Second Stone #37 - Nov/Dec 1994

Second Stone #37 - Nov/Dec 1994

37

1994

Nov/Dec 1994

FIRST ISSUE OF YEAR NUMBER SEVEN NOVEMBER/DECEMBER, 1994 ISSUE #37
2.95
-Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an everflowing ·stream. - Amos 5:24
General Secretary attends forum sponsored
by gay and lesbian Christian ministries
National Council of Churches
General Board meets; receives ·
report on homosexuality
FROM STAFF AND NCC REPORTS
MIDTERM ELECTIONS, antiimmigrant
backlash and
the wntinuing c~nflict in
Bosma- Herzegovina were
among topics of deliberation high on
the agenda of the National Council of
Churches' annual General Board
meeting, held in New Orleans Nov .
10-12,
New policy on evang elization and
on human rights also were items of
business and the Council considered a
committee report on homosexuality
and ecumenism. The 271-member
board includes delegates from the
NCC's .32 Protestant, Orthodox and
Anglican member churches, whose
memberships in tum total nearly 49
million.
Leaders from many of the gay and
lesbian Christian ministries attended
a panel discussion on Nov . 12 on
religious communities confronting the
radical religious right. Mel White,
UFMCC National Minister of Justice
delivered the keynote address.
White charged the NCC with
sacrificing Gays and Lesbians for a
greater good, as he said President
Clinton did with his broken promise
to lift the military gay ban. "I will
-
P.O. Box 8340
New Orteans, LA 70182
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
never step into an NCC .meeting for
another word of dialogue, " White
said, almost in tears. "Gays and
Lesbians don't have any more time to
waste with it;"
NCC General Secretary Joan Brown·
,Campbell responded by denying that ·
the N<:::C has sacrificed justice for
Gays and Lesbians for some greater
good. "There is a way to work
together," Campbell said, praising
the graciousness of the UFMCC after
"all these years" (of having its
membership application denied .)
In his presentation, White warned of
the elements of the radical right's
world view: working toward theocracy
instead of democracy, doing away
with separation of church and state,
and a changing view of first amendment
rights.
White told the gather ing that the
religious right was made up of "just
good folks" .wJ10 clump together in
fear under powerful religious leaders
like Focus on the Family director Jim
Dobson, who White described as "the
SEE COVER STORY, Page 10
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Den om ination~identified gay :~nd ·
lesbian Christian organi~atigras,:
· · When bad hews. tot Gays and Lesbi&ris co.111es from cfiW'ch
. headquarters, how do denominatibn-Jctentified g,:o,ups,f~re1. . .
Lutherans•Concerned/North America ,ProgramExecμtiv;~ ·.· .•
Bob GibeUng discusses a new direction for LC.;; PAGE 11 ·
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THE NATIONAL ECUMENICAL CHRISTIAN
NEWSJOURNAL FOR LESBIANS, GAYS AND B.ISEXUALS
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Contents · · ·•• . ti:f'•"·· .. • ...
[1]
.·· ... . . . From the editor . . · . .
• A Mississippi High Sheriff and· his Bible
[]J Commentary . . · .
Some Gays and Lesbians are. throwing.
the baby out with the bath·water [II ~~~ters.to the ed;tqr ·
[5 I NewsUnes
1 10· ·1 Cover story · · · I 111 I Our God Too: Radical right challenged
~ by NCC forum .
111· I What•s·a•ea• for denomination- .
·1· . · based gay arid lesbian organiz~tions
. · ' ' . · Bob Gilieiirig, PiCJgr~m Exeputive:f<t :, . .
· • Lutherans Concerned, discusses
,. · the•\:,ast'ahd future ·
r1·. !)) My._B~seball .Hat . : . · L _,_J!.J Julia M_ueller traces. ~er: ~oats
[ill ~:; :·!--
. Hii} ~~r~t~~;'s lasf b'oo~i an/ : · <. .' · · L!!!J: )he 2~1h. anniversary of Perry•~ Jahdm8:rk book
.... ... . ,., r• ! •
: --.
;y · --..
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W From the Editor W . . . . ............................ .
Keeping the g·ood Lord
happy in Mississippi
By Jim Bailey
M EMBERS OF OUR community all across the nation were shocked,
saddened and angered by the execution -style killings of two gay men in rural
Mississippi. Even more angering was the lackluster response to the killings
from local law enforcement officials.
Each victim in this particular case ·died of a gunshot wound to the head . A
few church~going folks across our land would say the men got what they had
coming . After all, haven't you read the booklet "Death Penalty for Homosexuals
Prescribed by the Bible," published and distributed by a fairly well
known fundamentalist preacher? ·
I wonder if Maurice Hooks has read that little booklet. Hooks is the sheriff
(known as sheriffs are in most parts of Mississippi as the High Sheriff) of Jones
County, where the two gay men were killed. He is .a former state trooper
who has been sheriff for 13 years. When Brenda and Wanda Henson opened
Camp Sister Spirit in Hooks' territory almost two years ago and began
receiving harassment, there was some feeling that Hooks was not doing
enough to protect the women and the camp. Now, with the killing of these
two men on the outskirts of Laurel, there is the feeling that it is open season .
on Gays and Lesbians in Jones County and that the High Sheriff isn't too
worried about it.
Could it be that Hooks believes the Bible prescribes the death penalty for·
homosexuals? There is a Bible on Hooks' desk. There is a picture of Jesus
Christ on the wall of his office and directly under the picture, a sign reading
'The High Sheriff." When asked by a reporter about complaints about the
way the murders of the two men and the harassment of Camp SisterSpirit has
been handled, Sheriff Hooks pointed to the picture of Christ and said, 'There's
the high sheriff. As long as I please the good Lord I don't have to worry about .
pleasing anyone else."
Considering his lack of compassion, many would say that the sheriff's desk
was an unlikely ,place to fin:d a .Bible . . But really, Bibles do show up just abqut , ..
everyw!iere. It's the most published book in history .. Bibles ar~ often dutclied /:
in one hand while Ku Klux K\an members ignite crosses with the'·other , Km'\• ,
there was almost certainly a Bible in the hotel room where Rev. Jimmy
Swaggert met his downfall. Having a Bible in one's possession does not make
one an avid reader.
Gay rights and civil. rights groups are probably not the only ones unhappy
with the way the sheriff has mish,indled obvious acts of bigotry and violations
against life and basic rights in his part of a state whieh has a long history'uf
intolerance. Sheriff Hooks should pick that Bible up off of his desk. I think he
would discover that the ·real "high sheriff," "the good Lord," isn't as pleased
with his job performance as Hooks thinks He is .
Year seven for Second Stone
As we begin our seventh year of publication, I thank each and _every one of
you ·for enabling and empowering Second Ston·e .to reach out to members of
our ·community. I don't think that'a week has gone by during the past six
years that I haven'treceived a letter from someone just to say ."thanks." And
that word of thanks always needs to be passed on to you, the folks who make
this publication possible.
Many blessings to you and yours during this holiday season! ·1 ~
' / , .. J .~ .. .....:... '""-"--~,...,___,_--'--____ ( ~!!?
. SECOND STONE Newsjoumal, ISSN No. 1047-3971, is published every other
month by Bailey Communications, P. O.' Box 8340, New Orleans, LA 70182.
Copyright 1994 by Second Stone, a regi~tered trademark.
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.. S.E:COND STONE, a . national ecumenical Christian socia l justice riewsjoumal
~ .:,,~ ,~tfi a specific o~treach to sexual orien~tion mi~orities.
, PUBLISHER/EQITOR: Jim Bailey ,
·., . CONTRIBUTORS FORTHfS ISSUE: William A.' Percy, Rev. Samuel Kader,
"" :-.. , Robyn Brown,_~ulia Mueller, Richard L. palton , Jerry Lail . .
. 1. NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 9 9 4
Comment . .. ~ , - .
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Fatal dishonesty in "committed" relationships
By Richard L. Dalton
Guest Comment I
. know of individuals who are
living and dying with HIV
and AIDS because they
decided to forego safe sex
while involved in committed relationships.
In 1989 I had the privilege of
traveling and ministering with Rev. ·
Sylvia Pennington across the United
States and Canada. In the Pacific
Northwest we stayed with a wonderful
young Christian man. He had
been in a committed relationship that
had ended due to a nightmarish situation
that I have since discovered has
impacted other lives and relationships.
Due to this couple being in a
committed relationship and having
discussed that they were both HIV
negative, they agreed to have sex
without condoms. One day while
they were preparing dinner my
friend's partner told him that he was
HIV-positive and that by now both of
them probably were. Pause and
think about this reality. As it.turned
out, my friend's partner knew before
they were together that he was HIV-·
positive, and he knowingly partici "
pated in unsafe sex and infected my
friend. I hoped and prayed then that
this would be an isolated reality.
Two years ago I met a new friend at
ConnECtion, the annual conference of
Evangelicals Concerned Western Region.
The next year my friend
shared that he was fiIV-positive. We
talked about life,. our foves, Jesus and
ministry. He shared with me that he
had been in a relationship of trust,
love, mutual respect. His partner had
told him that he was HIV-negative
and today my friend is HIV-positive
because he too trusted his partner,
having unsafe sex with the man he
loved.
This is my second friend raped of
life by the very man he loved. What
is wrong with us guys? Come on!
Wake up! I am angry that someone
could do this to yet another wonderful
man of God . My heart cries for my
brothers.
Yesterday I shared wonderful
conversation with someone I recenily
met about ministering in the churches
we have been a part of through the : ·
years. In the course of the conversa,.
tion he shared how he recently left a
relationship because the man he was
with lied to him about his HIV status,
stating the was HIV-negative. In fact;
his former partner is HIV-positive and .
they had unprotected sex during their
relationship. It turns out that his
partner also lied to him about being
faithful. Fortunately, this third friend
has tested HIV-negative.
My friends shared important'truths .
about responsibility. The respo nsibility
for your life belongs to you, not
your partner! Here our brothers are
coming to terms with being Christian
Don't throw the baby out with the bath water
By Jerry Lail
Guest Comment
M any Gays and Lesbians, as
well as other disenfranchised
peoples, have already done
just that. M. Scott Peck, psy~
chiatrist and best-selling author,
discusses this phenomenon in his
book, Further Along tlze Road .Less
Traveled. Dr. Peck often uses the
phrase "throwing the baby out with
the bath water" to refer to the
Freudian defense mechanism known
as reaction formation.
When ·people throw the baby out
with the bath water it typically
involves going from one extreme to
another. As a result of conservative
Christianity's oppression and judgment
of homosexuals, large numbers
of Lesbians and Gays have left the
Christian church to join less judg.
mental religions such as Buddhism,
Native American religions, and New.
Age groups, while others have become
atheis.ts and agnostics.
One of those who left Christianity
wrote a lette_r to Genre ,magazine in
. ; reSl?,Of.l~e.'.to , an a.rticle I wrote on the
.,~;, i,u~ie'd pf Gays and rehg10n. His
response is a very :common one when
this subject is dealt with in a positive
way in lesbian and gay publications :
The basic argument is that Judeo-
Christian -religions. aren't in the least
pro-gay ~d . our•_lives would be much
healthier 1f we iust forgot God and
became atheists, agnostics,·or humanists.
.
lions of Scripture has been one of
condemnation for relatively the same
length of time. Most certainly there is
a great deal -of pain .and anger in our
·community. The anger is completely
justified and the pain bitterly real.
However, just as I am sure there are
homophobic ath eists, there are and
,have always been Christia .ns who
reject this negative treatment of Gays
and Lesbians and who are supportive
of us, sometimes at great personal
costs.
Many times those who say we don't ·
need God and/ or religion also ask
"Why would any gay person in their
right mind subject themselves to
further pain by clinging to such
destructive religious belief systems?"
This is a very valid question and it
would benefit all of us to ask it cf .
ourselves. ·
For some, especially those whg
remain in fundamentalist churches, .it
may be a case .of religious abus_e. and
addiction, and/ or a fear of hell if they
question the church'.s literid,. inerrant
interpretation of Scripture. Many ·
have bought into the lie that we are ..
scum of the earth ; God could not
possibly love us if we are gay.
Their distorted view of God is ·still
one of rigid legalism, "judgmentalism:
· and hatred. Donald E. Sloat,
Ph.D., discμsses how our view of God
is 'Shaped by our childhood in his
provocative and healing book, The
Dangers of Growing_ Up in a Christian
Home. "Since both our feelings . and
our faith operate through the same
personality equipment, we're g·oing
to have trouble seeing God clearly if
that equipment is malfunctioning or
contains emotional distortions."
Dr. David A. Seamand (author,
· professor, counselor, Methodist minister
and missionary) also. addresses
this subject i~ 'his best-selling book,
~t&_ Pontius' Puddl~· ·
and gay, in a relationship that unbeknownst
to them is not honest, and
now two of the:three are·HIV-positive.
Orie friend and I -both use the word
rape . ta des~ibe what happened. I
believe this is an act of violence. We
must take responsiblity in our
relationships to be honest, . tell the
truth; value our life and the life of our ·
· partner by always practicing safe sex.
Jesus' example for us is to always
love ourself as we love. our neighbor.
· Loving ourself mearis taking the time
to be responsible in this era of AIDS.
It ·is horrible eriough to lose many
friends to AIDS. It is even more horrible
that some are acquiring HIV
from their partners. Trust is a
precious gift. Let-us use it to save· our
lives and the lives of our friends.
Richard Dalton is a member of the
board of directors 'of Evangelical~ Con
·cerned Western Region anc[ a Masters of
Divinity student at Pacific School of
Religion, Berkeley, Calif
Healin,gfor Damaged Emotions. "Many
years ago I was :driven to the con- :
. dμsign t.hat tM two major causes of :
most eiriotiorial · problems among
. evangelical Christians are these: the
failure to understand, ·receive, and
live out . God's unconditional love,
· · grace-and forgiveness; and the failure
fo give ·out that unconditional love,
forgiveness, and grace to other
people."
A growing :number of Christians
are ·coming to: 'the same or similar
conclusions. Dr. Scott Peck states that
the problem with Christianity is not .
its doctrine, but- that it is seldom
practiced,. More and more Christians,
as well as ·entire:churches and denominations
are shedding . the negative,
destructive views Of God. ,
This has l:!rought about a redefining
of Gocl'through .the life and teachings
SEE COMMENT, Next Page
. I don't buy that. True, the church
has been very -hurtful to Gays and
Lesbians for the past seven to eight
hundre\f . years, . ar.id the interpreta- . .
SE c o N D sf o N E N o v EM BE RI 6 E c E MB ER l 9 9 4
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.................. ·• ............ ..Y...o...u...r..T...u...m.... ................... .
Bloemfontein, South Africa
South Africa
needs our prayers
Dear Second Stone,
Greetings to. all from South Africa, a
country in transition. Thes·e times
have not been easy ·on us emotionally
and economically. However, things
are changing - but with more
freedom comes other things which are
not ·so ·good. We are soon to have
abortion on demand, legalized prostitution
(thinking that this will curb the •
AIDS epidemic) and a flood of
pornographic material is also coming
into the country.
After the incredibly violent past four
years - the frantic sweeping political
changes and the unbelievable chaotic
election - the sudden cheerful· atmo- ·
sphere of reconciliation did not last
long. This past month has been most
violent. Many policemen have been
murdered :. Racial tensions among the
different tribes have not abated and
are as furious as befor.e. Strikes are
busy crippling this country economically.
Please do remember us as we face
these changing times.
Sincerely,_
Rev. Brian Sterley
Tucson, Arizona
Letter from jail
· Dear Second Stone,
I am a 30-year-old gay male in
search of Christ, fellowsh,ip and
answers. I am writing this letter from
COMMENT,
From Page 3
of Christ, by focusing on the consistent
theme of the Holy Scriptures,
which is God's love for all ·humankind
and God's efforts to demonstrate
that love.
