Second Stone #17 - July/Aug 1991

Second Stone #17 - July/Aug 1991

17

1991

July/Aug 1991

I
THE NATIONAL NEWSPAPER FOR GAY AND LESBIAN CHRISTIANS $2.25
I J U L Y / A U G U S T, 1 9 9 1 9500 Read ers Across The USA ISSUE #171
FAREWELL, SYLVIA
Friends mourn loss of
popular evangelist, author
By Jim Bailey
Editor
For many gay and lesbian
Christians, Rev . Sylvia
Pennington stood at the end
of a spiritual maze.
Through her books and
mo r e than 25 years of
traveling throughout the
United States and Canada,
she brought the first words
of affirm~tion to thou sands.
Rev . Pennington
d i ed on April 13 at ·the
Granada Hills Community
· Hospital in California .
Pennington, who wa s
director of th e Lambda
Christian Fellowship in
Hawthorne , California,
was a popular author and
evang elist. She sometimes
de s cribed herself as a
"born - again Christian
SEE COVER STORY, Page 9
OUR 'SHOAH' m FAMILIES:
Mother, I have some- Im Inspiration from the diary
thing to tell you. of a young Jewish woman
By Rev. Sylvia Pennington By Chris Glaser
I
Episcopal Bishop
ordains lesbian pastor
The Episcopal Bishop of
Washington ordained a 44
year old lesbian on June 5,
Southern Voice reported in its
June 20 edition. Bishop
Ronald H. Haines said that
he ordaine d Elizabeth Carl
after m uch "soul seaching,"
and that wh ile "sexual relations
outside of marriage
troubles -me greatly," Carl
has "for a number of years
openly lived in a loving and
intimate relationship with
another woman." The Presiding
Bishop of the Episcopal
Church, the Most Re v.
Edmond L. Browning, was
said to be "surprised and
upset."
Cat ho li c bishops say 'no '
to dom esti c p artn er law
Massachusetts' four
Catholic b ishops ha_ve taken
a stand against allowing gay
and lesbian couples to be
considered families so they
could collect insurance bene fits
and other privileges in
the same way as married
partners.
"The extens ion of the title
'family' to gay and lesb ian
couples, and the granting of
economic privileges to 'domestic
partners' on an equal
plane with true families must
be opposed and rejecte d as
undermining the family in our
society today," the bishops
said in an 11-page statement
delivered to state lawmakers.
An ordinance called the
Family Protection Act will
soon be under consideration in
Boston. The ordinance will
extend certain benefits to
residents ' unmarried domestic
partners.
-Bay Windows
Presbyterians reject
task force report
The General Assembly of
the Presbyterian Church
(USA) re jected a 200-page
report that recommended
ordaini ng Gays and Lesbians
and condoned sexual relationships
outside marriage.
After the vote, several
hundred supporters of the
original report marched
silently through the meeting
hall. The General Assembly
also called on congregations
to continue to study sexual
ethics issues.
-Southern Voice
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Letters
Manassas, Virginia
Keep An Eye On
Reconstructionists
Dear Second Stone,
I was very pleased to sec the front
page article in the May/June, 1991,
issue regarding the rcconstructionist
movement in the United States. I left
the Reformed Presbyterian Church of
Virginia, located in Manassas,
Virginia, in 1985 when I found that
my growing acceptance of my sexual
orientation conflicted with that
particular church's strengthening
embrace of the reconstructionist
movement. At the time of my
departure, I felt that the movement
bore watching. From the information
in your article, I sec that the
movement has grown in membership,
but I am also pleased to sec someone
paying attention to it and giving the
movement's extreme agenda publication
. Hopefully, with the
knowledge of its existence and its
agenda being made public, its
continual spread can 1x, countC'red or,
at the very least, restrain ed.
As background information , in the
fall of 1985, the Reformed Presbyterian
Church, having recently
severed tics with the Presbyterian
Churc h in America (partially due to
its perception that the PCA was
becoming too liberal) , hosted a
reconstructionist conference for
several churches on the cast coast.
Speakers and participants included
John Whitehead and the pastor of
the Chalccdon Presbyterian Church
of Georgia. Some of the Reformed
Presbyterian Church's leaders also
worked in 1984 and 1985 to write and
publish a magazine entitled America
Today, utilizing the adjoining
facilities and staff of the
Reformation Educational Foundation
publishing company. Fortunately,
this right-wing rcconstructionist
magazine, officially published by
Faith Baptist Church of Louisville,
Nebraska, in cooperation with
Everett Silevcn Ministries, failed to
capture the audience it sought at that
time and stopped publicatum after
four issues. (As far as I know, REF is
still actively printing books,
newspapers, newsletters, and
magazines for other anti-abortion ,
reformation and reconstructionist
related organizations.)
From what I lea rncd of the
reconstructionist movement while a
member of that church, and from the
short-lived magazine it helped
publish, the information in your
article about the current status,
agenda, and proposals of the movcmen
t is not exaggerated. The
B
movement has progressed as it s
leaders and members had hoped it
wou ld in the mid-1980's. The
movement merits continued scrutiny
· an_d ___ its a·genda needs to be made
known to those who would oppose it.
Sincerely yours,
James R. Amaral
San Clemente, California
No Place For
New Age In
Second Stone
Dear Second Stone,
Please stop painting a prett y picture
of New Age. It mak es us gay
Christians look like waterl;d-down,
wishy-washy types of Christians. If
1 was into New Age I would subscr ibe
to a New Agt' publication . I have
Second Stone sent lo my pastor , trying
to show him that gay Christ ians arc
out there - to give him a positive
side. Some of my gay Christian
friends won ' t subscribe because they
feel only weak Christians mi x New
Age w ith Jesus Christ. This is a
Christian newspaper. Please let
New Age people ha ve their own.
Let's not turn the truth into a lie.
Thank you,
Todd
Las Vega~
Evangelicals Often
Feel Out Of Place
In UFMCC
Dear Second Stone,
Recently, l read your cover story in a
back issue about "Too Much New Age
in MCC?" I have been a member o f
MCC-Las Vegas for o ver eight years
and have grown to love the
denomination. True it ha s some great
points, but I have to agree wi th the
petition th a t is being circulated,
although it hasn't been to Vegas.
I belong to a network of Evangelical
MCCcrs that has been recently
formed to help influence our churches
into Biblical Christian teaching. It
is affiliated with the Evangelical
Network out of Phoenix, Arizona.
Biblical evange licals often feel out
of place and alone in MCC. There arc
untold numbers of eva ngelical men
and women who have aligned
themselves wi th MCC churches.
It was in a Metropolitan Community
Church that I finally came into the
realization that l could be both
Christian and gay. I had finally
found a church home .
Many of us in the Fellow s hip have
come to the point of yearning to re turn
to our evangelical root s.
I am disturbed to sec some of my
. evangelical brothers and sisters in
MCC caught up in unscriptui-al
beliefs. Some have abandoned their
previously held evangelical beliefs
in favor or accepting beliefs that
they had previously considered
non-biblical.
I have even thought of leaving
MCC, but I love the church and the
Fellowship. l am determined to stay
in MCC and work for needed changes.
My prayer and desire is that the
denomination will eventually turn
around from the direction it seems to
be now headed. I long for the da y
when theological liberalism and
New Age beliefs will find no room in
In This Issue
FEATURES
□ the Fellowship. Until that da y l
will continue to make my voice
heard.
Sincerely ,
Tracey E. Brown
Readers who are interested in the
network for evangelical MCCers may
write to NEM, c/o TEN, P.O. Box
16104, Phoenix, AZ 85011.
We welcome you to share your views,
opinions, feelings and experiences
with our readers. Send letters to:
LETTERS, Second Stone, P. 0. Box
8340, New Orleans, LA 70182 . All
letters must be original and signed by
the writer. Clearly indicate if your
name is to be withheld. We reserve
the right to edit.
□
TRIBUTE TO SYLVIA PENNINGTON Page 9 .
FROM SHOAH TO SHOAH Page 10
COLUMNS
COMMENTARY Page3
FAMILIES Page 13
'TRAVEL Page 19
DEPARTMENTS
LETTERS Page2
NEWS BRIEFS Page4
CHURCH & ORGANIZATION NEWS Page 11
CALENDAR Page 12
BOOKS Page16
CLASSIFIEDS Page 20
SECOND STONE
i.
Commentary □ The gay and lesbian revolution
W~at's wrong with not being angry?
By Jeff Chemin
Contrib uting Writer
R ega rdles s of thl' penchant for gay
and lesbian act ivist s to be inc reasingly
angry and confron tive, I sus pe c t
that a large num be r of Gays and
Lesbians would lik e to sec a
rpovcn-1 c nt tow cird 111ore pt'nccful
change.
Our anger is justified. Most of u s
ha ve lost friends , lol'crs, or both -
sometimes 1.vith rcnl iden titi es
hidden even after de a th. Most of us
have been denied our basic rights.
Most of u s ha ve been rejected by what
we hold most dear; our families, our
religion , and our friends. We also
know of closet ed pe<Jplc in positions
of power who still refuse to come out.
Becaus e of our a ng er, we bash back,
out people, and act confro ntivc in
nois y demonstr at ions.
No matter which ta ct ics arc used ,
the overall agenda of equality in
housing, jobs , and th<' militMy and to
be treated fairly in fam ily life, etc. ,
arc admirable and rational goals.
But what exactly are we trying to be
ISSN No. 1047-3971
SECOND STONE Newspaper is
published every other month by
Bailey Communications, P. 0 . Box
8340, New Orleans, LA 70182.
Copyright 1991 by Second Stone, a
registered trademark.
SUIISCRIPTIONS, U.S.A. $13.00
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add $10.00 for postage. All
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ADVERTISl!\'.G, For display
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EDITORIAL, send letters , calendar
announcements, apd church/org•
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SECOND STONE. an ecumenical
Christian news paper committed to
informi n g the gay and lesb ian communi1y.
PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Jim Bailey
CONTRIBUTORS FOR IBIS ISSUE:
Rev. Sylvia Pennington
Michael Blankenship
Jeff Chemin
Cynthia Marquard
Danni Muns o n
a pa rt of? Where the -women's nnd
b lack mo ve me nts ha ve thus for
failed - and ilrl ' bc'ginning to sec th ei r
failure - is that they have been
trying to be part of a h ctero centric,
whi tc-ma le domin;i tcd system.
Acco rd ing to Anne' Wilsc,n Schacf in
Women ·s Realit y, "Those' pc•rsons
who buy into the syste m tlw most ,ind
wo rk th e hardest to become shining
Where the women's
and black movements
have thus far
failed - and are
beginning to see
their failure - is that
they have been
trying to be part of a
heterocen tric,
white-male
dominated system.
Not one iota of
angry rhetoric has
changed one mind
regarding our rights;
long-lasting
attitudinal change is
caused by being
true to ourselves
and thus changing
the way others see
us.
examples of what it means tend to
drop dead ahead of their time from
heart attacks ... and other physical
effects of unrelenting te nsion and
stress. " The pres e nt system has thus
far also created an educational,
familial , and hence soc iet al
downfall in addition to th e near
decimation of th e ec o sysfcm.
Reg a rdin g the military, for
exa mple, do we - as Gays and
Lesbians - want ti, be included in
SEE COMMENT ARY, Page 15
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July / Augu .st, 1991 II
Newsbriefs
Fundamentalists
Boycott Advertisers
Donald Wildmon's American Family
Association has launched a national
boycott campaign against what it
calls the "top sponsors of prohomose
xua l programs" on TV. ·111
Wildmon's v iew, any program that
presents Gays and Lesbians as
"normal" is "promoting homosexuality."
The AFA is calling for
boycotts against S.C. Johnson and
Pfizer, Inc. The Gay and Lesbian
Alliance Against Defamation urges
letters of support be written to
Chairman Samuel C. Johnson, S.C.
Johnson & Sons, Inc., 1525 Howe St.,
Racine , WI 53403, FAX (414)631-2133,
and to Chairman Edmund T. Pratt, Jr.,
Pfizer, Inc., 235 East 42nd St., New
York, NY 10017.
-Out Front
Gay/Lesbian Group
Makes Bid For
U.N. Recognition
NEW YORK CITY - For the first time
in the history of the United Nations,
gay and lesbian international
activ _ists have lobbied for official
recognition and inclus ion in the U.N.
But officials with the Internati ona l
Lesbian and Gay Association, which
submitted the application for
recognition last year and testifi ed at
the U.N., say their bid for
recognition has been postponed until
1993 by delegates who were unable to
reach an agreement.
ILGA, which represents gay and
lesbian groups throughout the world,
is seeking consultative status with
the Economic and Social Council of
the U.N ., which oversees, among
other things, human rights issues .
Consultative status means ILGA
would be able to intervene in human
rights issues at the U.N .
"We're very pleased at the amount
of support we received from African,
European and Latin American
delegates, particularly unsolicited
and highly positive comments by
Ethopia," said Lisa Power , ILGA
secretary general. "We 're disappointed
we did not get in, but not
surprised. The deferral was due to
religious beliefs and was no reflection
on our suitability - we arc clearly
eligible and have much to offer the
U .N."
For information on ILGA contact the
A Presbyterian Promise
"We will work to increase the acceptance and
participation in the church of all persons regardless
of racial-ethnic origins, sex, class, age,
disability, marital status or sexual orientation"
- 195t~ General Assemblf (1983),
Atlanta, Georgia ·
If this is your promise, too,
we invite you to join
Presbyterians _.for
Lesbian/Gay Concerns
Write to Elder James D. Anderson
PLGC, P.O. Box 38, New Brunswick, NJ
08903-0038, 201/846-1510
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
at 1734 14th St., NW, Washington,
DC 20009, (202)332-6483.
Report Calls Pentamidine
Profit
"Making A Killing"
Gross overcharges for a crucial AIDS
drug called "pcntamidinc" and a
needed therap y called "home
infusion" are imp ove rishing some
AIDS patients or depriving them of
life-extending treat ment , according to
a major investigative report by the
New York City Department of
Consumer Affairs.
Referring to the report, "Making A
Killing On AIDS: Home Health _Care
and Pcntamidine," Commissioner
Mark Green said, "AIDS patients
may face the Hobbcs1an choice of
either being driven to the poor house
or denied treatment because companies
whi _ch provide home care and
the crucial anti-pneumonia drug
pentamidinc arc putting profits
before lives. Why should pci1-
tamidinc cost a New Yorker with
AIDS 400 to 1200 percent more than a
French person with AIDS?"
