The Rev. Chuck Currie

Thank The Religious Right For Marriage Equality

The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza argued this week that support for gay marriage is surging because more people know gay folks and because of the influence of television (and popular culture in general).  I think we should give credit to the Religious Right. 

In Oregon, we have been forced to debate a series of anti-gay ballot measures put forward by conservative Christian organizations since 1988. Those conversations – perhaps more than any other factor – have forced Oregonians to consider what it means to discriminate against those who are neighbors and family members. People “came out” to oppose these measures and that meant for the first time many of us met gay people (or realized we already knew them). It forced churches and other faith bodies to reconsider traditional teachings on marriage in the much the same way the Civil Rights Movement forced many churches to reevaluate Scripture – which had been used to justify slavery and Jim Crow, by some – and that process has lead many to conclude that God’s overarching call for love and compassion trumps ancient understandings of relationships (or even misinterpretations of Scripture). In a very real sense, part of the surge in support for marriage equality comes as direct – but obviously unintended result – of the anti-gay marriage movement (and anti-gay movement more generally).

Jerry Falwell, Pat Roberton and Albert Mohler may be America's greatest advocates for marriage equality - though I'm sure they didn't mean it to turn out this way.

P.S. Live in Oregon? Join the people of Sunnyside Church and University Park Church for Easter in Portland.  All are welcome.

What Does Albert Mohler Have In Common With Al Qaeda?

My latest on The Huffington Post:

Mohler is no Osama bin Laden but clearly there is a place where Mohler's Christian fundamentalism and the Islamic fundamentalism of the late bin Laden find common ground.

What Does Albert Mohler Have In Common With Al Qaeda?

Praying For Change With The Portland Police

My latest on Blue Oregon:

The shooting of a patient at Portland Adventist Hospital by members of the Portland Police Bureau, a shooting that cost the patient his life, deserves a careful review. Portland police may have been 100% justified in their actions but Portlanders have every reason to be suspicious of a bureau in constant chaos.

Praying for Change With The Portland Police

People Of Faith Stand Up For Marriage Equality #OU4M

Oregon voters will be asked to consider marriage equality in 2014 - and this time people of faith will be leading the charge.

This morning Oregon United for Marriage launched a campaign to qualify a measure to make marriage equality the law of the land.  A packed church hall was the site of a diverse faith leaders breakfast where clergy and others became some of the first to sign the petetion.

"As religious leaders, we stand in solidarity with Oregon United for Marriage," said the Rev. Tara Wilkins, pastor of Bridgeport United Church of Christ and executive director of the Community of Welcoming Congregations. "Many of our religious traditions support the freedom to marry, and we believe the time is now to make it legal for gay and lesbian couples to marry in Oregon." Rev. Wilkins notes that the proposed initiative protects religious freedom, and no religious community will be forced to marry same-sex couples. Over 250 clergy and faith leaders have already signed on in support of the Freedom to marry in Oregon. "Marriage is about families and the freedom to marry reflects our values of treating all of our congregants the same, said Rev. Wilkins".

When the General Synod of the United Church of Christ endorsed marriage equality in 2005, they noted:

Rev. Chuck Currie signs the petition for marriage equality.

The message of the Gospel is the lens through which the whole of scripture is to be interpreted. Love and compassion, justice and peace are at the very core of the life and ministry of Jesus. It is a message that always bends toward inclusion. The biblical story recounts the ways in which inclusion and welcome to God's community is ever expanding -- from the story of Abraham and Sarah, to the inclusive ministry of Jesus, to the baptism of Cornelius, to the missionary journeys of Paul throughout the Greco- Roman world. The liberating work of the Spirit as witnessed in the activities of Jesus' ministry has been to address the situations and structures of exclusion, injustice and oppression that diminish God's people and keep them from realizing the full gift of human personhood in the context of human communion.

In that spirit, I signed my name to the petition this morning as a United Church of Christ minister serving two Reconciling Congregations in the United Methodist Church.

Some religious leaders in Oregon will obviously oppose marriage equality.  But they can no longer claim to speak for God or for the church universal.  A generation ago many churches used the Bible to oppose interacial marriage.  They were wrong then.  Many Christians today believe it is wrong to use to Bible and the teachings of Jesus, which call for inclusion and justice - to oppose marriage equality today.  

The Rev. Dr. Walter John Boris of the Central Pacific Conference of the United Church of Christ speaks out in support of marriage equality.

Sweet Cakes Bakery: The Great Wedding Cake Controversy

A Portland-area bakery recently refused to sell a wedding cake to a lesbian couple based on their religious objections to same-sex marriage. As I told KOIN-TV this weekend, the response wasn't Christian but discriminatory.  

Let's be clear: homosexuality is not a sin.  Bigotry is.  A generation ago - when Barack Obama's parents were married - interracial marriage was illegal in many states and businesses refused to accommodate interracial couples.  These private businesses often used the Bible to justify their discriminatory acts.

This incident is no different.  Oregon law protects gays and lesbians from discrimination.  A private business has no right to discriminate against someone based on their sexual orientation.  The Oregon Department of Justice is now investigating.  They will determine whether or not a crime has been committed.

But certainly a sin has been committed by the owners of Sweet Cakes Bakery.  Their website says they make cakes for "any occasion."  Unless you are gay, apparently.  What they have done is no different from those who a generation ago turned away interracial couples.  As a minister ordained to preach and teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I find no place in Holy Scripture that justifies such discrimination.  My hope is that the owners of the bakery have an opportunity to prayerfully reflect on this issue and repent. 

For The Love Of All Creation: A Sermon On Genesis 1:1-2:4a for Pride Month 2011 from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

Building The Beloved Community: A Sermon To Celebrate The Ministry of The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

This sermon was deleived by The Rev. Chuck Currie at a special joint service of Sunnyside Church and University Park Church in Portland, Ore. on Sunday, January 20, 2013.  Our Scripture readings were Amos 5:21-24 and Isaiah 11: 1-9. 

You can download the audio of the sermon here:

Download MLKRevChuckCurrie

(some browsers - like Firefox or Google Chrome - will allow you to simply click on the link and listen...otherwise click with the RIGHT mouse button on the hyperlink and choose “Save Target As” and save to your desktop or other folder – once downloaded click on the file to listen).

The text is below:

This Sunday – this special day when we celebrate the life and ministry of The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. – we have cause to celebrate.

Tomorrow our nation will witness the inauguration of Barack Obama to a second term as President of the United States of America, the first African-American to hold that position.  He lives in the White House, a grand symbol of freedom, but a building created with slave labor.  How far we have come.

Rev. Chuck Currie and Speaker Tina Kotek

This morning Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek joins us in worship.  We are proud she is from North Portland.  But it cannot go unrecognized that in a state that has been Ground Zero in the debate over gay rights for the last 25 years that Speaker Kotek is the first lesbian to lead a legislative body in our nation.  How far we have come.

What political party Barack Obama and Tina Kotek represent is unimportant to us this morning. 

It is unimportant what political party Tim Scott of South Carolina belongs to. What is important is that this month he becomes the first African-American to represent a Southern state since Reconstruction in the United States Senate. 

The walls of injustice are tumbling down.  Frances and Katherine, my daughters, can dream any dream thanks to Harriett Tubman, Susan B. Antony, Hilary Clinton and Tina Kotek.  Our children have opportunities that once seemed impossible because of discrimination of all kinds.  Change has come. 

We read in Scripture today that what impresses God is not the grandness of our buildings or the pomp and circumstance of worship but the boldness of our vision, and the focus of our actions in building up the Kingdom of God, which Dr. King called the Beloved Community.

Whatever progress we have made has been hard won and while we have every reason to celebrate we also have every responsibility as the church to bring light to dark places and there is still too much darkness in this world.

Dr. King was more than just a civil rights leader. That would by itself be an honorable legacy. But he was a Christian minister, a prophet even, who challenged the church to build up the Kingdom of God. That's radical. That's transformational. And for those of power and privilege it was terrifying because in the Kingdom the last come first. The Holy Spirit worked through King to break-up the evil of white supremacy and to lift up the needs of those oppressed by economic systems that failed to address the condition of poverty. The task of the church, in this day, is to continue that ministry in new ways and to continue -- as Jesus did himself -- to confront oppression wherever we find it: to set the captives free.

The Civil Rights Movement was grounded in the teachings of the Hebrew Prophets who remembered when the people were slaves in Pharaoh’s land, and both their escape from captivity and deliverance to the Promised Land. 

When Africans were ripped from their homeland and brought into the colonies, and later the United States, their masters often forced them to convert to Christianity.  We have in our history books a copy of a baptismal rite used for slaves in South Carolina that shows slaves were forced to vow obedience to God but told not to take the stories of God’s liberation from captivity seriously.  But it is impossible not to hear the stories from the Hebrew Scriptures and the promises of Jesus and not be transformed.  The Holy Spirit worked in the hearts of slaves and within the Christian faith they found hope and promise – a hope that sustained and guided them through the Civil War - and their decedents into the great Civil Rights Movement.  This was not what the slave owners of South Carolina, my ancestors, assumed would happen but God is more powerful than any human system of oppression.

In what is commonly called Jesus’ inaugural sermon he quoted from the Prophet Isaiah:

18 ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

   because he has anointed me

     to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives

   and recovery of sight to the blind,

     to let the oppressed go free,

19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’ (Luke 4 NRSV)

That is still the task of the church today. 

Too many people live in captivity:  caught up in on-going systems of racial oppression that still exist despite our progress, kept down by gender discrimination that allows us to place limits on what women earn or what jobs they might hold, trapped in broken immigration systems that don’t “welcome the stranger” but imprison and deport.

Children are captives of underfunded schools that ought to be cathedrals.  Sick people are captives of a system that puts profits before people.  All of us are captives of human caused climate change, gun violence and violence of every kind, along with oppressive poverty that stains our land.  And if we truly believe that war is contrary to the will of God we need to be peacemakers in our time.    

We are still not the Beloved Community that Dr. King dreamed of.

The church universal is not doing enough to build up the Kingdom.

