Maine Catholic Diocese Quits Council of Churches Over Gays

Anti-gay Catholic bishop Robert Deeley

Time and time again we see news outlets breathlessly gushing over supposedly "gay friendly" statements by Pope Francis.  Meanwhile, NOTHING has changed in terms of official Catholic Church dogman which labels gays as "intrinsically disordered" - this from a church with a still rampant global sex abuse scandal driven by its celibacy requirement for clergy (even though eastern rite priests can marry) and a bizarre obsession with sex and sexuality.  If Francis truly wanted to change the Church's treatment of LGBT individuals, he need mere issue a pronouncement "ex cathedra" - e.g., the pope speaks infallibly when speaking ex cathedra on questions of faith or morals.  This has not and, I suspect will not, happened.  Thus, all the gushing and breathlessness in the media is meaningless and simply provides cover for Catholics who like to pretend that they are not supporting an anti-gay church (not to mention the rape of children and youths).  The real story of the Catholic Church's position on gays is on view in articles reporting on the firing of LGBT teachers and staff and, recently, the exit of the Maine Catholic diocese from the Council of Churches which is too "gay friendly."  Here are excerpts from the National Catholic Reporter:  

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, Maine, is withdrawing from the Maine Council of Churches in a bid to distance itself from LGBT advocacy and other stances that the church says could compromise its public moral witness. The decision comes after a council decision to let its public positions be determined by a majority vote among its members. Previously, the council would only take a stand when its eight denominational members voted unanimously to do so. "Our continuing participation could result in me advocating for two different, and even contradictory, positions," writes Portland Bishop Robert Deeley in an open letter published by the Portland Press Herald. "What I advocate for cannot be simply determined by a majority vote. Executive Director Jane Field. She noted that mainline Protestant churches represented on the council have become more affirming of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people as full participants in their churches and ministries. Roman Catholic teaching holds that homosexuality is "intrinsically disordered" and does not condone same-sex relationships.

"Remaining silent on issues, especially related to LGBTQ justice and equality, wasn't tenable for all of our other seven denominations," the Rev. Field explained. "It was enough of a discomfort that it needed to be addressed openly. It wasn't healthy to be silent anymore."

Field said member denominations discussed the option of issuing a minority report in situations when not all members could support the council's stance. But the diocese opted instead to withdraw.

Other dioceses in recent years left state councils in New Hampshire and North Carolina, Field said.

Maine Catholic Diocese Will Not Publicly Campaign Against Gay Marriage

In 2009 the Roman Catholic Church actively and very publicly campaigned to overturn Maine's same sex marriage law. Now that a repeal of the repeal of the marriage aw will be on the ballot in November, the head of Maine's Catholic Diocese claims that the Church will not be actively campaigning against same sex marriage. Of course, that's not to say lots of money will not be secretly routed via the Knights of Columbus or the National Organization for Marriage which seems in many ways to be a front organization for the Catholic Church - and possibly the Mormon Church. Frankly, I believe the truthfulness of anything a Catholic bishop about as far as I could throw an aircraft carrier. Thus, it will be telling to see whether this claim holds up. Obviously, with the worldwide sex abuse scandal still in full swing, the Church has better things it could be focusing its efforts on besides persecuting loving, committed same sex couples. Here are highlights from the Morning Sentinel:

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Maine will take no active role in a political campaign against a same-sex marriage referendum that's expected to be on the November ballot, Bishop Richard Malone announced today. Instead, the diocese is expanding an existing educational program to better inform church members about the qualities and benefits of marriage between one man and one woman.

Malone issued a pastoral letter on marriage today that will be used extensively to teach 185,000 Roman Catholics in Maine about the gift of traditional marriage and the need to preserve it as it is.

The largely in-house educational initiative represents a significant departure from the major role that the diocese played in supporting a successful 2009 referendum against gay marriage. The diocese contributed more than $500,000 to that $3.8 million campaign and its public affairs director took a leave of absence to lead the effort.

This time, Malone said, the diocese won't be taking up special collections, buying TV ads or contributing staff to a political campaign against same-sex marriage.

Last month, same-sex marriage advocates in Maine turned in more than enough signatures to put a gay-marriage question on the November ballot. First, the question will be considered by a Republican-controlled Legislature and Republican governor. If both approve the measure, then same-sex marriage would become legal. If either rejects the measure, which is expected, the state will hold a referendum.

Opponents of gay marriage are poised to file paperwork with the Secretary of State next week, establishing a political action committee or a ballot question committee that will be called Protect Marriage Maine, said Carroll Conley Jr., executive director of the Christian Civic League of Maine.

