Well, I must admit its been a busy week.
On Tuesday, as you may know, I had the privilege of attending the Woman's Empowerment Conference. I still smile as I think of the moment when I had the privilege of meeting our Governor, who incidentally is opposed to Prop 8. along with a host of notable persons who, I never in my wildest dreams thought that I'd ever be introduced to. Why is this important? Well, because all of them are in our corner, all of them understand that Prop 8 is essentially about bigotry. They know that Prop 8 is wrong and that we should vote NO on Prop 8.
Forty years ago, the people who were opposed to white people marrying black people used the very same oppressive arguments that are being used today by the "yes" on Prop 8 side: "What about the children?". The irony, of course, is that the child of a mixed race marriage, Barack Obama, will probably be the next President of the United States! The "yes" on 8 people, like their racist predecessors, realize that their arguments are both morally and intellectually bankrupt and so, they resort to emotionalism and an irrational fear which represent the most base within each of us. These very same people who invoke morality are not above deception in order to secure an immoral victory. They themselves offend God by manipulating children in advertisements to violate one of the 10 Commandments of God to not bear false witness against your neighbor.
On Friday night, I took part in a live debate on Fox 11.
You can watch it here:
And on Sunday, I was interviewed by Steve Lopez of the LA Times.
You can check it out here
And Please, Donate to No on Prop 8 if you can. Large amounts of money are being poured into California from all over the United States of America. Fundamentalists, the leaderships of the LDS (Mormons), the Knights of Columbus (a Catholic Organization) and millions of others, are using funds. Funds which should be used to help feed the hungry, house the homeless and give a future to orphans. These funds have been appropriated to perpetuate bigotry and oppress a minority in the name of an all compassionate God. In this, they add insult to injury. They Blaspheme the very God who they falsely claim to serve. They become servants of evil in the name of good. They drive people away from God and preach hatred in the name of God, who is love.
3 comments:
The sad fact in all of this is that if homosexuality is such an issue, why did Jesus fail to leave us a single teaching about it in all his ministry? Yet this issue seems central to what is happening in both the Catholic and Anglican (Episcopalian) churches today. Why is huge effort being used to oppress people in the name of a loving God who obviously felt there were much better things to teach us in his three years among us?
I feel very moved by what you are doing Father Geoff. It is rare that one is able to witness the work of a Saint.
Best wishes and love from Europe,
Luca x
I grew up Roman Catholic and learned doubt of Jesus from the church itself. All I saw was the hypocrisy and the words becoming more important than the message.
Today, I made the same faith journey as Father Farrow from atheism/agnosticism to a renewed faith in Christianity. I am an Episcopalian in New Hampshire and am blessed with an exceptional Bishop in Gene Robinson.
I have to return to a hospital for corrective surgery from an auto accident last year and I have pondered my "near-death" last year and the potential for my death this year. Thru it all, I have held fast to a faith in a loving God.
God bless you, Father. For your courage and your faith. I wish there were more priests like you. I was so touched by your words that I had to write a comment.
As a white, middle-aged, heterosexual women living in the Midwest, I am surrounded by a population of Bishops whose interpretation of the USCCB document The Challenge of Forming Consciences for a Faithful Citizenship, November 14, 2007 led them to loudly profess, “Same sex unions are intrinsically evil.” Our pastor, (parish of 14,000) included those horrendous words in his weekly column. I began an email discussion with him asking for an explanation and clarification as to when same sex unions became categorized as having a direct threat to the dignity of human life. He reprimanded me with the following words, “You seemed to be uninformed,” and “Apparently, I did not do my homework.”
The fight before you is the proverbial long road. Thank you. You are forever in my prayers.
Blessings,
Sandy
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