Pentamidine is second only to AZT
as a prescribed drug for people with
AIDS or those who arc HIV positive.
Green urged people with AIDS to
contact People With AIDS Health
Group in order to learn how to import
far cheaper pentamidine from
Europe.
Beer Thrower Gets
Time In Gay/
Lesbian Office
Manhattan Criminal Court sentenced
Michael Burke to a week of duty in
the Mayor's Office for the · Lesbian
and _ Gay Community. Burke had
thrown a can of beer at New York
Mayor David Dinkins as the mayor
marched with Irish Gays and
Lesbians during the St. Patrick 's Day
Parade.
Philip Morris Co.
Moves To End
Boycott
Responding to a boycott by the gay
and lesbian community of Marboro
cigarettes and Miller beer, consumer
product giant Philip Morris
announced that it will increase its
charitable contributions to AIDS
research and services. The boycott,
initiated about a year ago by ACT UP
was a response to Philip Morris'
financial backing of Sen. Jesse Helms.
II SECOND STONE
□ In exchange for end ing the boycott,
ACT UP / DC and the Human Rights
Campaign Fund won a pledge from
Philip Morris to strengthen its
commitment to fighting the AIDS
epidemic. Michael Pctrclis of ACT
UP /DC called on ACT UP's local
chapters and Gays, Lesbians, AIDS
activists, their supporters and all
fair-minded people to end the
boycott, but bcca use of Philip Morris'
refusal to end all contributions to
Helms, some groups may continue to
boycott.
-Southern Voice
Aryan Nations Will
Work Within
Political System
The anti-black, anti-gay Aryan
Nations, which normally works as an
in-the-shadows , hi I-and-run type
group, will begin running candidates
for town , city and county councils.
Washington state Aryan Nations
spokesperson Justin Dwyer said that
chapters throughout the Northwest
will field political candidates and
even volunteer on community fire
departments.
"This is an ongoing fight for
awareness and survival of our white
race," Dwyer said. "lt's time th e
white man finds our destiny.
Nonwhite are not in our plan.
They're in the way."
The Aryan Nation has also applied
for membership with the Northwest
Coalition Against Malicious Harassment,
a regional anti-hate organization.
Northwest Coalition director
Bill Wassmuth said they have
.received the Aryan's applicaton, but
it will not be accepted.
-Seattle Gay News
Queer Nation/
Athens Just In Time
Gay men and Lesbians in Athens,
Georgia, have formed a Queer Nation
chapter. The first of two projects for
the group is the"Relig ious Right
Watch," a newsletter from the
Christian Coalition at the
University of Georgia. The coalition
is trying to shut down the
lesbian/gay/bisexual support group
at the university. The second
problem is University chemistry
professor Dr. Henry Schaeffer, who
has recently published editorials in
The Red & Black, a student
newspaper, condemning homosexuality
and calling for a "Just Say No"
campaign to stop Queers in Athens .
Newsbriefs
Dignity/USA
Challenges NAB
Translations
Dignity/USA has challenged on both
scriptural and pastoral grounds the
new translation of 1 Corinthians 6,9
and l Timothy 1,10 as they currently
appear in the new edition of the New
American Bible.
The NAB editors translated 1 Cor.,
6,9 as "Do. you not know that the
unjust will not inherit the Kingdom of
God? Do not be deceived; neither
fornicators, nor idolators nor
adulterers nor boy prostitutes nor
practicing homosexuals... will
inherit the Kingdom of God." The
term "practicing homosexuals" is also
used in a· similar series of evildoers in
1 Tim ., 1,10.
In a report that was recently
submitted to respective Bishops'
committees that oversee the
publication of the NAB and the
lectionary based on jt, Dignity's
Scripture/Lectionary Ta.sk Force cited
several Biblical scholars that have
addressed these passages and
concluded that the pass<1ges did not
refer to persons with a homosexual
orientation. The Task Force further
emphasized that these passages as
they currently stand arc pastorally
harmful and could provoke violence
against Lesbians and Gays from
individuals who use the Bible as a
defense for violence or prejudicial
behavior.
The oDignity Task Force offered
alternatives for the phrase "practicing
homosexuals." They suggest
"the morally infamous" or "ethically
infamous"; for "boy prostitutes" they
recommend "morally loose" or
"ethically soft."
The Bishops Lectionary
Subcommittee is current ly giving consideration
to the findings contained
in Dignity's report.
Florida Amends
Hate Crimes Law
To Include Gay
Men And Lesbians
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - After
extensive grassroots lobbying, the
Florida Legislature enacted a bill
amending its law to define hate
crimes as criminal offenses evidenced
by prejudice based on the race, color
ancestry , ethnicity, religion , sexual
orientation or national or igin of the
victim.
Florida's law is the stongcst in the
nation, according to civil rights
lawyer Rand Hoch, a member of the
Board of Directors of the National
Gay and Lesbian Task Force and
President of the Palm Beach County
Human Rights Council, Inc.
'The. new law not only requires law
enforcement agenices to maintain
statistics, but also provides for
'enhanced' crimina l pcna litc.s for
persons convicted of hate crimes. For
example a person convicted of a first
degree misdemeanor would be
punished as if it were a third degree
felony," Hoch exp lained. "Under the
civil provisions of the law, victims
may seek injunctions, recover triple
damages, and be reimbursed for their
attorney's fees."
Soon after the law passed, hundreds
of. North Florida eonscrva tivcs
Gay Credit Card
A Hot Item
The Dallas Gay Alliance Credit
Union is swamped with applications
for the world's first gay credit card.
No fewer than 3500 requests have
poured into the group's office. DGA'.s
MasterCard is an ordinary credit card
with the added advantages of no
annual fee and a relatively low 14
percent interest rate. The card reads
"Dallas Gay Alliance Credit Union"
across the top in large purple letters .
For information write to P .O. Box
190712, Dallas, TX 75219.
-Outlines
□ rescind the policy. "The letter
dismisses the opinion of the lawmakers
and arrogant ly states the
po licy is here to stay," said Tim
Drake, director of the National Gay
and Lesbian Task Force Military
Freedom Initiative.
Captain T. D. Keating, Director of
Legal Policy Requirement and
Resources, USN, said, "We do not
plan to re.assess the Department's
policy on homosexuality."
NGRA Folds
telephoned the office of Democratic Pentagon Stonewalls
Governor Lawton Chiles .urging hiin . Anti-gay Military
to veto the bill. However, thc.
The National Gay Rights Advocates,
a San Francisco-based public interest
law firm has closed its doors. The
14-year-old organization had seen its
revenues fall from $1.5 million in
1989 to under $500,000 this year.
Governor's office called Hoch to p I" o icy
assure. him that Chiles would sign ·
the legislation the day it reached
his desk.
Florida is the 14th state to have
enacted hate crimes laws includii1g
"sexual orientation." The Florida
law becomes effective on Ociobcr 1,
. 1991.
Notre Dame
Bans Gay Ads
Notre Dame University _ Vice
President for Student Affairs Patricia
O'Hara blackmailed the student
newspaper, The Observer, into
banning ads from Gays and Lesbians
of Notre Dame by threatening to kick
the newspaper out of its rent-free
campus office, the gay group says .
Observer editor Alison Cocks
denounced the administration's
tactics in an editorial.
-Baltimore Alternative
NEA Chairman
Defends Funding
Of Gay Film
Festival
John Frohnmaycr, chairman of the
Nationa _l Endowment for the Arts,
issued a strongly worded letter to
Congress in April defending a recent
NEA grant made to support a gay and
lesbian film festival and accused a
noted right-wing activist of wanting
to ban federal funds from going to
homosexuals.
The NEA chair was responding to an
April 17 letter to Congress from
Donald Wildmon, president of the
right-wing American Family Association,
which took the endowment to
task for funding the festival.
-Out
WASHINGTON , D.C. - Activists arc PATLAR -.
blasting as "arrogant" and "ignorant"
a Pentagon letter to members of V0tCE OF GAV AMEAfCA
Congress and other statements that MONTHl V NEWSMAGAZINE
indicate the military is as FREE AT OUR OISTRl8UTION POINTS
entrenched as ever in defending its SUBSCRIPTIONS S3S ANNUALL V
discriminatory policy. The Pentagon SAMPl,E(i46P~~,~~ USA $4
memo is in response to a letter from 40 FOR INFO 00 ADVERTISING
members of Congress to President · PO~~ i~~l!~ij1}fNT~2
g~22
Bush urging the White House to
dignitv,usa
an oraa,,imtwn for 9ay ana r,_,r,;,,,, Catfwlics,
tkir famifus ana frinuls.
.J L- Dignity /USA has ministered to gay and lesbian Catholics,
their families and friends for over 20 years.
r We have over 4,000 members ., in 80 chapters across the country.
If you'd like to support our ministry, please join Dignity_/USA today by completing the fimn
below and enclosing your $40.00 check payable to Dignity, Inc. to:
Dignity/USA, 1500 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Suite 11,
Washington, DC 20005. Telephone: 1-800-877-8797
□ YES, I would hl<e to S<Jpporl the work of Clq,lt"9fl8]
Enclosed is niy $40.00 check for membership. I
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July/ August, 1991 II
Newsbriefs
Denver Voters
Uphold Gay Rights
Denver voter s decided by a 55 to 45
percent margin to retain civil rights
protection for Gays and Lesbian s in
the city's compre hen sive hum an
rights ordinance. The defeat of th e
attempt t o repeal the gay right s
statute make s Denver the first major
U.S. city to uphold such an ordin ance
since Seattle voters decided a s imilar
mcasuhi in 1975. Despite help from
national anti-gay organizations such
as Rev. Lou Sheldon's Coa Ii lion for
Traditional Values from Southern
California, the repeal campaig n
never really caught the attention of
Denver voters .
-Out Front
Survey Says Most
Americans Are
Pro-Gay
A ne w survey commissioned by the
Human Rights Campaign Fund,
America's largest gay rights
organization, has found that
Americans overwhelmingly support
equal rights for gay men and
Lesbian s. T h e poll, condu cted by New
York's Penn & Schoen Associate s,
questioned 800 randoml y selected
Americ a ns and has an error margin of
3 1 / 2 percent.
Perhaps the most un expecte d
finding was that 8 1 per ce nt of
Americans o ppose the mi lit ary's
policy of discharging a ll so ldiers
discover ed to be gay or lesbian. A
second significant finding of the
survey was that 80 perc ent of
Americans believe "ho m osex uals
should ha ve equal rights for jobs."
The figur e was up from 56 perce nt in
1977 and 71 pe rcent in 1989, when
similar questions were asked by
Gallup pollsters.
-Out
Gay Students Can't
Join Christian
Group
Two University of Minnesota s tudents
have filed a discriminati on complaint
against a campus g roup for
refusing to allo w them to join. Ben
Dykes and )age Miller asked to join
Maranatha Christian Fellowship but
were told by Jonathan Bislew that
National Coming Out Day
Salutes You!
tffl MAJOR DONOllS {to <Ulte)- 'IM Advoc:a1t,. O...twttk. Frontiono - s...u.d Stor,., • Our Wood· Gay Mtn'J Hnllh
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t.MCS---lo)·Metroline(H..-tfoni)-Oul Pron! (Dmver)• lalar,d W.tyie5 (HCIIIOluh,)- Equal Tunt: o,..{uuaapolis) ·
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Moen. C.- What! (Sacn.Jnmto) - New Voice (Omaha). Hot>ey Wvd - ln St,ep (Mllw1UMe) - Snttl~ Cay News - Our
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ttttKEROES- (iod.1111t)-funlloucha UJ1• 1dentity, b>c.{Ar,chcnge)- C..yat>dt..blanSen-icsolKansu(Univ . ol .... ,_
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National Coming Out Day Headquarters PO Box 8349,
Santa Fe NM 87504/505-982-2558 or 1-800-445-NCOD
Gays we re n o t a !lowed. Th e
University bars discrimin ation on the
basi s of sexual orientation.
-Equal Time
Gay Charity
Among Top 100
According to Money Magazine, a gay
charity has broken into the top one
hundr ed U.S. chariti es. The Gay
Men 's Hea lth Crisis is ranked 94th
with a 1990 income of $14,310,000.
The report also indicates the GMHC
spent 64 percent on pro g rams with 16
per cent being used for fundraising
cos ts and eight percent to adm in istration.
At the top of the list we re
organizations like the American Red
Cross, Catholic Charities, Lutheran
Social M in istry and YMCA, a ll of
which take in more than a billion
dollars a year.
Th e magazine also reported that
the American Foundati o n for AIDS
Research (A mFAR ) to o k in
$13, 12 7,000. They report that
AmFAR s pent 84 percent on programs
with ten percent spent on fundraising
and six percent on adminstation.
-Cruise
Activists Call For
Action On U.S .
Immigration Policy
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Ga y and
lesbian activists have issued an
urgent call for action against recently
reported government p lans to keep
HIV and AIDS on the li st of
immigration restrictions.
According to the re ports, the U.S.
intends to continue excluding people
with AIDS and HI V from im migrating
int o and visitin g the country.
The government has indicated it w ill
continue the policy for a t least 60
day s so that "ongoing public debate"
on the con tro versial law may occur.
"An extens ion of the policy for two
mo nths to accommodate o ngoing
'debate a nd discuss ion' maintai n s a
stat us quo that is inexcusable, " said
Urvashi Va id, Nationa l Gay and
Lesbian Task Force executi ve director.
"President Bush continues to
demonstrate politica l cowardice and
abdicate lead ership on AIDS."
Louis Sullivan, Department of
H ea lth and Human Services ch ief,
h as indi cated he supports ·removing
HIV a n d AIDS from the list of
immi gra tion exclusions. However,
th e gove rnment h as received a
reported 40,000 lett ers opposed to
rem ov ing HtV / A IDS from the list,
and less than lO(X) suppo rt ing it.