Personally, I look forward to the day when Christians are a minority and their rights can be put to referendums. It would certainly be a fitting pay back for all the misery and heartache they have inflicted on society and the world.

Another Gay Marriage Opponent Is Having Second Thoughts?

I have noted several times now how former National Organization for Marriage henchman Louis Marinelli has had an epiphany and now fully supports civil marriage for same sex couples. Indeed, he now argues that the U.S. Constitution requires nothing less. Now, the Portland Press Herald is reporting that Marc Mutty (pictured at Left) who led the anti-gay marriage forces and served as chairman of the Yes on 1 Campaign which ultimately rescinded same sex marriage in Maine,seems to be having second thoughts about the hate and bigotry he championed. Could it be that Mutty is worried that he'll be judged as he has judged others? Here are some highlights:
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Seventeen months after he led the charge to repeal Maine's same-sex marriage law, Marc Mutty is anything but a happy man. In fact, a soon-to-be-released documentary shows that even back in the fall of 2009, the chairman of the Yes on 1 campaign found himself tethered to an increasingly heavy conscience.
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"We use a lot of hyperbole and I think that's always dangerous," says Mutty during a Yes on 1 strategy session, at the time on leave from his job as public affairs director for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Maine. "You know, we say things like 'Teachers will be forced to (teach same-sex marriage in schools)!' " he continues. "Well, that's not a completely accurate statement and we all know it isn't, you know?"
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[I]t is Mutty, sitting atop a campaign almost identical to the 2008 effort that beat back same-sex marriage in California, whose on-camera disclosures could well steal the show. "This has been a (double expletive). This has been awful. I hate it. I hate it. I hate it," a clearly exhausted Mutty says midway through the trailer.
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At another point, he laments, "I fear I'll be remembered for the work I did on this campaign." He even goes so far as to plead "for forgiveness for the ways in which I might have betrayed my own self in this endeavor.
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Of course, difficult as his life might become in the days ahead, this isn't all about Mutty. What about the hundreds of Maine couples who might be legally married right now had some 33,000 Mainers -- out of almost 570,000 who turned out -- voted the other way?
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I'm sorry, but I find it difficult to have any sympathy for Mutty. He had the opportunity to say "No" to the morally bankrupt leadership of the Catholic Church and he lacked the moral fiber to do it. Likewise, he could have refused to disseminate lies and untruths and to de-humanize others, and again he lacked the moral strength to do so. Will his despicable behavior haunt him in the future? Who knows, but if it does, Mutty brought it upon himself. If he wants to redeem himself, he needs to take notes from Marinelli and speak out loudly about his past misdeeds and call for a repeal of Maine's ban on same sex marriage. It's the least he can do for those he deliberately harmed.

Maine Defeat: The Lessons Learned

There are countless post mortem being done on the success of the anti-marriage equality in Maine this past Tuesday. There is blame being cast by some who are playing Monday morning quarterback while others are acknowledging that the pro-marriage equality forces overall ran a good campaign. One factor that is hard to counter is the toxic message and tactics of the Christianists. These false Christians demonstrate an unbelievable willingness to deliberately lie and fear monger in the most calculating manner. Truth means absolutely nothing to these people and it is difficult to compete with people who are basically amoral despite their self-congratulatory claims of religiosity. No lie is too big or too outrageous if our opponents believe that it will frighten the uninformed and ignorant. Lurking behind all of the lies is the added difficulty of conversing with those who have been religiously brainwashed and who are unwilling to listen to valid legal arguments or use any mental thought processes when confronted with the legitimate difference between the civil laws and religious belief. Jeremy Hooper at Good As You calls this the "faith issue" and describes it as follows:

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The faith question: Americans have MAJOR trouble disconnecting civil marriage from religious ceremony. It's nobody's fault, really. We're given the whole church, white dress, marry at the altar meme from birth. So many people never stop and think about the civil marriage license, other than in terms of it being a mere formality that they they have to do before their big day. And many who marry in a house of worship or via the voice of a person of faith never think about the millions of folks who marry without any religious component whatsoever. But Americans do understand church/state separation. In my opinion, the church-state issues, and the specific faith motivations of the opposition, have never been highlighted as effectively as they could be.
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One of the problems we face is the refusal of the Main stream media to get tough on the lies put out by the Christianist elements. Nowadays, too many reporters and anchors think that mindlessly parroting what our opponents say is legitimate reporting. God forbid that they ever ask for proof of statements made or focus on the fact that one set of religious beliefs are being given the force of law while other religious views are trampled and delegitimized - even though the U. S. Constitution guarantees religious freedom to ALL citizens. Or at least that's the spin the USA puts on it when self-congratulating itself and lecturing other nations.