This isn’t new. 

Dr. King preached just a year before he died that:

"... when the church is true to its guidelines, it sets out to preach deliverance to them that are captive. This is the role of the church: to free people. This merely means to free those who are slaves. Now if you notice some churches, they never read this part. Some churches aren't concerned about freeing anybody. Some white churches face the fact Sunday after Sunday that their members are slaves to prejudice, slaves to fear. You got a third of them, or a half of them or more, slaves to their prejudices. And the preacher does nothing to free them from their prejudice so often. Then you have another group sitting up there who would really like to do something about racial injustice, but they are afraid of social, political, and economic reprisals, so they end up silent. And the preacher never says anything to lift their souls and free them from that fear. And so they end up captive.”

He went on to preach:

You know this often happens in the Negro church. You know, there are some Negro preachers that have never opened their mouths about the freedom movement. And not only have they not opened their mouths, they haven’t done anything about it. And every now and then you get a few members: 'They talk too much about civil rights in that church.' I was talking with a preacher the other day and he said a few of his members were saying that. I said, 'Don't pay any attention to them. Because number one, the members didn't anoint you to preach. And any preacher who allows members to tell him what to preach isn't much of a preacher.'

If we want to be true to our calling as Christians we need to address the challenges of our time with courage and conviction, unafraid of whether or not we are winning any popularity contest.  

So we have to say to those in power that it is morally unacceptable that 20,000 children were homeless in our school system last year.  No one should live a third world life in a first world nation. 

We need to stand up to the NRA and rouge sheriffs doing their best Bull Connor imitations by saying that federal laws don’t apply to them when we need laws that protect us from gun violence. 

Our political leaders need to know that growth cannot come at the expense of our health – and so as people of faith we must challenge policies that will negatively impact our environment, including those that disproportionally impact communities of color.

And I want Sunnyside Church and University Park Church to be leaders in the fight for marriage equality in Oregon because until everyone has their civil rights protected none of us is truly free.  

Dr. King said:

"More and more I feel that the people of ill will have used time much more effectively than have the people of good will. We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. We must use time creatively, in the knowledge that the time is always ripe to do right."

What was true then is true now.  We are the inheritors of the dream.  But the dream is not yet fulfilled.  So God calls us to action.  Dr. King died the year before I was born.  But his words are for every generation.  As we leave this place let it be in a spirit of social action that keeps the building of the Kingdom front and center in our lives.  Faith without action is empty.  Faith combined with action can transform the world.

Amen.      

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Sunday Celebration

The people of University Park Church and Sunnyside Church invite you to celebrate The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Sunday on January 20th at University Park United Methodist Church (worship begins at 9:30 am). Our special guest that morning will be new Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek. A reception in Speaker Kotek’s honor will be held following the service where she will make brief remarks about her agenda in the Legislature and will answer questions.

View this event on Facebook.

Sunnyside Church and University Park Church are progressive and Reconciling Congregations in the United Methodist Church. Preaching that morning will be The Rev. Chuck Currie, a minister in the United Church of Christ, who serves as the minister of both congregations in an ecumenical partnership. Rev. Currie is a contributor to The Huffington Post whose ministry has focused on opportunity and hope for those living in poverty, and for the civil rights of all. 

University Park Church, located at 4775 N. Lombard, worships Sunday morning at 9:30 am. The congregation is known as a place of radical hospitality and has been a beacon of justice for the LGBTQ community.

Sunnyside Church, where worship is held each Sunday at 11 am (3520 SE Yamhill Street), is the home of the Common Cup Family Shelter, and has long been involved in the fight to end homelessness. The congregation also hosts a community meal program, a neighborhood “swap shop,” and Camp Fire programs.

The regular worship service at Sunnyside Church will not be held on January 20th so that members can worship at University Park Church. 

Speaker Kotek “will be the first openly lesbian lawmaker to lead a state legislative chamber in the U.S.,” notes The Huffington Post. “We consider this a great victory for the civil rights of all Oregonians,” says Rev. Currie. “As we celebrate the work of Dr. King and reflect on his unfinished agenda for equality of all, regardless of race or creed, along with his work to fight poverty and end war, it is right and proper to honor Speaker Kotek’s accomplishment.”

Rev. Currie is scheduled to deliver the invocation at Speaker Kotek’s swearing-in ceremony at the Oregon State Capitol on Monday, January 14th. University Park Church is located is Speaker Kotek’s N. Portland district. “All of us, regardless of party or politics, can join in giving thanks that the walls of discrimination continue to tumble down even as we recognize work remains before us,” Rev. Currie said. “In a sign of the times, our members are most proud that the Speaker comes from N. Portland before anything else. That is the way it should be. Speaker Kotek is being judged by the content of her character.”

Wal-Mart's MLK

My latest oped in The Huffington Post:

Is Wal-Mart trying to burnish their image by tying their company to the image of America's great champion for civil rights and workers?

Wal-Mart's MLK

Portland Police Reform Effort Already Off Track

The U.S. Department of Justice recently found that the Portland Police Bureau has engaged in a pattern of abuse that has denied people their basic civil rights and resulted in the deaths of several Portlanders, mostly those suffering from mental illness.  Willamette Week notes this morning that the DOJ has not called for an independent monitor to oversee reforms in Portland but instead will “create a body to ensure increased community oversight of reforms.”  That's an effort doomed to failure.

Local communities always oppose advances in civil rights when pressed.  That's the sad reality of our history.  We would never have had civil rights in our nation without the intervention of federal authorities and monitors.  Mayor Sam Adams and Portland Police Chief Mike Reese have already said they don't agree with the DOJ's findings.  So what is there to reform?  And how will this body make head-way if Portland authorities are busy protecting turf instead of protecting rights?

Most disappointing in the article today in Willamette Week were the comments by the two candidates hoping to replace Sam Adams as mayor in January when his scandal plagued term ends.  Both said they oppose independent oversight.  So does the police union, naturally.  This is all a recipe for more failure, more inaction, and more deaths of innocent Portlanders.

Statement On DOJ Investigation Of Portland Police

We have learned this morning that the U.S. Department of Justice has found that the Portland Police have engaged in a pattern of force that has violated the civil rights of Portlanders and resulted in the deaths of too many of our fellow citizens. I have not yet read the full report but applaud the DOJ for their work. As one of the clergy who called for this investigation and who took part in the memorial service for James Chasse, I continue to be outraged at the crisis in management that has developed in the Portland Police during the last several years. It will take a new mayor and new leadership at the Police Bureau to regain the full trust and faith Portlanders should have in their police. I am deeply appreciative of the many members of the Portland Police who have come forward to report violations and to work with integrity with the DOJ during this period. I'll look forward to reading the full report and hearing of the DOJ's recommendations to make Portland a safer community for all. - Rev. Chuck Currie


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Marriage Equality On HuffPost Live

This afternoon I took part in a discussion about marriage on HuffPost Live.  You can watch the archived video here. (It was a surprise to learn later I had relocated to Santa Rosa...)

Will You Marry Me? A Sermon on John 2:1-11, 15: 9-17 | Marriage Equality and the Bible

Read Will You Marry Me? Marriage Equality and the Bible on The Huffington Post

Summer is wedding season and while I'm not overwhelmed with wedding requests I've had a few and there is one that I'm really looking forward to in September. Weddings are, of course, special events. At their best, weddings bring not just two people together but families and even communities in a union bonded together in love. There is a simple joy in all that - even if the reality is that marriage itself is complex and sometimes difficult, just ask anyone who has been married longer than an hour. As we reflect on our reading from Scripture this morning, I want to discuss marriage a bit with you as we understand it in Christian terms, what marriage means as a legal institution, and to share with you some decisions that I have made about my role as a minister as it relates to marriage that have been helped along by my doctoral studies on this issue.

Let me begin by noting the reality that within the United States it is illegal for a minister or any other officiant to marry a gay or lesbian couple, much as it was illegal a generation ago to marry interracial couples. Oregonians voted to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman in 2004 - it is part of our state Constitution - thus banning marriage equality. This state Constitutional amendment plus the federal Defense of Marriage Act will both have to be overturned for gays and lesbians to receive true marriage equality. Federal law does not recognize gay marriages that are legal in states such as New York.

As a minister, I am asked to be an agent of the state when it comes to marriage. One way for a marriage to become legal is for an ordained minister to sign a marriage certificate. The United Church of Christ and the Episcopal Church USA are the only two mainline Christian denominations to support marriage equality, and that allow their clergy to perform such ceremonies. However, my religious freedom to provide pastoral care to gay and lesbian couples is curtailed by the government which says that I cannot legally marry same-gender couples - thus denying these parishioners the same care I can provide to straight couples. It does not seem the proper function of the government to tell me as a minister whom I can and cannot provide pastoral care to. That should be a decision of the church. The United Methodist Church, of course, forbids not just gay marriages but commitment ceremonies that the General Assembly of the church has deemed incompatible with Christianity. I look forward with great anticipation to the day this deeply flawed policy of this faithful denomination is overturned.

The United Church of Christ has developed an inclusive wedding liturgy, in which we pray for couples being married that:

...we come together in the presence of God to witness the marriage of the couple, to surround them with our prayers, and to share in their joy. The scriptures teach us that the bond and covenant of marriage is a gift of God, a holy mystery in which two become one flesh, an image of the union of Christ and the church. As the couple give themselves to each other, we remember that at Cana in Galilee our Savior Jesus Christ made the wedding feast a sign of God's reign of love. (So we pray that we) enter into (the wedding) celebration confident that through the Holy Spirit, Christ is present with us... We pray that (the) couple may fulfill God's purpose for the whole of their lives.

It is this idea of covenant that is so central, so important to marriage and there is no Biblical reason the marriage covenant should not be available to gay or lesbian couples.

