Last week, the General Assembly of the United Reformed Church agreed that local churches could henceforth take their own local decisions on whether to conduct civil partnerships on church premises. This afternoon the General Assembly of the United Reformed Church turned…
Monthly Archives: July 2012
Has World Pride/ London Shame Been an Omni-shambles?
Last week, plans for London’s World Pride Parade tomorrow were scaled back to a “Procession”, at an earlier starting time, and without any motorized floats. Earlier plans for the festival footprint to reach deep into Soho, the city’s gay heartland,…
Bishop Robinson to Speak on Sexual Morality (Sydney)
Geoffrey Robinson became the first Catholic bishop to articulate publicly what many have thought (and possibly discussed privately) for years: that Catholic sexual doctrine is clearly disordered, and needs to be rethought from top to bottom. In March this year,…
Catholic and Other Faith Schools and Homophobic Bullying – ‘Must Do Much Better’
75% of lesbian, gay and bisexual pupils in faith schools experience homophobic bullying at school, compared to 65% in non-faith schools (Stonewall’s The School Report, 2007 ). Their 2012 School Report, which has just been published, doesn’t give the current…
Tablet Table: My Case for Gay Marriage
The “Tablet Table” is an informal gathering, where staff and associates of The Tablet get together for Mass, a pub meal - and a discussion on a subject of topical interest. Tonight, I will attending my first Tablet Table -…
Lesbian Kindergarden Head’s Sacking by Catholic Church is Allowed by Court
The European Court of Human Rights has just stepped in to order compensation is paid when the Catholic Church sacks heterosexual staff who it judges are ‘living in sin’. This decision should also help lesbians and gay men, just as…
Time to Brush Up on Gutierrez’s Liberation Theology?
For many LGBT Catholics, “CDF” is a dirty word. It is the Vatican department, sometimes described as the modern incarnation of the inquisition, that was responsible under then Cardinal Ratzinger for the most offensive and disordered documents on Church response…
“Homosexual” and “Penis in Vagina Intercourse”, “Persons With an Inclination to Abuse”
Language does matter. In Oakland, California, Bishop Cordileone has laid down an ultimatum to the Catholic Association of Lesbian and Gay Ministry, demanding in part that they drop the use of the terms “gay” and “lesbian”, in favour of the…
Queer Saints and Martyrs: Calendar for July
Catholic tradition honours the remarkable men and women who have contributed significantly to its heritage by recognising them as saints. Secular tradition like to remember specific events or causes by setting aside specific dates for their observance. The Calendar of Queer Saints…