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Personally, I believe we need to do more to highlight the religious based bigotry off the opponents of GLBT equality. Likewise we need to do more to debunk the "Christian nation" lie disseminated by our enemies. We also need to do more to run a stake through the heart of the myth that sexual orientation is a choice and the myth that sexual orientation can be changed. Were we to prevail on this issue, the Christianist lies about gays recruiting children would wither away. Medical and mental health experts support the untruth of these favored Christianist myths, yet again, the media refuses to flat out challenge and refute the lies we hear again and again on this front.

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I and others need to figure out how to challenge the lies and untruths of our opponents and exposes them for the liars and hypocrites that they are. We also need to find a way to hold the media's feet to the fire and revive investigative reporting and the willingness of media personnel to call liars for what they are regardless of how tightly the liars wrap themselves in the flag of religion.

The Tyranny of the Majority

The UK newspaper, The Guardian, has an editorial that looks at the debacle that takes place for the rights of minorities when the granting of civil rights is left to the majority. The column correctly notes that but for the action of the federal judiciary, we might well still have segregated schools, bans on interracial marriage and a host of other types of legal second class citizenships. Sadly, the Christianist right anti-gay industry has figured out the bigotry of the majority and I suspect will continue to push for a state by state vote on gay rights until at some point the federal courts get off their asses and call out religious based discrimination for what it is and strike down Christianist bigotry written into law via the ballot box. When that day will come, I do not know, but it is clear to me that the federal courts are the most assured course for achieving full equality - particularly since President Obama and the Congressional Democrats have made it quite clear that they truly do not give a damn about us. Oh yes, they give us pretty speeches but refuse to act. Here are some column highlights:

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After whinging about "activist judges" for a decade, the rightwing has convinced a plurality of Americans that decisions about same-sex marriage shouldn't be made in the courts – and it's because they know, and here is more evidence, that putting the rights of a marginalised class to the majority means those rights will be denied. The judiciary, however, is generally less susceptible to persuasion by expensive campaigns run by the anti-gay industry.
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Historically, we have depended on the courts to make decisions about the application of constitutional guarantees in spite of popular opinion, and they have repeatedly secured protections for marginalised groups decades before Congress and state legislatures, which more closely track public opinion, would have done. John Rogers once noted that "when the supreme court struck down the bans against interracial marriage in 1968 through Virginia v Loving, 72% of Americans were against interracial marriage. As a matter of fact, approval of interracial marriage in the US didn't cross the positive threshold until – sweet God – 1991".
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Waiting for the whole of society to be on board with granting equal rights to everyone is simply not in our collective best interest. There is no legitimate claim to be made by opponents of marriage equality that their lives will be diminished by extending marriage rights to same-sex couples. Too much evidence to the contrary, even now in their own country (I'm looking at you, Massachusetts), debunks that assertion thoroughly.
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Sometimes the stragglers at the tail end of this slow march of progress need a boot to get them moving forward. When the legislatures haven't provided it, it has been the judiciary's job to deliver it instead, as marginalised groups were never meant to have no recourse against discriminatory practices, even if the will of the majority is to extend the codified biases in perpetuity. Just because something is popular doesn't make it right.
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This country is not, and never has been, well-served by leaving the civil rights of the minority in the hands of the majority. Putting that up to a vote which is subject to deeply held prejudice is ruling not by democracy, but by mob mentality.

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The irony, of course, is that when one closely follows many of the "pro-family" Christianist organizations, it becomes clear that if it were up to these folks, we would still have racial segregation and bans on interracial marriage. They are bigots and theocrats and unfortunately, they have figured out how to convince a majority of simple minded voters to fall for their lies and fear mongering. It makes me sick.

More Catholic Church Attacks on Gay Rights

The Roman Catholic Church continues to show itself as an enemy f equal civil rights for all Americans and would seem to be pushing the limits of tax-exempt status as the Diocese of Portland announces that there will be a mandatory second collection to help fund the effort to repeal Maine's same sex marriage laws. Sure sounds like an effort to effect legislation in disregard to Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Meanwhile, of course, the bitter old men in dresses at the Vatican continue to refuse to clean their own house of those who enabled and covered up for predator priests who preyed typically on boys, but also on women and young girls as well. As I have commented many times, how people can remain Catholic in light of the continuing corrupt core of the Church hierarchy baffles me. Until the bishops, cardinals and the Pope who permitted this horrific situation are punished and removed, the Church is nothing more that a massive scale of hypocrisy. Here are some highlights from the Portland Press Herald:

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Maine's Roman Catholic churches plan a second collection at Masses this weekend to help the referendum campaign to overturn the law recognizing gay marriages. Voters will decide Nov. 3 whether to repeal that law.

