then the case will almost certainly go to the appellate courts
Jurors determined there was widespread forgery on petition pages they reviewed, but no fraud. They also found that in many cases circulators failed to properly sign and subscribe petition pages.
Geoffrey Harrison, the lead attorney for the city, told the Chronicle that supporters of the Equal Rights Ordinance should “be thrilled and dancing in their kitchen” about the verdict. Mayor Annise Parker, who authored the ordinance, issued this statement:
“I am very pleased with the jury’s verdict, and I expect the court will apply the law to the verdict and issue a final judgment confirming that the petition failed. The City of Houston has had in place for over 100 years the same rules and legal requirements governing the referendum process to ensure fairness and avoid fraud, and the jury’s verdict confirms that the petitions did not meet the legal requirements. The plaintiffs are expected to appeal any outcome that is not in their favor. That would be unfortunate for the City. I believe that the majority of Houston wants this divisive fight to be over so that we are able to provide equal rights protections for all of our residents. The City is confident it will prevail.”
But opponents of the ordinance were also claiming victory. Plaintiff Jared Woodfill, the former chair of the local GOP, sent out a press release under the headline, “Favorable Jury Verdict Should Result in Victory for Voters and Religious Liberty!”
“Great news…the jury returned a verdict that should allow the people to vote on Mayor Parker’s Unequal Rights Ordinance,” Woodfill wrote. “Judge Robert Schaffer will now apply the ruling to the almost 55,000 individuals who signed the petition. I am confident he will conclude we had the requisite 17,269 signatures necessary for the people to vote on this issue.”
The Texas Pastor Council, the anti-LGBT group that led the petition drive, also said it’s confident the judge will determine there are enough valid signatures:
The coalition of pastors and community leaders behind the historic referendum effort to repeal Mayor Annise Parker’s pro-LGBT so-called “Equal Rights Ordinance” and the corresponding lawsuit after Parker and her legal team invalidated the petitions, responded with faith, confidence and optimism to today’s jury verdict that was nearly a fifty/fifty split on questions they considered.
“The Mayor’s lawyers went to extraordinary lengths to discredit, demean, denigrate and disqualify as many petitions and signatures as possible. Thankfully, in spite of an incredible amount of detail presented and even oft repeated by the city’s attack team, our God has again raised His standard of justice,” stated Dr. F.N. Williams, lead plaintiff for the pastors of the No UNequal Rights Coalition and Senior Pastor of Antioch Missionary Baptist Church as well as President of Houston Ministers Against Crime. …
“We are thankful that the God of justice stood with this David again against the Goliath of the machinery of city government in the hands of those like Annise Parker intent on serving her personal agenda even at the cost of voting rights of the people,” added Pastor Hernan Castano, an influential Hispanic pastor and network leader as well as one of the “Houston Five” subpoenaed by the Mayor.
Watch a report from KTRK-TV, AFTER THE JUMP …
John Wright
www.towleroad.com/2015/02/both-sides-claim-victory-in-trial-over-houston-equal-rights-ordinance.html
Juxtaposed
So That Happened: Obama Asks Congress If It's Okay That He Started Fighting ISIS
So That Happened: Obama Asks Congress If It's Okay That He Started Fighting ISIS
So, that happened: This week, America’s ongoing battle with the Islamic State reached a new stage, specifically that stage where the president finally gets around to asking Congress if it’s okay with them that he started a war six months ago. HuffPost’s Jen Bendery joins us to give us the skinny on the latest edition of warmaking as a legislative farce.
Listen to this week’s “So, That Happened” below:
Are you a regular “So, That Happened” listener? Let us know! Tell us what you think of the show, what we’re messing up and who we need to hear more from. Send us an electronic communication at [email protected].
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Some highlights from this week:
“Congress is in this place where, as one senator told me this week, they like to beat their chests and say ‘We’re the ones who control war authorization. It’s the constitutional right of Congress to do this. We’re the ones. We have the power. But … we don’t really want to do it. So, Obama did this. This is Obama’s war.'” — Jen Bendery
Meanwhile, closer to home, we have governors behaving badly: Sam Brownback of Kansas wants gays to experience workplace discrimination. Wisconsin’s Scott Walker isn’t sure he has the guts to talk about middle school science. And have you heard about all the nonsense that just brought about the resignation of Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber? We run down the nonsense.
“It’s been a weird uptick this week in governors kind of cold f*cking up left and right. Right?” — Jason Linkins
Finally, famous media people are leaving their famous media jobs. But did they jump, or were they pushed?
“Brian Williams — and this is true for most news celebrities — he’s only kind of famous. The only people who know who he is are old. He is on the “Nightly News.” Nobody watches that except for people over 65, so he’s not even a real celebrity.” — Zach Carter
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We’re very happy to let you know that “So, That Happened” is available on iTunes. We’ve been working to create an eclectic and informative panel show that’s constantly evolving, a show that’s as in touch with the top stories of the week as it is with important stories that go underreported. We’ll be here on a weekly basis, bringing you the goods.
Never miss an episode: Subscribe to “So, That Happened” on iTunes, and if you like what you hear, please leave a review. We also encourage you to check out other HuffPost podcasts: HuffPost Comedy’s “Too Long; Didn’t Listen,” HuffPost Politics’ “Drinking & Talking,” HuffPost Live’s “Fine Print,” the HuffPost Weird News podcast and the HuffPost Entertainment podcast.
This podcast was edited by Ibrahim Balkhy and engineered by Brad Shannon, with assistance from Christine Conetta, Chris Gentilviso and Adriana Usero.
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Model Boyfriends Strip Down For Adorable Gay Valentine’s Photo Shoot
Model Boyfriends Strip Down For Adorable Gay Valentine’s Photo Shoot
For those of you not in-the-know, Nelson Marin and Marvin Garcia are both models for underwear brand Baskit and boyfriends in real life. They share more than the frame in this Valentine’s Day photo shoot by Rich Mackey Photography. As you’d expect, the couple gets cutesy sharing kisses and butt grabs. They can’t keep their hands off each other, and or their pairs of Baskit underwear.
Marvin is wearing a pair of Just /b/ Briefs, currently 50 percent off at $11. The bubblegum/grey contrast of the underwear looks great under the maroon pants he wears, and even better out of them. The cut forms to Marvin’s legs and backside nice and snug for a casually sporty pair of underwear. Nelson is wearing a red pair of Light Briefs, currently 40 percent off at $13. These briefs have a more masculine appearance. Their body is red, contrasted by a white waistband with the brand name repeating around the elastic in navy lettering.
You can see more of this photo shoot on The Underwear Expert.
Photo Credit: Rich Mackey Photography
Underwear Expert
Valentines Day LGBT Poem
Valentines Day LGBT Poem
Hey there, sorry i didn’t upload last week but i thought i would at least put something up this week even though i wasn’t prepared. In the spirit of Valentines day i decided to read you all…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lj8GsH0Hops&feature=youtube_gdata
Brandon Routh: 'Live Your Life, and Forget Other People'
Brandon Routh: 'Live Your Life, and Forget Other People'
The Arrow star talks about his new superhero suit, his LGBT fan base, and how he misses his gay role in Partners.
Jim Halterman
www.advocate.com/arts-entertainment/2015/02/14/brandon-routh-live-your-life-and-forget-other-people