II SEC O ND STONE
□ The Task Force ur ges suppo rter s to
write Charles McCance, D ire ctor,
Division of Quarantin e, Center for
Prevention Servic es, Cente rs for
Disease Control, Mai l Stop E-04,
Atlanta, GA 30333; Presid ent George
Bush , The White House, 1600
Pennsy lvania Ave., NW , Wash ington,
DC 20500, (202)456- 141 4;
Attorney General Dick Thornburgh,
Department of Justice, 10th St. and
Constitution Ave. , NW, Washington,
DC 20530, (202)514-2001; and Louis
Sullivan , Departm e nt of Health and
Human Services, 200 Independence
Ave., SW, Washingt on, DC 20201,
(202)245-7000.
Gays and Lesbians
Make History at FBI
WASHINGTON, D.C. - In a move
viewed with a combination of pride
and irony, representatives from the
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
were invited to participat e in a press
confer e nce held by the Federal
Bure au of In ves tiga ti o n. -rhc event
marked the first time openly gay an"
lesbian activists had ever bceT\
invited to an official FBI function.
The press conferenc e was called to
annou n ce the Bureau's progress in
gathering hate crimes da ta under the
Federal Hate Crim es Statistics Act.
Guide To Resources
For Gay Couples
Gay and lesbian couples looking for a
couples support g roup , l ega I information,
or a way to wi n domestic
partnership benefits might start
with a free list of resources ava ilable
from Partners Newsletter For Gay &
Lesbian Couples. Th e annotat ed
directory, "Resou r ces for Ga y &
Lesbian Couple s," is avai lable in a
newly-expanded cdi tion that lists
two dozen social, political and
support organizations and more than
70 books, tapes and films .
To recei ve a copy, send a
self-addressed, stamped bu siness-si ze
envelope to Partners resour ces , Box
9685, Seattle, WA 98109.
Partners, a 16-pagc bimonthly,
conta in s int crvipws, news and
fea tur es. Acco rd in g to publishers
Stevie Bryant and Demian, "Partners
s upports our d iverse community with
timely informati on and ideas, and is
a reso urce and forum support in g
committed same-se x relationships."
The new s let te r's mailin g list is never
so ld or traded. Availa ble by
subsc ription , the publication costs $21
per year; $3 for a samp le issu e.
Nen·sbrief s
"Let Sharon
Kowalski Come
Home" Hotline
Established
WASHINGTON, D.C - A national
hotline has been established by a
coalition of organizations to pressure
Minnesota Governor Arne Carlson to
intervene on behalf of Sharon
Kowalski. Each call to the 800
number will generate « letter to
Governor Carlson , demonstrating the
level of national outrage surrounding
this cas e and the recent decision
denying guardianship of Kowalski to
her partner, Karen Thompson .
The April 24 dedsion by judge
Robert Campbell denying Karen
Thompson guardianship of Kowalski
has spurred outrage from lesbian and
gay and disability right s activists.
Despite overwhelming testimony by
medical professionals that Kowal ski's
int erests would be best served b y
moving her home to St. Cloud to live
with Thompson, Campbell awarded
guardianship to a "neutral third
party , " Karen Tomberlin , a friend of
the Kowalski family . In response to
the court's decision, Thompson's
attorney has initiated the appeal
process .
Concerned individuals arc urged to
call the hotline at 1-8 00-325-6000 ,
I.D. #9860, and send a h ardhitting
message. The charge for each ca II is
$6.25, a portion of which goes .to the
Karen Thompson Legal Fund.
Episcopal Dean
Ready To Marry
Gay Couples
The Dean of an Episcopal Cathedral
in Seattle says he's ready to offer the
sacrament of marriage and bless gay
and lesbian couples living in what he
calls "monogamous, faithful, holy
and life-giving relationships ."
Although the Episcopal Church has
not authorized ceremonies for
same-sex couples, the Rt . Rev .
Vincent Warner predicted the topic
would be on the agenda of this
summer's church-wide meeting .
Gay Pride Celebration
Included March
To Navy Base
NORFOLK, VA. - The Hampton
Roads Gay Pride Weekend took a
political tone this year as participants
ralli ed in support of gay
men and women in the military . A
march to the Norfolk Naval Base
□ was planned to deliver a letter urging
an end to the ban on Lesbians and
Gays serving in the armed forces .
Miriam Ben-Shalom, a former Army
reservist who was discharged after
disclosing that she was a le sbian,
was scheduled to speak at the rall y.
No 'Service With
A Smile' At
Cracker Barrel
DOUGLASVILLE, GA , - Friendly
service was not the order of the day
with Queer Nation/ Atlanta took
over all seating at the Cracker Barrel
on Mother's Day. For the first time
since Queer Nation began its
demonstrations against Cracker
Barrel in March, there w a s a
pervasive tone of intimidation set by
management. Police were on the
premises when the group of more than
JOO arrived and at several times
during the . day members were
threatened with arrest. A Cracker
Barrel District Manag e r admitted
that the demonstrations were
financially hurting the business .
-Southern Voice
Gay Vete rans G roup
To Provide Buddies
At Boston Hospital
In what may be a first of its kind
program in the United States , a gay
veterans group is working with a
major urban hospit a l to pr o vide
veterans w ith AIDS and HIV "buddies"
for support, care and comfort.
The New England Gay/Lesbian /
Bisexual Veterans of Ameri c a is
working in partnership with the
Veterans Affairs Medical Center in
Boston , Mass ., on an AIDS buddy
program. Statistics on AIDS from
the Department of Veterans Affairs
show 10,129 AIDS cases have been
handled as of.December 31, 1990, by
VA hosptials nationwide. Estimates
of th .e number of HIV-positive U .S.
veterans range from 50,000 to 60,000.
For information .on the Boston VA
AIDS Buddy Program, contact llonka
Thomas, (617)232-9500.
Psychiatrists Honor
P-FLAG President
Paulette Goodman, President of the
Federation of Parents and _Friends of
Lesbians and Gays addressed the .
American Psychiatric Association at
their annual meeting in New Orleans
in May . The Association of Gay and
Lesbian Psychiatrists presented an
award to Goodman during their
.annual banquet.
,,.
Great
Response!
'' '11lat's what a Second St.one advertiser
told us recently .
And we hear that more and more these days. That's because
Second Stone reaches readers where many other gay and
lesbian publications can't Like public and university libraries.
We don't carry advertising or editorial content that would put
us behind the counter. We're up front - in plain sight!
For businesses offering products and services
t.o the national gay and lesbian community,
we're an exciting new marketing
approach!
Reach new customers in every state across the USA.
Second Stone offers a variety of in-column ad sizes with frequency
discounts. We offer spot and full color. We'll lay out
your ad at no charge and we'll get it right - we11 send you a
proof to make sure. Second Stone will also insert your
brochure, flier or catalog in our mailing.
It doesn't cost as much as you think.
You can reach a paid coast to coast readership for about what
you'd pay to advertise in one local free distribution gay newspaper.
And ... to mail your insert in Second Stone costs
less than mailing it yourselfl
You won't know till you try it.
The potential sales you lose while you're thinking about advertising
cannot be recaptured. If you're thinking you'\'C paid too
ffl"~h for advertising that hasn't-worlced ... you're probably right!
But you haven't tried Second Stone.
SECOND STONE
You'll be pleased with the resulm.
Call 1-504-899-4014 for advertising assisumcc.
July/ August, 1991 •
··--./
Newsbriefs
Men Form Group
Against Porn
A group has been formed in Pittsburgh
to examine the ways in which
pornography affects our lives and
society. Founders of Men Against
Rape and Pornography say the
group's goal is education as opposed
to condemnation or censorship. One of
the founders, Majchael Tajchman
said that the purpose of the group is
to '.'make some sort of examination or
analysis of pornography that raises a
level of awareness so that men don't
feel the need to put each other down
when they have sex. And that's
what pornography is, and what it
does is to get pleasure out of
subordinating someone else."
-Pittsburgh's Out
Group Makes PW As
Dreams Come True
A non-profit organization has been
formed to make the wishes of PW As
come true. The Dream Machine's
mandate is to fulfill dreams for
individuals who arc terminally ill,
without regard to age, sex, nationality,
religion, or sexua I preference.
The Dream Machine is a publicly
funded organization and operates on
tax-deductible donations from individuals,
corporations, and fund raising
Ex-Gays?
There
Are None
Lambda Christian Fellowship is
pleased to announce a new book
by Rev. Sylvia Pennington - an
examination of ex-gay ministries -
what they do - what they don1 do.
You'll meet people who, only
through God's grace, have survived
and stopped trying.to be
ex-gays, because, in truth, there
is no such thing as an ex-gay
(1JISOO.
Now Available From
Lambda Christian
Fellowship
P. 0. llox 1967
Hawthorne, CA 90250
$15.00 plus $1.50 for postage and
handling. Galifomia residents add
6% sales tax.
Business or PersonalTry
a Second St.one
Classified.Ad!
II
events. For information, write or call,
Dream Machine Foundation , 18
Technology Dr., Ste. 210, Irvine, CA
92718, (714)753-8977.
Lawyers Publish
AIDS Practice
Manual
The National Lawyers Guild AIDS
Network has published an updated
and revised third edition of the
AIDS Practice Manual. The 600-page
legal and educational manual provides
practical assistance as well as
clear, comprehensive treatment of
key issues raised by the epidemic.
The manual is published by the AIDS
Network, a nationwide project of the
National Lawyers Guild. The purpose
of the network is to encourage
members of the legal community to
represent people with HIV, to take
part in advocacy and public education
about the law and AIDS, and to assist
local AIDS organizations . For information
contact the National Lawyers
Guild AIDS Network, 558 Capp St. ,
San Francisco, CA 94110, (415)
824-8880.
'BLK' Cartoon Book
Coming Out
Banned Books of Austin, Texas will
produce a bound edition of BL K
cartoons according to an announcement
by the cartoons' creators A. J. Benny
and Alan Bell. BLK is the monthly
ncwsmagazine that spotlights the
black lesbian and gay community.
BLK Humor: The Cartoon Humor of
BLK Magazine will include all of the
cartoons that have appeared in BLK,
plus others never before published.
The book is scheduled for a midAugust
release. Included will be an
introduction by Ron Simmons, Ph .D.,
an assistant professor at Howard
University.
Quatrefoil Library
Celebrates Fifth
Anniversary
The Quatrefoil Library in St. Paul,
Minn., is celebrating its fifth
anniversary this year. It is the
largest gay /lesbian/bisexual library
in the upper Midwest and is entirely
run by a large group of volunteers.
The library is funded through
memberships, donations and small
grants. Incorporated in 1983, the
library was opened to the public in
1986 with 1500 gay-related books
owned by David Irwin and Dick
Hewetson. The collection has grown
to encompass over 5000 volumes, 40
current pe_riodicals, many historic
newsletters and magazines, a
clippings file, and a collection of
records, tapes, and audio-visual
cassettes .
Quatrefoil has become well known
to its more than 1000 members as a
place that is gay and lesbian
positive. A healthy alternative to
bars and adult bookstores, the library
attracts a wide variety of patrons
looking for a comfortable place.
Visitors to the city are invited to stop
by the library, located at 1619
Dayton Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104,
(612)641-0969.
Black Gay Video
Gets Grant
SAN FRANCISCO - Catherine
Saalfield has been awarded a $2000
grant by Frameline to help complete
Among Good Christian Peoples, an
experimental narrative video based
on Jacqueline Woodson's personal
essay, "Growing Up Black and Gay
Among Good Christian Peoples."
Frameline, a non-profit lesbian and
gay media arts organization,
awarded a total of $5000 in cash
grants to filmmakers and video
producers for completion of lesbian
and gay productions.
-BLK
Mormon Magazine
To Debut This Fall
New Direction, a new bi-monthly
magazine focusing on the relationship
between Mormonism and being
gay or lesbian, will debut in
· September. Also included will be gay
and lesbian religious subjects in
general and informative articles on
various aspects of gay life. The
publication's goal is to help the gay
and lesbian Mormon (and others) feel
comfortable with homosexuality and
still have a good attitude toward the
church. Original papers and articles
on a variety of subjects that would be
of interest to readers arc now being
sought. Subscriptions arc $25 per
year. For information write to New
Direction, 6520 Selma Ave., Ste.
A-440, Los Angeles, CA 90028.
Guide To Gay/ _
Lesbian Videos
Out in Video is a new quarterly
newsletter, published by Persona
· Press, featuring news and reviews
about the latest video releases of
interest to the lesbian /gay community,
with an emphasis on work of
professional quality which provides
SECOND STONE
□ true and posti ve images of
gay/lesbian people.
It includes articles and interviews
with lesbian and gay producers,
directors, writers, actors and actresses,
especially those independent
film and videomakers whose work
challenges the stereotypes of a
predominantly homophobic entertainment
industry.
Out in Video covers work in
production, both in North America
and other parts of the world, and
lists lesbian /g ay film and video
festivals which take place annually
both on college campuses and large
urban centers throughout the United
States and Canada. ·
In addition, Out in Video plans to
set up a mail order marketplace so
that even people living in isolated
areas, who might not otherwise have
easy access to nonpornographic,
lesbian / gay videos and books can
purchase them at the lowest prices
available. A subscription to Out in·
Video is $10.00. Contact Persona
Press, Box 14022, San Francisco, CA
94114.
Gay Chorus
Produces First CD
The award-winning Windy City Gay
Chorus has completed its first professionally-
produced CD and cassette.
The CD, titled Don We Now ...
features the 80-voice chorus performing
traditional holiday favorites,
as well as specially commissioned
new works. For information
about ordering the CD and
cassette, Windy City Gay Chorus, or
chorus performances, call
(312)404-WCGC.
Venus Press Seeks
Lesbian Cartoons
Venus Press has announced a call for
submissions of single panel cartoons,
strips and cartoon stories for N cw
Dyke, a book anthology of cartoons
by, for and about Lesbians. The
deadline is December 1. Send entries
and SASE to Venus Press, 7100 Blvd.
East, Guttenberg, NJ 07093.
Film Festival
Seeks Entries
The Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual
Student Alliance at California State
University, Fresno, has announced ii
·call for entries in their second annual
International Gay and Lesbian
Film/Video Festival. For information
contact Ken Fries, GLBSA
Film Festival, P.O. Box 4092, Fresno,
CA 93744.
Cover Story .□
Community 111ourns passing of advocate
From Pagel
Jew." Though not gay
herself, she had an
unbounded love for the gay
and lesbian community. Her
books included But Lord,
They're Gay, Good News
for Modern Gays, and
Ex-Gays? There are None!.
In addition to being valuable
resources for gay
people, her books also
made a significant impact
on parents, church pastors
and others seeking answers.