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The Portland Diocese is asking parishioners who want to contribute by checks to make them out to Stand for Marriage Maine. State law requires Stand for Marriage to report individual donations of more than $50 more because it's a political action committee; the church must report donations of more than $100.

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The Sun Journal quotes church officials as saying the Diocese of Portland intends to meet all state reporting requirements.

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The Church has promoted so much hate and discrimination over the centuries - some things never change.

Misplaced Priorities and Hubris of the Catholic Church

There are times I truly wonder what alternate universe was the place of origin for members of the Roman Catholic Church. For an institution plagued by a world wide sex abuse scandal, falling membership and revenues in areas of the developed world, and a increasingly elderly and doddering priesthood, one would think that the Church fathers would have better things to focus on rather than fighting in opposition to recognition of committed, monogamous same sex unions. First, there is Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of Ireland, Cardinal Sean Brady, who instead of focusing on the horrific abuses that occurred in Catholic children's homes and other Church run institutions in Ireland as revealed in a government report earlier in the year, has his panties all in a wad over CIVIL law recognition of same sex civil unions. Someone truly needs to smack this blow hard up on the side of the head and tell him to shut his mouth until such time as the Church has cleaned up its own mess and done a thorough house cleaning of its own ranks. I can only surmise that the good cardinal is trying desperately to change the topic from that of the Church's failures and guilt. Here are a few highlights from the Catholic News Agency (an oxymoron in and of itself):

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The Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of Ireland, Cardinal Sean Brady, spoke out last Sunday against recognizing civil unions for homosexuals during a homily at the Cathedral of St. John in Limerick. He said that natural law cannot be violated by legislative norms, and that natural law forms the basis for integral human development. The cardinal recalled that nature must be used wisely, as Pope Benedict XVI explains in his encyclical “Caritas in Veritate.” . . . Cardinal Brady urged the faithful to oppose a measure being debated in the Irish Parliament that would grant legal recognition to same-sex unions.
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I would suggest that if the alleged "natural law" is so important, then it must certainly dictate against celibacy which refutes the role of procreation just as much as same sex relationships. The Church's hypocrisy, however, ids not limited to the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. In Maine where Catholic parishes are being closed and consolidated due to declining membership and/or revenues, the bitter queens in the Church hierarchy are nonetheless contributing moneys to over turn same sex marriage legislation passed earlier this year. The Portland Press Herald reports in part as follows on parish closings:

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Monsignor Rene Mathieu announced Sunday that Notre Dame de Lourdes and St. Mary of the Assumption Church in Biddeford will close at the end of this year, as part of a statewide consolidation that started in 2004, shortly after Bishop Richard Malone was installed. St. Andre Church in Biddeford will close at the end of 2010. Also Sunday, Monsignor Marc Caron announced in Lewiston that he plans to ask Malone's permission to close St. Joseph and St. Patrick churches, and he will discontinue their use in October.

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Collections in the parish's churches have been dropping about 10 percent a year, and the sour economy hasn't helped. Weekly collections this year have been about $5,000 less than they were last year. The church's ministries and operations cost about $2 million a year, not including support for the parish school. Meanwhile, operating costs such as employee health insurance and building maintenance have been rising. Good Shepherd Parish had a $48,000 deficit in the past fiscal year and projected a $170,000 deficit this year if no changes were made, according to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland.

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But money is available when it comes to interfering with legal CIVIL rights of same sex couple in Maine. Yes sir, the Church has money to bash those sodomites. As America Blog reports, the Diocese of Maine could find $100,000 to donate to the effort to repeal Maine's same sex marriage law:

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Earlier this week, the forces trying to repeal Maine's new same-sex marriage report filed their first campaign reports. Focus on the Family and the National Organization for Marriage were major donors. There was also $100,000 contribution from the Diocese of Maine, which seemed like a lot of money coming from an entity that's been closing down parishes. The spokesman for the anti-marriage campaign, Marc Mutty, who is also the spokesman for the Diocese of Maine, couldn't or wouldn't give a definitive explanation of the donation.

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[T]he leaders of the Catholic church in Maine think it's more important to be anti-gay than to keep open churches? Maybe that's one reason parishes are closing.

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The main stock in trade of the Catholic Church nowadays seems to be hypocrisy as opposed to preaching the Gospel of Christ..