Tag: religion

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Mayor Pete Has ‘A Lot To Repent For’ But Not His Marriage

Mayor Pete Buttigieg

Mayor Pete Buttigieg was asked by the Washington Post’s Jonathan Capehart during a Q&A at New York City’s 92nd Street Y Wednesday evening about criticism leveled at the openly gay mayor by Vice President Mike Pence and evangelist Franklin Graham.

Buttigieg has been very open about his personal faith as an Episcopalian, as well as the hypocrisy he sees in religion-based attacks.

In April, for example, Graham posted a tweet that described Buttigieg’s sexuality as “sin, something to be repentant of, not something to be flaunted, praised or politicized.”

“I guess I would say that we all have a lot to repent for,” replied Buttigieg in a pensive tone. “I have a lot to repent for when it comes to my marriage.”

From there, the 37-year-old mayor ticked off a few personal faults of his own before landing on his answer.

“Moments when I have not been as caring as I should be; moments when I’ve been selfish; moments when I’ve said a harsh word that I wish I could take back,” listed Mayor Pete.

“But one thing that I absolutely should not be repentant for, in the context of my marriage, is the fact that I’m in love with my husband,” he added.

And the crowd goes wild!!!

Watch the moment below.

In April, Buttigieg addressed Pence’s ‘morality’ issues with homosexuality head-on while speaking at the LGBTQ Victory Fund brunch.

Sharing the ways that being married to his husband, Chasten, has made him a better man, the mayor added, “And yes, Mr. Vice President, it has moved me closer to God.”

“That’s the thing I wish the Mike Pences of the world would understand: That if you have a problem with who I am, your quarrel is not with me,” Buttigieg said. “Your quarrel, sir, is with my creator.”

And during an appearance on ELLEN, Buttigieg said of the Vice President, “I’m not critical of his faith. I’m critical of bad policies.”

“I don’t have a problem with religion, I’m religious, too,” he added. “I have a problem with religion being used as a justification to harm people and especially in the LGBTQ community.”

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Mayor Pete To Pence: We Don’t Need To Feud About Religion, Just Stop Being Homophobic

Mayor Pete Buttigieg on ELLEN (via screen capture)
Mayor Pete Buttigieg on ELLEN (via screen capture)

During his appearance on ELLEN Friday, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg addressed an accusation by Vice President Mike Pence that he has been attacking Pence’s “Christian faith” as a means to further his presidential aspirations.

“I’m not critical of his faith,” the mayor told Ellen DeGeneres. “I’m critical of bad policies.”

“I don’t have a problem with religion – I’m religious, too,” he added. “I have a problem with religion being used as a justification to harm people, and especially in the LGBTQ community. So many people, even today, feel like they don’t belong. You can get fired in so many parts of this country just for who you are. And that’s got to change.”

Back to Pence, the 37-year-old White House hopeful told Ellen he isn’t “interested in feuding with the Vice President.”

“But, if he wanted to clear this up he could come out today and say he’s changed his mind,” said Buttigieg. “That it shouldn’t be legal to discriminate against anybody in this country for who they are.”

Mayor Pete Buttigieg on ELLEN (via screen capture)
Mayor Pete Buttigieg on ELLEN (via screen capture)

Buttigieg also spoke about the influence of religion on his life and how it guides him.

“When I’m in church, the scripture that I hear is about taking care about the least among us it’s about lifting up those who are most vulnerable,” he explained. “It’s a message that is fundamentally about love. Love and humility. Humbling yourself before God and putting other people before you.”

Noting that many people were disappointed a woman wasn’t elected president in 2016, Ellen asked the mayor why those people should vote for him in the 2020 election.

“You gotta vote for the person you think best speaks to your values and is best able to lead the country, and you may decide that’s me and you may decide that’s somebody else.”

Underscoring the importance for administrations to have gender diversity and gender balance, Mayor Pete was quick to say he’d definitely be open to having a female running mate should he win the Democratic primary.

In related Mayor Pete news, the recent Saint Anselm College Survey Center poll shows he has surged to third place among Democratic voters in New Hampshire.

With former Vice President Joe Biden coming in on top with 23 percent, and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders second with 16 percent, Mayor Pete garnered 11 percent support.

The pollster wrote in his report, “The emerging dark horse in this race may be Pete Buttigieg, who has gone from a virtual unknown to vault to 11% support, trailing only Biden and Sanders and ahead of Warren.”

The poll indicated Buttigieg has seen a 33-point increase in name recognition in recent weeks, almost all of it favorable.

And the latest poll out of Iowa from Monmouth University also shows Buttigieg in third place (9% support) behind Biden (27%) and Sanders (16%).

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Campaign Ad Puts Marco Rubio’s Faith Front & Center

 Sen. Marco Rubio has a new campaign ad out in Iowa in an attempt to woo the heavy conservative evangelical vote. The ad puts the young senator’s faith front and center.

From CNN:

In the 30-second ad, the Florida senator speaks directly with the camera to share why Christianity is important to him spliced with footage of his family.

“The purpose of our life is to cooperate with God’s plan,” Rubio says in the ad. “To those who much as been given, much is expected. And we will be asked to account for that … I try to allow that to influence me in everything that I do.”

Clearly a move to try and reach for some of Sen. Ted Cruz’s support in the state. Cruz currently leads the pack of GOP contenders in recent polls. Rubio is trailing a distant third.

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Alabama: House Of Representatives Approves Bill Allowing Officials To Refuse To Officiate Weddings

Clearly aimed at same-sex marriage – a hot button issue in the state today, the Alabama House of Representatives Thursday approved a bill by a vote of 69 – 25 that would allow those empowered to officiate weddings to legally opt-out of performing weddings they felt offended their religious beliefs.