Penn in gton was also a
regular contributor to
Second Stone.
The motherly, unlikely
advocate of gay and lesbian
Christians was raised in
the Assembly of God
where, from 1963 to 1968,
she worked as a "change
minister" counseling Gays
and Lesbians in their
efforts to becom e heterosexual.
She eventually
acknowledged that the
ex -gay methods did not
work and, ten years later,
adopted the position that
sexuality is not a matter of
choice and that Gays and
Lesbians are beloved of God
as much as straights .
Phil Pletcher of
Reconciliation Metropolitan
Community Church,
Grand Rapids, Michigan,
said that a call to the
Lambda Christian Fellowship
one night changed his
life. "I dialed and Sylvia
was there . And we
talked," he said. "I had
finally come to grips with
my sexuality a couple of
years earlier, but in so
doing, I had left the church
and resigned myself to a
life without Jesus. In my
mind, there simply was no
overlap between being gay
and being Christian ." The
conversation with Pennington
changed that notion and
brought Pletcher back to
the church.
Rev. Sylvia Dewberry of
the Lambda Christian
Fellowship said that Rev.
Pennington devoted her life
to being a servant of Jesus.
"She tirelessly lent her
spirited compassion and
love to the gay community
for the . injustice of the
world's prejudices against
us. Her fervent energy
toward bridging all men
and women, especially
Gays and Lesbians, to the
fulfilling life in Jesus has
endeared her to everyone
who knew her," Dewberry
said. "I personally know
how much pleasure and joy
each and every person she
ever met or spoke to brought
to her.
Dewberry said that the
Lambda Christian Fellowship
is committed to
carrying forth the work of
the ministry, especially by
continu in g to make Rev.
Pennington's books available.
A memorial book fund
has been established for
that purpose .
Pennington once summed
up the conflict over sexuality
and Christianity in
an interview about ex-gay
ministries. She said that
fundamentalist Christi ans
cannot get past a notion
that sexuality is a makeor-
break factor when the
real issue is salvation.
"Their theology is
screwed up because they
say sexuality is what saves
you or condemns you . Only
the blood of Jesus Christ can
do that," she said.
Donations to the
memorial book fund may be
sent to Lambda Christian
Fellowship, P.O. Box 1967,
Hawthorne, CA 90250.
Monogamy is the choice of most gay and lesbian couples
Gay and lesbian relationships may
seem revolutionary by some
standards, but most organize their sex
lives on the traditional principal of
monogamy. In a national survey, 91
percent of female couples were found
to be monogamous, as were 63 percent
of male couples .
The survey of 1,266 same-sex couples
was conducted by Partners Newsletter
for Cay & Lesbian Couples.
Of the female couples who were not
monogamous, seven percent were
"mono~amous with agreed exceptions"
and three percent were
non-monogamous. Male couples were
less inclined to monogamy: 26 percent
perinitted "agreed exceptions" and 11
percent werc ·non-monogamous.
Many partners whose agreements
allowed outside sex were sexually
exclusive in practice. Ou tside sex was
reported b y less than three percent of
female partners and 26 percent of
male partners. Only 12 percent of all
male partners had outside sex more
often than monthly.
Interestingly, men reporting outs ide
sex also had more frequent sex with
their partners. In addition, the
longer male couples had been
together, the more likely they were
to report outside sex. Neither of
these patterns was observed among
women.
The national survey also collected
information on topics such as safer sex
practices, discr im ination and length
100:r.~-- --- ----- -- - ---- - -~
91:::
Cf)
a: - w
sor. z
f- FEMALE COUPLES a:
~ <(
0..
MALE COUPLES
60::: a,
a,
g
40:::
20:::
or.
I.IONOGAMY W /EXCEPTIONS NO/H,K>NOGAMY
Monogamy was preferred by the majority of the 1,260
same-sex couples surveyed by Partners Newsletter
for Gay &. Lesbian Couples.
of relationships.
A free summary of results may be
obtained by sending a self-addressed,
E mp1t.thy is.a journal that deserves our
.>upport for the original and creative work it
d~ in the interest of truth and justice.
,f. Rev. Malcolm Boyd, author of 23 books
including An YoH R,mningwitb Mt,]tSHr?,
T11lu Off tht Mtzsks, and Gay Pmst
E mpathy provides 1 much-needed .and
welcomed communication link for persons
in~olved in cduc.ition .about homophobia. At its
best it will keep us informed and in touch,
supponed and challenged, excited and proud.
l'f. Brian McNaught, lecturer aqd author<if On
Bting Gay: Tho11ghts on F11mily, F11ith, and Lavt
July/ August, 1991
stamped, business-size enve lope to
Partners survey, Box 9685, Seattle,
WA 98lll9.
Empathy
LAn
Interdisciplinary
Journal
forPersom
Working to
End Oppression
on the Basis of
Sexual Identity
PUBI.ISHE D TWICE A YEAR, EMPATHY INCLUDES
SCHOU.IU.Y ESSAYS, PROSE AND PO£TRY, PRACTmONER
ARTICLES, ANECDOTAL USAYS, AND RESEAi.CH ltEPOJlTS
AS WELL AS ANNOTAT!.O BIBUOGRAPH 1£5 l'OJI.
RESOURCE MATEIUALS, REC~NT RESE.U.Oi AND BOOKS,
THE JOURNAL SERVES PEOPLE WORKING IN BD1JCATION,
COUNSEUNG, HEALTH CAR!, SOCIAL WORJC.,
COMMUNll_"Y ACTMSM, AND THE MINISTRY
NATIONALLY AND JNTEJI.NATIONALLY.
Oney.ear (2 issues) individual subsc:ription
s10 (115 institutional)
Make checks payable to Gay and Lesbian Advoc
cacy Research Project (GLARP) arid mail to:
. Empathy, PO Box 5085, Columbia, SC 29250.
From Shoah
To· Shoah
BY CHRIS GLASER
I am grateful to be given
a new term for the Holocaust.
To quote Cardinal
Jean-MarieL ustigero f
Paris, born Jewish of a
mother who died at Auschwitz:
"I prefer to say 'the
Shoah'( Hebrewfo r annihilation)
rather than 'the
Holocaust,b' ecauseh olocaust
means something
else; it is a free offering
given to the glory of God."
BuTI D O BELIEVE that in all
senseless, catastrophic suffering,
those who suffer may serve as
redeemers by the way they respond.
It is not surprising for a follower of
Christ to believe this, as in Jesus' own
suffering the Redeemer's love and
forgiveness saves us all. Earlier this
year, my friend Pat Hoffman gave me
a book containing selections of the
diaries of another redeemer, Etty
Hillesum (An Interrupted Life; Simon
& Schuster Pocket Books, 1985; page
references for the quotations that
follow available upon request.) Etty
was a young Jewish woman who lived
in Holland and wrote of the
approaching Shoah after the Nazis
took control of that country. Pat said
that she thought Etty's reflections
would be meaningful to those of us
coping with the Shoah of AIDS.
And, as I read of Etty's sexual and
later spiritual awakening, as well as
of her ability to affirm life as good in
the face of overwhelming fear and
suffering, I sensed her redemptive
power for us all. Her life in Holland
and her death at Auschwitz was not
in vain.
SORROW. Faced with the
possibility of being transported to
concentration camps and ultimately
to death, the Jews of Nazi-haunted
Europe lived with an uncertainty not
unknown to many of us in the gay and
lesbian community. Etty wrote, "All
our conversations are now interlarded
Such a sacrificiaol ffering
also implies a redemptive
purpose.I believet hatf or
most of us, the Nazi
attempt to destroy Jews,
Gays,p oliticald issidents,
and others is too senseless
to be consideredre demptive.
Theirs acrificew as
coercedn, ot voluntary.
And certainly God is never
glorifiedb y evil.
with sentences such as, 'I hope he'll
still be there to enjoy these
strawberries with us."' In our
community, many of us can't attend a
dinner party without realizing half
the guests may be dead within ten
years. " .. .It is probably easier to
pray for someone far away than to
witness him suffering by your side."
How right Etty was, how I sometimes
envy those people who have not yet
been personally affected by AIDS.
Etty advised a friend in relation to
his intended bride: "You must start
even now and try to reconcile her to
the fact that she will never see you
again ... that she has a duty to carry
on if only to keep something of your
spirit alive." And then she adds a
reflection appropriate to our new
reality in the face of AIDS: "Yes,
that's how people talk to each other
these days and it doesn't even sound
unreal any more. We have embraced
a new reality and everything has
taken on new colours and new
emphases. . .. And every encounter is
also a farewell."
As I write this I'm aware that many
of you might stop reading, saying,
"This is too depressing!" Denial can
sometimes be healthy and positive
when it allows people to move ahead
with what needs to be done. But
sometimes sorrow is too quickly
transformed into frustration, bitterness,
and anger, directed at
everything from the medical
profession to the government to God. I
believe we need to allow our sorrow
space in our lives. "But if you do not
clear a decent shelter for your
sorrow," Etty wrote, "and instead
reserve most of the space inside you
for hatred and thoughts of revenge -
from which new sorrow will be born
for others - then sorrow will never
cease in this world and will
multiply. And if you have given
sorrow the space its gentle origins
demand, then you may truly say: life
is beautiful and so rich that it makes
you want to believe in God." For Etty,
the sorrow we experience bespeaks
our godly compassion, the beauty and
richness of life.
Of such compassion she wrote, "In
this tempestuous, havoc-ridden
world of ours, all real communication
comes from the heart. Outwardly we
are being tom apart and the paths to
each other lie buried under so much
debris that we often fail to find the
person we seek. We can only continue
to live together in our hearts, and
hope that one day we may walk
hand in hand again." Recently, after
a tempestuous argument between us
over how to relate to a person with
AIDS, a friend and I wondered aloud
what had made each of us so
adamant. My friend offered an
insight: "I think AIDS is just making
everybody a little crazy." In the
midst of AIDS craziness, Etty offers a
new golden rule: "All that matters
now is to be kind to each other with
all the goodness that is in us."
SUFFERING. Many of you who
have witnessed or heard the stories
of those who have suffered either at
the hands of homophobia or of AIDS
will identify with Etty's listening to
others' suffering: "I love people so
much ... [I have experienced] love for
those who knew how to bear so much
although nothing had prepared them
for such burdens. ...When I suffer for
the vulnerable, is it not for my own
vulnerability that I really suffer?"
"Most of us in the West don't
understand the art of suffering and
experience a thousand fears instead, "
Etty observes, "We cease to be alive,
being full of fear, bitterness, hatred,
and despair. God knows, it's only too
easy to understand why .... We have
to accept death as part of life, even
the most horrible of deaths."
The fears of those who are HIV
infected are legion, from income loss
to medical procedures to physical
pain to loss of independence. "Man
suffers most through his fears of
suffering,"Etty noted, " ... The idea of
suffering (which is not the reality,
for real suffering is always fruitful
and can turn life into a precious thing)
must be destroyed. And if you destroy
the ideas behind which life lies
SECO_ND STONE
imprisoned as behind bars, then you
liberate your true life, its real
mainsprings, and then you will also
have the strength to bear real
suffering, your own and the world's."
She suggests that we must get beyond
our fears to enjoy life as it comes,
recognizing that suffering reveals
how precious and powerful we are to
address our own suffering and that of
others.
SOCIAL JUSTICE. Our suffering
homophobia and then AIDS has
rallied the gay community to help
our own. AIDS has motivated many
of us to care for its other victims:
hemophiliacs, babies, racial minorities,
IV drug users, straights,
prostitutes. Many of us who suffer
this current Shoah can identify with
Etty's sense of solidarity: "I want to
be sent to every one of the camps that
lie scattered all over Europe, I want
to be at every front, I don't ever want
to be what they call 'safe,' I want to
be there ... "
"But if you do not
clear a decent
shelter for your
sorrow," Etty wrote,
"and instead reserve
most of the space
inside you for hatred
and thoughts of
revenge - from
which new sorrow
will be born for
others - then sorrow
will never cease in
this world and will
multiply."
But others in our community do not
share this sense of responsibility, as
Etty observed in her own community:
"Many who are indignant about
injustices are only indignant because
the injustices are being inflicted on
them . Their indignation is_ skindeep."
Elsewhere she wrote, "If all
this suffering does not help us to
broaden our horizon, to attain a
greater humanity by shedding all
trifling and irrelevant issues, then it
will all have been for nothing."
SEE SHOAH, Page 14
Church & Organization News
Brethren/Mennonite
Parents Meet
"From Apprehension to Affirmation"
was the theme of the second annual
weekend retreat held at Laurelville
Mennonite Church Center for parents
and siblings of gay or lesbian people.
Forty registrants were in attendance
from ten states and one province.
Gerald and Marlene Kaufman,
family counselors for Akron
Pennsylvania, led the group in the
dynamics of searching for affirmation
while dealing with loss and fear.
Therapist Art Isaak of Sellersville,
Pennsylvania demonstrated by using
psychodrama - a way of reaching
understanding and compromise
within conflict and disagreement.
Other activies included the sharing
of experiences by parents and gay or
lesbian persons as each sought
nurture , understanding, and acceptance
from the church, family
members and friends.
A third such event is planned for
the spring of 1992. Planning for these
events is done by families who have
gay or lesbian members. More
information may be obtained from
Brethren/Mennonite Parents, P.O.
Box 1708, Lima, OH 45802.
Caton To Pastor
MCC Las Vegas
Rev. Ken Caton has been selected as
pastor of MCC Las Vegas. Caton was
chosen in a near unanimous vo te by
church members. He has served as
associate pastor of All God's
Children MCC in Minneapolis for two
years.
Texas AIDS Organization
Honored
By President Bush
The AIDS Interfai th Ne twork of
North Texas, Inc., has been selected
as a recipient of th e 1991 President's
Volunteer Action Award. The award
was presented to AIN Executive
Director Cha rles Carnahan and Mr.
Garrett Schenck, a Care Team
volunteer, by President Bush at a
White House ceremony.
The AIDS Interfaith Network was
one of two Dallas organizations
among this year's 19 recipients, and
the only AIDS service provider in the
country to receive the distinction.
Created by Rev. Charles Carnahan
in response to what he realized was a
critical lack in services available to
Persons Living With A IDS_ in their
home environmen t, the AIDS
Interfaith Network is a unique
element in the Dallas/Ft. Worth .
network of support to people living
with HIV and AIDS. The nonprofit
organization enrolls Catholic,
Protestant and Jewish communities in
an organized response to people in
need.