Robert Goss, Ph.D. surnmarizes this
redefinition in the chapter "From
Christ the oppressor to Jesus the
liberator" in his empowering book,
Jesus Acted Up: A Gay and Lesbian
Manifesto. Dr. Goss points out the
numerous times in the Gospels that
Christ is criticized for His association
with "sinners," the outcasts, "tax
collectors and prostitutes." In the time
of Christ when He told the parable of
the good Samaritan, "the term 'good
Samaritan' was as shocking as the
term 'queer Christian' is to fundamentalist
Christians." Dr. Goss also says
in regards to the resurrection: "For
queer Christians, the risen Jesus
stands in solidarity with oppressed
gay men and lesbians. The risen
Jesus is the hope for justice."
It is this hope for justice, love ,and
equality combined with a longing for
completion or wholeness that has
SECOND STONE
my jail cell where I'm waiting to g·o to
prison. My search for God and Christ
has been a difficult one. I have found
myself facing many stone walls built
by Christians to keep me and others
like me out. In my search I have
found hatred, persecution, contempt
and a lack of concern that has left me
hurt and discouraged. I believe it's
only by the power of God that I have
come this far.
All of my life I believed that being
gay was a sin. The kind of gay
lifestyle I was living sure was. I had
no religious background or upbringing
so I'm not sure where my beliefs
come from. But I've always felt
there's a God and He doesn't want
me. The church here in jail reinforced
that belief thoroughly.
One day while visiting my attorney
I told her about the church here and
some of the things being said. She
asked if I had ever thought about
becoming a Christian. My answer
was "Hell no. I'm gay and I can't
change that." It was at her suggestion
that I wrote letters to gay-friendly
churches. I sent out ten letters. I
received one reply .. It ·was from
Cornerstone Fellowship. Not only
did I receive a letter from them, they
also sent me my first Christi;m friend.
Later I heard from the Task Force
on Homosexuality and the Church,
First Presbyterian Church of Fort
Wayne, Indiana. They are responsible
for me being able. to enjoy my
first issue of Second Stone, along with
other great reading material and for
this I am thankful. Such literature
has made me aware of a whole
drawn many of us to or back to
church. The church, when it functions
in the spirit of Christ, is a type
of community. A community -that is
open, safe and affirming. A place to
ask life's important questions and
search for meaning with others.
If you are not part of a community
or are part ~f one which is negative
different type of gay /lesbian community;
a Christian community
which has given me hope and
determination. As jails and prisons
are nothing new to me, doing time
will just be old hat. However, doing
time as a Christian will be a whole
new ball game.
If you know of any Christians who
might correspond with me, please
give them my name. The power of
fellowship is great.
Sincerely,
Clayton Sanders
(Readers may write to Clayton Sanders
187204, 2-A-36, Box 951, Tucson, AZ
85702)
Menasha, Wisconsin
Second Stone is
getting better
Dear Second Stone,
My impression in reading your
current issue is that your publication
has improved greatly since the last
issue I saw. Keep up the good work.
. Sincerely,
BRR
Ennis, Texas
Dear Second Stone,
I'm so impressed with Second Stone.
You are maturing, growing, changing.
We all are grateful for your
creativity and for your commitment to
our community. Keep up the good
work!
Blessings to you and yours,
Mel v\/hite
intimate group of friends. I believe
that wherever one goes for community
it's still a quest for the same
thing. Wholeness.
Regardless of your religious
background, atheist, Buddhist, Christian,
Jewish, etc.; regardless of your
understanding of God, a supreme
being, an energy force, the sum of
" ... the two major causes of most
en1otional problems among evangelical
Christians are these: the failure to
understand, receive, and live out
God's unconditional love, grace and
forgiveness; and the failure to give out
that unconditional love, forgiveness,
and grace to other people."
and destructive, then now is a good
time to reclaim your right to share in
a community that is life affirming.
Some may find community in a
camping club,· a women's or men's
group; . others may find it in an
everything good that exists, Creator; I
encourage you to open yourself to the
wonderful adventure of experiendng
God in community.
A growing number of professionals
in the fields of psychology and
Akron, Ohio
Dear Second Stone,
Really enjoy your publication.
Thanks a lot. Keep up the great work!
Sincerely,
JD
Florence, Oregon
The other side
of the closet
Dear Second Stone,
Summer before last I gave my wife
a copy of The Other Side of the Closet
thinking it an excellent choice for a
bisexual husband to give to his
straight, fundamentalist wife. She
did read it out of curiosity. It ruined
her summer. Her response was that
she wasn't like the wives mentioned
in the text. She said this is just a sick
phase I'm going through as a sinner
condemned to hell and as a good and
faithful wife she will stick it out with
me. We have been married 30 years
SEE LETTERS, Page 17'
We welcome
your. letters
and opinons
Write to Second Stone. 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.
Box 8340, New Orleans, LA 70182 or
FAX to (504)891-7555.
psychiatry believe that whether we
know it or not we are desperately
searching for God to fill some void in
us.
Dr. Scott Peck says that there is a
subconscious yearning in each of us
for a relationship with God; and that
God aggressively pursues us just as a
lover pursues the object of his/ her
affections. He believes this universal
subconscious craving for God extends
even to atheists. Dr. Peck says this is
illustrated in sex, which "is the closest
to a spiritual experience many people
ever come. It is a spiritual experience,
that is why some pursue it [sex]
to the point of obsession."
We are all spiritual beings; that is
what is meant by "Created in the
image of God." There are many
mysteries to this process we call life.
For example, from where did we
come and where are we going? What
is God? Where is He/She? I don't
have the answers; and I am happy to
have found a church - a community -
that can honestly admit they don't
either. It is a safe, loving, caring
place to be while in this experience
we call life. I believe. it is in and
through community that we find
God.
• N O V E M B E R / · D E C E MB E R 1 9 9 4
·,
News Lines . . . . . . . . ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........
No welcome wagon for Huntsville's new MCC
6THE PASTOR OF A Metropolitan Community Church in Alabama said her
congregation doesn't want any trouble in its new northwest Huntsville neighborhood.
After outgrowing its old quartets, the MCC built a new $140,000 worshlr, hall last
summer . 'We jusf want to be good neighbors and help out in any way we carr,' said Rev.
Janet Suess-Pierce. "We just want to be accessible to a1l and inclusive of everyone. We're
not for any one group." Pastor Suess-Pierce has entered into a dialog with the pastor of a
neighboring church concerning the teachings of the Bible and Christ. Neighbors say the
church .is endorsing a lifestyle incompatible with Christianity. "Almost every book in the
Bible will tell you that homosexuality is a sin," said Edith Wharton, who lives across the
street. "I've just been beside myself ever since I found out what kind of church they were
r,utting there." Wharton said she planned to make her feelings knownto the parishioners.
I'11 be out there in my rocking cliair with my sign .that says, 'I don't like homosexuals,"'
she said . "I will say one thing, they won't liave a minute's peace as long as I'm living.
That's a promise to God.'' The church had r,lanned to hold its first services July 24 in its
new building, but had to postpone the dedication until July 30 because a technicality
delayed the certificate of occupancy. -Associated Press, Alabama Forum ·
More dioceses plan to leave Episcopal Church
t.SIX DIOCESES HA VE now announced their intention to join the Diocese of Florida
severing the principal of intercommunion within the Episcopal Church. The bishops of
San Joaquin, Cenfral Flordia, Florida, 'Qu incy, Dallas , West Missouri and the Rio
Grande joined 43 other Episcopahans in for_ming a n.ew org.anization_ aimed at pressuring
the church to adopt ultra-con"':rvative positions or/ace decreased fi.nanc1a_l supp~rt. fo
a covenant adopted at the mihal meeting of Ep1scopahans m Apostolic Mission m
Atlanta, signatories criticized. "tendencies · within the wider Episcopal Church toda y
contrary to official Anglican ethical standards," even if they are authorized by General
Convention. The memoers further agreed that "we will not conform ourselves to [such
actions], we will not directly financially support them, nor will we permit those .who
engage in them to minister regularly within our congregational and/ or diocesanhf e."
Members of EAM called for protection of life "from conception to natural death" and the
limitation of "sexual intimacy and intercourse" to "heterosexual, monogamous, life-long
marriage." The covenant describes divorce as "always sinful and rarely appropriate."
- Voice of Integrity ·
Veto of domestic partnershiD denounced ·
t.BY VETOING DOMESTIC partners legislation, Governor Pete Wilson denied religious
freedom of California's citizens, said a .leader of the Universal Fellowship of
Metropolitan Community Churches . "For the .Governor of Califor.nia to give selective
preference to one religious viewpoint is to deny the religious freedom of others," said Rev.
Don Eastman, UFMCC treasurer and second vice moderator. 'The opposition to domestic
partnership is !:,aged primarily on religious objections to homosexuality. But many
religious leaders disagree with sucli ob/ections and affirm loving, responsible
homosexual relations.'' The domestic partners law would have allowed unmarried
couples, heterosexual or ·homosexual, to register with the state to gain certain rights
afforded married couples, including hospitarvisitation and the bequeathing of prorerty .
Rev. Eastman descrioed the Governor's denial of these basic rights as "mean-spin led,"
recalling the "horror storie&" he has heard of fa.milies forbidding long-term partners from
visiting the hospital bed ot attending the funeral of their partner. "Governor Wilson has
chosen to appease the radical right which OJ?poses domestic partners legislation rather
than to honor the rich diversity of. Ca!ifornia s citizens," Eastrnan said . .
Presbyterian pastor commits suicide ·
M PRESBYTERIAN PASTOR who quietly acknowledged his homosexuality to a gay
minister last year has committed suicide. Friends whowent to their Presbxterian Church
of America-affiliated churc. h in St. Louis for their weekly early morning Bible study were
horrified to learn of the death of Egon Middleman. The German-born Middleman studied
at Covenant Seminary in St. Louis and went on to pastor an inner-city church, Grace .and
Peace, which developed a ministry to inner-city poor, people of color, persons with AIDS
and sexual minorities. Middleman's last sermons bore eloquent testimony to-his vision of
a truly tolerant church, firmly anchored in Jesus' example and teaching, where gay men
and Lesbians would not have to live a life of subterfuge in the closet. - Other Slteep
Study: Gay workers earn less than non-gay peoole in same jobs
t.AN INDEPENDENT STUDY at the University of Maryland at College Park on th!!
impact of anti-gay job discrimination has found that gay men and Lesbians earn less than
their non-gay counterparts with similar education, trainint and occupations. Th e
findings refute the stereotype of gay people as an "affluent elite unworthy of equal rights
under the law. The study, "Economic Evidence of Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,"
marks the first scientific economic research conduc ted on the problem of job discrimi nation
on the basis of sexual orientation.
Falwell gets too oolitical for Florida television station
6TELEVISION STATION WTLV in Jacksonville has threaten ed to pull Jerry Falw ell's
"Old Time Gosp el Hour" off ihe air for a month for focusing more on rolitics.than on
religion. Viewers pick eted the station after Falwell spent a good dea of time on the
show's August 14 oroadcast in what protesters called criticism of President Clinton that
involved "sexually exp licit" language by the televangelist. A spokesperson for the station
said WTLV wo uld air reruns of the program until the political content of th e program
ends. - Gayuet ·
Not gay, says new Anglican bishoo
6 THE NEW BISHOP of Durham, England, the fourth ranking prelate in the Anglican
Church; said Sept. 27 that he is not gay, and apologized for an indecency conviction in
the 1960s. The Rt. Rev. Michael Turnbull was convicted in 1968 of an act of indecency
with another man in a public bathr oom. He \'leaded guilty at the time and was released
on condition he did not offend ai;ain within 2 months. "ft so happens that I am not and
never have been a homosexual,' Turnbull said in a state.,ment to a British news agency.
Gay rights advocates accused Turnbull of hypocrisy.
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Tips on how to get straight, according to CWA ·
MN A RECENT ISSUE of their.monthly magazine, Family Voice, the Concerned Women of
America, which claims to be the largest women's organization in America, offered tips on
"How to Overcome Homosexuality ." The tips include "accept Jesus as Savior and I:ord,"
"present your bcxly formally to Goo," "awid homosexual hangouts,',' and "learn to control
your mind ." - Diversity · ·
Anti-gay activist has AIDS' · · ·· · · · · · ···
t.THE BEST KNOWN C_anadian religious dght crusader against homose xuality has
AIDS. Frank Shears had led the assau1t against the ·199() Gay Games m Vancouver and
had appeared on national media to.denoun~e "the 'h6mosexu~l lifestyle" and gay civil
. rights . He pushed the "ex-gay" movements promise of healm~ . The preadier from
Burnaby, (British Columbia) Christian Fellowship confided hls 'slip" into homose xual
behavior to a fellow pastor who ruled that he would have to confess to the entire
congregation. He was then given four hours to clear out his desk and leave. Shears had
strugg[ed with his homosexuality for 30 years ; once even going to bed with a Bible
strapped over his genitals, hoping for divine healing . He now attends a gay evangelical
congregation and _regularlyworsbips with •people ne once tried .to "cure' through the
exilay movement. -funch<re
German church disapproves blessinas
t.THE CHURCJ:i OFFICE of the Evangelical Lutlleran Church of Hanover expressed its
disapproval of the blessing of a homosexual couple by a pastor who had been suspended
from duty . "Church blessings of homophiles are unkriown in this church,'' a spokesperson
for the church said in response to an inquiry by the German Protestant news agency EPD .
Pastor Hans-Jurgen fyfeyer, who was suspended from duty because he lives in a
. homosexua!-partner'ship,nad blessed the partnership of two men during a church service
:m the town of Laatzen . The church leadership "with astorushment" took note that the
blessing was similar to a marriage ceremony , the church office said in an initial .
statement. The church office stressed th_at Meyer had already been suspended from the
exercise of any ·church functions. However, Meyer told EPD that the -blessing had not
been a marriage ceremonx , He saw no reason to refuse a \>lessing Hif ~o people who love
one another ask for one. The blessing ' took _place during one of the . reg_1flar worship
services for which the ecumenical fellowship HomosexueUe und I<irche [Homosexuals
and Church] meets in a church in Laatzen. - Lutheran World lnfonnatio11
Idaho pastors supportanti-gay initiative :
t.EJGHI' CEN:rRAL IDAHO past~ gathered in Rmgins to declare their love for gay men
and Lesbians but their opposition to -homosexualliehaviof . The eight were the visib le·
representatives of 5Tministers who signed a public statement in support of Proposition
One, the Idaho Citizens Alliance's anti-gay initiative. The Rev . Jack Hoekstra of
Community Christian Church in Cascade .told the group that his daughter is a lesbian and
he knows the "hell she has gone through because of it" and that she is going to hell
because of it.·-. Sb11tliern Voice
· You can be g•v a11dChristian in Kentucky .
t.THE BLlJEGRASS STATE found that while a majority of Kentuckians surveyed
oppose Gays ho1i:!jrigreligious leadership positions, nearly half said homose xual s can be
"true" 'C;hristi_an.s::Sixty-rune percent were opposed to gay /lesb ian der~y but 49 percent
said Gays ·can be "genuine" Christians ; 37 percent said they couldn t. A ll}Jljority of
Catholics and mainstream Protestants - but only 42 percent of Southern Baptists - said
their churches should accept Lesbians and Gays as members . - Diversity
Catholics Dian di~san ministries for Lesbians, Gays
t.TWENTY-EIGHT LAITY, RELIGIOUS and clergy from 13 Roman Catholic dioceses met
in Chicago July 29-31 to discuss ministries to gay and lesbian Catholics and their
families. l'articipants, in~luding parents of _gay and lesbian people, acknowledged the
many challenges that lesbian and gay Catholics and those who m1ruster with them face m
the church. The Catlfolic Church believes that Gays and Lesbians "have a right to
respect, friendship and-justice," "should have an active role in the Christian community "
and "must be ·accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity ." The Church also
expects Gays and Lesbians to practice abstinence from sexual activity. Those gathered
in Chicago founded the National Association of Catholic Dioce san Lesbian and Gay
Ministries . For information on this organization contact Rev. Jim Schexnayder , 433
Jefferson Street, Oakland, CA 94607. .
