Tag: Christian

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Pete Buttigieg: It’s Hard To See Donald Trump’s Actions As Somebody Who Believes In God

Democratic White House hopeful Mayor Pete Buttigieg tells USA Today he's not sure if Donald Trump is a Christian.
Mayor Pete Buttigieg

Democratic White House hopeful Mayor Pete Buttigieg tells USA Today he’s not sure if Donald Trump is a Christian.

Does Buttigieg think Trump is a Christian? “I’m reluctant to comment on another person’s faith, but I would say it is hard to look at this president’s actions and believe that they’re the actions of somebody who believes in God,” he said.

“I just don’t understand how you can be as worshipful of your own self as he is and be prepared to humble yourself before God. I’ve never seen him humble himself before anyone. And the exaltation of yourself, especially a self that’s about wealth and power, could not be more at odds with at least my understanding of the teachings of the Christian faith.”

While Buttigieg is a gay man, married in the Episcopal Church he attends, he urges those who support LBGTQ rights to “beckon people onto the right side of history (rather) than … drag people there. If someone feels harassed and put upon by us, at the very moment we’re demanding tolerance and acceptance, one consequence is that we can leave them with nowhere to go but the religious right.”

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Kansas: Straight Couple Joins Same-Sex Marriage Lawsuit Because the Gays Are Stealing Their “Marriage”

Click pic to enlarge

Kansas couple Phillip W. Unruh and Sandra L. Unruh have filed a motion to intervene in the ACLU’s marriage equality case in Kansas.

If I understand this correctly, the Unruhs say that should same-sex marriage be legalized in Kansas, they would “experience a taking of their property rights in marriage without due process of law.”

Apparently, “marriage” is “property” that belongs to the Unruhs by virtue of the Fifth Amendment.

Seriously, folks, you can’t make this up.

I can’t do better justice than Joe Jervis at JoeMyGod:

“Apparently, once them gays steal a chunk of their marriage, well, it’s all downhill for the Uhruhs from there. Next thing you know they’ll be cooking meth with hobos under a Kansas overpass. The rest of their brief is similarly cracktastic, complete with quotes from Genesis and the usual “they can’t even make a baby” crapola.”

If you really want to entertain yourself, hit this link and read the full brief.

I’m assuming having the nerve to file this must resemble what it’s like to be on drugs…

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Christian rock star Vicky Beeching gives anti-gay Scott Lively a beat down in first interview since coming out

Christian rock singer Vicky Beeching

Christian rock star Vicky Beeching schools the virulently anti-gay Scott Lively on the realities of people being both Christian and gay.

Scott Lively is famous for many things “anti-gay,” among which IS his participation in pushing the “Kill The Gays” bill in Uganda – which gets brought up here and he again denies. Lively is currently on trial for crimes against humanity for his part in the Uganda law.

Props to Vicky for handling herself so well.

Scott Lively
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World Vision changes policy, allows same-sex married Christians

World Vision announced yesterday a major change in their hiring practices. The humanitarian group says it will now allow same-sex married couples to work for the organization:

The Federal Way-based Christian relief agency World Vision said Monday it will hire Christians who are in same-sex marriages, a dramatic policy change on one of the most divisive social issues facing religious groups.

Richard Stearns, president of the international humanitarian-relief group, announced the hiring change for the United States in a letter to staff. Stearns said the World Vision board had prayed for years about how to handle the issue as Christian denominations took different stands on recognizing same-sex relationships. “I want to reassure you that we are not sliding down some slippery slope of compromise, nor are we diminishing the authority of Scripture in our work,” Stearns wrote. “We are the same World Vision you have always believed in.”

Started by evangelicals, World Vision now has an international operating budget of nearly $1 billion and conducts economic-development and emergency-relief projects around the world.

Immediately, the powers that be in the world of gay hate rose up in protest.  Apparently, it’s better for children to starve than support an organization that allows Christian gays to take part.

The American Family Association called for a boycott via press release:

This decision by World Vision to equate homosexual “marriage” to natural marriage between a man and a woman is in direct conflict with the Holy Scriptures. The first chapter of Romans is very clear.