Director Charles Carnahan
commented, "This is well-deserved
recognition for our hard-working
volunteers, who have cared. deeply
for our clients, taken good care of
them, suffered with them, learned
from them, as both client and
voluntQ.Cr deal with the
extraordinary physical, emotional
and societal affects of HIV/ AIDS.
I'm proud of all our Care Team
volunteers and appreciate them very
much."
Philadelphia Church
Added To More
Light Roster
Recognizing that the existence of
prejudice against gay men and
Lesbians cannot be ignored,
Tabernacle United Church (a joint
Presbyterian and United Church of
Christ congregation) voted to extend
to anyone wishing to share in the
worship, work, and leadership of the
church all privileges and
responsibilites of membership
including ordination as elders. No
one will be excluded on the basis of
sex, age, race, sexual orientation,
country of origin, economic, cultural or
religiou s background, disability or
other human condition.
Tabernacle is the first congregation
in either the Presbyterian Church
(USA) or the United Church of
Christ to make such a statement.
Garner To Pastor
MCC NOVA
Rev. Darlene Garner has been
appointed pastor of MCC of Northern
Virginia. She most recently served as
pastor of MCC Baltimore. Garner
attended Lancaster Theological
Seminary and became a licensed
minister in the UFMCC in 1988. She
was a founding member and co-chair
of the National Coalition of Black
Lesbians and Gays and participated
in the first meeting between lesbian
and gay people of color and the
White Hous e staff during the Carter
administration.
Ackerman Leaves
Minneapolis Church
Rev. Arlene Ackerman, pastor of.All
God's Children Metropolitan Community
Church has departed the
church after over five years of
service. Ackerman is credited with
building the congregation from a
group of 90 meeting in a borrowed
space to the present 350 worshippers
who meet in a large church-owned
building.
AGCMCC board member Cheri
Downey said that Ackerman has
touched the lives of many people in
the church and that she will be
deeply missed .
Ackerman wants to move into AIDS
chaplaincy in hospitals or hospices
and do spTriiual renewal and church
consulting work.
Once described as a cross between a
diesel dyke and a Southern preacher,
a description she finds complimentary,
Ackerman says she has
softened somewhat with the arrival
of her daughter , now two years old.
-Equal Time
Pennsylvania
Church Celebrates
First Anniversary
Grace Covenant Fellowship, Allentown,
Pa. , celebrated its first
anniversary in early May. The
fellowship was formed to meet the
spiritual needs of the gay and lesbian
community of the Lehigh Valley.
During the first year the congregation
grew from six to almost 30 people.
Bryon Rowe is pastor and Thom
Ritter serves as minister of music .
Church phone is (215)740-0247.
Dallas MCC To
Build Cathedral
□
With $750-,000 in donations, the
Metropolitan Community Church of
Dallas is building a "Cathedral of
Hope." Senior Pastor Michael
Piazza says the church will include
11 meeting rooms, a children 's area, a
library, a bookstore, and an
audio -visual production studio.
Lutherans
Concerned/South
Carolina To Meet
Lutherans Concerned, a society of
gay, lesbian and non-gay Christians
will meet on Friday, July 19 at 7:30
p.m. Members of other denominations
are welcome . Call (803)736-1648 for
information.
And from the
SDA Kinship
Hotline Diary ...
July 17 - 11:45 a.m. A man called
looking for information about the
Adventist church. When I explained
we were a gay and lesbian
organization hotline, he said he
wanted to speak to a normal person. 1
told him I was normal. We talked for
about five minutes; he was very sure I
wouldn't meet him in heaven - that's
probably true, although I'll be there.
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Calendar
Thef ollowinga nnouncementhsa ve
.beens ubmittedb y sponsoringo r
affiliatedg roups.
UFMCC
Fifteenth
General Conference
JULY 14-21, AIDS, racism,
homophobia, sexism, poverty, peace,
social justice and equal rights for
same-gender couples are only some of
the issues on the agenda of the
Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan
Community Church's
fifteenth general conference to be
held in Phoenix, Arizona.
Reflecting the conference's theme, "l
Have Opened a Door," church
founder Rev. Troy Perry said the
church will open the door for
discussion of a wide range of issues
and will feature a series of workshops,
discussions and music. Over
1000 delegates and observers are
expected to attend. The Pointe at
Tapatio Cliffs is the setting. Contact
your local MCC for information or
write to UFMCC, 5300 Santa Monica
Blvd., Ste. 304, Los Angeles, CA 90029
or call (213)464-5100.
Hosanna Church of
Praise Retreat
JULY 19-21, The Sanborn Park Hostel
in the hills above Saratoga is the
setting for the Hosanna Church of
Praise Annual Retreat Weekend,
themed "Foundations For Ministry."
Guests will include Pastor Evelyn
Schave, Rochester, Washington, Rev.
• Thomas Hirsch, Advance Christian
Ministries, Dallas, Texas, and Pastor
Naomi Harvey, Living Communion
·Church, Portland, Oregon. Cost is
$45.00 which includes all meals and
lodging. For information contact
Hosanna Church of Praise, 24 No.
Fifth St., San Jose, CA 95112,
(408)293-2437,
National Lesbian &
Gay Health
Conference
JULY 24-28, Up to 1200 lesbian and
gay health professionals are
expected to. congregate in New
Orleans for the 13th National 1
Lesbian and Gay Health Cqnference
and 9th National AIDS Forum. The
conference provides an opportunity
for health care providers and caregivers
to discuss issues of importance
to the lesbian and gay community. It
also gives health professionals of
diverse disciplines an opportunity to
1B
learn, exchange ideas and contribu le
to new thinking about the needs and
well being of the lesbian and gay
community. For further information
contact the National Lesbian and
Gay Health Foundation, Inc., )638 R
St NW #2, Washington, DC 20009 or
call (202)797-3708.
Lighthouse
Apostolic Church
Revival
JULY 26-28, "We've Come This Far
By Faith" is the theme of a three
day revival and series of workshops
to be held at Lighthouse Apostolic
· Church in Schenectady, New York.
· Tentatively scheduled guest preacher
is the Rev. Sandy Lewis, Elder of the
West Central District of the National
Gay Pentecostal Alliance, and
pastor of Casa De La Paloma Apostolic
Church in Tucson, Arizona. The
gathering is set to coincide with the
General Conference of the National
Gay Pentecostal Alliance, which
celebrates its 11th anniversary on
July 28th. NGPA was founded in
Schenectady in 1980, and now has
· members around the world.
For information contact Rev.
William H. Carey, P.O. Box 1391,
Schenectady, NY 12301-1391 or call
(518)372-6001.
Delta Lambda Phi
Convention
AUGUST 9-11, Delta Lambda Phi
Fraternities from around the country
will meet althe Imperial Palace
Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
Activities will include workshops,
seminars, business meetings, a grand
reception and all-around fun in the
desert sun. General meetings and all
social events are open to members as
well as non-members who have a
serious interest in learning about
fraternity and the Brotherhood. The
fraternity 's purpose is to enhance the
quality of life among progressive
men, irrespective of sexual orientation,
by providing dignified and
purposeful social and recreational
activities. For information send a
SASE to Delta Lambda Phi, Box
70733, Las Vegas, NY89170-0733.
Michigan Women's
Music Festival
AUGUST 13-18, For 16 years women
have been making the annual
pilgrimage to Northern Michigan to
be part of one of the largest women's
gatherings. This year's festival
features over 40 performances by some.
of the most dynamic independent
women artists working today. For
information write to WWTMC, Box
22, Walhalla, MI 49458 or call
(616)757-4766.
Our Heroic Journey:
Building A Healing
Circle
AUGUST 26 - 29, A special retreat of
celebration for gay and lesbian ministers
. This retreat will tap the very
special experience of the Holy Spirit
that every gay and lesbian minister
has to learn to utilize to strengthen
and celebrate their lives. The Weber
House, Baltimore, Maryland, is the
setting. Limited financial assistance
is available. For registration information,
write to CMI Retreat, P.O.
Box 60125, Chicago, IL 60660-0125,
CMI Workshop On
Support Networks
AUGUST 29, Communication
Ministry, Inc., presents "Support
Networks for Lesbian and Gay
Sisters, Priests and Brothers" at the
Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill (prior
to the Dignity /USA Convention.) A
panel of religious and priests will
discuss various kinds of support
networks. Open to Catholic lesbian
sisters and gay brothers and priests.
For information write to CM!, P.O.
Box 60125, Chicago, IL 60660-0125.
Parents FLAG
10th Annual
Convention
OCTOBER 11-14, "Celebrating the
Jewels in our Crown" is the theme of
the tenth annual gathering of the
National Federation of Parents and
Friends of Lesbians and Gays.
Charlotte, North Carolina is the
setting. To receive registration
materials, when available, write to
Charlotte Parents FLAG, 5815
Charing Place, Charlotte, NC 28211.
Dignity/USA
Convention '91
AUGUST 29-SEPTEMBER 1, The
Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill in
Washington, D.C. will the be setting
for Dignity /USA's tenth biennial
convention. This event brings
together delegates, members and
friends for a gathering that matches
no other in the Dignity datebook.
Themed "Many Gifts, One Spirit,"
the convention program will feature
SECOND STONE
□ presentations and workshops that
reflect the diversity of Dignity's
national community. Social events
will add to the excitement. Convention
topics will be organized into
five areas of interest : AIDS Ministry,
Removal of Barriers to Women,
Support for Human Rights Laws,
Anti-Gay /Lesbian Violence, The
Primacy of Conscience and the Right
to Dissent. For more infor- mation
write : Convention '91, Dignity/USA,
Box 29661, Washington, DC 20017.
Advance '91
OCTOBER 18-20, "The Grace of God"
is the theme of this annual conference,
which will be held this year at
a camp north of Houston. Cost is $65,
which includes meals and lodging.
For information write to ADVANCE
Christian Ministries, P.O. Box 1388,
Long Beach, CA 90801-1388.
1991 National Skills
Building Conference
OCTOBER 31-NOVEMBER 2, The
Universal City Hilton in Los Angeles
is the setting for this conference
sponsored by the AIDS National
Interfaith Network, National
Association of People With AIDS
and the National Minority AIDS
Council. "Collaboration,
Cooperation, Partnership, Skills
Building" is the theme . For
information call (202)544-1076.
SEND EVENT NOTICES TO:
CALENDAR, SECOND STONE,
P.O. BOX 8340,
NEW ORLEANS, LA 70182
Quotable:
Just The Price We
Have To Pay
"There are many aspects of the
contemporary gay subculture
that I find ridiculous, but
nothing could be more ridiculous
than to say, as some
critics have, that I am antihomosexual
simply because I
do not embrace every twitty
gay fad that comes along. I
think that a lifetime of
listening to disco music is a
high price to pay for one's
sexual preference.
-Quentin Crisp
,
I
Families □ "Mother, I have something to tell you"
By Rev. Sylvia Pertnington
Contributing Writer
We know that parents have
different reactions upon learning of
their child's homosexuality .
Fortunatel y some parents have the
ability to immediately sense their
child's struggle and enter into it with
them . ·
1 met a moth er like that while
speaking at a university last
December. Helen is a delightful
woman and the res t of this column
will be her story , written in her own
words. Having problems with your
parents? Helen's story might be a
great help to them . ...
I was sitting in an airplane
traveling to meet my daughter. We
were going on a trip together . A
young, attractive woman sitting next
to me seemed eager to carry on a
conversation. So we visited as we .
flew towards our destinations ; mine
to continue further , hers to reach
home. We talked about relationships
and the complexities of single
life . Her young perspective gave me
that motherly ad vice feeling which I
am often called upon to suppress .
As we talked also about travel and
cities, she mad e a comment which
struck deep into my heart . I realized
1 would not feel free to reveal to he r
how deeply her casual remark felt . I
nodd ed. To her my nod would signify
that I was in agreement, but I was , in
fact , merely acknowledging her
position . We were talking about San
Francisco, the city from which our
flight had just left. She had come
with friends for a day and evening to
explore the wonders of the beautiful
city by the bay . Her pointed remark
about how she had stayed clear of
the "gay culture section " of the city
because of course she "would have
nothing to do with those people" was
the cause of a sudden, painful
reaction for me. Accepting her
attitude towards the gay community
has become, for me, a distressful
resignation to the fact that many
people unknowingly assume their
beliefs about gay people arc shared
by all. She could not have known her
remark felt unkindly to me, and I was
unable to reveal this to her.
Many humans fail each other with
their beliefs that only white,. male ,
young, beautiful, healthy, rich or
talented people deserve recognition
or arc worthy of life. When someone
docs not meet these requirements,
much of society rejects the "different"
person who is not perc ·eived as
normal. But it is when we have a
personal experience with abnormalcy
(as society dictates it to be), that we
become compassionate and understanding
and are compelled to face
our cruelty toward s one anoth er.
Chris is my son. To know Chris is to
be acquainted with the finest
example of what a mother, father,
. sister or brother expects a family
member to .be. He is tall, handsome ,
intelligent , health y, strong , lo ving
and ambitious. Chris lo v es to ski,
As I listened to what
some parents might
believe to be a
confession of sin; I
wondered how I
could let him know
that he was that
same son at that
-..... moment he had
always been. I still
loved him. I would
not reject him .
hike, back-pack , rock-climb and
camp out. He studies nature and loves
the beauty of a sunset, cloud
formations, animals, mountains,
childre ·n, music and poetr y . He is
worried about ecology and about how
our planet will survive oil spills and
the destruction of the rain forests and
ozone layer in the atmosphere. He
worries about the threat of
earthquakes and the extinction of the
animals and birds of the world. He
has a w onderful sense of humor and is
gentle and kind towards everyone he
meets. He is in social work , tea ching
the developmentally handicapped .
His students love him and depend
upon him. He is a warm enthusiastic,
fun-loving human being. Chri s is also
gay .
1 didn't know for certain that Chris
had always felt different but on
occasion, 1 would w onder. It wa sn't
until he was in his early twenties and
his relationship with another man
was beginning lo dissol ve that · he
told me about being gay. His sist ers
had kno w n for two y ears. His
reluctance to let me know indicated to
me how difficult it must have been
for him to come to me.