UCC national church offices adopt workDlace HIV/AIDS education
t.EMPLOYEES IN THE national offices of the United Church of Christ soon will receive
HIV/ AIDS education in the workplace - the first such program in 'the national offices of
any religious denomination. The program will be phasecfin over the riext two years in
nationafUCC offices in Cleveland, New York City, and Washington, D.C. It is designed
to provide employees with ongoing education about HIV/ AIDS and create a supportive
workplace for any employee who may be HIV-positive . Unanimous approval for the
program came Oct. 5 from the Council of Instrumentality Executives, composed of the
denomination 's national officers and the heads of its national agencies. Since 1991, the
personnel policies of the UCCs executive offices in Geveland have included protections
for employees or prospective emeloyees with HIV/ AIDS, including a nile against AIDS
testing as a pre-employment condition.
FBI reports religious motivations in many hate crimes .
t.EIGHTEEN PERCENT of some 7,600 hate crime s reported to the FBI in 1993 were
motivated by religion, reports the federal agency . The Chicago Sun-Times r eports that the
number s of such crimes are probably much higher since they come from agencies covering
only 56 p ercent of the country . Anti-Jewi s h crime rated the highest with 1, 189
incidenc es; anti-Catholic crimes: 30; a nti -Prot e stant: 25; anti-Islamic: 11; anti-other
religion s: 55; anti-multi-religious groups :11; anti-atheism-agnosticism: 3. Other hate
crimes were motivated by race (62 percent ), s.,xual orientation (12 p ercent) and the rest
SECOND STONE -
by ethnicity/ national origin . Intimidation was the single most frequently reported hate
crime at 35 percent. - Religion Watch · '
Idaho university bans church services in homophobic move
t.TWO WEEKS AFI'ER agreeing to allow MCC Boise to meet at an historic church at
Boise State University, officials l,anned all church services there. "Sounds su spiciously
like homophobia to me,'' said Rev. Tyronne Sweeting, pastor of the MCC. Robert Koontz,
a memb~r of the board of dir~ctors that governs the chapel, said the decision had nothing
to do with the gay nature ol the MCC. He said he was una ware that any church was
holding services in the chapel until he rearl an article about MCC in the daily newspap er.
Two churches are affected by the board's de cision, MCC and the Christian Revival
Center, a United Pentecostal Church that has met there since November of last year .
- Diversity
Gay ordination draws one protester
LlRODERICKJ. THOMPSON is believed to be the first openly gay pr iest ordained by the
Episcopal Church in Oregon . A letter asking Ep iscopalians to picket his ordination
drew .one protester.
Pat Robertson attacks Gay Games sponsor
t.P AT ROBERTSON has recently charged his one million followers to protest Visa credit
cards for supporting the Gay Games . Large depositors are also threatening Visa with
withdrawing their money from b_anks that issue Visa cards. ·
INFACT expands tobacco industry boycott
AfNFACT, THE NATIONAL consumer activist organization, has added R)R Nabisco to
its tobacco industry boycott to stop the tobacco industry's marketing assault on children ·
around the world'. INF ACT launched a boycott of Philip Morris at that company's
shareholder meeting earlier this year . At the same time, INFACT announced a drive to
organize retailers to stop participating in Joe Camel promotions. "Joe Camel is the most ·
blatant example of the industry's to&acco marketing to children," said Elaine Lamy ,
executive director of INF ACT.
Former minister an alleged closet case
M FORMER METHODIST minister who initia ted the successful legal challenge to the
state video lottery resigned two years ago when church officials received allegations he
h ad been involved in homosexual activity . But Dick Ward of Aberdeen, Soufh Dakota ,
who served 31 years in the ministry denied that. he is gay. United Methodist Church
District Superintendent Boyd Blumer said that the alfegation of homosexual activity
came from the mother of a Rapid City man. "Blumer got some letters to the 26- or
28-year-old man I had written in Rapid City,'.' Ward said . "In .those letters, I revealed to
him that rd had some homose xual experiences . I don 't remember writing them,.but it's my
handwriting. " Ward said he was on the prescription drug Halcion at the time the lette rs
were written . - Associated Press
Catholics condemn iudge's decision on murderer of a gav man ·
. M NATIONAL CATHOLlCorganization , which .is funded and supported 6y over sixty
religious orders of nuns, condemned District Judge David Young's ruling to reduce
charges against the murderer of a gay man and for sentencing the killer to on1y six years .
"Judge Young's reduction of charge s is obscen e,'' said Bro. Rick Garcia, director of the
Chicago-based Catholic Advocates for Lesbian and Gay Rights . "Young's ruling and lax
sentence demeans and diminishes not only gay and lesbian fives but the Judicial !?'stem as
well . He should be ashamed ." Bro. Garcia charged that Young's ruling was "infested"
with 'anti-gay bias. "This type of ruling would merely be unfortunate if if was not~
common in the judicial system ... We pray that justice-minded citizens remove such pathetic
judges from the bench."
Church triumphs CNer bigotry
~ .LIFE MCC, Matthews, North Carolina ,.has won a major victory after months of
being assailed b:,r neighbors at its recently purchased prope _rtv. The town of Matthew s
had 6een demanding Th.at the church comply with a laundry lisf of reqwrements designed
to keep the congregation from occupying the new sanctuary . Among other things , the
church was told to provide documentafion showing that the building can witnstand
earthquakes and excessive loads of snow. The attorney for New Lire wrote to the
County Attorney of Mecklinberg County, asking whether others had to meet the same
requirements. The official response was that they didn't and neither does New Li~e
MCC. All that the church need do is what any other church mu st do, which ts
demonstrate that the building is up to ccxle. - Keeping in Touch
Gays an "ianoble stain," says Cardinal
6Tl-ffi LEADffi OF the Roman Catholic Church in Argentina a1>ologized Aug. 23 for
televised comments in which he called Gays "an ignoble stain [on) the face of society" and
urged the creation of "a large area for Gay s -and I:esbians to live in, with their own laws,
their own media ... and even their own constitution . "It was a joke, something that just
crossed my mind ," Cardinal Antonio Quarracino explained. '1 apologize if r offended
anyone , ifl hurt someone's sensitivities. I thought peop1e had a bettef sense of humor. "
Lutheran bishop meets with UFMCC leaders
t.BISHOP SHERMAN HICKS met ·in Los An ge les w ith the Board of Elder s of the
Uni versal Fellowship of Metropolitan Commuruty Churches . Hicks , a s ynod bishop of
the Evangelical Lutheran Churcn in Am erica said ihat bo th denominations face d th e same
challeng es, especially the need for outreach to peo ple of color and oth er langu age
communiti es. This meeting with th e bisho p of th e Metropolitan Chicago synod wa_s only
the second ecumenical meeting at that level ever for eld ers of the UFMCC. Th e first w as
in 1989 wh en they met with the Rev . Melvin Whea tley, a bishop of the United Method ist
Church. - Keeping in Touch
NOVEMBER / DECEMBERl 99 4
News Lines ...................................
Church of Canada picks pro-gay leader
t.MARION BEST, chair of a United Church of Canada committee that in 1988
recommended ordaining Gays and Lesbians, has been chosen the new leader of the
church, Canada's largest. The 1988 recommendation created deep divisions in the church
that have not yet hea1ed, according to Gaezette, a gay magazine in Nova Scotia. - Outlines
Spahr meeting canceled by church . .
t.A TOP CHURGH EXECUTIVE canceled two events at the headquarters -of. the -.
Presbyterian Church (USA) that wer.e to feature the Rev. Jane Spahr, a lesbian minister at
the center of the church's ongoing debate over homosexuality . . Spahr was scheduled to
lead a daily prayer 'service and attend a reception at church headquarters in Louisville,
Ky. The Rev. James Brown, executive director of the church's General Assembly Council,
ordered the events canceled, saying they would "give the appearance that positions were
being advocated" contrary to policies of the church.
Vatican denounces gender-neutral Bible
t.THE VATICAN has ordered US. Catholic churches not to use an ecumenical edition of
the Bible in public worship because of its gender-neutral language. The New Revised
Standard Version, approved by U.S. bishops in 1991, is consi<;leredby many mainstream
Protestant and Catholic scholars to be the most authoritative translation, said the Rev.
Arthur Van Eck, director for Bible translation and utilization for the National Council
of Churches. Cardinal William Keeler of Baltimore, president of the National Conference
of Catholic Bishops , said U.S. bishops, who favor more inclusive and gender-neutral
language, had thought they still were negotiating with the Vatican over the issue when
the ruling came down .. - Times-Picayune ·
Church bars gay chorus from facility
t.A LUTHERAN MINISTER refused to allow a traveling chorus of gay singers to
perform a concert in h_is church. The Rev . Gordon Ross, pastor of St. Matthew's Church ,
York, Penn., said the Harrisburg Men 's Chorus adds a political undertone to its concerts
by a_dvei;(isi~g its se~~al orientation. "We're not trying to be tough on homosexuals or
lesbians, said Ross. But what they want 1s contrary to the teachings of our church."
The group, which has performed at Carnegie Hall, has never been refused use of a facility
in its eight-year history. - Associated Press
Shots fired at Florida church
t.FOUR SHOTS were fired into King of Peace MCC, St. Petersburg, Fla., on Sept. 22.
Nobody was injured, but bullet holes . were left in the church's thick glass ,windows.
Teena Carpenter , pastoral assistant and student clergy, said she was helping people get
food from the food pantry when she heard the shots and saw a gunman snooting from the
roof of a _buil,9ing across the street. No, ~o~ye fo,r the shooting h;,s be,n e_stablished. . .
. .
It's fuido stay at the YMCA
t.FQUR MEMBERS OF St: Luke's MCC, Jacksonville, Fla., are trying to get a "family
membership" at the local YMCA The church is collecting signatu·res on a petition asking
the YMCA to change its policy, which allows only peoP.le who are legally married and
have a marriage license to o&tain the discounted family m;,mbersh1ps. The case has
received local media coverage. Those confronting the YMCA are Rev. Frankye White,
pastor, and her partner Lon Sinnett, and Vickie Buchanan and Barbara Scifres. Some
YMCAs in other cities have more liberal .policies because local boards of directors define
"family" as they choose. "We would like to challenge other .MCCs to confront the YMCAs .
in their cities,' said Elizabeth Forbell, St. Luke's administrator . - Keeping in Touc/z
Catholics wage condom battle
6.A ROMAN CATHOLIC GROUP began a poster campaign Sept. 23 opposing condom
distribution in schools. The Boston chapter of the Catholic League for Religious and
Civil Rights arranged fQr 200 posters · to 6e displayed in the city's subway system. "We
view advocacy of condoms by government agencies as a deplorable policy, an attack on
the family and a gross violation of First Amendment religioos freedom ·rights;' ' said C. J.
Doyl_e, In~ group 's national director. "Government is taking sides on a mora_l and
rehg1ous issue." But AlDS Action Comnuttee spokesman Thomas McNaught said the
Catholic League should make up its mind if it's pro-life or not. "If it is,"McNau&ht said, "it
should stop blocking health efforts to prevent the world's most deadly .disease.
- Associated Press
Nuns threatened over art
t.A SAN ANTONIO art gallery run by Roman Catholic nu·ns has moved a provocati ve
·exhibit on sex and AIDS after receiving threats of violence. The Sisters of Charity of the
Incarnate Word shut down the -exhi&it on Sept. 13, just days after it opened, after
· hundreds called to complain and Archbishop Patrick F. Flores declared he was "highly
offended, insulted and hurt." "In light of threats to the gallery, the move is being made lo
ensure the safety of the sisters who Jive on the premises," said artist Donell Hill . Sister
Alice Holden, the gallery's director, said she prayed before the exhibit went up' and
decided it should be shown because "sexuality is a tremendous gift from God."
- Baltimore Alternative ,
Information souaht on anti-gay violence in the workplace - ·
t.THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND Health Administration, with the U.S. Department
of Labor, is considering creating a new standard that d_eals with violence in the
workplace. At a recent presentation , Joe Dear, the :Asststant Secretary of OSHA, was
asked if there would be a provision in the prop?sed standard that would deal with hat e
crimes that occur in the workplace, such as anh-gay v10lence and v10lence that 1s based
on race or gender. Dear said ne learn~d something from the quest/on and.that he wanted
information about it. Gay and lesbian people who have experienced v10lence m the
workplace solely because of sexual orientation are being asked to document such acts.
Information is being collected by Doug Young, 131 Hartford-St., Apt. C, San Francisco,
CA 94114.
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folks with clarity and compassion about questions of ·. ·
homosexuality and Scripttrre: :-.. ' ':' ,: ,_·,:: :. ··.,, . .
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Gay youth_saved fro.m change ministry
By Chicago Outlines
A GAY 15-YEAR-OLD Michigan boy,
who was turned over by his parents
to an ex-gay program in Chicago, has
be en returned home ·safely after an
extensive search by the Michiganbased
Triangle Foundation and members
of Parents, Friends and Families
of Lesbians and Gays.
In late July, the teena ger, who lives
in Gladwin, Mich., came out to his
devoutly religious parents. They
responded by consulting with their
. pastor, who recommended an ex-gay
ministry. Taking his advice, tire parents
contacted the ministry and
delivered their son to a parking lot in
Chicago, where two men, who
claimed to be officials of the ministry,
asked the parents to sign a "release
form." The boy's parents signed the
document.
The two men reclaimed the document
and then informed the parents
that -. they would not be told the
whereabouts of their son. The last the
parents saw of their son, he was
restrained in a straight jacket in the
back of a van being driven away.
When the parents returned home to
Gladwin, they had second thoughts ·
and contacted a gay man .who lives in
their - area, telling him the whol e
story. H~, in turn , got in. touch with
the Triangle Foundation, . a lesbian
and gay rights group in Michigan,
and acted as an intermediary
between them and the boy's parents.
'This has been the most frustrating,
aggravating, just sad two weeks
we've ever had in this organization,"
said Triangle Foundation president
Jeffrey Montgomery .
Triangle, along with P-FLAG,
sought legal advice for the parents in
CMcago and began their search for
the boy.
Meanwhile, the parents returned to
Chicago twice, driving around the
city looking for their son, eventually
tracking down the change ministry
and returning with their son to
Gladwin.
Vatican investigative commission
prep~ring finding on Nugent, Gramick
THE VATICAN COMMISSION appointed
to hear and examine the
theological · views and teachings on
homosexuality of Fr. Robert Nugent,
SDS, and Sr. Jeannine Gramick,
SSND, has met for a third time and is
now formulating its findings in
writing. · · ·
Fr. Nl.lgent and Sr. Gramick provide
an affirming ministry to -the lesbian
and gay community. The Congregation
for Institutes of Consecrated Life
and for Societies of Apostolic .Life, a
Curial department of the Vatican ,
established the commission to examine
the theological views and writings
of ·Fr. · Nugent and Sr. Gramick
because of some concerns that their
ministry, along with selected teachings
and writings, may have created
an ambiguity which has caused
confusion in the minds of some
people. .
· · The most recent meeting of the -
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comm1ss10n, held in Detroit, was
attended by Nugent and Gramick's
religio"s provincials, Sr. Christine
Mulcahy, SSND, Fr. Dennis Thiessen,
SDS, the newly elected provincial of
the Salvatorian Fathers, and Fr. Paul
Portland, SDS, former provincial. Sr.
Gramick and Fr. Nugent were joined
- by their canonical, theological and
pastoral consultants, Bishop John
Snyder, Bishop of St. Augustine, Fla.,
Msgr. Leonard Scott, Judicial _Vicar of
the Diocese of Camden, Rev. Bruce
Williams, O.P., a. moral theologian
and currently pastor of Holy Name of
Jesus Parish in Valhalla, New York,
and Dr. James Hanigan, chair of the
theology department of Duqu esne
University; Fr. N"gent, Sr. Gramick
and their religious provincials cooperated
fully with the work of the commission.
The commission received
written testimony about the pastoral
nature of Fr. Nugent and Sr.
Gramick's ministry from more than
. 250 individuals including parents,
bishops; religious and priests, as well ·
as some national Catholic organizations.
Archbishop Adam J. Maida of
Detroit is chairperson of the commission.
