A "Great Gay Awakening" in the Evangelical Movement

Today's Huffington Post article by Cathleen Falsani discusses the LGBT-welcoming ministry of Jay Bakker (son of Jim and Tammy Faye), and points out several others within the Evangelical movement who are having having a re-think of their understanding of the Bible's teaching (or lack thereof) of homosexuality as we understand it.

At the Believe Out Loud Power Summit in Orlando this past October, we met Justin Lee of the Gay Christian Network, an organization that empowers and supports LGBT Christians.  The group's annual conference in Denver last month drew hundreds of attendees.

Meanwhile, busily undoing our work of reconciliation in Schenectady a city councilman and a couple of preachers are raising a stink about some affirming billboards targeting gay African-Americans sponsored by local LGBT group In Our Own Voices, as reported in the Albany Times-Union.

Gay Athletes Speak Out

The other day we shared a blog called Born This Way, which is a collection of childhood photos, self-submitted, that suggests that non-normative mannerisms and interests associated with same-sex attraction are evident way before a child is thinking about such things.

Today, perhaps as a counter to that, we offer a blog (Three Kids, Three Time Zones, One Mission) written by three male varsity athletes who happen to be gay.  These young men are not ashamed of their orientation, but at the same time they seek to let the world know that not all gay folks will talk, act or have the interests we have been socialized to expect they will.  They invite other LGBT athletes, out or not, to share their stories, and some have done so. Not surprisingly, the world of competitive sports is not an easy place to be LGBT, and the scarcity of out athletes means it can be quite isolating.  Brad, Robert, and Ben seek to change all that.

They say "a mother knows"....

A new blog called "Born This Way" challenges the notion that same-sex attraction or the interests or mannerisms associated with it are either learned or magically appear at adulthood.  LGBT folks share childhood images of themselves and describe how they began to realize they were "different".

A Tale of Two Heroes

Daniel Hernandez, the gay assistant of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords who helped save her life, was hailed by President Obama as a hero. 35 years ago, the gay man who saved Gerald Ford from a similar attack had a very different experience. 

 The Lead offers some commentary on a Los Angeles Times editorial comparing the two stories and their aftermath.

St. Aelred's Day Message from Integrity NYC-Metro Convener Mary O'Shaughnessy

On this Feast of St. Aelred , the patron of Integrity, below is a message from Mary O'Shaughnessy, the newly-elected Convener of Integrity NYC-Metro:

In its original incarnation, Integrity/NY served as a support and refuge for gay and lesbian Episcopalians who had very few welcoming parishes to choose from.

Today, we are blessed in the dioceses of Long Island, New York and Newark with a wide variety of parishes who have integrated LGBT people as members, leaders, and clergy.

You might well ask, “Why is Integrity/NYC-Metro needed?”

Our LGBT brothers and sisters need our support. There are many Episcopalian and Anglican LGBT people who are not as blessed as we are. This past fall, Integrity/NYC-Metro helped raise $6500 to support Bishop Christopher Senyonjo, a Ugandan supporter of LGBT rights who has been stripped of all his income and threatened with death, because he believes in our equality before God. There are U.S. dioceses in which no openly LGBT person can present themselves for vocational discernment, solely by virtue of their orientation or identity. We need to continue to stand with those in need.

There are LGBT Christians who are seeking welcoming churches. Many LGBT people who were raised in hostile churches or denominations still love Jesus Christ and want to follow him as Lord, even though they feel shunned or alienated by “organized religion.” Integrity/NYC-Metro wants to reach out to these Christians and offer them the same gift we have found for ourselves—membership in welcoming, truly integrated faith communities. Parents of LGBT people have also found themselves choosing their love for their children over the condemnation of their churches, and they too seek church homes. We are actively working to identify parishes who want to be part of this Integrity/NYC-Metro movement.

We need to be as out as Christians as we are as LGBT people. Many progressive people scoff at Christianity as a close-minded, ignorant refuge for the hate-addicted and self-righteous. We need to fight that stereotype by coming out as Christian and LGBT wherever and whenever the opportunity presents itself. Integrity/NYC-Metro is a supportive group for coming out as Christian!