As I listened to what some parents
might believe to be a confession of sin,
i wondered how 1 could let him know
that he was that same son at that
moment he had always been. 1 still
loved him. 1 would not reject him.
My concern was about the feelings he
was coping w ith because of a broken
relationship. I was startled by the
parallel to my o wn at the time of my
divorce . His story of romantic loss
was no different from my own.
As tim e passed, I began to reflect
upon the significance of this sudden
change in my perception of my
youngest child. I knew ve ry little
about the gay rights movem ent. It
. was because of AIDS that society
finally became aware of this
dilemma and thousands of Gays were
able to com e out as free "humans ." I
just never guessed there would be a
connection to my own life.
1 read a book entitled Mother I
Have Something To Tell You. I
needed only to read the first two
chapters to realize that the other
"somethings" listed in the book could
have meant a long struggle with
drugs , alcohol or cancer : My sor
would _ continue to be just as he had
always been ; a wonderful, honest,
loyal person who would have a
productive life of service to others
and remain a joy lo be with .
The Christian religion's concept of
homosexuality as sin is why so much
of society is unaccepting. But not all
of society believes a loving God
would .reject His own creation. Firm
believer s declare that homosexuality
is evil. Many Christians attempt to
cure or heal homosexuality as if it
were a chosen disease. The idea that
change can take place through prayer
and will-power has not pro v en
effective .
Christians assume gay people are
unhappy and want to be cured or
healed of an affliction, at the same
time believing homose xuals have
"chosen" or "want" to live as gay -
people. When Christian parents find
out about a gay son or daughter, they
often deal with a situation they
SEE FAMILIES, Page 20
The Other Publishing Company's
Lesbian & Gay Recovery Bookstore
is happy to annoμnce publication of a truly special booi_
Gay and Still Catholic: a jouney home, by Leo Giovanni-·
$12.95 Quality Paperback
Leo didn't want to be homosexual; he
hated the won! and the idea. He just wanted it
all to go away--but it wouldn't
He tried to change; he sought help
from priests, counselors, and psychologists.
They all told him he could change-•hc just had
to want it .. really want it
Leo's story is painful to read; we all
share in his pain. More importanUy, we all
can share in his triumph as he comes to accept
himself as a whole man--heallhy, gay, and a
practicing Catholic.
Rarely has anyone written so poignanUy
of the dilemma faced by all gay men and
lesbians as they attempt to integrate emerging
sexuality with the n,alities of a hostile society,
religious abandonment, and families unable or
unwilling to comprehend.
Leo's pain is wrenching, but his
triumph of personal failh over the power of
cul tu~ , bi.~ makj:,s this one of the year's
most'oompelling reads.
/It. "must read" for parents, pastors,
and all helping professionals as well as for
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.j ~ .,, .
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For credit card onlclS call
(8001733-1283
July/August, 1991 II
Rev. Jim Hawk removed from United Methodist ministry
cand idates, ordained or assigned to
churches.
The Rev. James R. Hawk was
removed from the United Methodist
Church ministry by vote of clergy and
laity from Western Pennsylvania
during their annual meeting in Grove
City, Penn., on June 13. Hawk had
been forced to take leave from the
ministry after coming out as a gay
man to his bishop over a year ago.
According to church policy
"self-a·vowed practicing homosexuals"
cannot be accepted as
SHOAH, From Page 10
The gay community has learned
how health care in this country
discriminates against the
marginalized. Compare the attention
given and money spent when
relatively few straight white men
developed Legionnaire's Disease to
the inattention and Jack of funds
when the "gay cancer" or "Gay
Related Immune Deficiency" first
appeared . Will the suffering
amongst gay males help us identify
with other marginalized people in
their health crises? Blacks who
suffer sickle cell anemia, women who
suffer lupus, the poor who are
medically overlooked , Africans who
also suffer AIDS? And will our
A peaceful, non-violent
demonstration was held at Grove
City College to protest homophobia
in the church and to celebrate lesbian
and gay sexuality .
Hawk said, "This is not about
whether being gay is right or
wrong .. . it is about the ability to
share one's beliefs openly. When I
suffering redeem the church, causing
it to give up its trifling about sexual
orientation as a criterion for
membership and ministry?
SPIRITUALITY. In Westerbork
camp, Etty describes a hunchbacked
Russian woman, "spun in a web of
sorrow," whose mother died a few
months earlier, whose friend is a
dying paralyzed girl, and whose
work seems to be making it easier for
everyone else in her barracks. She
confesses to Etty, "I really would like
to be able to swim away in my tears."
Then Etty writes, "She asks me with
her strange accent in the voice of a
child that begs for forgiveness,
'Surely God will be able to
understand my doubts in a world like
this, won't He?"'
Declaring "one ought to pray, da y
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told the Bishop I was gay, he said to
me, 'So long as you 're silent, there
will be no problems. ' I thought to
myself, 'Why should I be silent about
something that is so very good ."'
Hawk told the Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette, "My concern is
several-fold , Within Western
Pennsylvania there arc over 60 gay
and lesbian ministers who a rc silent.
The church _ says nothing. However,
and night, for the thousands . One
ought not to be without prayer for
even a single minute," Etty herself
prayed, "Let me be . the thinking
heart of these barracks . " She
believed, 'There is no hidden poet in
me, just a little piece of God that
might grow into poetry ." No matter
where she was sent, whether
Westerbork or Auschwitz, she knew
that "there will always be a small
patch of sky above, and there will
always be enough space to fold two
"Many who are
indignant about
injustices are only
indignant because
the injustices ar e
being inflicted on
-them. Their
indignation is
skin-deep."
Enjoy articles and color photos of a hands in prayer." Quoting Jesus in
romantic hotel in Spain, a secluded retreat Matthew 6:34, Etty added, 'We have
in Hawaii, a manor house in the English to fight them daily, like fleas, those
countryside, a Greek pension overlooking many small worries about the
the sea, a rustic resort in Colorado, and morrow, for they sap our energies ...
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Plus, every month, regular departments confidence in God ."
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) • SECOND STONE
if the church finds out who they are,
the board will attempt to remove
them.
"The time has come for the church
to put away old myths, stereotypes,
and fantasies about lesbian and gay
people," he said.
Hawk said he will be doing some
work in the religious education
department of MCC-Nashville and
would take time to rest and relax.
justified doubts alongs ide many
"petty fears and worries," but
according to Etty, ciur "one moral
duty" is "to reclaim large areas of
peace in ourselves, more and more
peace, and to reflect it towards
others."
Let us join Etty in prayer : "Dear
God, these are anxious times. Tonight
for the first time I lay in the dark
with burning eyes as scene after scene
of human suffering passed before me .
I shall promise you one thing, God,
just one very small thing: I shall
never burden my today with cares
about my tomorrow, although that
takes some practice. Each day is
sufficient unto itse lf. I shall try to
help You, God, to stop my strength
ebbing away, though I cannot vouch
for it in advance . But one thing is
becoming increasingly clear to me :
that You cannot help us, that we must
help You to help ourselves . And that
is all we can manage these days and
also all that really matters : that we
safeguard that little piece of You,
God, in ourselves . And perhaps in
others as well . Alas, there doesn 't
seem to be much You Yourself can do
about our circumstances, about our
lives. Neither do I hold you
responsible. You cannot help us but
we must help You and defend Your
dwelling place inside us to the last.
You are sure to go through lean times
with me now and then, when my
faith weakens a little, but believe
me, I shall always labour for You and
remain faithful to You and I shall
never drive You from my ~nee."
SURVNING. "And even if we stay
alive we-shall carry the wounds with
us throughout our lives." Etty's words
regarding her Shoah ring true for ours
as well, as pain and grief and guilt
will remain. No matter how much we
do for PW As, it will never feel like
enough. ''One must be able· to accept
the fact that one may not always be
for another just what one would have
liked to be," Etty consoles. 'This is
something people refuse to admit to
themselves: at a given point you can
no longer do, but can only be and
SEE SHOAH, Page 17
It was their "Christian duty"
Informe rs' revelation ends ELCA career-for Assistant Bishop
LA CROSSE, WIS. - The Rev. Paul A.
Johnson has resigned his position as
the Assistant to the Bishop of the La
Crosse Area Synod, one of six
Wisconsin synods of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America.
Bishop Stefan Guttormsson
requested Pastor Johnson's resignation
shortly after receiving information
that Johnson is gay and that he
disagrees with the guidelines of the
ELCA regarding the ordination of
lesbian and gay people. The current
policies of the 5.3 million member
ELCA require that all lesbian and
gay clergy, associates in ministry and
seminarians make a commitment of
life-long celibacy if they are to be
ordained or retained on the roster of
clergy eligible for ca II within the
church.
In February, Pastor Johnson revealed
his sexual orientation during a
confidential small group session at an
ELCA sponsored con fercnce in
Chicago. "The conference encouraged
us to share our stories and our pain
with the others in the small groups to
which we had been assigned," said
Johnson. "The trust level in my group
was good and I believed my
confidence would be respected. Two
members of the group did not keep
that confidence. When they returned
home they shared what they knew
COMMENTARY, From Page 3
attempts of controlling others by
intimidation and a "license" to kill
other human beings? Respecting the
choice to fight for inclusion in the
military, I would also encourage us to
look deeper into ourselves to examine
our basic value system that motivates
us to want to be included in the
military in the first place.
Overall, do we want to cmulatt• and
partitipate in a heteroscxist society?
Do we want to become a further part
of our current problems?
Not one iota of angry rhetoric has
changed one mind regarding our
rights; long-lasting attitudinal
change is caused by being true to
ourselves and thus changing the way
others sec us. A recent study showed
many Americans wanting Gays and
Lesbians to have equal status in the
workplace. "Knowing a gay man or
Lesbian" was cited for this belief. As
a result, we must know how powerful
we arc as ordinary individuals.
The gay and lesbian community has
an opportunity to become a model
that some day the rest of society will
follow. We can become peacemakers,
instead of furthering the polariabout
me with their Bishop. His
concern eventually led to letters from
th 'ose two persons to Bishop
Guttormsson revealing that I am
gay." The letters indicated that the
two people believed it was their
"Christian duty" to report the
information.
"I am not ashamed of who I am, but I
am ashamed of my church which
refuses to welcome and affirm me and
my gay and lesbian brothers and
sisters. I continue to hope that things
will change. I would welcome the
opportunity to serve again as an
ordained minister of this church
when the church can fully accept
me," Johnson stated.
The 44-year-old husband and father
of three told the La Crosse Tribune
that we was concerned about his
family. Johnson said his wife,
Yvonne, has known about his sexual
orientation for more than six years,
but his children were told only days
before. His eighth grade son
delivered 92 copies of the Tribune
which carried the story on the front
page.
Pastor Johnson has been an ordained
pastor for nearly 20 years and is well
respected within and outside the
synod in which he has served. He
was installed into the synod post in
zation taking place in every segment
of society. We can start - and indeed
many of us arc - creating an entirely
new way of living.
Let us replace the denigration of
so-called enemies like Falwell,
Dannemeyer, and Helms (who just
represent millions of others) with
forgiving those that arc filled with
fear and ignorance. What might
happen if there was a mass
movement to write letters to these
people, proclaiming as proud Gays
and Lesbians our love for them and
offering forgiveness for their
misguided thinking? What if we let
them know that we understand how
they could have been swayed to
believe certain myths about us and
offer them to meet with gay and
lesbian individuals and families?
What if we were to ask for
forgiveness of our intolerance and
hatred toward them? Moreover,
what kind of healing might take
place if we had a special world-wide
prayer for forgiving prejudice toward
us and for loving those who arc
against us?
Considering the seemingly endless
anger coming from our community,
which represents fear and pain, we
June, 1988. Before the synod
appointment Johnson was pastor at
lmmanual Lutheran Church, Viroqua,
for seven years. He was pastor of
Mindoro and Lewis Valley Lutheran
Churches, rural Holmen, from 1971 to
1981. "I know Paul as a colleague in
ministry and as the father of one of
the students whom I serve on
campus," commented Pastor Jan
Tobias, of the Lutheran Campus
Ministry in Milwaukee. "I know him
to be a dedicated, faithful ,
committed pastor. Paul is a man of
integrity struggling to reconcile his
calling as a pastor with the
intolerance of the church regardi11g
his sexual orientation."
In San Francisco, the Rev. Jeff
Johnson of First United Lutheran
Church commented on the situation.
"This is only the latest example of an
increasingly virulent witch-hunt
against lesbian and gay clergy and
seminarians. This is a man who has
given nearly two decades of his life
in faithful service to a church which
is willing to discard him for being
who he is. The atmosphere is
dangerous. Not only arc men and
women in Paul's situation at risk, but
it seems that in many synods it is no
longer even possible to speak out in
disagreement with the current policy,
or in support of lesbian ·and gay
are ripe for healing our anger and
overcoming our fears. In John 14:20,
Jesus said "I am in my Father, and you
are in Mc, and I in you." In this
statement, Jesus unequivocally states
our un{ty. When we hurt others, we
hurt ourselves. Hurting a person even
like Jesse Helms hurts us.
Using the love God created us out of
can be our first and only basis for
affecting change, which will uplift us
and will help the entire world
community. It is time to begin the
healing and forgiveness process that
will transform our community. The
true revolution to come starts with
the transformation of our own hearts.
We will create a new way of living
that is based on strength, honesty,
integrity, and - above all - love.
Jeff Chemin is founder and president
of Peace Initiative, a non-profit
organization dedicated lo furthering
world peace and promoting
acceptance of people's diversity. He
is studying for his masters degree in
Counseling Education at the
University of North Texas. For
information regarding Peace
Initiative, write to 4180 C/enwick,
Dallas, TX 75205 or call
(214)528-LOVE
July/ August, 1991
Rev. Paul A. Johnson
people. Why is being lesbian or gay
more .offensive than the violation of
a person's confidentiality? What
about the persons who violated
Paul's confidence by disclosing what
was to be privileged information in
the first place?" First United
Lutheran Church is one of two San
Francisco congregations which were
put on trial and suspended last July by
the ELCA for ordaining a lesbian
couple and a gay man.
Johnson said he has received over a
hundred letters of support. Although
he remains temporarily on the clergy
roster , with some paid benefits, any
ELCA church calling him would face
the same disciplinary actions as First
United Church.
'Tm looking for a job," said Johnson.
