All the latest breaking news on Christianity and the LGBT+ community. Browse The THEGAYUK’s complete collection of features and commentary on Christianity and the LGBT+ community.
Anti-Gay Marriage Clerk, Kim Davis has private audience with the Pope in which he allegedly thanked her and told her to stay strong.
Anti-gay marriage Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis had a private 15-minute audience with the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, during his recent visit to the United States at the Vatican Embassy in Washington.
The clerk has spent six days in jail for contempt of court, after refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in Kentucky. Ms. Davis who has been married 4 times has argued that her religious beliefs should make her exempt from issuing marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples.
Lesbian, Bi and Gay couples have had the right to marriage licenses in the US since SCOTUS legalised same-sex marriage in June, earlier this year.
According to Ms. Davis’s lawyer Mat Stavers, the Pope “thanked her for her courage” and to “stay strong”.
When asked about his views on government officials seeking exemption because of their religious beliefs he told reporters that
“It is a right. And if a person does not allow others to be a conscientious objector, he denies a right.”
Indiana Fever guard Layshia Clarendon opens up about gay acceptance in Christianity.
In an open and honest interview, Indiana Fever guard Layshia Clarendon talks openly with The Players Tribune about being black, gay, female, non-cisgender and Christian.
“The Church has a rich history of homophobia, which has inflicted so much harm on so many lives. I took this especially personally because I am a Christian who often needs to prove her faith because of her sexuality. How could my fellow believers be the ones to exclude any walk of life? As leaders in faith and the league, I expect my sisters in Christ to fight for inclusion. That’s what we should be doing — that’s the right thing to do. Isn’t that the message?”
“Love isn’t a gay or straight experience; it’s a human experience.”
The God’s Original Design Ministry thinks God needs help with marriage and has ploughed money into a homophobic billboard campaign it wants to spread across America. (more…)
The Baltimore Sun has reported that Julie Baker a local resident has started a GoFundMe campaign so she can make her “relentlessly gay” yard even more relentless and more gay.
The campaign is in response to a note left by one of her neighbours that read:
“Dear resident of ___ Kenwood Avenue
Your yard is becoming Relentlessly Gay! Myself and Others in the neighbourhood ask that you Tone it Down. This is a Christian area and there are Children.
Keep it up and I will be forced to call the police on You!
Your kind need to have Respect for GOD.”
Signed A Concerned Home Owner
Ms. Baker immediately posted this on her Facebook page and then when she launched the Fund wrote,
“I am a widow and the mother of four children, my youngest in high school and I WILL NOT Relent to Hatred. Instead, I will battle it with whimsy and beauty and laughter and love, wrapped around my home, yard and family!!!”
By 10:15 Wednesday night Baker had more than doubled her $5,000 fundraising goal to make her home relentlessly gayer.
The Christian-run bakery which refused to bake a pro-marriage cake has outlined its appeal to the judgement that found it had acted unlawfully in refusing the cake order.
The bakery, in Northern Ireland, was found to have acted unlawfully when it refused to make a cake that bore a pro-gay marriage slogan for Gareth Lee, by a court last month. It was ordered to pay £500 in compensation to Mr Lee.
In a statement released by the Christian Institute, an organisation that has funded many appeals against legal matters surrounding gay issues, has raised three questions to support their appeal.
Whether the judge was correct, as a matter of law, to hold that Ashers had discriminated against Mr Lee directly on grounds of sexual orientation.
Whether the judge was correct, as a matter of law, to hold that Ashers had discriminated against Mr Lee directly on grounds of religious belief or political opinion.
Whether the judge was correct, as a matter of law, to hold that Ashers was not entitled to protection as a result of the rights under Articles 9 and/or 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
The Christian Institute is a registered charity that has sought to retain section 28, to raise the age of consent for gay people and opposed the Civil Partnership Act and same-sex marriage act.
The Christian Institute has backed many legal actions in the past, but has been unsuccessful in many attempts, most notably the Christian Institute backed Hotel owners Mr and Mrs Ball, who infamously denied lodgings to a gay couple. Numerous attempts of appeal have all subsequently failed.
With US Supreme Court ruling on same sex marriage just a month a way, the opposition is up to its usual dirty tricks with it’s latest highly offensive action.
Faith 2 Action, Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, Judicial Action Group, American Family Association of Pennsylvania and Conservative Republicans of Texas are among groups behind a campaign making itself known on billboards that are now springing up around Michigan.
These anti-gay billboards claim that homosexuality is a behaviour and not a civil right and advertise a website called ‘Restrain the Judges’ which urges people to send a ‘Restraining Order’ to every member of the Senate and the House along with each of the United States Supreme Court Justices.