Also serving on the commission
are Msgr. James J. Mulligan, a moral
'The family is now in counseling,"
Montgomery said. 'The boy was not
harmed physically, but only time will
tell what the emotional effects will be.
The parents are now coming to terms
with who their son is. It looks like
there might just be a happy ending to
this terrible story."
The Triangle Foundation is
continuing its investigation into what
action can be taken against the minis~
try . "They have to be exposed,"
Montgomery said. "And that's what
we're working on now." The ministry
is believed to be based in
Champaign/ Urbana, Illinois.
-Sukie de Ia Croix
theologian, pastor and director of the
Priestly Life and Ministry Office in
the Diocese of Allentown, Penn., and
Dr. Janet Smith, associate professor of
the department of philosophy, University
of Dallas, a recognized expert
in human life issues and moral teaching
in the area of human sexuality. .
In its formal hearings, the commission
utilized a process modeled along
the lines of the "Doctrinal Responsibilities,"
a document approved by the
National Conference of Catholic
Bishops in 1989. In addition to some
canonical issues, most of the Detroit
meeting consisted of a discussion
between Sr. Gramick and Fr._ Nugent
and the commission members abo"t
their written .responses to presubmitted
questions posed by the • commission,
and about selected passages
from their book, Building Bridges: Gay
and Lesbian Reality and the Catholic
Church.
The commission's final findings will
be presented to Fr. Nugent, Sr .
Gramick and their respective religious
superiors for their responses.
The commission will then formulate
its recommendations to the Vatican
Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated
Life and for Societies of
Apostolic Life: r
UFMCC. encounters discrimination-in 'Argentina
UFMCC'S CHURCH IN Buenos Aires
is leading protests of a recent decision
by the Argentine government to deny
the church's longstanding request
for legal recognition.
On August 2 the Ministry of the
Exterior and Religion rejected a request
for legal recognition by . Iglesia
· de la Comunidad Metropolitana (ICM)
· Buenos Aires. The official reasons
given were because the church has
"an affinity for public demonstration,
including marches and methods of
defense promoting not only homosexuals
but also homosexuality as a
whole" and because the church blesses
same-sex couples in Holy Unions,
which "devalues the Argentine community"
and goes against Christian
traditions.
"It is dear from the government
action that such basic human rights as
freedom of religion, freedom of
speech and freedom of assembly are
not being fully extended to all
Argentine citizens," said Rev. Elder
Don Eastman, UFMCC second vice
moderator. · Based at the UFMCC
international headquarters in Los
Angeles, Eastman has been in
frequent communication with Rev.
Roberto Gonzalez, pastor of ICM
Buenos Aires, about these events.
ICM Buenos Aires filed an appeal of
the government .decision on August
31. Meanwhile, UFMCC is in the
process of mobilizing international
support and communication to urge
the Argentine government to recognize
the church.
ICM Buenos Aires and ten other
lesbian/ gay organizations participated
in a demonstration in Buenos
Aires in late August. Its slogan was
"Against discrimination to homosexuals
and Lesbians by (Roman
_Catholic Archbishop of Buenos Aires)
Quarracino and the government.
Give. legal status to ICM!" Among
Network forming for gay monks
A GAY MONK is putting out a call to
other gay Catholic monks who feel
the need to communicate in ·order to
help maintain and strengthen their
consciousness of their sexuality as an
integral factor in developing their
own human and spiritual maturity.
Dan Kelliher is a Cistercian
(Trappist) monk of several years who
says he experiences a poignant isolation
for want of communication with
other gay monks due to the restrictions
of cloister discipline . "Being a
social minority, we do not enjoy a
comfortable, friendly environment
where we can be ourselves and
express our personal opinions with
the same freedom that our heterosexual
brethren can," says Kelliher.
"Since monks share common spiritual
values, as well as certain inhibitions
about disclosing their sexual orientation
to their confreres, I feel that it is
imperative for us to form a network
whereby we can discuss our anxieties
and fears, our wounds and scars
suffered in a predominantly heterosexual
society."
The network that Kelliher envisions
would afford monks the opportunity
to discuss such issues by personal
.correspondence and/ or personal or
group retreats and meetings held
periodically in their respective monasteries.
Contacts of this nature could
afford monks companionship, mutu·al
guidance and affirmation of their
sexual identity which otherwise could
deteriorate . from benign neglect or
repression leaving them :With a sense
of unworthiness regarding their
monastic calling, according to
Kelliher . ·
Kelliher says St. Bernard advises
monks to practice patience in their
daily encounters with trials and vicis-
SECOND STONE
situdes, but he also encourages them
to show impatience when confronted
with obstacles to spiritual growth .
. Kelliher quotes from The Undivided
Heart: "Patience is a great virtue,"
[but] " ... on occasion it is most
praiseworthy t<;> be impatient. That
patience is not good which allows you
to become a slave when you could
have been free."
Says Kelliher, "Whenever we allow
others' homophobia to silence us on
issues as personal as our sexual
orientation, we forfeit the freedom
Christ wishes us to enjoy and need for
our spiritual maturity. It is iny
experience that . monastic communities,
while not in any sense aggressively
homophobic, do maintain an
atmosphere of polite homophobia by
.not allowing us to surface sufficiently
our affectionate needs and desires,
whereas our heterosexual confreres
are quite uninhibited in expressing
their own legitimate needs in that
area. Such an atmosphere of polite
homophobia subtly generates in us a
sense of alienation from these same
confreres thus deepening our
personal isolation that has an effect of
crippling the joy and peace ordinarily
available in the monastic calling."
.. Kelliher· is appealing to other monks
feeling a need for affirmation of their
identity as gay men who are as
worthy as anyone else to follow God's
call into the "school of God's service,"
as is written in the Prologue of the
Rule of St. Benedict. Any monk of
the Benedictin e or Cistercian orders
interested in this proposed network
should contact Dan Kelliher at 1012
.Monastery Road, Snowmass, ·CO
81654. -
the .participants was Mary Hunt,
recent speaker at the UFMCC leader'
ship conference and co-founder of
Women's Alliance for Theology,
Ethics and Ritual . .
On .June 28, ICM Buenos Aires
.joined about 300 Lesbians arrd Gays
in the city's third annual .dignity
march. Leading the way were giant
puppets of Archbishop Quarracino
and Argentine President . Carlos
Menem - both dressed as brides ,, The
m.arch began as the crowds blocked
traffic in front of the Catholic Cathe-
The demonstration also protested
comments made on Argentine national
ctelevision · by ·Cardinal Antonio
Quarracino, who called for a designated
zone where all Gays and
Lesbians could live as a "separate
species" in order to "remove •a terrible
stain from the .face .of society." Shortly
. thereafter ·he issued a public apology,
but continued. to maintain that homosexuals
are "vicious." Reportedly 95
percent . of Argentine's population is
Roman Catholic.
. drat of Buenos Aires and received a ·
blessing by Rev . Gonzalez. Signs
and banners proclaimed in Spanish,
"Christ died for my sins, not my
sexuality" and 'Th~· Bible says love
.and justice are synonyms."
Both demonstrations received
extensive media coverage in Argen- ·
.tina. - Keeping in Touch
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Joyce Hollyday Paper $12.99
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Homosexuality in the Church
Both Sides of the Debate
Jeffrey S. Siker, Editor Paper $14.99
Outstandinc authorities oo -scriphm:, tradition, reason, bioloi:y, ethics, a~d e:endered experience
discuu tht place of homosexuats·in the comm.unity of faith. ContribUtou inclu.d~ Richard 8.
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Don E. Workman, Chandler Burr, Joe D_allat, Vircinia Ramey Mollenkoll, Chri1 Glaser, Lita
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Supreme Court Decisions on Church-State Relationships
Ronald B. Flowers Papet $15.99
In thi1 ckarly-writteo·introduction to church-stale questions, Ronald Flowers disc:uue1 such
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Survivor Prayers
Talking with God about Childhood Sexual Abuse ·
Catherine J, Foote Paper $8.99
~Prayers and,meditatioo1 in this powerfal book addren the spiritual iS1ues faced hy 111rvivon
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Cover Story ........................... .... .....................................
Our God too: Radical right challenged at NCC forum
From Page 1
. most powerful man in Christendom."
The radical right is enjoying great ,
success in turning their numbers
power into political power, according
to . White. "What they couldn't do
through revival meetings they are
attempting to do through Congress
and the court-s," White said . 'They
can save the nation through political
action · after they've failed in the
pews."
That growing power, coupled wfrh
the radical right's "urge to purge,"
defines the threat for America's gay
and lesbian community. 'The right's
'urge to purge' the nation - of ills,
including getting rid . of Gays because
they somehow · devalue the family,
can be compared to a fundamentalist
Muslim blowing up a bus in Tel Aviv
or a fundamentalist Christian shooting
an abortion doctor," White said.
'The rhetoric of purgation leads to the
organization of purgation which finally
leads to some action to purge Gays
from society."
White issued a warning about
· organizations like Promise Keepers, a
national men's organization that recently
drew 75,000 men to a meeting
in Dallas. "It offers those men a
wonderful experience;"' White said,
"but [Promise Keepers founder] Coach
Bill Mc:Gartney hates Gays. What are
they going to do with all that power
when they face something they don't
agree. with?" · .
Commenting on the radical right,
Campbell said "If I could do what I
want in the NCC, I would work in the
smartest way we could to exr,ose the
radical right's world view. T 1e NCC
cannot be part of that."
White distributed copies of a news
release from Fred · Phelps, pastor of
Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka,
Kansas. "WBC will picket fag Rev.
Mel White and his pagan fag churcll
in Dallas," the release proclaimed,
referring to Cathedral of Hope MCC.
Phelps challenged White to a debate
on the Bible on Nov. 12 and
threatened to picket the Dallas church
on Nov. 11 and 12. "White and his
fag friends are damning souls and
dooming America by their pernicious
sodomite lies," Phelps said . "[Their]
mouths must be stopped by faithful
doctrinal preaching and debate," he
Recent finding by top biblical scholars
offer a radical new view on
the Bible and homosexuality.
WhatUible the ).J · .
Really Says
About .. ·
B.oro.osexuality
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Daniel A. Helminiak, Ph.D.,
. re ·spected theologian -ahd
Roman Catholic priest,
explains in a clear fashion
fascinating new insights.
" ... will help any reasonably open and
attentive reader see that the Bible says
something quite different on this subject
from what is orten cl~imed. 11
, · -L. William Countryman,
Author of Dirt, Greed und Sex
" ... the most ihoughtful. lucid and accessible
summary I know of current biblical
scholarship relating -to homosexual
issues .. , eminently useful ... "
-James B. Nelson,
Author and Theology Professor
Order now from Second Stone Press
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WHAT THE BIBLE REALLY SAYS
ABOUT HOMOSEXUALITY
By Daniel A. Helminiak, $9.95, paperbk
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SECOND STONE
said, quoting Titus 1:9-13. White said
he would probably not respond to
Phelps and certainly would not
debate him. "Phelps is an extension of
Jerry Falwell," White said . "He's Jerry
Falwell gone nuts."
Present as a witness to the NCC
General Board were representatives
of the organizations that sponsored
the discussion on the religious righ_t:
UFMCC, Affirmation (United Methodists),
American Baptists Concerned,
Association of Welcoming and Affirming
Baptists, Axios, Bre thren/ _Menthe
other churches' position as being
ground e d in concerns both of justice
and of faith and order" and that ways
must be provided "for the member
·communions and the Council itself to
hear and receive the witness of gay
and lesbian Christians. Silence or
confrontation cannot be the only
option provided Christians who are
gay or lesbian." The report said that
the right of each NCC member
communion "to make judgments for
itself on these issues and to make its
own witness both in ecumenical and
Commenting on the radical right, NCC
General Secretary Joan Brown Campbell
said, "If I could do what l want in the NCC,
I would work in the smartest way we
could to expose the radical right's world
view. The NCC cannot be part of that."
nonite Council for Lesbian/Gay Con
·cerns, Integrity, Interweave, ·Lutherans
- Concerned, Presbyterians for
Lesbian/Gay Concerns and the United
Church Coalition for Lesbian/Gay
Concerns .
The. inability or unwillingness of
NCC member communions to talk
with one another about questions
related to homosexuality '"will not
help .us preserve unity,'" a special
ongoing counseling committee on
issues of homosexuality and ecumenical
relationships asserted. '"In the
long run it will lead to a diminished
koinonia,. to alienation. Our choice is
not between dialogue and no
dialogue. It is between dialogue and
further confrontation and this confrontation
will come from among the
member communions as well as from
those outside the Council."
Acknowledging that '"the way
forward is not clear" and . that anger
and confrontation characterize the
present moment, the .committee said
the NCC:'s member communions must
find a way to re-open a dialogue
including · churches with differing
beliefs on questions related to
homosexuality. The counseling committee,
with John Thomas of the
United Church of Christ bringing the
report, said that dialogue '"needs to
encourage each church to understand
in public settings" must be affirmed.
"Each member church must be
assured that its participation in the
life of the Council will be valued, and
its voice respected regardless of the
position it takes on these particular
matters ."
Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop
Edmond Browning proposed that the
General Board as a whole '"talk with
the presence of gay people who can
tell us of the pain of their exclusion
from the life of this body. You can
never understand an issue without
talking with people who feel oppression
and pain of exclusion.,O
The General Board unanimously
adopted "action points" of a human
rights policy that was referred back_ to
committee for editing after several
board members said they felt it was
difficult to read and use for educa.
tional purposes. The action points
adopted by the Board include a call
for repentance "wherein the church
by acts of omission or commission has
contributed to the violation of human
rights of individuals or groups ." Also
adopted : Support for efforts in the
United States and worldwide '"to end
the practices of prejudice and discrimination
and intentional violence based
on religion, race, class, caste, age,
ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation
and physical limitations."
NOVEMBER/DECEMBERl 994
,.
' It
" :; ,·
i
q
, !
I
:1
'!
. Denomination-based
gay and lesbian ministries:
What does the
future hold?,
Lutherans Concerned shifts focus from political
activity to ministry as it looks ahead
BY JIM BAILEY
D enomination-identified gay
and lesbian Christian or-
. ganizations fare no better or
worse when church headquarters
become the center of antigay
controversy or circumstances, according
to Bob Gibeling, program
executive of Lutherans Concerned/
North America, Inc.
Of the three largest denornination-
identified gay and lesbian Christian
organizations , only Integrity has
had recent notable success in moving
church policy toward greater acceptance
of Gays and Lesbians . •· The
third largest organization, Lutherans
Concerned, has just spent a year mulling
over mostly negative responses
to America's largest Lutheran church
body's draft of a proposed soda[
statement on human sexuality which
included a remarkably affirming
position toward Gays and Lesbians.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America has released the second draft
of that statement, with much of the
affirmation of Gays and Lesbians
gone, dashing the hopes of many
Gays and Lesbians that the ELCA
might make some movement at its
1995 churchwide gathering toward
greater acceptance of sexual ·orientation
minorities. The largest denomination-
identified organization, Dignity/
USA, gay and lesbian Roman
Catholics, has little to hope for from
the Vatican.
But Gibeling does not predict the
exodus that one might expect of Gays
and Lesbians from the Roman Catholic
or Lutheran churches as a result of
denominational misunderstanding of
Gays and Lesbians. In fact, organizations
like Dignity/USA and Lutherans
Concerned might actually be
strengthened in outlook and numbers
by such disenchantment with church
headquarters, according to Gibeling.
"People spmetimes do blame gay
and lesbian church groups when
national church bodies do something
negative," says Gibeling. "But organizations
like Lutherans Concerned and
Dignity are independent of the
church and fill needs that are not
being met by the church . It is
self-defeating if people I.eave these
organizations, which are a source of
SECOND STONE
hope . The correct response is to support
gay and lesbian groups in the
face of the failure of national church
bodies ." · · ·
Gibeling predicts that ministry · to
gay and lesbian Christians will continue
in the pattern that has· developed
over the past 25-years. While
some will continue to seek out ministries
with specific outreach to Gays
and Lesbians, others will continue to
remain in mainstream denominations
and seek the support of gay and
lesbian organizations identified with
their particular denomination. Thus a
pattern of growth will likely continue
for all involved: gay -and lesbian
ministries like the UFMCC, organizations
like Lutherans Concerned and
mainstream congregations who are
welcoming of Gays and Lesbians.