He is investigating opportunities
with the UFMCC.
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II
! •
Books · · □ AIDS books offer inspiration ... sometimes
By Michael Blankenship
Contributing Writer
Being a loog, 1,,ne AIDS vol_unteer I
have read 'a great' many' Q"Cibks on the
subject over the years, but none better
than The Church With AIDS edited
by Letty M. Russell. The book itself
is directly from a study conducted by
the National Council of Churches,
and no one could have been more
surprised than me that this conservative
alliance could produce such
a· compassionate response to this
CrISIS, Working closely with the
NCC in ihis study was the
Metropolitan Community Church
which, ironically, has been seeking
membership in the NCC for over ten
years ,
The ·main focus of the book is quite :
simply that we are the church with
AIDS. If one part of the body of
Christ is afflicted with AIDS, then
the entire body of Christ is part of
this 'unfortunatc calamity. The point
. is emphasized that, although most of
· those dealing with HIV infections
are considered "marginal" by most of
society, with God there arc no
disposable human beings. Each
person is precious in God's sight. How
the church deals with this miserable
epidemic will affect the lives of
hundreds of thousands in the coming
years, and this book presents the
proper Christian response of love,
tenderness and mercy.
Ron Russell-Coons, an MCC pastor
who passed away in 1990, tells his
own story of living with AIDS. In
personal correspondence with his
sister, which is reproduced in the
book, he reveals the anger and
frustration of having to deal
simultaneously with the progressive
disease and with family rejection.
- But, no matter how painful it is to
read his letters, his words are
inspirational. He writes, "Hear me,
please hear me. I know that I am
God's child and that divine love is at
work in me. While I may be dealing
with [AIDS!, I am experiencing
incredible healing. The negatives of
the virus at work in my body can
never overshadow the loving touch of
God that heals my spirit. The hymn
'It Is Well With My Soul' has never
sounded so wonderful."
"A strong message
of hope."
-The Advocate
In qoa's I
Image 1
'
In (jod's Image
Christian Witness to the Need
for Gay/lesbian Equality
in the Eyes of the Chun,h
by Robert Warren Cromey
Rector. Trinity Episcopal Churdi
San Francisoo
"A stirring manifesto and sincere
guide to clearer understanding. This
is a nurturing, healing book and a call
to action. Read it!"
-Malcolm Boyd, Author of Are You
Running with Me, Jesus & Gay Priest
$9.95/paperback
Send a check today; we cover postage.
ALAMO SQUARE PRESS
P.O. Box 14543, Dept. S, San Francisco, CA 94114
Also reprinted is a soul-stirring
sei,non that Russell-Coons delivered
in March, 1989. He said , "We have
AIDS, and we are learning new
lessons about both God and ourselves.
We are learning something about
healing. Healing is different than a
cure. A cure is medical conquest of a
disease; healing becomes possible
when a person moves toward
wholeness. _ It is possible to be healed
without being cured." This is a fresh
insight that could benefit every
person living with a terminal illness.
Many other PW As give their
first-hand reports from the AIDS
battlefront and it's quite easy to see
how spiritually attuned these
special people are. Coming
face-to-face with eternity has given
them the oppor .tunity to ponder and
explore, and therefore sec more
clearly, the spiritual realities that
many of us fear. Faced with the
threat of death they have become
aware of the value of life, and
discovered the importance of the
inner, spiritual life. The addition of
prayer and meditation in their daily
lives seems to have benefited them
physically as well as spiritually.
Of the many other writers in the
book one of my favorites is Beryl
Ingram-Ward, ,the pastor of St. Paul's
United Methodist Church in Tacoma,
Washington. She found special
significance in the verses Hebrews
13:12-13, "So Jesus also suffered
outside the gate in order to sanctify
the people through his blood.
Therefore let us go forth to those
outside the camp, and bear the abuse
they endured." She tells how being
an "insider" she was sheltered from
the awareness of "outsiders," and it
wasn't until she ventured outside the
gate that her eyes were .opened to
seeing the wounded and weary from
this epidemic. She could also see
God's redeeming power at work, and
-how ministry was necessary "outside
the camp" to those who had been
rejected by homophobic churches.
From her own association with
homosexuals and PW As she replaced
her own narrowness with the broader
view that the church must be a
"haven of hope and hospitality."
With shock she discovered that
Christ was present with the
"outcasts!" This insider went outside
and there discovered Jesus.
A new AIDS related book, To
Celebrate and to \ Mourn, has been
published by Chi Rho Press in
Gaithersburg, Maryland. The
author, Louis F. Kavar, has
developed an original and unique
book o f liturgies and prayers, with
II SECOND STONE
ministering to those affected by AIDS
as the only focus. Several complete
services are outlined, including an
unusual Call to Worship which is
performed by seven people seated
throughout the body of the church.
The Christian rituals, such as
annointing and communion, have all
been specifically adapted for these
services.
"Healing is different
than a cure. A cure
is medical conquest
of a disease; healing
becomes possible
when a person
moves toward
wholeness. It is
possible tQ be
healed without
being cured."
By comparison, one of the worst
AIDS books to come out in recent years
in one entitled Last Letters, The
Epistolary Account ·of an AIDS
Patient by Carlos R. de la Llave. I
had every hope that this book would
give a picture of AIDS in the Latin
community, but it turned out to be a
fictitious series of letters which were
all melodrama and no substance. The
letter writer is curiously called "F"
... just "F." I wonder whose identity
de la Llave was trying to protect, or
perhaps, judging from the rest of the
book, he just couldn't think up a name.
Anyway, the gist of the story is that
"F'' breaks off his engagement to his
beloved Martha (yes, she actually
has a name), travels abroad to Europe
where he realizes his true sexual
proclivities, and returns a year later
with full-blown AIDS. This must
have been a miraculous infection!
Anyone with even an elemental AIDS
education knows that it takes eight
to ien years for the HIV virus lo
develop into AIDS (if at all). "F"
spends half of the book begging
Martha for forgiveness, and the other
half thanking her for forgiving him.
What a bore. One gets the impression
from this book that if the
heterosexual lifestyle is forsaken
AIDS will be the curse that follows.
He has used ample fertilizer to make
his prose as flowery as possible, but
the "bull" surpasses the _ beauty by a
long shot. You can pass on this one.
Rutgers University honors
Presbyterian gay leader
Rutgers University has awarded
James D. Anderson, Associate Dean
and Professor in the School of
Communications, Information, and
Library Studies at Rutgers, a Public
Service Award for his work with
lesbian and gay issues in the
Presbyterian Church (USA), the
State of New Jersey, and at Rutgers
University .
This is the first time the university
has granted a university award for
contributions re lated to lesbian and
gay concerns.
Rutgers, the State University of
New Jersey, with over 47,000
students, is one of the major state
university systems in the nation. The
Class of '62 Public Service Award,
funded by the Class of 1962, honors
members of the faculty, students, or
<jdministrators "in recognition of a
service such as scholarly contributions,
voluntary community
leader shi p, and personal acts of
heroism in an emergency."
In the spring of 1988, former Rutgers
President Edward J. Bloustein asked
James Anderson to chair his
Presid en t's Select Committee for
Lesbian and Gay Concerns at Rutgers.
_Anderson led and organized a
SHOAH, From Page 14
accept." Even recoveries and
remissions shake us up : "A miracle
has happened and that too is
something I must accept and learn to
bear," Etty writes, after receiving a
reprieve from being transported .
For those of us who do not survive,
yet something of us will survive. For
one, our existential enjoyment of life.
"As life becomes harder and more
threatening, it also becomes richer,
because the fewer expectations we
have, the more the good things of life
become unexpected gifts which we
accept with gratitude," Etty
described it. For another, our refusal
to be victims, as Etty refused to be a
victim: "And the funny thing is I
don't feel in their clutches anyway,
whether I stay or am sent away. ...I
don't feel in anybody's clutches; I feel
safe in God's arms ... I shall always be
able to sta:nd on my own two feet even
when they are plarited on the
hardest soil of the harshest reality."
And for another, our valuing of
friends and family, a blessing Etty
recognized in Westerbork camp:
"Most people here are much worse off
than they need to be because they
write off their longing for friends and
family as so many losses in their
lives, when they should count the
committee of more than 30 facu lty,
staff , administrators , students and
alumni to conduct a comprehensive
investigation of every facet of
university life as it effects the
lesbian and gay community at Rutgers
and to produce a monumental report ,
"In Every Classroom," which the
university community is now
studying.
Over the past decade, Anderson has
been an active leader in the national
movemen t to integrate the lesbian
and gay communit y into the social
fabric of the nation and to accord to
lesbian and gay people the same
rights and responsibilites enjoyed b y
all other citizens.
The Rutgers Class of '62 Public
Service Award includes an
honoraruim of $1000 . "I will pass
this award money on to the groups
who ha ve made this award
possible, " said Anderson. "I ·am
extremely grateful to a ll the
wonderful folks who wrote letters on
my behalf, but I'm espec iall y proud
that my university has recognized
and honored the whole lesbian and
gay community through this award."
fact that their heart is able to long so
hard and to love so much among their
greatest blessings."
And ·something else that will
survive are stories of our exuberant
celebration of who . we are as gay
"I looked at him as
one might at the first
crocus in spring,
with pure
enchantment. He
was wearing a huge
golden star, wearing
it triumphantly on
his chest. He was a
procession and a
demonstration all by
himself as he cycled
along so happily."
people, like the story Etty recounts
with Jews were forced to wear yellow
stars by the Nazis: ''That man in
sroNEWIILL Rtors
SA8E'N-rodr/UD
T/5£,f
\/ / , -. __
·-~
DODO
Beethovenstraat this afternoon won't
get a mention in [the history books). I
looked at him as one might at the
first crocus in spring, with pure
enchantment. He was wearing a huge ..
golden star, wearing it triumphantly
on his chest. He was a procession and
a demonstration all by himself as he
cycled along so happily. And all
that yellow - I suddenly had a poetic
vision of the sun rising above him, so
radiant and smiling did he look."
"I am with the hungry, with the
ill-treated and the dying, every day,
but I am also with the jasmine and
with that piece of sky beyond my
window; there is room for everything
in a single life," Etty wrote . Later, in
rougher times: ''The jasmine behind
my house has been completely ruined
by the rains and storms of the last
few days, its white blossoms are
floating about in muddy black pools
on the low garage roof. But
somewhere inside me the jasmine
continue to blossom undisturbed, jusl
as profusely and delicately as ever it
did . And it spreads its scent round
the House in which You dwell, oh
God." That home she experienced
even in Westerbork camp: "I feel at
home. I have learned so much about
it here. We Rre 'at home.' Under the
sky. In every place on earth, if only
we carry everything within us.'' In
·July I August, 1991
BY ANDREA NATALIE
P,f.f&E/f6ER
Pl & lifJ/f
describing this insight to a close
friend there, she wrote, '1t took me
two nights before I could bring myself
to speak of it to him, this most
intimate of all intimate feelings.
And all the time I was dying to make
him a present of it. And, then I .knelt
down on the great heath and told
him about God."
Dear Etty, in the present Shoah of
AIDS, you teagi us to appreciate all
of life and to appreciate the life
within us, the home where God
dwells. In your suffering, you have
offered us life. In our suffering, may
we offer others life. You wrote, "And
if we s\lould survive unhurt in body
and soul, but above all in soul,
without bitterness and without
hatred, then we shall have a right to
a say after the war." You have not
survived in body, f:tty, but you have
had your say because you soul speaks
without bitterness a11d without
hatred. May we be so gracfous, so
that we too will have a say after our
war with AIDS is but a painful
memory.
Chris Glaser is R graduate of Yale
Divinity School and the author of
two books: Uncommon Callin - A
Gay Man's Strnile to Serve the
Quu:'11, and Come Home! - Rec/aimini
S.piritualilJI and Community as
Gay Men and Lesbians, both from
Harper & Row. •
Lesbian and gay Episcopalians meet with Presiding Bishop
For the first time since its founding
in 1974, off icers of Integr ity, th e
lesbian /gay justice ministry of the
Episcopal Church, met with the
Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal
Church. Th e meeting took place in
the office of the P rimate, th e ·Most
Rev . Edmond L. Browning, at the
Episcopal Church Center in New
York Ci ty. Topics d iscussed included
the Gener al Conve ntion gatheri ng in
Phoenix in July , his support or lack
t hereof for t he lesbian/gay com munity
in th e Ep iscopal Church, the
lack of any lesbian/gay voice or
repres ent at ion at the national chur ch
level, and the failure by the national
church to do anyt hing to encourage
the dia logue wi th lesbian and gay
Episcopali ans which hnd been
man dated by the 1988 Ge n e ra l
Convention.
The me e ting was a cordial one,
although the Presiding Bishop
perceived himself to have done more
to encoura ge accep tance of lesbian and
gay Episcopalians than did the
Inte grity Board. It was ag ree d to
strengthen communications between
Anti-gay and lesbian violence
increases in key U.S. cities
WASHINGTON , D.C. - Violence a nd
vi ctimizati on against gay men and
Lesbians was a "widespread a nd
critical problem " in 1990, with key
U.S. cities reporting dramatic
increases in "gay bashings" and o the r
incidents. These findings were presented
in ·a national report on
anti-gay attacks, released by the
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
Policy Institute .
in all six cities increased 42 pe rcent
· ove r incidents repo rt ed in 1989.
Physi ca l assaults were among the
most serious incid ents to increase.
Comp a red to 1989, reported
anti-gay incidents incr eased in 1990
by 11 per cent in Chicago; 20 percent in
Los Angeles; 29 perc e nt in San
Francisco; 65 percent in New York
City; 75 percent in the Boston area;
and 133 percent in Minneapolis /S t.
Paul.
the Church Center and Integr ity and
that the Board and the Presiding
Bishop would meet again in October,
1991.
The meeting with the Primate
followed a two -day Board meeting
_ held a t St. Marguerite's Retreat
Center in Mendham, New Jersey.