Last fall, as I was taking a course in Biblical theology at Chicago Theological Seminary for my doctoral degree program, I wrote a piece for The Huffington Post about Chick-fil-A and their opposition to marriage equality. I note this mostly to brag that I wrote about this issue nearly a year before most anyone else was talking about it. ☺

I said then and I'll say now that I love Chick-fil-A. Their plain old chicken sandwich and a sweet tea can send me to heaven. I've always known they were owned by a Christian family and, frankly, I like that they close on Sundays. I'm old enough to remember when more stores did (of course, that often was enforced by law) and I think a (voluntary) day off from shopping and commercialism isn't a bad thing. But I was sad to hear then that the company had donated food to an anti-gay marriage group. Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy said the contribution was made because the company believes in a "Biblical definition of marriage." Mr. Cathy has since become even more vocal in his opposition to marriage equality.

What I suggested in my piece in The Huffington Post was that Mr. Cathy ought to read Unprotected Texts: The Bible's Surprising Contradictions About Sex and Desire, a book from Boston University's Jennifer Wright Knust. This American Baptist pastor and scholar notes that: "When it comes to marriage, biblical laws are almost entirely contradictory." In short, the one "Biblical definition of marriage" that Chick-fil-A wants to promote doesn't exist.

I'm guessing Mr. Cathy never took my advice.

As I've preached, how we read the Bible matters. It is not to be taken literally. John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, argued that Christian faith required one to bring Scripture, reason, experience and tradition to the table when trying to discern the will of God. Chick-fil-A is offering fast-food theology to a world that needs more than a bumper sticker understanding of the divine.

In a post for The Washington Post's "On Faith" blog, Knust wrote:

If we do take the time to read the Bible, we are likely to discover that the biblical writers do not agree with us, whatever version of sexual morality we are seeking to promote. Written more than 2,000 years ago at a significant historical and cultural distance, the Bible gathers together a diverse collection of ancient books, edited over time, not a coherent, divinely inspired set of instructions that can easily be applied. Tracing even a few, limited topics from one biblical book to another can make the point: If one book forbids marriage between foreigners and Israelites, the next depicts such marriages as a source of blessing, not only to Israel but to all of humankind. If one insists that women are saved by childbearing, the next recommends that women avoid childbearing altogether in order to devote themselves more fully to God. If one suggests that sex with a relative, the wife of another man, or with a male lover will certainly lead to the nation's downfall, the next depicts heroic kings engaging in precisely these forms of sex. And these are just a few examples.

Knust offers the same argument in her book. Knust writes: "The Bible is complicated enough, ancient enough, and flexible enough to support an almost endless set of interpretive agendas."

That may be true, in part. Taken as a whole, the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament offer (for me) a vision of covenant. My sense is that covenant includes within our relationships between one another and with God that we should - in Paul's words - be subject to one another out of love. That doesn't mean we have an anything goes faith without rules or boundaries. In fact, the opposite is true. You cannot, for example, abandon your family and remain in covenant with God or your relatives. Justice and compassion are central to Christianity. Yet, not all teachings from scripture should be practiced today (if they were, we'd still own slaves, as sanctioned in some parts of the Bible).

We must use an interpretative process to discern God's will for us - and do not think for a moment this isn't just what the different authors of the Bible did during the many centuries it was transformed from oral tradition to the written word. Using Wesley's criteria for discernment, it is important that we open ourselves to the power of the Holy Spirit - God's own breathe - to help guide us and for us to undertake this enterprise with humility.

A generation ago, as I have mentioned, interracial marriage was outlawed. This was justified by the use of Scripture. Genesis 28:1 reads: "Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, and charged him, 'You shall not marry one of the Canaanite women." In the past, this piece of Scripture was interpreted by some Christians to mean that Hebrews and Canaanites were of different races and therefore no races should inter-marry.

We may think this silly today but when Barack Obama was born his father - a black man - and his mother - a white woman - were barred from being legally married in many states and the justification was often Biblical. We have discerned over time, led by the power of the Holy Spirit, to understand not only our own error in interpretation but also the reality that some of what is written in Scripture has no moral authority over us today. Or should I quote from 1 Tim 2:11-12? "Let a woman learn in silence with full submission. I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she is to keep silent."

You see, I'm willing to make the faith claim right here and now that God has no problems with interracial marriages, wants women to speak boldly with the voice of Sophia (the embodiment of God's wisdom), and that those who use Scripture to justify discrimination against gays and lesbians are making the same mistake in interpretation that we have made as a people over and over again.

So will I marry gay and lesbian couples?

Right now I'm a United Church of Christ minister serving two Reconciling Congregations in the United Methodist Church. The United Church of Christ affirms marriage equality. The United Methodist Church says homosexuality is incompatible with Christianity. And both Sunnyside Church and University Park Church have pledged to welcome all, and are faithfully engaging the larger United Methodist Church to change the rules and truly become a church with open hearts and open doors and open minds.

So yes, I will marry any gay and lesbian couple that I believe is ready to make that commitment, using the same criteria to make that call that I would for any heterosexual couple. To respect the rules of the United Methodist Church, I will conduct those services at Ainsworth United Church of Christ, my home congregation.

Is there a risk is making this announcement?

I remember the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. who told his church:

No member of Ebenezer Baptist Church called me to the ministry. You called me to Ebenezer, and you may turn me out of here, but you can't turn me out of the ministry, because I got my guidelines and my anointment from God Almighty. And anything I want to say, I'm going to say it from this pulpit. It may hurt somebody, I don't know about that; somebody may not agree with it. But when God speaks, who can but prophesy? The word of God is upon me like fire shut up in my bones, and when God's word gets upon me, I've got to say it, I've got to tell it all over everywhere. And God has called me to deliver those that are in captivity.

So if you're gay or you're lesbian or bi-sexual or transgendered or questioning, I want to make it clear today: I am your pastor too. I am your pastor if you're straight, if you're a Democrat or a Republican, if you're black, white, Latino. And no rulebook or law will prevent me from providing you with the pastoral care I am called to provide.

What I will no longer do after September is sign wedding licenses. Until the day comes when marriage equality is the law of the land I will no longer act as an agent of the state in an institution that is discriminatory. In this, I join a small but growing number of clergy. I will offer you the religious rites of the church but will invite you to have your marriage license signed by a judge or other official of the state.

When the General Synod of the United Church of Christ endorsed marriage equality in 2005, they noted:

The message of the Gospel is the lens through which the whole of scripture is to be interpreted. Love and compassion, justice and peace are at the very core of the life and ministry of Jesus. It is a message that always bends toward inclusion. The biblical story recounts the ways in which inclusion and welcome to God's community is ever expanding - from the story of Abraham and Sarah, to the inclusive ministry of Jesus, to the baptism of Cornelius, to the missionary journeys of Paul throughout the Greco- Roman world. The liberating work of the Spirit as witnessed in the activities of Jesus' ministry has been to address the situations and structures of exclusion, injustice and oppression that diminish God's people and keep them from realizing the full gift of human personhood in the context of human communion.

I find truth in this statement and have love for the United Methodist Church, United Church of Christ and the church universal - not as institutions, but as part of the body of Christ. We are all one in Christ. It is in that spirit of love, that I come forth today to share with you God's call to us to love all people in ways that honor and continue the ministry of Jesus. It is a ministry, as we heard this morning in our text from John, that is joyful and where the Disciples - and by extension us - are commanded once again simply to love as Jesus has loved us - without condition or judgment, and centered on God's desire for us to be free from oppression or captivity, in covenant with one another and with God. Amen.

Will You Marry Me? A Sermon on John 2:1-11, 15:9-17 | Marriage Equality and the Bible from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

Shooting At Family Research Council Must Be Condemned; Shows Need For New Gun Controls

A shooting took place today outside the D.C. offices of the Family Research Council, a organization recognized as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center for their attacks against gays, lesbians and others.

No motive is known for the attack but it must be condemned by all who love God and seek justice. One guard was injured.

UPDATE: Additional information suggests this may be an act of domestic terrorism.  Before this information was known, LGBT leaders, often the victims of politicals campaigns undertaken by the Family Reseach Council, released a statement that read: "We were saddened to hear news of the shooting this morning at the offices of the Family Research Council. Our hearts go out to the shooting victim, his family, and his co-workers" and that "regardless of what emerges as the reason for this shooting, we utterly reject and condemn such violence. We wish for a swift and complete recovery for the victim of this terrible incident."

We are reminded of the words spoken by The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. a generation ago:

The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you murder the hater, but you do not murder hate. … Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

The anti-civil rights organization "National Organization for Marriage" is blaming this attack on the Southern Poverty Law Center.  That's irresponsible.  The Southern Poverty law Center has always promoted non-violence and justice.  Regardless of the motive of the shooter, the fact remains that the Family Research Council promotes an agenda of hate and division that must be called out.

But violence is never the way to achieve that goal.  What this does remind of us is the need for senisble gun controls that protect all people.

UPDATE: It is worth noting that the Family Research Council which has opposed sensible gun controls and partnered with the NRA did not issue statements calling for prayers in the wake of the mass shootings in Colorado or the Sikh temple.

God, Guns And The Church - The Darkest Valley from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

Churches Should Reexamine Ties To Boy Scouts Over Discrimination Policy

The decision by the Boy Scouts to re-affirm their policy of discriminating against gay and lesbian people should cause churches that host the Boy Scouts to reconsider their relationship with the organization.

As NPR reports, the Boy Scouts have decided after a 2-year review to maintain their policy which states:

"While the BSA does not proactively inquire about the sexual orientation of employees, volunteers, or members, we do not grant membership to individuals who are open or avowed homosexuals or who engage in behavior that would become a distraction to the mission of the BSA."

Discrimination against people who are gay and lesbian is contrary to the Greatest Commandment.

Few would question the overall value of the Boy Scout program.  But if the Boy Scouts are going to maintain that discrimination is a morally valid practice it is time for our churches to determine if the mission of the Boy Scouts is still compatiable with the mission of our churches.   

The Tea Party's Ongoing Racism Problem

We've seen plenty of evidence of the last couple of years that the Tea Party has plenty of racist members willing to put their racism front and center.  That occurred again on the 4th of July - a day thay should unite all Americans - when Tea Party members in New Mexico attached a Confederate battle flag to their float in a local parade.  People of faith must continue to condemn this extremism and demand that no one use race or religion or sexual orientation as a tool to divide people.  My firm belief is that most Americans regardless of political party find this kind of behavior offensive.  Politicians that court the Tea Party vote should make clear they strongly reject racism.  Churches and other faith bodies should use every opportunity to demand that for the common good of our nation that political movements not seek to rip apart our national community but build it up.