Not · often discussed is the financial
impact attitudes toward Gays and
Lesbians have on local and national
church bodies. "Power follows the
money," said Gibeling . ''.Frequently
there is a fear that if Gays and
Lesbians are w-elcomed, many people
might leave the church and take their
financial support with them. National
church bodies are living with smaller
budgets, while many local congregations
are increasing their budgets. · In
many cases policy making is also
shifting from .national . church bodies
to local congregations. So programs
like Reconciled in Christ [ congregations
that publicly commit to welcoming
Gays and Lesbians] take on
greater significance. And it's up to
denomination suppqrt groups like
Lutherans Concerned to get those
congregations involved in programs
like RIC"
According to Gibeling, another way
for denomination-identified groups to
enhance their outreach to Gays and
Lesbians and overcome negative
projection from church headquarters
is to make the shift · 'that Lutherans
Concerned has made - away from
political activity in the church and
toward a ministry orientation. "I hate
to hear gay and lesbian ministry
groups referred to as · a caucus," says
Gibeling. "It positions Christian
SEE FUTURE, Page 13
Bob Gibeling, program executive for Lutherans Concerned/North America
Life-long Lutheran st_ruggled with
sexual orientation for-a decade -
ByJim Bailey
Edttor
L utherans Concerned program
executive Bob ·
qibeling, , 44, a life-long
. Luthetan, ·says ·he came out
to his parents before he ·came out to
himself. When he was 16, he told his
parents he felt something was wrong ·
with him. His parents reacted with
concern and support. Gibeling
entered counseling with the hope and
intention of changing his emerging
sexual orientation. "After a year of
· counseling, I felt that it was not
making any difference in my sexual ,
orientation," says Gibeling. "It was a
positive experience to have someone
to talk to but it was not changing my
sexual orientation. "
For a good part of the next decade
Gibeling prayed that God would
change him. "I was in great stress that
I was having this feeling that the
church_ was saying was wrong," says
Gibeling. "It was tearing me up
inside . I didn't see how I could
continue."
Gibeling continued his involvement
in the Lutheran Church. His long
process of reconciliation began with a
sermon he heard one, Sunday: During
his message that day the pastor
tofd the congregation there is nothing
one can do that is so bad . that God
will abandon you. It was a message
of acceptance that Gibeling says kept
him going at that moment.
Eventually Gibeling received an
answer to his prayers . "It was not
what I wanted to hear," he s1.ys. It
came in the form of a piece of
scripture that God placed in his heart:
"My grace is sufficient for you ... " {II
Cor , 12:9). 'That told me God had
made me the way I am for,,a reason
and He loves me the way I ain."
· . So in 1975, ten years after telling his
parents he thought he might be a
homosexu _al, Gibeling finally came
out to himself. And now, almost two
decades later, he says that his corning
out story has just recently come to a
conclusion. "When Lutherans Concerned
asked me to become their full
time program executive I realized
that I would not be just taking a
position; it was more like a calling,"
SEE GIBELING, Page 13
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER1994
..
' •
I was fortunate as a chHd to grow
up in the sticks of the Midwest.
From town to home, we passed
fields of corn and soybeans. The
·road began to wind with hills and
timber until we reached the brown
house in . the country. I fished in the
lake all summer long . Sometimes
when .I swam, the fish would nip at
me. In the winter, I ice skated and
played . hockey. My sled came tumbling
down the hill and across the ice.
From my bedroom window, _ I
listened to the frogs singing in the
night If I climbed up on my dresser,
I could look out the window to the
timber behind that went on and on. I
would scurry with my dog Markey
across the dam of the lake and down
into the woods. Playing stepping
stones ac;ross the creeks were my play
toys.
It was one eventful Sunday morning
that my mother was combing and
braiding my hair for Sunday School
that a wood tick was discovered on
the back of my neck. The wood tick
had grown to the size of a kernel of
corn. My parents tried to soak ii off
with alcohol. Then my dad tried to
burn it off with a giant cigar.
My parents panicked so off I went
to a doctor who was foreign to me.
Probably for the best, because my
usual doctor would still remember
my kicking and screaming with the
last stitches I had. Ole Doc Joe cut
that nasty appendage off and put it in
a jar for me to keep.
After that, When J romped in the
woods or generally outside the door
of the brown house, I was checked for
wood ticks, everytime. To a sevenyear-
old, this became quite a nuisance.
My parents were becoming
tired of rummaging through my hair.
There was chatter about getting a hair
. cut. I suppose I showed too much
excitement at the prospect, for my
mother began to cry. No more cute
little braids with bows. Oh, what a
loss. So they kept rummaging
through my hair.
Children are clever little beings
and I had to figure out a. solution to
this constant rummaging through my
h ead. And suddenly it stmck me. If
I had a hat on when I went out in the
wood s, and a mean wood tick fell on
me, th e hat would protect those
pr ecious curly locks. And I wanted a
baseball hat anyway. My parents
bought the idea . My dad and I
SECOND STONE
My :Baseball Hat
BY JULIA MUELLER
proceeded to the wonderful store with
the wonderful plain, blue, felt baseball
hat.
I wore it to l>ed that night. I broke
in the ·brim real good with nice
creases down the middle and sides.
Rummaging through my hair was no
longer a priority . I loved my hat and
wore it and wore it.
And Grandfather would sit under
the shade tree, asleep, listening to the
Saturday afternoon Cub's game. And
I would throw a rubber ball against
the house. I would take my precious
hat on and off, just like the big league
pitchers did on the television .
I was about.12 when it did not seem
to fit anymore. ay then we had
moved to town . The braids were
long gone . I was a swimmer now
and.short hair was acceptable. And if
you had real short hair, you did not
have to wear a swim .cap during
swim practice and meets. Yes, I can
definitely trace my roots.
I do not remember wearing a
baseball hat in high school or college.
I did, however, have other hats of
d istinction. Then one day when I was
21, someone gave me a _baseball hat.
And I broke in the brim real good.
I am now 42 years old . And still
wearing baseball hats. I have two
New York Yankee hats and two Notre
Dame hats : Those are my teams. I
have a pink one that I painted a pink
triangle on before you could buy such
hats in the stores. I have one that
says March on Washington with a
rainbow flag. People still give me
baseball hats . At times, ! ·have given
some away.
Size snid yes I know wlznt tlze fish menns
but size could not sny tlze ·words. I took
tlze cnp off n11d trnced the outline of t/ze
fislz n11d told lzer I nm n ClzristinH. Size
snid i;cs size knew. ' .
And I have this one particular blue
baseball hat. The Christian symbol of
the fish is embroidered on the hat in
the rainbow colors. I got it for Christmas
from my spouse. A very special
hat.
I wear my hats during all the
seasons of time. I am liable to wear
my hats almost anywhere I go. I
have ·enough hats to fit my mood or
to match the outfit I have on. I
especially like wearing my fish hat.
A while ago, I was at an open
house for a couple who had built a
beautiful log cabin in the woods near
a lake. There were many Christians
there. There were many people who
were not.
I had a wonderful encounter with a
very nice lady. She was retired from
the Navy. And we talked and jabber-
ed and we then talked about my
baseball hat.
She said yes I know what the fish
means but she .could not say the
words. I took the cap off and traced
the outline of the fish and told her I
am a Christian. She said yes she
knew . And I pray for thee and I pray
for me .
I had not realized how important
that hat was to me. · I had not realized
how often I had worn that hat to
places where the hat m'ight' not
always · be welcome. I had not
realized that by wearing that hat in
those places, I was witnessing my
faith.
We Christians rejoice in our
redemption and we pray that others
might come to know the inner peace
of salvation.
And now I am old and grey with
my childhood far away. Yet, what I
learned in Sunday School carries me
through my life today . I have
cherished and . grown into the faith
and the blessings of the Trinity .
And I must admit, that when I was
a child, wood ticks were an awful-part
of my world. Yet without them, maybe
I would not be wearing a baseball
hat today. And when I walk into a
place where Christians might not
always be welcome, l make sur e I am
wearing my fish hat in witnes s. For
the ways that we can witness are so
many.
And to my Navy friend, I pray for
thee and I pray for me.
Julia Mueller attends Jesus MCC in
Indianapolis, Indiana. Her family includes
Oscar the rabbit, Zia tlze dog and tlze special
woman Mueller says site is blessed to lzave
as her mate, Claudia, wlto is student clergy
ofUFMCC. .
"• •
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: . .
No action on sexuality statement until 1997 assembly
THE EV ANGELICAL LUTHERAN
Church in America will proceed with
work on a possible social statement on
human sexuality. However, an
extended time line for study means
the ELCA Division for Church in
Society will not present it for action at
the denomination's next churchwide
assembly, to be held in 1995.
The division's board decided to
distribute about 30,000 copies of a
working draft after receiving advice
from the church's Conference of Bishops
and Church Council. The church
has distributed the do-cument to the
ELCA's 17,000 clergy, 1,300 associates
in ministry and 11,000 congregations.
The Division for Church in Society
was planning to receive responses to
the draft statement until January 31,
1995, and to revise the document for
action as a social statement on human
sexuality by the ELCA churchwide
assembly in August 1995. The
churchwide assembly - the church's
chief legislative body - meets for one
week every other year.
The Conference of Bishops - the
ELCA's 65 synod bishops - voted in
October to recommend "that the time
line for response be extended to June
30, 1995," and "that the 1995 churchwide
assembly take no action on the
working draft."
The executive committee of the
· ELCA Church Cciuncil voted by
conference call October 6, urging the
Division for Church in Society to
"extend the time line to June 30, 1995,
for responses to this working draft"
and to "present a progress report to
the 1995 churchwide assembly." .
The division's board released the
working draft with the direction that
responses would be received until
June 30. It will report on the document's
progr ess to the churchwide
assembly .
As its Sept. 30 meeting the board
GIBELING
From Page 11
he says. Gibeling prayed about
becoming program executive of the
organization and he says the answer
was another piece of scripture: "My
strength is made perfect in weakness
." "I understood that to mean
great things are possible even in the
face of insurmountable odds . And I
looked to see where that scripture
came from," he says. It is the second
part of II Corinthians 12:9, the same
verse that had influepced his life
years earlier. ·
"I took that answer to mean yes,
you should take the job,"' says
Gibeling. On July 1, 1993, he left his
freelance advertising work to become
program executive of Lutherans Concerned,
a job he says he loves.
SECOND STONE
heard the advice of an 11-member
consulting panel set up by the ELCA
Church Council that the church take
more · time before it tries adopting a
social statement on human sexuality.
"We recommend that the document,
after significant work, form the basis
for a report to the churchwide assembly
in 1995. H this report were well
received it could become the basis for
a futur; sociai statement," said the
panel.
Around the Jime the ELCA formed
in 1988 several synods pass.ed resolutions
asking the church to study and
develop social statements on various
aspects of human sexuaHty . T_he
Division for Church in Society studies
social issues and prepares social statements
for the ELCA's consideration
and action. . ·
The division appointed a task force
that began meeting in 1989. The task ·
force coordinated study across the
church and helped develop study
materials and a first draft of a possible
social statement on human sexuality.
· Study materials were first
distributed in December 1991 and the
first draft in October 1993. The first
draft drew a large volume of responses,
mostly negative, from across
the church through the end of June
1994.
"We believe that the first two
documents were looked at carefully
by church theologians and members
of the ELCA. We believe that this
next draft will be 'looked at perhaps
even more closely," said the Rev.
Melissa M. Maxwell-Doherty, consulting
panel chair and pastor of Calvary
Lutheran Church, Grand Forks,
North Dakota. ·
If a social statement were to be
ready for consideration by the 1995
assembly, responses to a draft statement
would need to be received by
The greatest challenge now facing
Lutherans Concerned is to spread the
ministry vision, according to
Gibeling. The greatest ohstacle
facing , the organization - and all
other . denomination-identified gay
and lesbian Christian organizations -
is. the Jack of awareness that they
even exist.
Contrary to the belief that many
have that denomination-identified
groups are giving up their numbers
to more gay-friendly denominations
and independent churches, Gibelmg
says there is. a great deal of hope for
the future of such organizations. For
inspiration, Gibeling needs only
recall a verse of scripture - and the
answered prayers of a troubled
teenaged Lutheran. ·
the end of January - allowing the
church three months for study.
"We think that process of
deliberation within our churches and
among our academic theologians is
important. We are not convinced that
the time line allows for adequate time
for the church to engage in that
continued process of deliberation,"
Maxwell-Doherty said.
The division hired a writing team
of two seminary faculty members and
a parish pastor to condense and revise
earlier documents and to consider all
the responses those documents generated.
The team was appointed during
spring 1994 and wrote the current
draft from July through September.
Catholic group denounces antigay
appeals court ruling
A NOVEMBER 22 ruling by a federal
appeals court upholding the military's
ban on openly gay and lesbian
personnel was harshly criticized by
Catholic Advocates for Lesbian and
Gay Rights . 'The court's ruling
upholding discrimination is
immoral and unjust," said Br. Rick
Garcia, BFCC, director of the group.
"Justice Silberman's suggestion that
homosexual practice would follow
announcement . of a homosexual
orientation is especially offensive to
Catholics, particularly gay priests and
FUTURE
From Page 11
groups as. political in-stead of a
ministry. We seek to lead the church
by example. We cannot wait for
everyone in the church to understand
how acute the need is . Through our
understanding of the Gospel, . we
believe that reaching out first and
helping others help each of us grow
in ·our faith and understanding of
God 's grace:"
Coalition-building is another way
denomination-identified gay and lesbian
Christian groups can empower
themselves in the absence of support
from churchwide offices. According
to Gibeling, dismssion is already
taking place among such groups and
there is consensus to unite with one
voice to gettwo messages across: that
the radical right does not speak for all
people of faith - and that there are
gay and lesbian Christians in many
congregations who welcome them, in
spite of official clmrch policy. ·
'Leaders of Integrity and Lutherans
Concerned have taken the lead in
such discussion . Boards of both 1
groups have agreed in principle to
have joint board meetings and work
toward a joint assembly. The larger
Episcopal and Lutheran churches are
working toward full communion.
The ministry vs. political focus of
Lutherans · .Concerned moves the
organization back to direct service to
individual Gays and Lesbians who
are suffering and feel isolated in the
church. "We_ have to make efforts to
NOVEMB
lesbian nuns who have vowed
celibacy. Just because one is gay does
not mean one will necessarily engage
in homogenital behavior. Not that
that should be a factor in one's
military service." Garcia said that the
court should be ashamed of the
decision . 'The justices have based
their ruling on ignorance and fear at
best and bigotry and hatefulness at
worst," .he said.
break through the barriers to get to
closeted folks in the pews in the back
of the church," Gibeling says : "We
. need to work through pastors and
position ourselves as a resource to
pastors. We need to connect people
and create awareness."
But to go so, the organization must
return to the political battlefield, like
. it. or not. The Evangelical Lutheran
· Church in America has thwarted the
visibility of Lutherans Concerned by
not allowing them advertising space
in · The Lutheran magazine or the
presence _of a booth at the ELCA
chur'ch'Yide assembly.
.. - Gibeling downplay s any negative
impact " that response to the ELCA's
draft statement on human sexuality
may have had on his organization.
'The response from clergy and seminaries
was rather positive," Gibeling
says. 'The large negative response
came from individuals and local
congregations who were reacting to
early press accounts which doomed
·the statement from the beginning.
But it created a great deal of
discussion thaf would not have taken
place otherwise, and ' ii may lead
many congregations to becoming
RIC. So I see some real progress as a
result of these discussions."
Lutherans Concerned celebrated its
20th anniversary at its gathering in
Charlotte this past summer. Gibeling
says one speaker recalled discussions
about choosing a name for the organization
20 years ago. "The original
idea was 'Reformation' inst ea d of
'Lutherans Concerned' - and today the
idea of Lutherans Concerned as a
refor~ organization is right on
target," he says.