Meeting with Bishop Browning were (from left) Bruce Garner, President,
Atlanta; Kim Byham, Director of Communications, Guttenberg, NJ;
Dr, Elizabeth Hess, Northeast Regional Vice President, Easthampton, MA;
Dorothy Beattie, Western Regional Vice President, Kenwood, CA;
Tim Caison, Treasurer, Atlanta; Loudene "Gil" Grady, Secretary, Salinas, CA;
Jeff Dey, Midwest Regional Vice President, Cincinnati; and The Rev . Paul
Woodrum, Director of Development, Brooklyn, NY,
The sixth ann u al NGL TF report ,
Anti-Gay / Lesbian Violence, Victimization
& Defamation in .1990 ,
documents widesprea<;l..ai\dsiAer~asing
anti-gay violence in six major cities
across the nation and presents a
shocking picture of the problem of
bias crime against gay men and
Lesbians .
Lutheran seminarian expelled after pro-gay sermon
A total of 1,588.incidents - including
harassment, intimidation , physical
assault, vandalism, arson, police
abuse, and murder - were reported to
gay agencies in the six cities featured
in the report: New York, San
Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago , the
Boston area, and Minnca,Polis / St.
Paul.
Taken together , anti-gay episodes
DETROIT, Ml. - Clergy and members
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America gathered at Synod Offices
here and in other ci tics to protest the
expulsion of seminar ian Bill Kunisch
as a candidat e for ordination.
Kunisch, a seco nd-year Master of
Divinitystudent at Pacific Lutheran
Theological Seminary in Berkeley,
Cal., was expelled following a
sermon he preached in his home
congregation, Cross Lutheran Church ,
Pigeon, Mich . ln his sermon, he
supported the ministry of SL Fran cis
Lutheran Chur ch, San Francisco , one
United Church Coalition for Lesbian/ Gay Concerns
(United Church of Christ)
For infonnation, contact:
UCCL/GC
18 N. College St.
Athens, OH 45701
(Tel. 614 / 593-7301)
UCCLIGC
• Support for lesbian, gay
and bisexual • Advocacy people, their
families and • Resources fr iends
JOIN US IN PROCLAIMING AND
CELEBRATING GOD'S LOVE!
of the two suspended congregations of
the ELCA for ordaining a lesbian
couple and a gay man who refused to
compl y w ith the ELCA 's policy
requiring life-long vows of celibacy
for those who are gay or lesbian.
Based on the views he expressed in
his sermon, Bishop Reginald Holle of
the Northwest Lower Michigan
Synod of the ELCA, the pastor and
tl)rec members of Cross Church acted
to terminate Kunisch's financial
support a nd prohibit him from
preaching or assisting in worship_
Kunisch was then summoned home
for a "hearing" conducted by members
of the · Michigan Mu lti-Sy nodical
Candid .acy Comm it tee. Because
Kunisch disagreed with the policy o f
the ELCA making celibacy a
requirement for ordination for those
who are gay or lesbian as expressed in
the document, Vision & Expectations,
they felt it necessary to inquir e as to
whethe r o r not he was in compli a nce
with the document and if he intend s
t o stay in com pliance . Kunisch
objected on the grounds that "d isagreein
g with a policy of this church
has neve r warr anted such perso nal
inquiries, and that co nducting
'hea rin gs' for suc h reasons se ts a
dangerous precede nt an d threatens
DI THE SECOND STONE
one's Christian freedom to preach the
Gospel with prophetic conviction."
Kunisch refused to answer thC'ir
questions about h is personal
compliance until the committee and
the Division for Ministry of the
ELCA demonstrates that it makes
such personal inquiries of all clergy
and seminarians who disagree with
the church's policy on this matter.
The Michigan Multi-Synodical
Candidacy Committee in consultation
with Rev. Craig Settlage, ELCA
Division : .fcfr- Ministry, acted to
withdraw .Kimisch's endorsement as a
candidate _
Commenting on the situ ation, Rev.
James Delange, pastor of St. Francis
Church, said , "The actions taken
against Bill arc outrageous. He was
disciplined for a sermon, interrogated
because he disagreed with a policy of
the chu rch, and his endorsement was
withdrawn for refusing to vow
compliance w ith a document in his
seco nd _ yea r of se minar y when he
hasn't even taken all th e classes the
document , spe]ls ouL . The church 's
action sc11.T¢ ti'o't only immoral, they
arc also a wasteful use of the church's
time and money."
Travel .
J
The guesthouses of Key West
By Cynthia Marquard
andD annMi uns®
ContributingW riters
What is two miles wide by four
miles long? Calls its long-time
residents "conches" (pronounced
conks) and its new-comers "freshwater
conches?" ls the only
Caribbean Island you can drive to?
Celebrates the sunset every night?
Was once home to pirates, smugglers,
and Ernest Hemingway, and now is
one of the largest gay /lesbian resort
areas in the world?
You guessed it: The Conch Republic
(better known as Key West, Fla.).
Key Wes.t is truly another, very
laid-back world even though it is
only a five hour drive down the
overseas highway or a 45-minute
plane ride from Miami.
· Among the many unique features
about Key West is it architecture.
Lacy southern Victorian mansions
abound, and many of them have been
converted into delightful guest
houses. Because the beach area on
Key West is somewhat limited, a
great deal of sunning and swimming
time centers around the place you
stay. Most places have at least a
small swimming pool; some have bars
and lounge areas; and most serve a
continental breakfast. For those who
drive cars to Key West, parking can
be a problem. Not all guest houses
have parking spaces available.
Choosing the guest house that's right
for you ca,1 be crucial to how well you
enjoy your stay.
Exclusively
for Men
Six guest house cater exclusively to
gay men, and three others, Big
Ruby's, Lighthouse Court, and Sea
Isle Resort, are primarily gay male
oriented . ....
Big Ruby's is in the heart of the
downtown Key West action , has 13
pleasant rooms, a heated swimming
pool, color TV and air conditioning.
The two new owners from Houston are
eager to please, and to help guests get
to know one another will post names
of those staying there near the pool.
Curry House has eight elegantly
outfitted rooms around a lagoon-style
pool and jacuzzi in a small garden
setting. Fu.II gourmet breakfast is
served every day.
Early House offers a very pleasant,
casual atmosphere for men. Its pool
and jacuzzi areas are surrounded by
gardens and mirrors--and subtly lit at
·· night. Owner Don Leckie is on the
premises and is a great host.
Island House, one of' the largest
with 35 rooms, has a bar and cafe in
addition to pool, jacuzzi, gym and
sauna. It also features a "video room"
for those into film. Some rooms have
been renovated but still have shared
baths.
Lighthouse Court Gueslhouse has 42
rooms, a cafe, and bar.
Lime House Inn, has seven rooms,
and in addition to such amenities as
pool and spa, hosts an afternoon
cocktail hour.
Newton Street Station, with seven
rooms, is ideal for the budget-minded
and offers swimming and sunbathing
in a tropical garden setting.
Oasis Guest House has 10 rooms in a
restored mansion, with large pool,
spa, and a series of sundecks on each
floor with stairs leading down to the
pool. All rooms have been renovated
within the past JO months, and this
resort is now in prime condition.
Sea Isle Resort, has 24 rooms, all
with private bath, pool, jacuzzi,
gym, and parking.
Exclusively
for Women
There are two guest houses for
women only, Chelsea House and _The
Rainbow House. Chelsea House, has
10 pleasantly furnished rooms with
private baths and telephones. There
is also parking availab_le. The main
gathering areas are a semi-open-air
TV room, the adjoining deck, and the
swimming pool area. There is a
female staff on duty 24-hours a day.
The Rainbow House is the newest
guest house for women and all its
eight rooms are actually two-room
suites with. private bath. A planned
swimming pool had not yet been
installed when we visited, but there
is a jacuzzi and a beautiful pool table
in a roofed-over open-air lounge area.
Mixed Gay
Men and Lesbian
Accommodation
Some people are more comfortable in
a mixed setting, and there are nine
exclusively or primarily gay guest
houses for both men and women.
Alexanders's is a charming guest
house with multilevel sundecks
around a heated pool. Both breakfast
and cocktails are served here.
Brass Key Guesthouse, with 14
rooms, is the place for men or women
who are into antiques, elegance, and
service. It also has a new swimming
pool and heated spa that seats at
least 15-a great place to meet other
guests. Breakfast is included and
made-to-order from a selection of
homemade treats. ·
Coconut Grove Guesthouse and
Apartments has 15 guestrooms and
five spacious suites, plus an outdoor
gym and heated pool. The owners are
European and have created the
atmosphere of a European guest
house.
Colours Key West offers 12 rooms in
a beautifully renovated 1889 Victorian
mansion . It has a pool, a
convenient location, and the hosts
provide excellent service. The
clientele usually runs about 50-50 men
and women.
Cypress House, with 15 rooms, has a
heated lap pool and serves afternoon
cocktails.
Garden House has 10 rooms and is
located in the heart of Old Town.
La Te Da (La Terraza De Marti) is
the place where the partying never
stops. In addition to 19 rooms, there
are two bars and three restaurants, a
pool and jacuzzi, and a clientele that
includes gays as well as avant garde
straights. Sunday tea dance here is
popular.
The Pines Key West is the spot for
budget-minded gay men and lesbians.
It has a pool and sundeck and off-the-street
parking.
Simonton Court has cottages in
addition to guestrooms, so this is a
good place for groups of four or more.
It also has two large pools and one
recently -added small one.
Gay Friendly Places
About 15 other guest houses welcome
everyone, but are particularly
· friendly to gay men and lesbians.
P. O. Box Ill SL
B•tbl•b•m, .NH 03574
(603) 869-3978
July/August,1991
□
They include, Author's of Key West
(nine rooms), Duval House (25 rooms),
Heron House (18 rooms, plus one suit
with a two person jacuzzi that is
particularly popular with lesbians).
Because gays and lesbians make up
an estimated 20 per cent of the tourist ·
business in this town whose only
business is tourism, many establishments
are "gay friendly." For
those who prefer to stay in large
resort hotels, there is the Casa
Marina, and Hyatt?
Of course, there is plenty to do
outside the guest houses. Rent a bike
or a motor scooter and head for one of
the beaches off the main highway.
Go shopping for tee-shirts or just
about anything else on Duval Street.
A Year
'Rotfnd .Resort
Many people think of heading for
the tropics only in winter. And
winter is the high season in Key
West. But it's a big mistake to think
this is the only time to go. While the
rest of Florida swelters during the
summer months, Key West, between
the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic,
is constantly cooled by sea breezes.
Key West is a fabulous bargain in the
off-season. Rates are much lower and
the crowds much thinner. You'll
rarely wait in line for anything.
But, whenever you go, be sure to take
lots of sun lotion, books, and high
expectations for the most laid-back
time of your life.
Cynthia A. Marquard is the
owner/managero f Envoy Travel, Inc.,
in Chicitgo and vice-president of the
International Gay Travel. Assn.
Danni Munson is the editor and
publisher of The Lesbian and Gay
Almanac and Events of 1991.
tit, "otl,1r" plGce
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FAMILIES, From Page 13
cannot accept by convincing their
child that he or she is a sinner who
must be cured by prayer . The
overwhelming majority of Gays find
prayer, repentance or attempting to
choose not to be gay doesn't change a
thing .. In despair many -have taken
their own lives. Committing suicide
has been an alternative for some who
have not been accepted by their
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ARE YOU A GAY CHRISTIAN with a social
conscience? Ale you out or is your closet door
Wide-Open? Then you l)'Obably haveven more
families as an equal and valuable
part of God's creation. How, then,
can Christians justify God's claim of
unconditional love?
Although I have accepted Chris as
he is, I struggled with my feelings
upon learning of his former
relationship. Because he was
depressed over the break-up between
himself and his partner, I felt a great
empathy with his suffering just as I
had through all of my children's
problems. It became very clear to me
that human suffering over the loss of
a loved one has nothing to do with
sexual orientation . Grief is the same.
As a mother who realizes her son
in common with this passionate, well-educated,
adventurous, and handsome man. I know you'd
need a photo but I'm 35, 5'10", weigh 160, have
trond hair and green eyes. Arxl you? Have you,
too, been hoping and praying for a soulmate?
Well, ask God if the fella' that wrote this could
be the one, then write to: Nationwide Search,
PO Box 16013, Minneajl)liS, MN 55416. 8/91.
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PSYCHOSPIRITUAL THERAPY to rediscover
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did not choose to be gay, I reject the
Christian view that he is a sinner
who must repent because of his
gayness. When he came to me and
said "Mother, I have something to
tell you," I thanked God that it
wasn't to tell me he was ill with an
incurable disease . I listened with an
open heart and knew he was,
n·everthelcss, a beautiful human
being whose goals . and dreams are
exactly the same as everyone else's. l
just don't believe that this wonderful,
loving son is evil.
It's easy to understand Helen's
disappointment . with so many
□ Explore attitudes toward living and dying.
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Christian groups spearheading the
"ex-gay" ministries. However, I must
add that many Christians are
opening up to new understanding
about homosexuality. Even among
fundamentalist groups, I personally
know or many in "high places" whose
knowledge is growing. The time just
isn't right for them to speak out fully
- but that time is coming. I hope we
can all stay prayerful that the "blind
spots" will be removed and that
loving acceptance by the bod y of
Christ is going to happen.
God bless you all.
Fort Worth pastor protests election of gay official
Pastor W. N . Otwell of Fort Worth
visited the Texas state capitol to
protest the election of Glen Maxey,
the state's first openly gay elected
official, and to protest Hous e Bill
1592 which prohibits a court from
taking sexual orientation, race and
religion into consideration in determining
issues of child custody.
Rev. Otwell and his three bus loads
of supporters wore T-shirts stating,
"When God made Man, he made
them Adam and Eve, not Adam and
Steve or Annie and Eve" and "The sin
of sodomy disqualifies you as a
parent, a politician and a preacher."
Th ey also wore baseball caps
picturing Adam and Steve, Annie and
Eve, and Adam and Eve with a red
"X" across what they perceived to be
the inappropriate couples.
Otwell' s group is called GAP, God
Against Perversion . The CAP position
paper, which was sent to all Senators
and Representatives, states that
they arc "alarmed that Texas has
elected the openly professed homosexual
... " Also included in their
information packet arc a series of
lurid descriptions (in painstaking
detail) of what they imagine to be
the sexual activities of gay men.
Legislators arc urged to "read for
yourself the wicked, pervert ed and
animalistic 'p racrices of the
homosexual ... "
Members of GAP offered testimony
against House Bill 1592, introduced
by Debra Danburg of Houston. The
tes timony was about two weeks late,
however. The bill had already had
a hearing where Representative
Danburg and members of the gay and
lesbian community had spoken in
favor of it.
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