Christians Praise President Obama On Immigration

Christians across the United States have been quick to praise President Obama for his decision not to deport certain young immigrants who came to the United States as children.  "As the President has said many times, it makes no sense to remove productive young people to countries where they may not have lived or even speak the language. They have become productive members in our communities. They have grown up swearing allegiance to our flag. Yet they live in the shadows of America, without the possibility to realize their dreams," writes Cecilia Muñoz, Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council.  Mainline Christians, evangelicals and Roman Catholics - often divided - have been outspoken in their support for immigration reform and President Obama's actions. Why is this the case? We are called to "welcome the stranger" in our midst with hospitality.  Laws must be followed and real reform is still needed but the clear Christian response on this issue has always been not to turn away young people trying to better their lives.

“We believe the DHS’s policy that rewards hard working young people sets the right tone.  Evangelicals everywhere affirm that young immigrants can and should be allowed to contribute to our nation’s well-being.”

- Rev. Gabriel Salguero, President of The National Latino Evangelical Coalition (NaLEC)

"The Obama administration’s announcement today that some undocumented youth living in the U.S. will receive temporary relief from deportation and will be able to receive work authorization is an extraordinary way forward for much needed immigration reform. Among the young people who will be blessed by this action are United Methodists with whom we celebrate and give God thanks. This day comes as a result of the diligent efforts of many, including the hard work of Immigration Rapid Response Teams in our annual conferences, the work of several of our general agencies, United Methodist Women, and the clear and steady voice of our Council of Bishops."

- United Methodist Bishop Bishop Minerva G. Carcaño

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops welcomed the action of President Barack Obama today to defer action to all young people eligible under the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, saying that it would permit young people who were brought into the United States undocumented to come out of the shadows and more fully participate in society.

“This important action will provide legal protection, and work authorization, to a vulnerable group of immigrants who are deserving of remaining in our country and contributing their talents to our communities,” said Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles, chairman of the USCCB Committee on Migration. “These youth are bright, energetic, and eager to pursue their education and reach their full potential.”

As many as 800,000 young people would be eligible to receive a deferred action on deportation for two years, and a work permit.

Archbishop Gomez said the President’s action is no substitute for passage of the DREAM Act and encouraged Congress to enact comprehensive and humane immigration reform.

- U.S. Conference of Roman Catholic Bishops

Jesus said, "Bring the children to me." Our Christian teachings compel us to welcome the stranger in our midst, many of whom are young people innocent of any wrong doing. As officers of the United Church of Christ, we applaud President Obama's decision to grant categorical relief to almost 1 million young people who were brought to the United States when they were children. 

Until now these young people — who grew up in the United States, attended American schools and stayed out of trouble — were not able to dream of possibilities for personal or professional advancement in this country. Until now, these young people have been unable to work. They are ineligible for government financial aid to go to college, even in circumstances when they are outstanding students who are committed to being productive contributors to their communities and our society as a whole. Worst of all, they have been subject to deportation proceedings, sending them back to countries in which they have little connection or familiarity. 

The Executive Order announced on June 15, 2012, gives undocumented young immigrants, under the age of 30, the ability to apply for deferred action of deportation.  They must meet key criteria outlined in the statement delivered by Janet Napolitano, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security. While this temporary measure contains limiting conditions and gives only two years of reprieve, it is a positive step that we pray will lead to just and compassionate immigration reform legislation that is long overdue. As leaders of the United Church of Christ we call for the President and Congress to enact comprehensive social policies that establish a safe and humane immigration system that is consistent with our core values: Continuing Testament, Extravagant Welcome, and Changing Lives. 

- The Officers of the United Church of Christ

Central Pacific Conference Of The @UnitedChurch Of Christ Marches in #PDXPride Parade

Members of the Central Pacific Conference of the United Church of Christ joined a large contingent of Christian churches and other faith traditions part of the Coalition of Welcoming Congregations (CWC) today at the Portland Pride Parade.  I was glad to be there as a minister in the UCC, along with many colleagues, and to know that the two new congregations I will begin to pastor on July 1st - Sunnyside Church and University Park Church - are both members of CWC and share in the belief that God's love and justice is for all.  There is still much work to do to break down walls of inequality faced by gays and lesbians across the United States and the globe.  Not only are gays and lesbians denied the right to marry - much as interracial marriages were prohibited a generation ago - but hate crimes continue to occur and discrimination based on sexual orientation in employment and housing are still legal in many communities.  Such discrimination is contrary to the will of God and churches have a moral obligation to fight for equality whenever possible.  Tragically, the Christian faith is often used to justify hatred and discrimination against the gay and lesbian community.  That's theological malpractice that comes from a flawed understanding of Scripture.  We still have a long way to go before the Beloved Community is real and available for all.  

Killing Off Homosexuals And Other Anti-Christian Teachings

Just this past month voters in North Carolina passed an anti-gay ballot measure. Some brave Christian clergy spoke out against the measure but we're learning more and more that other clergy not only supported the anti-marriage amendment but used the campaign to preach a message of hate and violence directed at gays and lesbians inconsistent with the core of Christianity.

The pulpit is holy space and those that use it to promote violence commit theological malpractice as ugly and wrong as those who throughout history have used their pulpits to target Jews and other minority groups.

Are these hateful messages mainstream? In some communities, yes. And not just in the South. We have heard the same ugly language preached here in Oregon during campaigns past by the now defunct Oregon Citizens Alliance, the right-wing Christian group that promoted a series of anti-gay ballot measures.

All Christians - regardless of whether or not we support gay marriage (I strongly do) - must condemn hate speech from pastors and denominations where this occurs are obligated to hold their clergy accountable - taking away their status as ordained clergy. Because let's be clear: these hateful men are not preaching the word of God.

God created gays and lesbians, like all humanity, in God's image and was well pleased.

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Violence Against Women Act Protections in Jeopardy

House Republicans are playing politics with the Violence Against Women Act and it is up to people of good faith to stop them. As a minister in the United Church of Christ, I support the bi-partisan version of this legislation passed by the Senate. The House version strips protections from Native Americans, immigrants, and LGBT victims of violence. Take action now by signing the below action alert from the United Church of Christ (you can modify the language to reflect your religious tradition) or call your House member directly.

JPANet: Violence Against Women Act Protections in Jeopardy

Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), a measure which has received strong bipartisan support since it was first passed by Congress in 1994, is currently moving through Congress. The Senate passed its version of the reauthorization (S. 1925) in late April, and it included important enhancements for addressing the needs of Native American families living on tribal lands, immigrants, and those who are living in same-sex relationships and are victims of domestic violence.

These important provisions protecting Native American women, immigrants and LGBT victims of violence are being threatened!

A House version of the VAWA reauthorization, introduced by Rep. Sandy Adams (R-FL), now has the full backing of the House majority leadership and will be moving to a floor vote soon. The House version strips out the Senate provisions strengthening legal protections for Native American women and eliminates essential confidentiality protections for immigrant women seeking protection from abuse. While the Senate version includes provisions for improving services and increasing funding efficiency based on input from thousands of direct service providers, the House version rejects those improvements without any such consultation or review.

The United Church of Christ, in partnership with a diverse coalition of faith groups, has long supported efforts aimed at addressing and eliminating domestic violence. As part of the Interfaith Domestic Violence Coalition, the United Church of Christ joined with many others in supporting the Senate version of the reauthorization and applauded the expanded provisions for under-served communities. The House version jeopardizes those improvements and could put many women and families in greater danger with fewer resources and recourse.

Let your representative know that you do not support the House version of VAWA reauthorization. Urge your representative to support a House bill that reflects the Senate version and strengthens protections for women and their families.

Send your letter here.


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President's Call For Marriage Equality Consistent With Christian Ethics

As a minister in the United Church of Christ (UCC), I want to applaud President Obama's decision today to endorse marriage equality.  The General Synod of the United Church of Christ first called for marriage eqality in 2005. Gay and lesbian Americans deserve all the protections of U.S. law afforded other citizens. Discrimination is contrary to the will of God. I believe, in fact, that we are called to be a people of reconciliation that advance the cause of justice. A generation ago laws against interracial marriage were struck down. Many in our churches see this as the time to advance the cause of freedom and equality. I hope and pray with President Obama's leadership and a growing consensus from different political leaders - including former Vice-President Cheney - that marriage equality will soon become the law of the land.

- Rev. Chuck Currie

Christians Honor Trayvon Martin With Hoodie Photos #TrayvonMartin #WeAreTheChristianLeft @United Church

Christians across the United States today are honoring Trayvon Martin on Facebook with pictures of themselves wearing hoodies.  Visit The Christian Left.  

My photo is below:

Related Post: United Church of Christ joins prayers, protest in the shooting death of Florida teen

Tell Oregon's Congressional Delegation To Protect Homeless Oregonians Pls RT #p2

Two homeless Portlanders were shot on Ash Wednesday.  What can we do? In case I get hit by a truck you can help me by asking Earl Blumenauer, Suzanne Bonamici, Peter DeFazio, Greg Walden, and Kurt Schrader to co-sponsor H.R. 3528 - The Hate Crimes Against the Homeless Statistics Act of 2011 - and to ask Jeff Merkley to once again introduce similar legislation in the Senate (Ron Wyden should join him). 

The legislation would direct the U.S. Department of Justice to track hate crimes against those who are homeless.  With such information we can better learn about why such crimes occur and how to prevent them.  This is a public safety matter that involves some of our most vulnerable members of society.

How could Oregon's Congressional delegation not act?

All members of the House and Senate can be contacted via their websites or at (202) 224-3121. 