ER/DECEMBERl 994
.,
I
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63 c ·hristian leaders affected by flood·
By Rev. Samuel Kader of great excitement at seeing so many New Caney. Guard was coming. We thought helidear
friends, and meeting new ones, The 40 still on the campground had copters would soon hover overhead. Contrib,utin,g Writer . THE ANNUAL NATIONAL
conference of . Advance
Christian Min\s. fries • was
of being affirmed as Christians, and a worship service once we were all We did what we knew to do. We
rejoicing with each other aswe caught gathered in the same cabin . . But as b.egan to worship. It must have
up on each other's news. soon as . the service ended it was sounded to any creatures outside the
scheduled for Oct. 17-23 __ It was stilt'raining . _
with 'at least 180 confirmed registra- . While w e were _eatingfonch in the
tions ·received. Some people arrived · .cafeteria on Monday, the lazy littl e
early' arid began to help prepare · for creek oh either side of the only road
all those arrivals to Houston ·airports . in or out .0 f the• campground swelled
The conference was scheduled to take , over its banks and over the dip in the
place on a rented campground fo , · road. Within a short time those on
New Caney, Texas. Sleeping ar- the one side - of the creek near the
rangements were dormitory style in .entrance to the campground had one
bunk . beds ,- each cabin having ·a building -to -themselves .. The water
men' ·s side, a women's side ·and a -separated us (rom _them and vice
comrriori living room are'a\vith snack · · versa. We had the rest of the campbar
and 'kitchenette . · '" .. ·, , ground; with no way out. . For a time
. The rain began Friday, Oct. 14, we still had phone communication,
before most of us arrived. -It was a -but that was soon lo end.
heavy torrential downpour that let up
for only moments at a time, then
started up .again . It was .still raining
on Sunday; when most of -the early
arrivals .W:ere picking out. cabins._ ..
Monday was an exciting day ·of
anticipat,ion,- . That evening was the
kickoff service for the co_nference,
Rented vans were . busy making <1.ir-,
port runs and with each new arrival
ther {l were old and new. C)lrisliil-11
friends to greet and help get settled ·
onto the campground. It was .a . time
People in the cabins nearest the
· .creek were instru.cted to join everyone
_ else in one des ignated cabin. There
. were 40 people ·on . the campground
with no way out. The water became
too deep to dri ve through for those
who had cars .. There were 23 others
Two
absorbing
accounts
of teenagers
struggling
~with
_ $exuat
orientation
issues ...
. . stranded near the entrance to the
,campground . They quickly gathered
what they could in six cars and
started out of the area to the Red
Cross shelter, a school building in
q,·-,,
1\ij~'\ ,
,~~t . if~_,.,,h ~1~a1>1<>-"v,
~ to~ gav ·"J!O.. }I \
· "f"' 11:, •• ri ~by A'~ ; ,.
edW': ·• ,
. Two ~Teenagers
in Twenty .
Tweive years ·ago Ann Heron
edited One Teenage; in Ten.
. Essays from gay and lesbian
· Generation X:in Heron's new
book reveal a .sense of 'isolation
and -despair ev~ry bit as deep as
a decade ago :
a~~-'-b
Deiltal
s,udws of suicide
in gay and lesbian
______ teenagers _
~: !l ,
Death by Denial:
Studies · of suicide in gay
and lesbian teenagers
An in-depth examination of the
third · leading killer of youth,
accounting for 14 percent of all
deaths among teenagers . Edited
by Gary Remafedi . ~-=m-uan. .· 0 DEATH BY DENIAL, paperbk, $9.95
0 TWO TEENAGERS IN TWENTY, cloth; $17.95
Postage/Handling $2.90 first book, $1.00 ea. additional --~-TOTAL
AMOUNT ENCLOSED
NAME----------------------
ADDRESS _ _____________________ _
CITY/STATEIZl"'-------------~-----ORDER
FROM: SECOND STONE PRESS, P.O. BOX 8340, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70182
SECOND STONE
obvious the creek was still rising. It way it did to the Philippian prisoners
was still i;aining. We were instructed as Paul and Silas worshipped iri.
to take one .change of clothes, our prison at midnight.
toiletries, and our bedding and head
to the cabin further yet from the
creek, and on slightly higher ground.
Those is our midst who had cars took
us and our backpacks, pillows,
suitcases, briefcases, hairdryers and
mousse to our next refuge station.
Rain, rain, rain. -
While it was still -night, there were
no overhead helicopters, only rain
clouds pouring out more rain. But,
yes, there was something else.
Angels. They were everywhere. We
couldn't see them, but it was obvious
we were being cared for. During our
At 4 a.m. they came running into each
side of the sleeping quarters, turned on
the lights and told all of us to get up
because the river had now reached our
cabin. No sooner did they say this than
trater started rushing _in under the
/ doors from outside. · ·
This was getting serious . One
building was already flooded. It was
dark outside. We were damp . As
soon as ev eryone got settled in our
new cabin, we worshipped again,
then many went lo sleep for the
night. . A · handful of night owls
stayed up all night watching the rain
and talking on the front covered
porch. At 4 a.m. they came running
into each side of the sleeping quarters,
turned on the lights and told all
of us to get up because the river had
now · reached our cabin. No sooner
did they say this than the wat er
started rushing in under the doors
from outside. My flannel top sheet
was partly dragging on the floor, and
by the time I jumped out of bed, it
was already soaking up river water
from the flood.
Meanwhile, put on the road, of. the
six cars that drove out of the campground
toward the shelter, only three
mi'lde it. The other three got to a
point where the water had risen over
the road and they could go no
further. As they tried to head the
other way another river swallowed
up the road behind them. They
spent the night driving forward from
the river behind them then backing
up from the river in front of them, as
the amount of roadway they had kep.t
shrinking. It too~ the occupants of
this nomadic caravan until Tuesday to
reach the shelter.
At 4 a .m. all the residents of the
cabin were out of bed, and gathered
in the living room to get further
instructions . We thought boats were
early predawn worship, we )lad an
exhortatiqn -from the Won:l,;of-,God,
from Isaiah 43:1-2: But not-thus saith
the Lord that created thee, 0 Jacob, and
he that formed thee, 0 Israel,· Fear not;
for I have redeemed thee, l have called
thee by thy name; thou art mine. When
thou passest through the waters, I will be
with thee, and through the rivers, they
shall not overfl<YUi thee. _ ·
The Lord said He would redeem us.
After dawn, and sometime near
mid-morning a helicopter flew overhead.
We wondered how we were
going to get up to it. It didn't stay . It
couldn't land. By this time water in
the cabin was mid calf to knee deep.
It was still raining. Twenty-six inches
of rain fell on Monday alone.
Around noon, we heard the motor
boat. Two Christians, Stan and Dan,
Baptists from Peachcreek Baptist
Church, arrived at the cabin in a boat
one of them owned. The Lord said he
would redeem us. These guys were
not -with the government, but were
private citizens, serving God, using
the fish and loaves at their disposal to
serve the Lord, as did the young
child in the Gospels who gave what
he had to Jesus to feed the multitudes .
The boat they had co~Jd only hold
four of us at a time. The boat ride
round trip, to come and get the next
load of passengers, took over an hour .
Dan and Stan labored as Christians
for over 12 hours, well into the night
on Tuesday to see that all of us were
coming. We thought the National SEE FLOOD, Next Page
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER1994
..
'
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Advance '94 brings· showers of blessings
. By Robyn Brown
Contributing Writer
t this year's Advance conferen~
e, we found _ourselves
runmng an emergency
shelter and ministering .
among ourselves and to others who
had lost their homes, possessions and
family treasures to the Houston flood.
There were 23 of us to assist with a
shelter to 250 people . Truly a chance
for the ten percent to minister to the
ninety .
Bishop Stephanie Williams
reminded us of Psalm 4:1, "Hear me
when i call, 0 God of my righteousness:
Thou hast enlarged me
when I was in distress ... " God
enlarged m, in our distress! Not one
person had gone untouched by this
flood experience. We had planned in
our human wisdom to enlarge our
minds on the subjects of discipleship,
and preaching and teaching all
creation and all nations. But God had
given us a workshop for a hands-on
application of our faith as we reached
out to the suffering community
around us - a community with which
we would not have normally have
had contact. God had enlarged us
beyond our fears and comfort zones.
He had pushed us to our limits and
He had provided the _strength to
survive and grow.
By Thursday the waters had
receded from the campgrounds .
There was a tearful goodbye from
Karen, the Red Cross director, as the
buses loaded. We had been her
FLOOD,
From Previous Page
rescued. The dry ground they took
us to was a partially submerged roadway
where several more Baptists in
their vans were waiting to get us up
to Peachcreel, Baptist Church . We
slept in the hallways and Sunday
School rooms of their fellows hip hall.
They fed us, gave us clothing, bedding,
and Jots of love. We-said grace
with them, and joined all our voices
together as spontaneous worship
broke out in our midst. But the
Advance attendees weren't the only
guests to spend the night. People
whose homes and all worldly .belongings
were under water were also with
us, including a widow who had lost
everything. It wasn't long before gay
pastors and Christian s in our midst
were ministering to her and other
hurting folks among us . What fellowship,
what a flow of the spirit of
God.
Meanwhile, back at the Red Cross
s helter, the oth er p a rt of our group
was doing the sa me thing. Th ey
were feeding the elderly. The shelter
SECO ND S T O NE
volunteers and her new foun·d
"family" to whom she had come out.
After we gathered our belongings
into the Magnolia cabin that had not
been flooded and the Sunset cabin we
gathered to thank the Lord for our ·
survival without loss of life. Pastor
Tom Hirsch mused, 'How many of
us, if asked by God to pay money to
come to Texas and struggle through a
flood and help with the cleanup,
would have said 'Send me! Send
me!'?" ·
We spent the next day and a half
assisting Richard and Priscilla by
cleaning _the camp. We cleaned the
cafeteria and kitchen, washed hundreds
of dishes arid cleaned out
freezers and pantries. We. moved
furniture and mattresses out of the
cabins into the open air to dry. We
cleaned the chapel and washed
hundreds of folding chairs. The work
that SO-something workers did in a
day and a half would have taken
Richard and Priscilla's crew of seven
several months to complete. Following
a previous smaller flood no one
from the church that Richard and
Priscilla had been attending offered to
help with the cleaning. . However,
they did want to know if the grounds
wou l d be cleaned in time for their
picnic. Richard and Priscilla are not
attending that church anymore .
While they were gone to a wedding
on Saturday we provided them an
additional · gift. We cleaned their
personal home from top to bottom
and washed all of their clothing.
This is the church as God had
intended! A church in action ministering
to the community around it. A
church reaching outside its four walls
to a community that is dying at the
very corners of its magnificent
edifices. We cannot wait for our community
to come to us. We have to go
to them and minister to their needs
before they will seek the higher
things of God.
Pastor Tom Hirsch mused, "How many
of us, if asked by God to pay money
to come to Texas and struggle
through a flood and help with the
cleanup, would have said 'Send me!
The last time that I saw my spouse
Bill on Monday, he was standing on
the far side of the newly formed pond
holding an umbrella as I waded
through waist-deep water _rescuing
luggage. During our two days apart
I had to face my materialism . I
finally came to a place where I did
not care what of our "things" were .
saved as long as Bill was okay. God
had enlarge d me at my weakest
point. As we quietly sat together on
Thursday God sent us a sign of
encouragement. Between the
Goldenrod and the Rainbow cabins
there is a magnolia tree. Magnolias
Send me!'?"
at the school had around 300 homeless
flood victims. The Christians
from Advance jumped in to help the
Red Ctoss, so much so that the head
of the Red Cross at our shelter told
them to stop sending her volunteers,
she had all she could use from the
"victims." Out people were unloading
the trucks as they came in,
helping to serve the food, staffing the
phones throughout the night so the
Red Cross staff could get some rest,
and ministering in countless other
ways.
On Tuesday the Red Cross sent a
school bus to the Peachcreek Baptist
Church, and reunited our conference.
They gave tl.s our own room in the
school so we could all be together .
The Advance conference continued
right there in the school. Some of the
people staying at the school shelter
joined us for worship . And we kept
on serving.
The theme for the 1994 Advance
was "Go Into All the World."
God had a plan ·to give us practical
application of the theme. We were
not able to stay cloistered and hidden
and just read about the great commi
ssion and discus s it. We were
foC1=ed to do it!
After .the flood wat ers re ceded we
were able to · go back to the campground
to salvage our belongings left
behind in the first cabin we had
stayed in, th e things left in the
original sanctuary, or in the registration
area, or administration buildings.
Thursday the buses rolled onto the
campgrounds . · Many of us, the vast
majority .in fact, stayed until the
scheduled end of the conference. We
had learned the lessons well.
-are a spring blooming tree, but there,
following the flood, sat a tree crowned
by · two large White blossoms. The
trees were rejoicing.
us could -ever be the-same: It -was -life
changing, as well as a ministry
changing conference.
. And there were her oes and
heroines · in out midst, too many to
mention. There was great humot and
fellowship also. As one sister said at
the Red Cross shelter, "It's hard tocop
an attitude when you're wearing
someone else's underwear!"
The greatest thing I will remember
was the ministry. The Baptists to us.
We to others . Going into all the
world. And the worship. Hearts just
filled with gratitude for a new lease
on life cailnot take God for granted.
I thank God for the attitude adjustments
I received, and the things I
learned. Some people heard Advance
was canceled this year . Not so.
It was probably the most profound
one yet! · May we learn the lessons
tha t were taught, and give them out
as we go into all the world.
There were losses. Advance Chris-·
tian Ministries had all its sound
equipment, tape decks, keyboard and
other electron ic equipment submerged
in flood . waters, including a
· laser printer . The people with cars
who had shuttled us to the higher
ground cabin all had their cars
submerged to the windshields. But
even these Christians kept saying,
'These are only material things."
When the group was separated, somE!
of that separation took place in
households, with one spouse on one Samuel Kader is Sr. Pastor and
side of the river and the other still on co-founder of Community Gospel Churc/1
the campground. Losing luggage in Dayton, Ohio. Advance Christian
and clothing and ev en a personal Ministries is located· in Dallas, Texas.
computer or two paled by comparison Gifts to offset the losses of Advance may
to having reassurance y ou~ loved one be sent to Rev. Thomas Hirsch, Director,
w as all right . Life took on a new Advance Christian Ministries, 4001-C ·
p erspective, and I do n't think any of Maple A venue, Dallas, TX 75219.
N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R l 9 9 4
................... ............. ..·..I·.n...P. ..r..i. nt
Last work of "dean of the homophiles"
By William A. Percy
Contributing Writer
Homophfle Studies in Theory and
Practice, written and edited by W.
Dorr Legg, assoc. eds . Da_vi_d G.
Cameron and Walter L. Williams:
GLB Publishers, San Francisco, 464
pp., 1994.
Homophile Studies in Thwry and
Practice may be this year's best book
and is certainly a fitting tribute lo
One Institute and to Dorr Legg who
died in July of this year. It reiterates
his .continuing insistance .. on the
necessity of homophile sluqies which
has blossomed from One Institute to
many of the finer institutions of
higher education and is now traveling
to the high school level.
A registered Republican, 90 years
of age al his death, Dorr. Legg,
founder, director, and from 1981 to
1994, dean of One Institute, modestly
excerpts from the papers delivered at
its convening and articles published
by One Magazine to produce not only
a guide for gay arid lesbian studies
but a history of our oldest ongoing
homophile institution. He has
skillfully Woven together documents
from over 40 years and demonstrated
in passing that scholars .there and
elsewhere gradually turned the tide
in the disciplines theretofore dominated
by homophobia. Haying edited
the pioneer Homosexuals Today in
1956, he taught innovative courses at
One, achieving the unofficial status of
"dean of the homophiles."
In the wake of World War II
homosocialism, the Kinsey's Sexual
Behavior in the Human Male in 1948
and Sexual Behavior of the Human
Female in 1953 challenged the homophobic
stereotypes of American
Freudians, physicians, jurists, clerics,
and academics in demeaning homosexuals
as sick, untrustworthy, <:riminal,
and sinful.