Please join Integrity today. A portion of every member’s dues comes back to our chapter. This is how you can support our ongoing outreach to the LGBT community and the church. Visit www.integrityusa.org and sign up at the Membership link. Be sure to specify Integrity/NYC-Metro as your chapter!

Peace,

Mary O'Shaughnessy
Convener

To learn more about what Integrity NYC-Metro is planning, or to get involved, please visit us at http://www.integritynycmetro.org.

For Gates of Hope: Speaking the truth in love

Our Bishop, the Right Rev. Mark Beckwith, recounts his encounter in December with the Right Rev. Christopher Senyonjo, a retired bishop from Uganda whose ministry to LGBT persons in his country has come under attack under the anti-gay fervor being stirred up in part by Western churches.

For Gates of Hope: Speaking the truth in love

The Wellspring - December 2010

THE WELLSPRING

DECEMBER 2010

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In This Edition:

• Bishop Beckwith, Bishop Christopher Senyonjo Discuss LGBT Crisis in Uganda
• Integrity NYC-Metro is Born, Partnering with The OASIS
• The OASIS & Integrity at Diocesan Convention
• World AIDS Day Observances

Bishop Beckwith, Bishop Christopher Senyonjo Discuss LGBT Crisis in Uganda

On Saturday, December 18th, the Right Rev. Mark Beckwith, Bishop of Newark, and a small group met with the Right Rev. Christopher Senyonjo, the retired Bishop of Western Buganda in the Anglican province of Uganda, about the implications of a proposed new law commonly known as "The Bahati Bill" or the "Kill the Gays Bill" on the lives of LGBT people in his country.  The bill, which may come up for a vote after the Ugandan elections in February, would impose sentences of life imprisonment and, in some cases, the death penalty for people in the East African country who engage in consensual sex with someone of the same sex.

Bishop Christopher, 78, is soft-spoken and engaging, and hardly comes across as a threat. He's also married to a woman and has children and grandchildren.  However, because he counsels LGBT people and is unwilling to tell them they are sinful and must change, he has been singled out as one of the "top 100 homos" by a vigilante newspaper ironically known as The Rolling Stone (no relation to the music magazine in the USA) and has been a regular target of harassment and threats.

Bishop Christopher has spent the last few months touring the United States in an effort to raise awareness of the dire situation for LGBT Ugandans and raise funds for the St. Paul's Center for Reconciliation and Equality, a facility he opened to minister to a host of marginalized and disadvantaged communities.  IntegrityUSA, the national organization by and for LGBT Episcopalians and their allies, has sponsored Bishop Christopher's tour, and he has been accompanied by The Rev. Canon Albert Ogle, Integrity's Vice-President for International Affairs.

The author of the Ugandan bill, David Bahati, recently visited the Washington DC area and was interviewed by Rachel Maddow on MSNBC, calling his handiwork "a beautiful piece of legislation" that will protect children and families.  He asserted that US $15 million has been invested in Uganda for the purpose of "recruiting children" into same-sex activity but would produce no evidence to back his claims.

While he was in New York, Bishop Christopher met with members of the United Nations about a resolution on extra-judicial killings, from which LGBT people as a group were recently removed as a protected class.  Happily, a new vote this week reversed that decision. The day after meeting with us, Bishop Christopher preached at the Episcopal Church of St. Luke in the Fields in New York and hosted a question-and-answer period about his work.

The meeting in Newark was the subject of an article in the Star-Ledger on Sunday, December 19th.

Anyone who would like to contribute to Bishop Christopher's ongoing work in Uganda may do so c/o the Episcopal Church of St. Luke in the Fields, 487 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014. Please put "Bishop Christopher" in the memo.