Statement On Ash Wednesday Shootings Of Homeless Portlanders

Ash Wednesday

February 22, 2012 

I urge all Oregonians to pray today for the two men experiencing homelessness who were shot early this morning under Portland, Oregon's Morrison Bridge in what police are calling a random attack.  Violence against those who are homeless is a national epidemic, according to the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH).  Having served on the NCH board and worked on issues of homelessness and poverty for twenty-five years, I can tell you there are many levels of complexity to the homelessness crisis.  But this is a spiritual crisis as much as a political or economic crisis.  When we allow people living on our streets to become invisible we begin the process of dehumanization and thus we see the increase in hate crimes against the most vulnerable in our society - those Jesus would have called the "least of these."  Ash Wednesday begins the Lenten season of reflection and prayer.  Let our prayers this Lent be with those children, women and men living on our streets in the most prosperous nation on earth.  The attacks today were nothing short of a terrorist attack.  The crisis of homelessness is nothing short of sin.

- Rev. Chuck Currie 

MSNBC: Take this hate group off the air Via @FaithfulAmerica (Pls RT)

MSNBC: Take this hate group off the air via Faithful America

Same Sex Marriage And Christian Ethics #Prop8

The courts have ruled - again - that California's Proposition 8 is unconstitutional.  Judges can rule on legality but it is up to people of faith to judge morality within our faith traditions.  Is same sex marriage valid within Christianity?  I'd argue yes.  In fact, I've preached just that.

For The Love Of All Creation: A Sermon On Genesis 1:1-2:4a for Pride Month 2011 from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

Still Fighting For Marriage Equality

Basic Rights Oregon has been moving forward with a decision to place a ballot initiative before voters to legalize marriage equality but decided yeaterday to wait until after 2012 before doing so.  That was a hard but wise decision that I fully support.

Like many religious leaders, I support marriage equality because "our religious traditions and scriptures teach us that wherever love is present, God is also present. One of God’s greatest gifts to us is our human capacity to love one another. The ability of two people to enter into relationships and form families of love and care is one expression of this gift. It is holy and good."  As a minister in the United Church of Christ, I believe strongly that equality must being extended to all - just as God's love is for all.  

The campaign for marriage equality will come - sooner rather than later, I hope.  It is frustrating that justice is being delayed once again but have no doubt that justice will come.

The Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth

Today we celebrate the life of The Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth.  He was a Christian who put his faith into action alongside The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and other founders of the Southern Christian Leadership Council.  He endured bombings and beatings but prevailed in making America a more equal Union.  More importantly, he helped to build-up the Kingdom of God when others stood silent.  

There is a lesson in his ministry and life's work for us today as we face new difficulties that challenge the common good.

President Barack Obama, who never would have been elected president or even had the right to vote without the leadership of Rev. Shuttlesworth, said today:

Michelle and I were saddened to hear about the passing of Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth today.  As one of the founders of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Reverend Shuttlesworth dedicated his life to advancing the cause of justice for all Americans.  He was a testament to the strength of the human spirit.  And today we stand on his shoulders, and the shoulders of all those who marched and sat and lifted their voices to help perfect our union.

I will never forget having the opportunity several years ago to push Reverend Shuttlesworth in his wheelchair across the Edmund Pettus Bridge – a symbol of the sacrifices that he and so many others made in the name of equality.  America owes Reverend Shuttlesworth a debt of gratitude, and our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Sephira, and their family, friends and loved ones.

So many times opponents of equality tried to kill this minister of the Gospel.  We can be thankful he lived a full life - and lived to see the legacy of his struggles for freedom. 

Oregon GOP Moves Toward The Moral Center

The Oregon GOP is moving to the moral center while the national GOP in moving warp speed further and further to the right.  The Oregonian reports:

Oregon Republicans have stripped anti-gay language from their 2012 party platform, a shift toward the political center in a state where the GOP has struggled mightily in recent years. 

Wording that essentially condemned same-sex marriage and civil unions, and that stated such couples were unfit to be parents, was removed from the official party platform during a weekend convention in Bend. 

"We want the public to take another look at the Republican Party and our policies," said Greg Leo, spokesman for the state party. "It's fair to say we're more centrist." 

The once-dominant party has faded in Oregon. Democrats hold every statewide office and no Republican has been elected governor since 1987. The one bright spot is the Oregon House, where Republicans managed a 30-30 split with Democrats last election. 

Leo said the next election is going to be all about jobs and the economy, and the party does not want social issues to become a distraction.

Oregon GOP leaders should be applauded.  

Focus On The Family Laughed Out Of Senate Hearing After Being Challenged By Sen. Franken

Facts matter.  Science matters.  Values matter.  But none of these things matter to Focus on the Family, as U.S. Senator Al Franken proved at a Senate hearing.  Politico reports:

Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) took on a Focus on the Family executive at hearing on same-sex marriage Wednesday, challenging the validity of the witness’ testimony.

“I frankly don’t really know how we can trust the rest of your testimony if you are reading studies these ways,” Franken told Thomas Minnery of Focus on the Family, the conservative Colorado-based group that opposes same-sex marriage.

The study in question, published by a division of the U.S. Health and Human Services Department in 2010, found better health outcomes among children in nuclear families – a point Minnery, senior vice president for public policy, said means children are better off with straight, married parents.

But Franken pointed out that the study’s definition of “nuclear family” does not specify the gender of the parents in such families, suggesting a lack of evidence that same-sex couples’ kids are less healthy than the children of straight couples.

“Sen. Franken is right,” the lead author of the study told POLITICO. The survey did not exclude same-sex couples, said Debra L. Blackwell, Ph.D., nor did it exclude them from the “nuclear family” category provided their family met the study’s definition.

The study’s definition of nuclear family is: “one or more children living with two parents who are married to one another and are each biological or adoptive parents of all the children in the family.”

That means the study does not provide evidence that straight couples’ children necessarily fare better than same-sex couples’ kids, as Minnery claimed.

Politico notes that Minnery's assertions drew "big laughs from the audience" as it became apparent how misleading his testimony was.

Focus on the Family is one of the organizations recently designated as a hate-group by the Southern Poverty Law Center in 2011 for the anti-gay rights activism. (This final statement might not be accurate.  I've asked SPLC for clarification and will update the post and make any corrections needed.  There are conflicting news stories.).

SPLC called back this morning and clarified that while Focus on the Family works closely with organizations that have been labeled "hate groups" - organizations such as the Family Research Council - and while they engage in anti-civil rights activities their work has not caused them to be designated as a hate group by SPLC.  I apologize for the incorrect statement.  See, facts matters. 

E-Mail From A Tea Party Activist

Yesterday I posted a concerning story regarding remarks made by GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain in which he stated that U.S. communities have the authority to ban mosques.  This bigoted statement flies in the faces of the U.S. Constitution and feeds on fear and hatred towards Muslims.  Cain, low in the polls and not a serious contender for any office, is none-the-less, a favorite of many Tea Party activists.

One such activist, Robert Smiley (Vice-President of the Tea Party Patriots of Livingston Parish in LA), sent me a particularly hateful and bizarre e-mail.

What's the big deal, all you have to do to stop a mosque from being built on any site--- kill a pig there and leave it, or pour pig blood there, thus defiling it for all time  !!!

 

No practicing Muslim will be able to set foot there ----EVER

 

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has". --Margaret Mead

Let's leave the sad irony of Mr. Smiley quoting Margaret Mead alone for the moment.

When people argue that the Tea Party doesn't have a racist problem - something that is crystal clear already - they ought to drop by Mr. Smiley's Facebook page.  You'll find this picture proudly displayed on his wall:

The comments that go along with the photo that Mr. Smiley links to makes you think you've time traveled back into the 1950s:

If all of this weren't bad enough it is clear that people like Mr. Smiley have real influence in American politics today.  He boasts his support for Michelle Bachman who has been surging in recent GOP polls due to Tea Party support and check out this screen grab of his Tea Party chapter's website:

Politicians like Louisiana State Treasurer John Kennedy court his vote at Tea Party events.

That right there is a sad commentary on politics today.  

The good news is that while the Tea Party wields influence and power they do not represent the majority of the American people, who I believe are good and decent and reject the racism and religious bigotry that fuels so much of the Tea Party.

President Barack Obama On Marriage Equality and LGBT Rights

President Obama didn't endorse gay marriage in New York this evening - as many hoped (I myself wrote to encourage him to do so) but the time is coming soon, I believe, when the president will take the right stand.

It is difficult to imagine how quickly opinion has shifted on this issue.  In 2004, numerous states were adopting constitutional amendments banning gay marriage (even in progressive Oregon).  Just back in the 90s President Clinton backed DADT and the Defense of Marriage Act.

The Human Rights Campaign has endorsed President Obama's re-election - and they believe with good cause:

“President Obama has improved the lives of LGBT Americans more than any President in history,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese. “In 2008 we were promised change and profound change is what we got.  More remains to be done and ensuring that President Obama is able to continue the forward momentum toward equality for another term is an absolute priority of the Human Rights Campaign.”

President Obama’s Administration’s record of accomplishment for the LGBT community includes:

• Pressing for passage and signing legislation to repeal the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law that bans openly lesbian, gay and bisexual servicemembers.
• Pressing for passage and signing an inclusive hate crimes law – the first federal statute to explicitly protect LGBT individuals.
• Determining that the administration believes Section 3 of DOMA to be unconstitutional and refusing to defend the discriminatory law in court.
• Requiring hospitals nationwide to adopt LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination policies regarding visitation.

In addition, the administration’s policies: added gender identity to the equal employment opportunity policy governing all federal jobs; permitted married same-sex couples to use their marriage licenses as evidence of a name change for passports and instituted more reasonable standards for changing a gender marker on passports; allowed the Census Bureau to release data on married same-sex couples; extended a number of benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees possible under existing authority; launched a National HIV/AIDS Strategy and efforts to target populations most at risk; required abstinence-only-until-marriage sex education programs be inclusive of and non-stigmatizing toward LGBT youth; and recognized LGBT families are protected under a host of laws from the Violence Against Women Act to family and medical leave regulations to housing programs.

More information on the President’s LGBT record is available at: www.hrc.org/ObamaEndorsement.