One Institute went from crisis to
crisis in its early years challenging
the all ·pervasive (hegemonic) homophobia
of the 1950's and 60's while
others were hiding or partying. It
resisted ignorance, intolerance, and
injustice and attempts to treat and
"cure" us.
Before and after the Mattachine
Society collapsed in . the early 70's, it's
founder, Harry Hay, and fellow
ex-communist Jim Kepn~r along with
Don Slater worked with One. Legg
and his associates resumed the work
begun by Magnus Hirschfeld whose
institute Hitler destroyed in 1933
along with the whole German
homosexual emancipation movement.
Christopher Isherwood frequented
One as did Rudy Gengrich, who had
become Harry Hay's lover. One
Institute even had Henry Gerber
speak, the World War I veteran, who,
inspired by the German movement,
organized the first American homosexual
group in Chicago in 1924.
Perhaps most effective was the
married, straight psychologist Evelyn
Hooker . With assistance from One
regarded us, enhancing our emancipation,
toleration, and acceptance, In
i953 the Supreme Court of the United
States, in the first case it ever
considered involving homosexuality,
overturned the postal authorities' .
prohibition on One Magazine which
lower . courts had defined as pornography.
Vern Bullough, the "dean"
of gay historians, was long associated
w.ith One; John Money, Professor of
Medicine at Johns Hopkins who
formulated pro-gay biological theories
and with Richard Green wrote The
Transsexual Syndrome in Homosexual
Males in 1974; and the Harry
Benjamin International Gender
Dysphoria Association which studied
transsexuals; were, also, involved in
the institutes's work.
One Instilute's first Ph.D., Paul
Hardman, published his thesis,
HamoaffectionalismM: ale BondingF ram
Gilgamesh To The Present (1993).
Board member, Professor Walter
Williams of the University of Southern
California studied berdasche and
further undermined the homophobic
stereotypes of anthropologists assailed
so ably by Yale Professors Clellan
Steams Ford and Frank A. Beach in
Patternso f Sexual Behavior(1 951), John
DeCecco's Journal of Homosexuality,
our most scholarly publication, has
cooperated with One Institute for over
two decades.
· Whether · working behind the
scenes for legal reform such as those
in the Mattachine Society of )"'hich
Arthur Warner was the leading
lawyer, or the first to demonstrate as
Frank Kameny did, or writing like
the Kinsey Institute associate, C. A.
Tripp, The Homosexual Matrix (1975),
they assailed and undermined . the old
homophobic theories.
The efforts of lawyers and the
intellectual elite had other beneficial
results such as Sir John Wolfenden,
head of England's parliamentary
committee, advocating decriminalization
of sodomy in 1957. The new
model penal code of the American
Bar Association (1961) also did so,
although only Illinois adopted it
before Stonewall. .- 1
Homophile Studies in Theo1y and
Practice details the woncierful achievements
of a group of unsung and very
dedicated individuals and organiza.
tions. · It is a wonderful and fascinating
description of the homosexual
movement before Stonewall that is
unknown to most. It is a must read
for those wishing to understand our
movement and a fitting tribute to
Dorr Legg who devoted.50 rnurh of
his life .and energy to that movement.
William A. Percy is a Professor of
History at the University of Massachusetts
at Bos/cm, He is an Associate Editor
of the Encyclopedia of Homosexuality
(Garland, 1990) and the author of
Pederasty and Pedagogy in Archaic
Greece (University of Illinois Press,
forthcoming).
---------------. , she proved that on Rorschach tests
k-1t he spiriot f 5t. Fratci5a nc5:lt . and in other accepted measures of
. Clarew, ere~ .~ l,uilt;b-a
anc:~l IM(8l'6 tojoumey'with
· ooi i the foot6t.epo5 f Jee;usC hrist.
mental .health and ability most homosexuals
were as normal, productive,
and conscientious as straights, in fact,
indistinguishable from them. This
assertion flew in the face of theories
based on examinations of troubled or
institutionalized homosexuals about
our degeneration or immaturity.
The Word Is Out
·ud/JO We are an ecumenical,
inclusive, non-clerical
Qi>,. community of baptize? men
CV
and women from various
Chris.tian traditions who
,.0 chose to worship and live in
~
• . a faith-sharing spirit.
You may become an
· ~ Associate or enter the
program leading to the
profession of vows a.s a
~
.t:!!2 religious Brother or Sister.
Ask to receive our
newsletter, "Footsteps."
We work in ministries
of love,. care and reconciliation
nationwide ..
For more information,
please_write to:
MERCOYF G ODC OMMUNITY
Att: Vocation Director
P. 0. Box 41055
Providence, RI 0 29 40 -10 55
SECOND STONE
By scholarship, education, and
outreach One fostered steady
improvement in the way society
!~~' ~<~,~r
. Tiie
, . ~{~~1t!~~
On 100 beautiful acres with
pool, hot tub, skiing and more.
Jnnkeapers Judith Hall and
Grace Newman invite you to
write or ca1\ for a brochure.
P. 0. Box 118 SL
Bethle_hem, NH 03574
(603) 869-3978 .
. CHRIS GLASER'S unique meditation
book, The Word Is Out, is a resource
for gay men and Lesbians interested
in redaiming the affirmation often
denied them by many religious
traditions . Glaser shows how coming
out and living in a predominantly
heterosexual world is affirmed .by the
Bible's call to lamentation, liberation,
and community.
To reflect this universality, each
month's meditations are centered on
issues corresponding lo · both the
Christian and the gay and lesbian
calendars. For June, Gay Pride
month, Glaser illumines the Bible's
encouraging words of liberation and
victorious celebration. In keeping
with the Christian period of mourning
and lamentation throughout
February and March, Glaser affirms
the anger and pain of dealing with
AIDS, gay bashing, and discrimination,
By interrelating the goals, failures,
and victories of many liberation
movements, The Word Is Out speaks
not oiuy to Gays and Lesbians, but
also to other groups who have long
been excluded. by the churc:h's
struggle with racism, sexism, and
classism. "Liberation changes the
very form of this world!," writes
Glaser . "Whether deliverance from
Chris Glaser
oppression, salvation from sin, or
freedom from legalism, liberation
transforms our experience of God's
realm."
Chris Glaser is a graduate of Yale
Divinity who reconciled his spirituality
with his homosexual orientation
despite the limited support from his
religious community. ·
NOVEMBER/DECEMBERl 994
' • I
...................................l.n...P...r..i.n...t.. .......................
25th anniversary reprinting of Rev. Perry's book
THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD and
He Knows I'm Gay is the frank and
revealing portrait of Rev. Troy Perry,
gay rights pioneer and founder of the
Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan
Community Churches. It was. the first
book ever written by an openly gay
Christian when jt was originally published
in 1972. ·
The 25th anniversary edition
describes the dramatic events leading
to the creation of the UFMCC in 1968,
and the-heroic struggles of the church
in its early years.
Preaching a simple message of
God's love for Gays and Lesbians,
Rev. Perry has guided his denomination
to tremendous growth. There are
now nearly 300 Metropolitan Community
Churches in 16 countries.
The Lord is My Shepherd and He
K_nowsI 'm Gay is Rev. Perry's autob10graphy,
beginning with his childhood
in Florida and Georgia. He
reveals the development of his sexual
identity, from his first sexual explora-
In Print, briefly ...
Confessioonfsa
JewisWh agnerite
Thisn ewb ookb y LawrencDe . Mass
is subtitledB eingG aya ndJ ewishin
America. Says Michaelangelo
Signorile",a s penetratinagn dp rofounda
s It is stylisha nde ntertaining.
It takesa journeya crossa breathtakingw
orlds catterewd itht he horrorso (
AIDS,h omophobisae, lf-loathing,
hatreda nda nti-Semitistmo a place
of meaninga nd purpose.'
OneT eacheinr T en:G ay
andL esbiaEnd ucators
TellT heiSr tories
Gaya ndl esbiante achersh ave
traditionalldyw elti n the deepesot f
closetsf,e aringfo r theirc areers.
Butt oday,a n increasirin~u mber
of young. peoplea re beingt aught
by teachersw hoa reo ut andp roud.
In this book,e ducatortsa lka bout
theirs truggleas ndv ictoriesin the
classroom.
KevinJ enningse,d itoor f
OneT eacehr in Ten
•FromA lysonP ublications
SECOND STONE
Rev, Troy Perry
lions to the passionate romances of a
proud gay man. He describes his
struggle to follow God's . call, even
when his Penecostal ministry and his
LETTERS,
From Page4
now.
What she doesn't understand it that
all of her preaching won't change me.
I still love her but I have other needs
as well - and down deep is the desire ·
to be loved.
At present our Presbyteri.an church
is having dialogue sessions on
homosexuality. This. could be a great
eye opener for my bride if only she
would try one session, but her mind
is made up. She is the one who
convinced me that I was different
even before we married each other.
For better or worse?
Enlightened,
foe Nolan
West Hollywood, California
Problems with
UMC's definition
of llpracticing
homosexual"
· Dear Second Stone,
I read with interest your brief
notation on page four of the Sept/Oct,
1994 issue telling of the attempt of the
California-Pacific Annual Conference ·
of the United Methodist Church to
come up with a definition of the
disciplinary phrase "self-avowed practicing
homosexual."
As a member of that Annual
Conference, I would agree that the
definition adopted by the CaliforniaPacific
Annual Conference is •excellent
at trying to "stave off witch hunts" by
heterosexual marriage were destroyed
by officials who condemned
his sexual orientation. Throughout
the book, he provides readable
explanations of the Bible, including
texts that have been misused to
condemn homosexuality. The result
is a lively and empowering book for
gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered
people, as well as anyone
interested in civil rights or spirituality.
Reading The Lord is My Shepherd
and He Knows I'm Gay is like sitting
carefully delineating that which is,
and is not, "self-avowal." However,
there remain some serious problems
with the part of the definition which
delineates "practicing homosexual." ·
These problems led another pastor,
the Rev. Richard R. Bentley, Jr., and
myself, tci request an Episcopal Ruling
on whether the definition adopted
meets the requirements of the United
Methodist Book of Discipline. Bishop
Roy I. Sano ruled that the definition
does comply with the Book of Discipline.
However, in accordance with
the rules of the United Methodist
Church, all Episcopal _Rulings are
reviewed and affirmed, modified or
overturned by the Judicial Council of
the denomination.
The Judicial Council will be
reviewing this ruling at an upcoming
meeting.
Sincerely,
I11omaHs . Griffith,P astor
Crescent Heights
United Methodist Church
Woodland, California
On owning stock
in homophobic
companies
Dear Second Stone,
Three years ago I read a letter to
the editor in Second Stone that caught
my attention. The writer said that if
, you want to make a statement against
the homophobic policies of Carls Jr.
and Crack!!r Barrel restaurants, you
should buy their stock! Just one
share! What a concept!
I bought one share of Cracker
Barrel at 34-1/2 and three shares of
Karcher at 9. Those transactions totaled
$61.50. The cost of the trades
brought the total to $117.50.
Each of these stocks pays a
quarterly dividend, and every three
months I get a check from Cracker
Barrel for one cent and a check from
Karcher Enterprises (now CKE Restaurants)
for six cents. I don't bother
cashing them; it's more fun giving
·them away as souvenirs and thinking
down for an initmate chat with Rev.
Perry, to laugh and cry with him as
he tells in his own words of the
adventures he has lived. It is a story
of pain and struggle, a story of
'triumph over homophobia and bigotry,
an authentic slice of an inspiring
life.
The 25th anniversary edition of The
Lord is My Shepherda nd He KnowsI 'm
Gay includes a new introduction
written by Rev. Perry, as well as the·
introduction for the original 1972
edition.
how much it costs the companies just
to process them.
Last year Cracker Barrel split three
for two. Since I didn't have two
shares to split, the company had to
reissue me a stock certificate for one
share and send a check for $14.53 for
the fractional share I was due. I
cashed it.
Every six months each company
sends me a financial report. At the
end of the fiscal year I receive a
beautiful slick magazine in full color
extolling each company's virtues.
Each also sends me a thick notice of
the annual shareholders' meeting
along with my ballot to vote for
directors and any pending issues. I
dutifully mark the ballot and return it
in the post-paid envelope. This way I
know what they are doing.
All in all, I feel good about costing
Carls Jr. and Cracker Barrel so much
money. I wonder how many other
people responded to that letter and
bought just one share. '1/clPts of
people did, maybe the homophobes
would get the message and get it
right some day.
If any Second Stone readers want to .
become involved in this unique oneperson/
one~shate activist project, they
may contact any stock broker: Be
sure to tell the broker to have the
stock certificate serit to you. You can
frame it and use.'it'for a dart board.
(Actually, since you . might want to
sell the share some day, it's better to
make copies . for dart boards. Back
them with cork, frame them, and ·use
them for gifts.)
Sincerely,
Betty Hornbostel
(Readersw ho want additionailn formation
may contact Ms. Hornbostel at (916)
662-8970.)
VO Alb~ o(i~ ~ ,/ ' \i"!t ~ ,· 5./
• ~ {I.
/~ ,jg
- -~~~
bfc Et-J\'Q
NOVEMBER/DECE MBER1994
I • •
Calendar . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . .
A Reforming Church:
Gift and Task
NOVEMBER 17-19, Central Lutheran
Church in Minneapolis is the setting
for this conference for pastors and lay
people. This gathering is designed to
lift up the reforming spirit · of the
Lutheran movement, affirm the
Lutheran perspective on God's Word
as a dynll!llic living word and provide
a forum for ELCA people who
see that human sexuality is one of the
area s needing theological work. Cost
is $75 per person . For information
contact Allison Bondy, Central
Lutheran Church, (612)870-4416.
Week of Prayer
for Christian Unity
JANUARY 18-25, 1995, For material
and information contact Grayrnoor
Ecumenical & Interreligious Institute,
Garrison , NY, (914)424-3458.
Healing the Wounds
of Heterosexism
FEBRUARY 10-12, 1995, "Creating a
Home in the? Church: Healing the
Wounds of Heterosexism," with
Presbyterian evangelist Janie Spahr,
. . . . . . . . . . . . . ~ . . .
will be a weekend of worship,
workshops and frivolity focused on
helping congregations become more
welcoming of lesbian, gay and
bisexual Christians . To be held in
various St. Louis metropolitan area
chur~hes, the event is sponsored by
Other Sheep, an international and
ecumenical ministry activP\y pro-
-claiming God 's love for au people .
For more information, contact Other
Sheep at 319 North Fourth St., Ste.
902, St. Louis, MO 63102,
(314)822-3297, (314)776-4483.
11th Annual
Interweave
Convocation
FEBRUARY 17-19, 1995, Interweave,
Unitarian Universa:lists for Lesbian,
Gay, Bisexual and Transgender ·
Concerns sponsors its annual gathering
in Raleigh, North Carolina . Over
200 participants are expected for three
days of celebration, worship, ·program
s, worksh pps, and more.
Included is a workshop on ecumenical
organizing presented by Rev. Morris
Hudgins, a Unitarian Universalist
pastor, and Rev. Jimmy Creech, a
United Methodist pastor and staff
CAUGHT IN THE CROSSFIRE:
Helping Christians
Debate Homosexualtiy
Few other issues divide the
Christian community more
sharply than homosexuality.
In this new volume, wri~rs
with divergent poi.pts of view _
. deal with questions at the
center of the debate between
pro-gay and anti-gay believers.
Edited by Sally B. Geis, director, Iliff
Institute, Lay and Clergy· Education, The
llijf School of Theology, Denver , and
Donald E . Messer, president, The llifj
School of Theology.
Order now from Second Stone Press
Quan.