(From left) Mr. Michael Petti (Warden, Christ Church: Belleville); Mr. Christian Paolino (Diocesan Coordinator for Newark, IntegrityUSA, and commissioner of The OASIS ), The Rev. Canon Dr. Sandye Wilson (Rector, St. Andrew & Holy Communion, South Orange); Mr. Michael Francaviglia (Secretary to Convention & Diocesan Council); Bill Lorentz, Esq. (St. George's, Maplewood); The Right Rev. Christopher Senyonjo (Bishop of Western Buganda - Retired, and Chair of the St. Paul's Center for Reconciliation & Equality); Matthew Piermatti, Esq. (St. Paul's: Montvale, Civil Union Task Force member); The Right Rev. Mark Beckwith (Bishop of Newark); The Rev. Karen Rezach (Priest Associate, Christ Church: Short Hills and commissioner of The OASIS)

Integrity NYC-Metro is Born, Partnering with The OASIS

Once known -- as was The OASIS -- as a shelter for LGBT Episcopalians in a largely hostile environment, Integrity, the national LGBT organization of the Episcopal Church, is also adapting to the changes in the church and the country.  Executive Director Max Niedzwiecki, Ph.D., installed in October, outlined an exciting new vision for the organization.

Locally, a once-dormant Integrity chapter has spread its wings.  Based in New York City but now known as Integrity NYC-Metro, the group is intentionally reaching out to congregations and groups in northern New Jersey, downstate New York and Long Island and working to boost local ministries to the LGBT community.  The Chapter Convener, Mary O'Shaughnessy, has already made it a point to learn about our diocese and how Integrity and The OASIS can work together, and in fact the two organizations partnered on an Episcopal presence at Hudson Pride in Jersey City this August and have a number of events already planned for 2011. 

Please visit www.integritynycmetro.org for details. If you are interested in participating in outreach to the diocese and church-seeking LGBT people, please contact the chapter at integritynyc@gmail.com.  There is also a mailing list and a Facebook group if you would like to be kept informed.

 

The OASIS & Integrity at Convention 

137th Annual Convention of the Diocese of Newark will be held on Friday, January 28 and Saturday, January 29, 2011 at the Hilton Hotel, Parsippany.  OASIS and Integrity-NYC Metro will be sponsoring an information table and a reception on Friday night.  Please watch for updates as Convention approaches and stop by to say hello and find out what we're up to!

World AIDS Day Observances

Ministering to those affected by HIV/AIDS remains a focus for the Episcopal Church.  Out Presiding Bishop, the Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, offered this statement on World AIDS Day, December 1st.  Locally, there were three Episcopal observances of World AIDS Day in the area.

• At St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Clifton, The Rev. Peter DeFranco led a prayer service beneath a panel of the AIDS Memorial Quilt.  Mr. Gary Paul Wright, a stalwart of the HIV/AIDS response in New Jersey and founder/chairman of the African American Office of Gay Concerns, gave the keynote address.  Members of The OASIS and an HIV/AIDS support group known as Positive Connection were in attendance.
  
• At the Church of the Annunciation in Oradell, the Rev. Dr. J. Barrington Bates and the Rev. Dr. Allison Moore (Rector at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Fort Lee) officiated at an interfaith worship service followed by a buffet dinner and musical program in community with Friends for Life, an HIV/AIDS support organization that moved to Annunciation after eighteen years in residency at Good Shepherd.
  
• Finally, the Episcopal Church of St. Luke in the Fields in Greenwich Village was the setting for the annual World AIDS Day Eucharist sponsored by Episcopal Response to AIDS, an organization that writes grants to parish-based and diocesan HIV/AIDS-related ministries in the area.  The Rev. Hugh M. Grant celebrated the Eucharist and the Rev. Mary Foulke, both resident at St. Luke's, offered the Sermon.  At the reception afterwards, ERA announced its 2011 grant recipients.

The Rev. Peter DeFranco at the World AIDS Day Observance at  St. Peter's Episcopal Church: Clifton

AIDS Walk New York: Never Too Soon

Episcopal Response to AIDS is a direct recipient of funds raised at AIDS Walk New York and stages one of the largest teams in the event, preceded by a Eucharist in Central Park.   As New Jersey programs receive ERA grants, Diocese of Newark congregations and individuals are encouraged to join the ERA Team for the march on May 15, 2011.  You may still march as a parish and wear your own shirts, but in fellowship with other Episcopalians and while raising money for our church's programs.  If there is interest in traveling to the walk from New Jersey as a group, please contact The OASIS.

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Thank you and have a blessed Christmas!