“The records of the other candidates seeking the presidency should be a wake-up call to fair-minded Americans,” said Solmonese. “As the fight for equality moves forward, President Obama is marching with us while the alternatives would stop us in our tracks.”

As a minister in the United Church of Christ, it is my great hope and prayer that President Obama and all those running for office will soon endorse full marriage equality as the General Synod of the UCC did in 2005.  With support from GOP figures such as former Vice-President Dick Cheney and former First Lady Laura Bush this has rightly become a bi-partisan cause.  As I told President Obama in my letter this week, supporting marriage equality is also a position consistent with Christian ethics.

For The Love Of All Creation: A Sermon On Genesis 1:1-2:4a for Pride Month 2011 from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

For The Love Of All Creation: A Sermon On Genesis 1:1-2:4a for Pride Month 2011

My sermon this morning at Salem's First Congregational United Church of Christ focused on Genesis 1:1-2:4a and God's love for all Creation. I tied the reading into LGBT Pride month, the debate over marriage equality, and the on-going fight for civil rights.  You can watch the video below: 

For The Love Of All Creation: A Sermon On Genesis 1:1-2:4a for Pride Month 2011 from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

Portland's Failure To Enforce Fair Housing Laws Requires Outside Investigation

New controversy is swirling around Portland officials today as evidence comes to light the city never intended to enforce fair housing standards that protect minorities from discrimination.

Last year the city of Portland conducted an audit of rental housing that showed an astounding 64% of rentals tested discriminated against African-American and Latinos.  The city never acted on those findings until they were reported on by The Oregonian.  

Portland City Commissioner Nick Fish, who oversees housing for the city, first told the paper that legal action against landlords who discriminate wasn't the "right question" but later said: "We have always intended to pursue enforcement actions against select landlords tested in the audit process."  Federal law requires that the civil rights of renters be protected.

Last night The Oregonian reported Fish's comments were not accurate:

Internal emails show Portland officials and the Fair Housing Council of Oregon never intended to enforce the law against landlords who discriminated against black and Latino testers in a housing audit last year.

 

The documents also show the agencies charged with protecting renters from discrimination worked to appease the association that represents the rental industry, giving it early access to the audit and offering to let it help shape the public message.

The Fair Housing Council was the agency the city hired as "testers" as part of the review of landlords.

In response to this new news,  I wrote Commissioner Fish a letter yesterday evening asking for an independent investigation into the city's failure to enforce fair housing laws.  It is particularly concerning that city officials apparently conspired with an association of landlords to minimize the large-scale nature of discrimination in our city.

Today Commissioner Fish will lay out a 5-year plan for enforcing fair housing laws - his hand forced by the media.  But serious questions remain about why his office and other officials didn't act sooner and why they haven't held landlords accountable.  

U.S. Department Of Justice Will Investigate Portland Police Bureau Over Civil Rights

I am gratified to learn this morning that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is scheduled to announce that they will investigate whether or not the Portland Police Bureau has engaged in a pattern of civil rights violations. My belief is that they have and I wrote the Civil Right Division of the DOJ a letter on December 4, 2010 calling for such an investigation - adding my voice as a minister in the United Church of Christ to the Albina Ministerial Alliance and others - and asking for accountability and reform. There is public evidence, including the deaths of James Chasse and Aaron Campbell, that argue that those suffering from mental illness and African-Americans have had their civil rights violated. Other allegations of misconduct - not public - have been made and shared with the DOJ that must be investigated. Portlanders deserve a police force they can trust. While the vast majority of Portland police officers are clearly outstanding men and women dedicated to our city there are some who clearly do not respect the law. Sadly, Chief Reese has maligned critics of the Bureau and said they are not to be paid attention to. My hope is that the U.S. Department of Justice forces the Portland Police Bureau to reform and become the bureau we need it to be.

Level the Playing Field: Pass The Employment Non-Discrimination Act

Action Alert from Justice and Witness Ministries of the United Church of Christ

A central civil rights principle is that workers should be judged solely on their merits - workers should not be kept from supporting their families and contributing to the economic life of our nation based on characteristics that have no bearing on the ability to do a job.  Yet it remains legal in 29 states to fire or refuse to hire someone simply because of his or her sexual orientation, and in 38 states it is legal to do so based solely on gender identity or expression. 

It is long past time to end this injustice. Congress can right this fundamental inequality by passing the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA).

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (H.R. 1397/S. 811), reintroduced in the House and Senate last month, would extend fair employment practices under federal law to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community.

Our faith calls us to respect the full humanity of each person and to resist practices which deny individuals their full humanity.  Our congregations grapple with the difficulties of lost jobs every day, particularly in these difficult economic times.  It is indefensible that, while sharing every American’s concerns about the health of our economy, LGBT workers must also fear job security because of prejudice.

As people of faith, we are call to stand for fairness.  Urge your members of Congress to cosponsor and support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (H.R. 1397/S. 811).

Lars Larson Thinks Of Them As "Fags" But They Are Children Of God @LarsLarsonShow

KXL News reports tonight that two men holding hands were attacked and beaten on Sunday night in Portland - apparently because of their sexual orientation.  The assault is being investigated as a hate crime.

KXL is the home of The Lars Larson Show.  Larson, who once called a gay congressman a "fag" on-air, is a strong opponent of civil rights for gay and lesbian Americans.  Hateful rhetoric like Larson's helps to set an atmosphere where violence against gays and lesbians is permissible.

We are called to see within one another the face of God.  When we follow this commandment we stop being simply gay or straight, black or white, male or female, Christian, Jew or Muslim.  We simply become the children of God.  

Larson, who claims to be a Christian, could live out his faith in new and faithful ways by using this occasion to apologize for his anti-civil rights work, much as George Wallace and other opponents of racial integration finally did, and seek God's forgiveness by engaging in reconciliation work that advances the common good of our community by promoting equality and justice.

Related Link: It Is Good: Family & Community In The Tradition Of Jesus (A Sermon For Pride Sunday)

Cornel West. Meet Newt Gingrich.

Cornel West calls President Obama “a black mascot of Wall Street oligarchs and a black puppet of corporate plutocrats” while Newt Gingrich is calling him the "food stamp" president - not long after saying the president had a "Kenyan" worldview.

Gingrich is trying to fuel the fires of racism in tea party activists that will help determine the 2012 GOP nominee.  In the short term, that might help Gingrich but in the long term it would destroy him as a general election candidate.  

West, on the other hand, seems stuck in place with a world view that only sees events through the lens of race. Gingrich and the Tea Party, however, make West's point: Race Matters (a great book from 1993). But race is no longer the defining issue it once was. And West's analysis concerning the president is fatally flawed.

My experience has been that sometimes the left can go so far around the bend they end up sounding and acting like those on the right.

Dr. West. Meet Dr. Gingrich.  

Someone could do both these men a favor by waking them up and explaining that they seem to have missed the last quarter century of history.

Donald Trump and "The Blacks"

Donald Trump just doesn't understand why African-American voters support Barack Obama. "The blacks," as the New York business man / reality tv star calls African-Americans, should be more diverse in their politics. Apparently, Trump knows better than "the blacks" about how they should vote (and live their lives, I suspect). It would seem that by virtue of his skin color that Trump is smarter than "the blacks" and thus able to inform them how to think, vote, etc.

I'm sure the African-American community's strong support for President Obama has nothing to do with his political agenda. "The blacks" also strongly supported John Kerry, Bill Clinton, Michael Dukakis, Walter Mondale, Jimmy Carter, George McGovern, Hubert Humphrey and Lyndon Johnson in modern times. Note that all of them were white. Why? Democrats have supported civil rights while the GOP has fought them. The same goes for social policies that address economic inequality. African-American support for President Obama and the Democratic Party is not based in inherent stupidity. And Obama had to earn that support when he started as the underdog in 2008.

Trump himself is on something of a racist crusade of late trying once again to prove that President Obama was born in Africa. This appears to be Trump's only issue as he considers a run against the president in 2012. It is sad. It is pathetic. And yes, it is racist. Only the truly desperate (i.e. Sarah Palin) try to keep rumors about the President's birthday place alive despite all the conclusive legal evidence to the contrary. In doing so they hope to create the impression that this black man isn't really a true American but something "other" than one of us. You know, like "the blacks."

And Trump wonders why the GOP has a hard time gaining ground with minority voters. Yes, it's a mystery.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Where Gingrich and I Find Common Ground: Our Criminal Justice System Is Broken

Oregonians, at the request of conservative political leaders, have voted time and time again to build more prisons.  We have so many, in fact, that some sit empty.  This is the American criminal justice system today.  We have more people sitting in jails than just about any other nation on earth.  It makes no sense and it robs tax payers of resources that could be spent on bettering our schools, improving our roads, and providing quality health care for seniors.

That is why the NAACP has lanuched a new campaign to reform the criminal justice system in the United States.  That campaign has been endorsed by former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich.  Gingrich, who is also exploring a 2012 presidential campaign, writes:

Last year alone, we spent $68 billion on corrections in the United States - 300 percent more than 25 years ago. With this increased spending, one would hope that we would have seen successes in rehabilitation, recidivism rates, and stronger and safer communities. The results are mostly disappointing: half of this year’s released prisoners are expected to return to prison within three years. If our prison policies are failing half of the time, and we know that there are more humane alternatives – especially alternatives that do not involve spending billions more on more prisons —it is time to fundamentally rethink how we treat and rehabilitate our prisoners. 

The NAACP report that is being released today, “Misplaced Priorities: Over Incarcerate, Under Educate,” is a critical step in advancing our national dialogue on criminal justice reform. The report highlights the ways in which our budget priorities have been skewed in recent decades, but goes on to illuminate many of the promising practices that have allowed states to intelligently reduce their prison populations and use limited resources more humanely and effectively. 

The states have proven that there are innovative, data-driven approaches to reform, from community supervision programs, to more far-reaching treatment services, to more effective reentry programs. From the excellent reentry programs being developed in Michigan, to the Texas reforms that have prioritized treatment over prison time for drug offenders, the states are leading the way in building criminal justice institutions that serve our communities best. 