□ . -CAUGHT IN THE CROSSFIRE
By Geis/Messer, $12.95, paperbk ----,--,-
P01tag&'Handling"$2.90 first book, $1.00 ea. additional --~-TOTAL
AMOUNT ENCLOSED ------'--
NAME---~-----------,----------
ADDRESS ____________________ _
CITY/STATE/ZIP ____ --- ____________ _
ORDER FROPif; SECOND STONEPRESS, P.O. BOX 8340, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70182 _
SECOND STONE 4D
~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
member of the North Carolina
Council of Churches. For information
contact Bonnie Blue Crouse, 2001
Boone Ave ., Winston-Salem, NC
27103, (910)722-0421. -
Communication
Ministry Convocation
APRIL 27-30, 1995, Convocation is a
national gathering of Catholic -priests,
brothers and nuns. Last year, just
over 100 gay and bisexual priests and
brothers and lesbian sisters, and
friends, met in Orlando to explore
'The Goodness of Being Gay." For
many participants, it was the first
time they had ever been able to be so
open about their sexuality and to
experience an empowering
atmosphere of acceptance. The theme
of -this year's gathering is -"New
Expressions of Being Gay or Lesbian
in the Catholic Church: Our Myths
and Our Stories," For information on
this conference write to CMI, P.O. Box
60125, Chicago, IL 60660-0125.
Announcements of interest to gay, lesbian
and bisexual Christians are welcome
and will be .included free of charge.
Send to Second Stone, P.O. Box 8340,
New Orleans, LA 70182 or FAX to
(504)891-7555. -
ry"our '13roRg.n :J{eart
(joif wif! tafJ your lieart tfiat's 6rofJn,
'But tlie pieces must 6e tliere.
'Every lieartaclie, every failure,
'Every 6ittenuss anif care.
;J{e's. tlie (joif of tliings once sfiattereif
Jllntf now, cruslieif unto ifespair,
Jllntf ;J{e'{{ tafJ antf recreate it,
'But tlie pieces mwt 6e tliere.
'.)'ou cannot witfilioft{ a portion,
Or some unforgiven ifeea!
;J{e must fiave eac/i. part antf cfumwer,
If ;J{e is to meet your neetl.
'.)'ou cannot witfifwft{ your sorrow
!{or tlie UYilea one, torn away;
Or your fears a6out to,norrow
J1l fttr trials <if toaay .
Jll{[ tlie years "6y fccust eaten, "
;J{e'{{ restore, antf {ijt tlie fcaa
'l1i.at for so fclttJ, you've carrieif
'[)_own a aarftantf {one[y r~aa!
;J{e's tlie (joif of uves once sfiatterelf
Yl.na. now, tfwuglit 6eyontf repair ...
Jllntf ;J{e'{{_ f:aK! your lie.an tfiat's 6rol@n,
'But tlic~ej ieas =t 6e. tlierel
. Jl(Jt.tfiryn 'Vivian ~atilttJ
'"Bfesseif are :t!iey tfiat ,no urn ... for tliey sfial[ 6e
wmforntl." - !Mattliew 5:4
NOVE · MBER/DECEMBERl 994
··:ff· ·.
W NoteworWth y .... ~ ~ ........ ~. ~ ~, .. ~ ......... ~ ~.
LutheranCso ncerncerde ates
ministfroyr p arents
4LUTHERANS CONCERNED/North
America has announced the introduction
of a new ministry specifically
designed to meet the spiritual needs
of parents, families and friends of
lesbian, gay and bisexual people.
The venture · is part of the organization's
effort to serve people in
ministry areas that the institutional
church is reluctant to face, and "to
lead the church by example." "Our
research has shown that parents and
family members often experience
their own special pain, alienation and
rejection, sometimes even within the
church," said Bob Gibeling, program
executive for Lutherans Concerned .
'They also become very powerful
advocates for change once they have
come to a new understanding of their
faith and scripture." Further commenting
on the new outreach,
Gibeling said, "Other organizations
who sponsor parents and family support
groups aren't designed to address
sexual orientation issues in a
specific religious context. So Lutherans
Concerned is filling a spiritual
qiche that is unique."
Horvatshn apsh ortte nure
streaka tB atonR ougceh urch
A}OIE DE VIVRE MCC of Baton
;ouge, Louisiana, celebrated Rev.
Nancy Horvath's third anniversary as
its pastor with a reception in her
honor on October 2. The third
an_niversary is particularly significant
irt the almost 11-year history of the
Baton Rouge church because Rev.
Horvath is the first pastor to stay
beyond a two-year tenure. "We
knew we were accepting God's call
when we came to Baton Rouge, and
we continue to know that is true,"
said Horvath. "A lot of great things
have happened here during the past
tjlree years, and I'm happy to have
~een a part of them and to have the
chance to be a part of the great things
that are yet to come."
lesbian Christian groups in Durban
are working strongly, according to
Wakeford; and having to split to
accommodate the growth. Rev.
George Irvine of the Methodist
Church has come out strongly on behalf
of the gay Christian community
and over 250 were• invited to -hear ,
him l!peak on gay and lesbian· faith
issues. Desert Streams, an ex-gay
ministry, is also at work in Durban.
Newo utreacphe rsofno rR CP
4JAMES PRESTON has begun :working
in the Reconciling Congregations
Program national office as its new
outreach staff person. Preston is an
elder in the Northwest Texas Conference
of the United Methodist
Church and has been serving as
associate pastor of St. John's UMC in
Lubbock, Texas. Preston was raised
in a Baptist family and became a
Methodist during college. He earned
his M.Div. at the Perkins School of
Theology.
Gayl,e sbiaPn entecostals
. getn ewc hurches
4THE NATIONAL GAY PENTEcostal
Alliance · has announced the
beginning of two new churches. The
Apostolic Church of Jesus Christ,
pastored by Bro. Tommy Curley, is
opening in Rochester, New York, and
Abundant Life Worship Center, pas•
tored by Bro, David Farrell, is in the
planning stages in Charlotte, North
Carolina. The National Gay Pentecostal
Alliance operates churches in
New York, Michigan, Arizona,
Georgia, North Carolina, Alabama,
and Arkansas. For information about
this organization or its churches
contact NGPA, P.O. Box 1391,
Schenectady, NY 12301-1391.
QUOTABLE
' "ESA [Evangelicals for Social
WesleyaHno linesNse twork Acti01i] cannot be silent while
4THE WESLEYAN HOLINESS Gay evangelicals are being tempted
and Lesbian Network has been into hysterfr:al animosity
started by a gay Christian, Kent against Gays an.d Lesbians.
Schwob, and two straight Church of . And those of (ts· who issued the
tbe Nazarene ministers, Michael J; · · Chicago Declaration II ought ·
Christensen and Brya_n Stone. to have used this occasion to ,.
Christensen is the author of C. S.
I;ewis on ScriptiJre.a nd. T/Je Samaritan call the church to repentance
imperative, both published by Abing- for its homophobia. We should
qon I'ress. Readers may contact The have condemned the '
y,Jesleyan Holiness Network in care of ' . ' difci'_ii'n_i nation _against Gays
$,chwob at 3540 North Pennsylvania r .. •· . , ,,.
~treet, #F, Indianapolis, IN 46205. and Lesbians that the church.
Wakeforcdo ntinuemsi nistry
inS outhA frica
iREV JOAN WAKEFORD continues
aj. minstry to reach gay and lesbian
Chri~H!!n~) 11,so_μth Africa. .Gay,. aJJd
SECOND STONE
has steadily ignored. "
-Evangelical Christian author
Tony Campolo
, ,.,,'.;_.· -·
The .first tim.e
· they'll -thank you.
is at Christmas.
What other Chri.stmas prese~t can you give that, well .. , gives again?°Friends,to
whom you give a gift su~scription to Second. Stone willbe_th_a n.k. ·in g. y. o·,I!
around Valentme'.s Day and Easter, about Gay Prid~ . ·
time ... on Independence Day, and around National
Coming Out Day. Second Stone ... a Christmas ·
gift that's not just for Christmas. ·
Yes ...
Please send a gift
subscription and card
in my name to the
person(s) listed:
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Add $10 for each
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,_}·,·"\~'· IN)tnttourrs
,- V, FT IIE L onn
...
i Jt
A moving and personal
account of an issue
that won't go· away. A ·
best-seller in Canada::
and soon to be a mcition .
picture . . ·. · · ' . ;, · ..
~ -~~ , _;_,:; ._,u:,t.:~: }'L
, ,. It will ni\11,e you thiQk, it ~U ~~ke ,';, ;fi_
you angry . and hopefullJ, 1I w,11 ;:!c,; •·
, · ' broadenyQitr ..v isio.n-0fwha! ,'1<>t,h • · ., , ·
.. sexuality and Christial)ity at ·lh,l'ir
· best can ,.be • ·· . :-' ""'~ t
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St,.J Q,lf;1"l1'J~w•B. r'i4nsl<(ic. l/c
James Fi;~·h-;~-~1J;a~ ~g;;\~;rr
these .. · and ·is·hiniself' · ~;!~in ~r (h~_i¼r~~~ ~
Order now from Second Stone Press
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BIBLI CAL "CO NDEMNATION" of gays
examined by Columbia University graduate
with a decade of UFMCC membership. $3.95
for 26 page booklet. H& S/SS, POB 221841,
Charlotte NC 28222.
MAGAZIN E FOR HOMESTEADERS! Our
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"WO N DER FUL DIVERSITY," ' "Heartil y
recomm ended , 11 "Philo s ophically intriguing
, 11 "E xcellent. 11 Why do reviewers
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CHRISTl AN*NEW AGE QUARTERLY, P.O.
Box 276 , Clifton, NJ 07011-0276. TF
A GAY D.IA"RY ·1975-1982 by Donald
Vining is the latest in the series of intimate,
personal diarie s of which critics have said,
"Unquestionabl y the richest historical .document
of gay mal e lif e in the United States"
"The fairly de taile d look at the da y-to-day
de velopment o f a 'long-term' gay couple
relationship is only one valuable aspect of
thi s intriguing · chronicle. 11 11Humor, .narrative
sense, interest in the foibles of others.
Deep lionesly ." 474 pages. paperback
$11.95 .hardcover $16.95. Also available A
GAY DIARY )946-1954 $,9.95 and $14.95,
!954-196r paperback _only, $9,95, 1-967-
1975, $11-.95 and $16.95. The Pepys Press,
1270 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10029
OPEN HANDS, an ecumenical quarterly
maga zine on ministries · with gays, lesbians
_and bisexuals. $16/year. Free sample. 3801
N . Ke ele r Av enue, Chicago, IL 60641.
312/736-5526. FAX-312/736-5475. 10/9-5
~lij]~~WWil
PASTOR NEEDED. A small, but growing
non-denominational community church in
beautiful East Tex.as is in· need .of a pastor to
lead its congregation. The . church's primary
ministry is to people of alternate life styles.
The candidate must be of high moral .
character, professionally trained, ordained, or
eligible for ordination. For further information
please send letter of inquiry of Saint
Gabriel Community Church, 13904 CR 193,
T)iler. TX 75703 or call (903t 581-6923.
SEEKING PASTOR for small independent
liturgical church in Dallas, Texas . . Present
pastor retiring January, 199§. Mainline
church background and seminary · graduate
preferred. Coniact: . Pulpit Committee, Fr.
Frederick Wright, c/o Holy Trinity Community
Church, 4402 Roselancj Avenue,
Dallas, TX 75204 . Telephone: (H)(214)
821-0418. (0)(214)827-5088 . 12/94
GAY EPISCOPAL PRIEST seeks church
position with loving, inclusive community
that respects the dignity of all: Write to 431
Gravier St. #300, New Orleans, LA 70130
MWBM, Christian, 52 years old, 5"5", 165
lbs., HIV-, non-smoker seeks other Christian
bisexuals, gay men for casual relationShip.
Come to · Oregon Central Coast. J. Nolan,
Box 2263. Florence OR 97439. 4195
CHICAGO GWM, 41, 155 lbs., 5'10",
looking for a soul mate. I am emotionally,
spiritually, and financially secure and seek
the same in my mate. Open with ~y sexu-
. ality, masculine, not flamboyant, HIV-,
involved in the Episcopal Church, and
dedicated to my friends. You have similar
qualities , do not abuse alcohol or drugs, and
love life. Write with recent photo:- B.R.,
4422 N. Greenview , ZE, Chicago, IL 60640.
12/94
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GWF, 44, profes s ional , feminine, well
educated, kindly humorous, talkative ,
financially stable, no drugs /smoking, little
drinking, faithful Presbyterian, liberal in
outlook, conservative in lifestyle. ISO truly
similar lady living within 2-3 hours: G WF,
good listene,, feminine, 39-49, interested in
commitment \Is. casual relationships. Write:
Sarah, P.O. Box 14163, Augusta, GA 30919.
6/95. .
ACTIVE CATHOLIC (Orthodox, Anglican,
or Roman Catholic) male wanted. Seriou s
but jovial and sensual and -masculine! ... in
the · Southwest or San Diego. Weight in
proportion 10· height. Music and animal
lover-, : Around my age range: 53. N o smoke
or dope, moderate drink! Frank B,, P.O. Box
62, Blue Springs, MO 64013
GWM, Christian, professional, educated, 35 ,
6'2 ", 160 lbs., blue /brown (balding) no facial
hair, hirsute. ISO a non-smoking, drug-free
lifemate, --monogamous relationship. Interests:
music, theatre, outdoors, travel, quiet
evenings, cards, volleyball; dancing. P.O.
Box 59, Hummels Wharf, PA 17831-0059.
12/94
I"M ATTRACTED TO WV, TN, OK, TX, AR,
VA, KY Southern boys. Like them Christian
or_ other beliefs who are _very romantic,
loving, gentle, caring, masculine , straightacting.
nice personality. Hones~y counts .
Must be very loving, sexual. I like slender
types 24-40's , long haired, dark; redhead ,
blondes . Little Teddy Bear wants a country
boy . I'm 37, 57 , 155 lbs. , hairy, HIV-. -No
drugs , games, bar types .. Photo to M. Barrett,
6244 Corson Ave. So., Seattle, WA
98108-3442.
VERY INTERESTING , attractive , athletic ,
loving, sincere, and open 24 yr . old
blonde /blue WM who is incarcerated with
winter re lease would love to meet older male
for special friendship. Metz, 276527, Box
120 3Cl35. Lebanon. OH 45036 ..
lffll ~~@l4mt~ • · :· I
"AIDS AWARENESS" stamp pins. $3.50.
Quality made of solid· brass. Proceeds benefit
PW As . Volume discounts. Eastern Maine
AIDS Network, P.O. Box 2038, Bangor, ME
04402. 12/94
CREMATION URNS: Introducing the
Lambda Pride Um. Celebrate Life with an
um that reflects personality and style. Call
for free brochure. LifeStyle Urns
1-800-685-URNS. 8/95.
GAY PRIDE FLAGS, Banners , Lapel Pins,
W~II Clock s, Tote Bags, Bumper Stickers,
Wrnd Socks & More. Free Catalog.
1-800-854-1438. (24 hrs. - 7 days.) Retail &
Wholesale. 2/95
LIVE OPERA performances ·on audio/video
casette . .Incredible selection since 1930's,
world~wide. Over 7400 items. Magnificent
free computerized catalogue. .Live Opera,
P.O. Box 3-141, Steinway Station, Long
Island City. NY 11103. 12/95
IIN~@i~ff@J®* ~:" I
REV. N. A. LL OYD, C.M., spiritual medium
and advisor. Spiritual counseling . Call
(516)736-1058. 12/94. ·
ATTENTIO N CHRISTIAN songwriters: I will
typeset your manuscript music. $20 first
page, $2 each additional -stave . For info
write :. Eric Bicknell, 23244 Almira , Southfield.
Ml 48034. 4 /95
RETREATS FOR GAY monks focusing on
coping .techniques in repressive communities
at Saint Benedict Monastery. Information
write: Dan, 1012 Monastery Rd., Snowmass,
co 81654. 6/95
"WHAT THE BIBLE Says and Doesn't Say
About Homosexuality" by Rev. Nancy
Horvath . Professionally produced, studio
qualit y videotape or audiocassettes in
attractive package . Well researched,
uplifting -perspective from UFMCC minister .
Excellent addition to personal library.
Wonde rful gift. Video: $34 .95. Audio:
$24.95. Plus $3.95 P&H per order . Credit
card orders: 800-370- 7483. Or mail
payment to H&B Video, JDVMCC, P.O. Box
64996 Baton Rouge LA 708% . 12/94
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