Although the bill does not directly address same-sex marriage, opponents said the legislation targeted gay and lesbian couples and could allow religiously-affiliated organizations, such as hospitals, to deny benefits and services to same-sex couples.

“We’re here because we want to condemn a population we don’t understand and we don’t like,” said Rep. Patricia Todd, D-Birmingham, the only openly gay member of the Alabama Legislature. “It doesn’t change anything, but it will help (lawmakers) in districts show they will stand up against same sex-sex marriage.”

The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Jim Hill, R-Odenville, said the legislation — introduced amid a statewide controversy over the legality of same-sex marriage — was not about same-sex marriage.

“I received several phone calls from constituents in St. Clair County, primarily ministers and judges who asked me whether the mere fact an individual is authorized to perform a marriage ceremony (means) are they compelled to perform a marriage ceremony,” he said in introducing the bill.

The legislation says “no church, synagogue, society or religious organization” can be sued over a refusal to provide accommodations or services “related to the recognitions, solemnization or celebration of a marriage.”

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Handy Dandy Field Guide For Spotting Homophobic Laws

Our intrepid Matt Baume brings us this handy-dandy Field Guide for spotting and stopping the sneaky new homophobic laws cloaking themselves from coast to coast.

They’re stealthily stealing civil rights from everyone — gay and straight. Don’t wake up to discover all of your civil rights have been gobbled up in the night!

Part 2 continues with ways to stand up to the menacing monsters.

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Another Lie Perpetrated By Tony Perkins

Hate group leader Tony Perkins can’t help but twist and turn the facts regarding the “Ark Encounter” which recently was informed it would lose state funding in Kentucky (to the tune of $18 million) because those building the project required folks to be Christian in order to be hired.

Via email:

“At a new Kentucky theme park, Christians are the ones getting taken for a ride. Construction is already underway in Williamstown for a one-of-a-kind tourist attraction by our friends at Answers in Genesis (AiG).

“The organization behind the Creation Museum is working on a built-to-scale Ark Encounter — but so far, all they’ve encountered is intolerance. The state had given AiG the thumbs up on its application last fall, which triggered some outcry from anti-faith groups.

“Almost immediately, they swooped into Kentucky and started making noise about the rebate, demanding that it be retracted. Why? Because AiG dares to hire people who share their beliefs on creation. And as a religious organization, that’s entirely within both state and federal law.

“Do we force animal rights groups to hire hunters? No. Or Muslim groceries to hire pig farmers? Of course not.

So why is Ham’s group being targeted? Constitutional questions aside, with as many as 700,000 people expected at the Ark each year, the benefits for Kentucky far outweigh any perceived slights in hiring policy.”

Now to the facts: The “Ark Encounter” lost it’s state funding because folks applying for jobs were expected to sign affidavits swearing they were Christian. You cannot demand that employees be Christian (or any other religion) when you receive tax-payers dollars. There can be NO religious litmus test. That’s what “Ark Encounter” did.

In a statement by Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear in December:

“We expect any entity that accepts state incentives not to discriminate on any basis in hiring. While the leaders of Ark Encounter had previously agreed not to discriminate in hiring based on religion, they now refuse to make that commitment and it has become apparent that they do intend to use religious beliefs as a litmus test for hiring decisions. For that reason, we cannot proceed with the tourism incentive application for the Ark Encounter project.

The project didn’t lose funding because people dared to be Christian. It lost funding because the project REQUIRED employees to be Christian.

So two important things here:

1. Tony Perkins lies. All the folks who listen to him and nod in agreement should know that you are listening to lies. His email posted above makes that abundantly clear.

2. Even if you are Christian and would like the rest of the world to be, the laws of the land dictate that tax dollars can’t be used to discriminate in hiring. Whether you support or oppose the Ark Encounter project, employment discrimination can’t be a part of the equation regarding religious beliefs.

Get it right, Tony. Get the facts straight and stop twisting the truth.

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Sunday School Lesson: Pastor Punches Young Man “To Lead Him To The Lord”

This story begs the question: “What would Jesus do?”

As the pastor of Bible Baptist Church explains, when a young man didn’t take the Lord seriously enough, he decided to convert the man by punching him as hard as he could.

From Raw Story:

Pastor Eric Dammann begins by saying that he met a young man in Calgary named “Ben,” who was “a nice kid, but one of those — he was a real smart aleck. He was a bright kid, which didn’t help things — made him more dangerous.”

“We were outside one day at youth group,” Dammann continues, “and he was just trying to push my buttons. He was just kind of not taking the Lord serious [sic].”

“So I walked over to him and went BAM! Punched him in the chest as hard as I could. I crumpled the kid. I just crumpled him.”

“Then I leaned over and said, ‘Ben, when are you going to stop playing games with God?’ I led that man to the Lord right there,” he concludes.

The good pastor admits the kid was a “smart kid, which made him more dangerous.”

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Texas Pastor Donnie Romero: “I’m Not Letting Any Dirty Faggots Inside My Church”

Pastor Donnie Romero, of Fort Worth, Texas, says that if he ever goes “soft on sin,” he hopes that his children will call him out and tell him to “get up there and rip on these queers because it’s only getting worse and worse.”

“I’m not going to let any of these dirty faggots inside my church,” Romero said. “They are all pedophiles … They’re always trying to rape and hurt other people. They’re relentless. They are relentless. They are predators and given an opportunity to snatch one of your children, they would do it in a heartbeat.”

(via Right Wing Watch