These issues transcend partisan lines and should be of concern to Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives alike. Conservatives, such as myself, should not consider criminal justice reform off-limits, and I am pleased that our movement has begun to tackle these issues head-on.

This should be an issue that transcends party lines and I commend Speaker Gingrich for speaking out on this critical topic.

Love. Commitment. Marriage.

Via http://love.marriagemattersoregon.org/

Tweet this: The @RevChuckCurrie believes #marriageequality honors the golden rule. I do too! http://bit.ly/hSLSIf via @basicrights Pls RT

Related Link: It Is Good: Family & Community In The Tradition Of Jesus (A Sermon For Pride Sunday)

UN Workers Killed After Flordia Pastor Burns Qur'an; Terry Jones Dishonors God

Terry Jones, the Florida pastor who last year threatened to burn the Qur'an on the anniversary of 9/11, followed through on his threat this week when his church put the Islam holy book on trial and then burned it.  In response, a riot broke out in Afghanistan in which at least 12 people have been killed, most of them workers with the United Nations.  Jones had been repeatedly warned his actions could provoke a violent response.  Religion News Service reports:

"Showing blatant disrespect for Muslims by burning their scriptures directly contradicts the example and spirit of Jesus, who taught us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves," said Galen Carey, director of government affairs for the National Association of Evangelicals.

"Those who burned the Quran do not represent the vast majority of Christians, who wish to live in peace and harmony with their neighbors."

The Rev. Welton C. Gaddy, president of the Washington-based Interfaith Alliance, called the riots an "unacceptable" response to the Quran burning, but said they show that actions in the U.S. can have consequences overseas.

The New York Times reports on the trial held by Jone's church:

Sitting in judgment was a jury of 12 members of Mr. Jones’s church, the Dove World Outreach Center. After listening to evidence and arguments from both sides, the jury pronounced the Koran guilty of five “crimes against humanity,” including the promotion of terrorist acts and “the death, rape and torture of people worldwide whose only crime is not being of the Islamic faith.”

Punishment was determined by the results of an online poll. Besides burning, the options included shredding, drowning and facing a firing squad. Mr. Jones, a nondenominational evangelical pastor, announced that voters had chosen to set fire to the book, according to a video of the proceedings.

Jones' "trial" took place shortly after U.S. Rep. Peter King (R-NY), chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security, held hearings of the loyalty of American Muslims.  The hearings were criticized by religious leaders across the United States who feared King's true agenda is to whip up anti-Muslim hysteria as a tool to divide Americans on religious lines.

In response, the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights, chaired by U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, held hearings to examine civil rights violations perpetrated against Muslim Americans.  Again, RNS reports:

Durbin's star witness was Thomas Perez, the Justice Department's assistant attorney general for civil rights. Since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, a "steady stream of violence and discrimination" has targeted Muslims, Arabs, Sikhs and South Asians in the United States, he said.

Perez noted that the Justice Department passed a grim milestone last month when it secured a guilty plea from a man who torched a playground at a Texas mosque: He was the 50th defendant charged in a federal criminal case of post-Sept. 11 backlash.

Muslim complaints about workplace discrimination have increased 150 percent since Sept. 11, Perez said, but he and other witnesses seemed most upset by reports that many Muslim children are harassed at school — called "terrorists" and told to "go home."

"We have a growing docket of cases involving Muslim, Arab, Sikh and South Asian students," he said. Muslim students form the largest category of religious discrimination cases handled by the Department of Justice's education division, Perez added.

Threats to Muslim Americans are certainly real.  Last week, the head of the right-wing American Family Association, Bryan Fischer, said that Muslims should not be granted First Amendment protections.  Fischer said:

Islam has no fundamental First Amendment claims, for the simple reason that it was not written to protect the religion of Islam. Islam is entitled only to the religious liberty we extend to it out of courtesy. While there certainly ought to be a presumption of religious liberty for non-Christian religious traditions in America, the Founders were not writing a suicide pact when they wrote the First Amendment.

Our government has no obligation to allow a treasonous ideology to receive special protections in America, but this is exactly what the Democrats are trying to do right now with Islam.

From a constitutional point of view, Muslims have no First Amendment right to build mosques in America. They have that privilege at the moment, but it is a privilege that can be revoked if, as is in fact the case, Islam is a totalitarian ideology dedicated to the destruction of the United States. The Constitution, it bears repeating, is not a suicide pact. For Muslims, patriotism is not the last refuge of a scoundrel, but the First Amendment is.

Clearly, the killing of the United Nations personnel must be condemned in the strongest possible terms.  There is no excuse for this kind of violence.  At the same time, Jones must be held morally accountable for fanning the flames of hatred.  Terry Jones, Peter King and Bryan Fischer seek to use religion to divide the people of the world during a time where we need reconciliation and peace.  Their actions will only increase the likelihood of terrorism and violence, and put American soldiers and civilians at further risk.  As people of faith, we must stand up against them and proclaim that the Beloved Community is the ideal we seek and reject efforts to divide humanity in the name of the Almighty.                 

It Is Time For Marriage Equality In Oregon @basicrights

Tonight we attend a fund raiser to help raise awareness for the need for marriage equality in Oregon. Our good friend and former U.S. Senate candidate Steve Novick spoke about this important civil rights issue.

The United Church of Christ became the first mainline Christian denomination to endorse full marriage equality in 2005 and I agree with what our General Synod stated then:

The message of the Gospel is the lens through which the whole of scripture is to be interpreted. Love and compassion, justice and peace are at the very core of the life and ministry of Jesus. It is a message that always bends toward inclusion. The biblical story recounts the ways in which inclusion and welcome to God‘s community is ever-expanding – from the story of Abraham and Sarah, to the inclusive ministry of Jesus, to the baptism of Cornelius, to the missionary journeys of Paul throughout the Greco- Roman world. The liberating work of the Spirit as witnessed in the activities of Jesus‘ ministry has been to address the situations and structures of exclusion, injustice and oppression that diminish God‘s people and keep them from realizing the full gift of human personhood in the context of human communion.

As a minister in the United Church of Christ and as an Oregonian, I've preached about how I look forward to the day when marriage equality is finally realized, and when our hearts are opened to the reality that God's love shines on us all - no matter our sexual orientation.

You can learn more about the campaign for marriage equality in Oregon by visiting:

http://love.marriagemattersoregon.org/ 

Steve Novick speaks to the crowd that gathered tonight in support of marriage equality.

Majority Of Americans Support Gay Marriage

A generation ago it was illegal for people of different races to marry.  There were plenty of Americans who argued that interracial marriage was incompatible with Christianity.  Today we face a similar debate over same sex marriages.  Now, for the first time, polling data shows that a majority of Americans support gay marriage.  The Holy Spirit is at work softening hearts.  

In 2005, the United Church of Christ became the first mainline Christian denomination to support full marriage equality - just as our denomination supported an end to the ban against interracial marriage a generation ago.  Less than 40% of the American population supported the United Church of Christ's call for marriage equality five years ago. Now it is time to fully embrace the diversity of human creation that is a gift from God to all of us and to end discrimination against our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters.

Related Link:  It Is Good: Family & Community In The Tradition Of Jesus (A Sermon For Pride Sunday)

"Three Things Most People Don't Know about American Muslims"

Today the shameful, anti-American Congressional hearing launched by U.S. Rep. Peter King to investigate American Muslims got underway.  Faithful America believes there are three basic facts we should remember as these hearings move forward:

1. Muslim Americans reject terrorism and extremism. 
All major branches of Islam agree that terrorism and violence against innocent people can never be justified. Muslims have wholly and consistently condemned terrorist attacks in all forms. Those who say otherwise just aren’t listening. 1

2. Muslim Americans are key partners with law enforcement 
Muslim Americans are just as concerned about the safety of our country as the rest of us, and they are strong allies in the fight against terror. In fact, Muslim Americans have helped foil a significant number of terrorist plots since 9/11. Remember that it was a Muslim street vendor who alerted police to a bombing attempt in Times Square. 2

3. Muslim Americans value religious freedom 
Muslims are members of the American family and hold the same American values of religious freedom, respect and cooperation as other faith groups. Muslims in America are teachers, doctors, lawyers, members of our armed forces, and countless other important contributors to our society. It’s time to stop focusing on divisive stereotypes that weaken us as a society and work together to move the country we share forward. Learning the truth about our neighbors is the first step to building a stronger community.

Sources:

1. http://thinkprogress.org/2011/03/09/king-muslims-plots-terrorists/

2. http://www.mpac.org/programs/anti-terrorism-campaign.php

3. http://sanford.duke.edu/centers/tcths/about/news_release20110202.php

Click here to add your name to a pledge opposing these hearings.

Peter King Targets Muslims And Ignores White Supremacists

Peter King's anti-Muslim Congressional hearings get underway tomorrow just as news breaks that the bomb planted at an MLK march this January was allegedly left by someone with ties to white supremacists.  This begs the question:  Why is King - a man with terrorist ties of his own - only investigating Muslims and not violent extremism in general?

First, The Seattle Times reports:

A Stevens County man charged with the attempted bombing along the route of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in Spokane has links to a neo-Nazi group, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Kevin William Harpham, 36, was a member of the neo-Nazi National Alliance in late 2004, Mark Potok, director of the center's Intelligence Project, said following Harpham's arrest Wednesday.

The bomb was said to have been large enough to have caused mass casualties.  

As the Southern Poverty law Center notes, right-wing extremism and the threat of domestic terrorism (not from Muslims but from people who often self-identify as Christian) continues to grow in the United States. 

But we are ignoring that reality and focusing in only on Muslims even though the U.S. Department of Justice clearly has stated - despite Rep. King's claims - that U.S. Muslims are active partners in the fight against terrorism.  Religious bigotry is the fuel for these hearings.  

The Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, general secretary of the National Council of Churches, said at a New York rally this weekend that:

In 2011, Americans are in danger of succumbing to a bigotry that will scar our generation in the same way that bigotry scarred those who came before us.