World Vision has abandoned the warning of Paul and compromised the integrity of a ministry financially supported by Christians who regard Scripture as the final authority on the issue.

Christians who support World Vision should stop as should all of the artists and authors who raise money for them. There are many other organizations that sponsor children around the world who remain true to the gospel.

From Matt Barber writing for OneNewsNow:

“When faced with a choice to either go with the path of least resistance and embrace the lie of the world and the lie of the father of lies – versus embracing the truth of Christ and the truth of scripture and standing firm on the Word of Life, World Vision has chosen to take the path of least resistance.

“Just because you say you’re not an official wing of the church or that you’re a para-Christian organization does not release you from the command to adhere to biblical truth and biblical reality as it pertains to sexual morality. So that is a cop-out – and anyone with a clear understanding of scripture can recognize it as such.

“This very dramatic, counter-biblical, apostate move by World Vision shows where they stand. They have destroyed their credibility as a Christian organization with one fell swoop – and it’s heart-wrenching.”

(h/t JMG)

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Christian blogger apologizes for years of opposition to marriage equality

Benjamin Corey, a Christian blogger and strong opponent to marriage equality for many years, posted an apology to the LGBT community yesterday for his years of speaking out against the freedom to marry who you love.

Prior to my paradigm shift circa 2009, I was a major opponent of marriage equality. One of my go-to lines when asked why, was always the catch-all phrase “because it will hurt the sanctity of marriage”.

I was convinced that in some direct way, same sex marriage would harm mine. If, for no other reason, than Fox News said it, I believed it, and that settled it.

Seriously, I believed that – and said it often – even though I was previously divorced, and let’s admit: there’s no sanctity in divorce.

This year as I approach seven years of marriage and look back on all that we’ve experienced, I realized that we’ve spent our entire marriage living in states that have legally passed marriage equality. Same sex marriages have been happening around us the entire time, and it made me realize:

Your same sex marriage hasn’t affected the sanctity of mine.

Not even a little.

Benjamin goes on to say that his apology is for not only opposing marriage equality, but “slandering” the LGBT community. And today, he feels that the biggest threat to his own marriage, is himself. Not others around him.

Looking back, his view today is that conservative Christians are their own foes when it comes to the sanctity of marriage. He adds that over a decade ago a study was done showing that born-again Christians are more likely to divorce than other population groups.  He refers to this as “the Christian culture of divorce.”

I highly recommend you read his entire essay. Just goes to show that when it comes to many Christians, they are truly “not all like that.”

Thank you, Benjamin, for sharing the calm, clear-eyed self-examination.

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Russian priest: “I would shove all gays into a furnace”

Today in Christian love – actor and Russian Orthodox priest Ivan Okhlobystin, speaking last week on his “spiritual tour,” had this to say about the gays:

“I myself would shove all living gays into furnace. This is Sodom and Gomorrah. I as a beliver in God can not treat this indifferently, this is a live threat to my kids! I do not wants my kids to think that faggots are normal. This is lavender fascism. If a person can not choose someone of an opposite sex for procreation – this is a overt sign of mental abnormality, so they should be denied voting rights.”

Queer Russia points out that the audience burst into applause after the comment.

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Rob and Linda Robertson for The NALT Project

I tend to not mention stories with a basis in religion on The Randy Report unless it comes wrapped in such warped distortion from what I know my Christian friends to be. My best friend is a priest and not in any way a bigot. I celebrate other’s religious beliefs as long as they don’t harm others.

But I do want to share this video and story today.  These are the kinds of Christians we need today.  And while I’m no expert, THIS sounds like what my Christian friends believe.  Not the crap you hear from Westboro Baptist Church and other bigots of that ilk.

Rob and Linda Robertson are outspoken advocates for LGBT equality and are passionate about communicating to gay Christians that God loves them exactly as they are and wants to use them exactly as they are to change the world.

Sadly, they lost their openly gay son Ryan when he came out to them and didn’t find the love and support he needed. Truth Wins Out has their story here.

The story of how God taught them to love their gay son can be found at Linda’s blog, http://JustBecauseHeBreathes.com.