Three hundred years ago, Europeans came to these shores with a determination to conquer and settle at the expense of millions of indigenous peoples who were dismissed as sub-human—certainly not part of “us.”

One hundred fifty years ago, white Americans still subjugated black human beings to a cruel slavery that was justified with Bible prooftexts and a self-serving belief that Blacks are inferior—not part of “us.”

Seventy years ago, in a time of war and fearfulness, tens of thousands of Japanese-Americans were deprived of their property and forced into detention camps because surely persons of such ancestry aren’t part of “us.”

Today, we look back on these horrifying events with anguished remorse; and yet I wonder if we’ve learned anything from history. Today, millions of Muslim Americans are subjected to thoughtless generalizations, open discrimination, and outright hostility because of a tiny minority whose acts of violence deny the teachings of the Quran and are denounced by other Muslims! No matter what Rep. King may say, his hearings convey the implicit message that Muslims aren’t part of “us”—and to this sort of bigotry, all citizens of conscience must say NO! When the family portrait of this country is painted, Muslims should have, must have, an honored place in it.

One of our closest partners at the National Council of Churches is the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA). This past week, to take only one example, ISNA issued a statement condemning in the strongest possible language the murder of Shahbaz Bhatti, a Christian who was Pakistan’s Minister for Minorities. According to ISNA’s statement, Mr. Bhatti’s work for religious and civic tolerance is more in line with Quranic teachings than those Muslims who justify or engage in violence. To quote from the statement, “we believe strongly in the responsibility of Muslims to ensure the safety and dignity of religious minorities in Muslim majority countries,” and “convey our deepest condolences for the burning of churches and the murder of Christians over the past few months.”

As this indicates, Rep. King’s assertion that Muslims have not spoken out forcefully enough against extremism is simply wrong—indeed, it is slanderous. If he wants to investigate extremism, then do so—but do not target one entire religion!

As General Secretary of the National Council of Churches, I care deeply about US security and about the wellbeing of Christians in places where extremism is prevalent. But so do millions of Muslims across this country! In the same way, the churches of the NCC affirm that we must care about the wellbeing, the dignity, of Muslims in our midst. On behalf of the fifty million members of our churches, I declare as loudly as possible that whenever Muslims are threatened or demeaned, so are we—because “today we are Muslims, too”!

We all need to stand up against religious extremism, violence and bigotry wherever we might find it.  But we shouldn't allow a witch hunt against an entire religion.  It is un-American.

National Council Of Churches General Secretary To Speak At Times Square Rally Opposing Peter King Hearings On Islam

From the Nationl Council of Churches:

New York, March 4, 2010 -- the general secretary of the National Council of Churches will be among the religious leaders addressing a 2 p.m. rally in Times Square Sunday to protest Congressional hearings aimed at investigating Muslims in the United States.
 
The hearings are organized by Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), chair of the House Homeland Security committee. Critics say the hearings on Islam are reminiscent of McCarthyism and will tend to "demonize" Muslims.

The Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, NCC general secretary, has been at the forefront of activities supporting the freedom of religion for all U.S. residents, including Muslims who have been targets of anti-Islam discrimination and open attacks for years, especially in the decade following the terror attacks of September 11, 2001.
 
Last year Kinnamon defended the building of the Cordoba Community Center and Mosque in downtown Manhattan, and helped organize an interfaith summit to protest a threat by a Florida church to burn the Quran.
 
In earlier statements, Kinnamon has strongly affirmed religious liberty and tolerance for all groups. "We are made richer and deeper in our Christian community by our relationship with Muslim and Jewish groups."
 
The March 6 rally, meeting under the banner, "I Am a Muslim, Too," is expected to be attended by more than 75 interfaith, nonprofit, governmental and civil liberties groups.

Full story.

Dr. Kinnamon was one of my professors at Eden Theological Seminary and I had the pleasure of working as his teaching assisant my final semester in 2005.

Rep. King's hearings to investigate Muslim Americans are the definition of un-American.  As I have said before, these hearings bring to mind the Salem witch trials and the McCarthy hearings, dark periods in this land.  We should never forgot the lessons of those experiences.  The U.S. House of Representatives should not be used as a venue for religious or political persecution.

President Obama Does The Christian Thing In Dropping Legal Support For Defense of Marriage Act

President Obama today directed the U.S. Department of Justice to stop defending the indefensible: the so called "Defense of Marriage Act" which bars federal recognition of same sex marriages.  This was an act of moral courage on the part of the president - one what will cause some interesting legal debates - and that will further the cause of equality for all Americans.  As I've preached, discrimination against gays and lesbians is sinful and, as The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, injustice anywhere is a threat to justice anywhere.  The prohibition of gay marriage is the twin evil of the legal prohibition that not long ago existed that barred interracial marriages.  The General Synod of the United Church of Christ made history by becoming the first mainline Christian denomination to endorse full marriage equality in 2005.  The U.S. Department of Justice "will now take the position in court that the act should be struck down as a violation of same-sex couples’ rights to equal protection under the law," according to The New York Times.  This action on the part of the president moves our nation closer to being the Beloved Community.    

Barbara Bush For Gay Marriage

Barbara Bush, the daughter of former President George W. Bush, is coming out in favor of marriage equality.  The walls of injustice are tumbling down for gay and lesbian Americans and that makes us all more free.  

Ms. Bush joins her mother Laura Bush (a good United Methodist), Cindy McCain (Baptist) and former Vice-President Dick Cheney (possible practitioner of the Dark Side of the Force) among prominent Republicans who have endorsed legal marriage for gays and lesbians.  

President Obama, who says he feelings on this issue are "evolving" should stop following and start leading on this issue.  

The General Synod of the United Church of Christ, the denomination in which President Obama first became a Christian, endorsed marriage equality in 2005.  That made the UCC the first mainline Christian church to take such a stand (similar to one the UCC took in the 1960s to end the legal ban on interracial marriages that the Religious Right at the time so strongly backed).

And now for a musical interlude:    

"Prop 8 - The Musical" starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, and many more... from Jack Black

And let's end with a sermon (as I am a pastor):

It Is Good: Family & Community In The Tradition Of Jesus (A Sermon For Pride Sunday)

Spokane MLK Day Bomb Plot May Have Been Racially Motivated, NPR Reports

We narrowly escaped a terrible terrorist attack in the Pacific Northwest on the MLK hoilday.  NPR reports:

Federal agents are investigating race as a possible motive behind an abandoned backpack containing a functional bomb after it was left along the downtown route of a Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in Spokane, Wash.

Investigators would not disclose what kind of explosive it was, except to say that it was "potentially deadly," and could have caused "multiple casualties," had the device detonated.

While the FBI hasn't providing direct evidence that the explosive device was connected to the MLK Day march, an agency spokesman said the backpack's proximity to the route was "not coincidental."

"The confluence of the holiday, the march and the device is inescapable, but we are not at the point where we can draw any particular motive," said Frank Harrill, special agent in charge of the Spokane FBI office.

The suspicious backpack was spotted by three city employees at an intersection in downtown Spokane about an hour before the parade was to start Monday, Harrill said. They saw wires and immediately alerted law enforcement, who disabled it without incident, he said.

The discovery before the parade for the slain civil rights leader raised the possibility of a racial motive in a region that has been home to the white supremacist Aryan Nations.

Unfortunately, racism has been the fuel for a lot of hateful political rhetoric in the last couple of years.  No where has that been more true than in the Tea Party movement.  A political atmosphere currently exists in our nation where those less stable and most angry could be incited to do violence.  This is where it becomes very important for all Americans - regardless of politics - to seek common ground and to tone down hateful rhetoric.

Related Link:  A Sermon On 1 Corinthians 12:16-26: Unity In The Midst Of Division (A Post-Election Reflection)   

President Obama Signs DADT Repeal: "For we are not a nation that says, 'don’t ask, don’t tell.' We are a nation that says, 'Out of many, we are one.'"

President Obama today signed a bill repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell - a major civil rights milestone in American history that would have not been possible without the president's leadership.  Under Don't Ask, Don't Tell gay and lesbian members of the Armed Services were persecuted because of their sexual orientation.  A strong minority of GOP senators broke ranks with their leadership to vote with democrats in favor of the repeal.  President Obama said today: 

You know, I am just overwhelmed.  This is a very good day.  (Applause.)  And I want to thank all of you, especially the people on this stage, but each and every one of you who have been working so hard on this, members of my staff who worked so hard on this.  I couldn’t be prouder.

Sixty-six years ago, in the dense, snow-covered forests of Western Europe, Allied Forces were beating back a massive assault in what would become known as the Battle of the Bulge.  And in the final days of fighting, a regiment in the 80th Division of Patton’s Third Army came under fire.  The men were traveling along a narrow trail.  They were exposed and they were vulnerable.  Hundreds of soldiers were cut down by the enemy. 

And during the firefight, a private named Lloyd Corwin tumbled 40 feet down the deep side of a ravine.  And dazed and trapped, he was as good as dead.  But one soldier, a friend, turned back.  And with shells landing around him, amid smoke and chaos and the screams of wounded men, this soldier, this friend, scaled down the icy slope, risking his own life to bring Private Corwin to safer ground. 

For the rest of his years, Lloyd credited this soldier, this friend, named Andy Lee, with saving his life, knowing he would never have made it out alone.  It was a full four decades after the war, when the two friends reunited in their golden years, that Lloyd learned that the man who saved his life, his friend Andy, was gay.  He had no idea.  And he didn’t much care.  Lloyd knew what mattered.  He knew what had kept him alive; what made it possible for him to come home and start a family and live the rest of his life.  It was his friend. 

And Lloyd’s son is with us today.  And he knew that valor and sacrifice are no more limited by sexual orientation than they are by race or by gender or by religion or by creed; that what made it possible for him to survive the battlefields of Europe is the reason that we are here today.   (Applause.)  That's the reason we are here today.  (Applause.)

Full story.

Related Post:  It Is Good: Family & Community In The Tradition Of Jesus (A Sermon For Pride Sunday)   

Photo Credit:  Chuck Kennedy, The White House, 12/22/2010