You Are Being Sued – panic not, as we will all be in the dock with you if Sally Ann Driskell gets her own way.
The Nebraska resident who identifies as an ambassador for God and Jesus Christ has filed a Federal Lawsuit in the US against ALL homosexual people on the planet for breaking “religious and moral laws.” (We are assuming she means Earth.)
According to the Lincoln Journal Star, 63-year-old Ms. Driskell argues in a seven-page, handwritten petition delivered to the US District Court of Omaha that:
“Homosexuality is a sin and that the homosexuals know it is a sin to live a life of homosexuality
“Why else would they have been hiding in the closet(?)”
Sadly spelling is not one of her better skills and so she challenges US District Judge John M. Gerrard to not “judge God to be a lier (sp),” and slams gay people as “liers (sp), deceivers and thieves” in the case, filed simply as Driskell v. Homosexuals.
“I never thought that I would see a day in which our Great Nation or our Great State of Nebraska would become so compliant to the complicity of some people(’s) lewd behavior,” she notes.
“It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed because his compassions fail not.”
Don’t rush to go pick out a little black number to wear as it is most unlikely her petition will not go any further.
It’s a pity as we think it could have been fun taking the Stand.
An event that aimed to help gay people “Overcome” Their Sexuality by the Seventh Day Adventist Church has been cancelled after 40,000 people signed a petition to stop it.
According to the advert, three people Mike Carducci, Wayne Blakely and Danielle Harrison have found “redemption, victory, healing and freedom from their lifestyle.” and want to talk to members of the public about their “struggles” with homosexuality.
Kirsten Lundqvist the communications and media director of South England Conference of Seventh-day Adventist said, “A decision was taken on Monday, 13 April to cancel the ‘Holy Sexuality’ Conference originally planned for London, 21-25 April 2015.
“Seventh-day Adventists are a people of peace who believe in hope and dialogue. However, it appeared that rather than drawing people together the conference had the potential to divide. The Adventist Church recognises that the individuals invited to speak at the Holy Sexuality Conference have compelling life stories to share but equally appreciate that there are those who take a different point of view.”
“We are disappointed that in a society that values freedom of speech and divergence of opinion that there are those whose wish it is to silence individuals who hold a different point of view to their own.”
Speaking to GSN one of organisers of the event Anamaria, had said, “These three people have overcome what many people are still struggling with, the people who felt so unloved. For them, they have moved out of this lifestyle and embraced Christianity,’ she said.
“It’s like committing adultery. This conference will teach homosexuals how to overcome similar habits.”
A new survey has revealed that people who identify as Christian have condemned David Cameron’s statement that same-sex marriage was “among his proudest achievements in 2014”
The poll by ComRes for Premier Christian Radio asked 2,000 potential voters what they thought about gay marriage and how it might affect their decision on voting Conservative in the next general election.
More than thirty-three percent agreed with the statement, “I would have considered voting Conservative but gay marriage has put me off doing so”. The coalition government, led by David Cameron was instrumental in bringing forward same-sex marriage in his first term as prime minister.
Same-sex marriage was legalised in England and Wales in 2014 in a landslide victory.
80 per cent of those asked lambasted the Prime Minister’s statement that same-sex marriage was “among his proudest achievements in 2014”. The claim was made by the Prime Minister during a Q&A in Wirral, when he said that same-sex marriage had a personal impact. He said, “I did get a lot of letters from men who said, because of the changes you made, I have been able to marry the person I love. That was great.”
The Seventh Day Adventist Church is planning to bring a seminar to London that is aimed at people who have “struggled” with same-sex attraction.
According to the advert, three people Mike Carducci, Wayne Blakely and Danielle Harrison have found “redemption, victory, healing and freedom from their lifestyle.” and want to talk to members of the public about their “struggles” with homosexuality.
The advert also claims,
“This conference will be invaluable for those who are struggling with their sexuality or for those who wish to find out more about issues surrounding sexuality and same sex attraction to reach out to others.”
GayStarNews has called the free event, called Holy Sexuality Conference a “gay cure summit”.
Speaking in a video Carducci spoke about how God had anointed him to start a ministry called Exceed, which stands for “Excellence in Christ through evangelism for the erotically defiled.”
Speaking to GSN one of organisers of the event, said Anamaria, “These three people have overcome what many people are still struggling with, the people who felt so unloved. For them, they have moved out of this lifestyle and embraced Christianity,’ she said.
“It’s like committing adultery. This conference will teach homosexuals how to overcome similar habits.”
The pizzeria that publicly admitted that it would refuse services to gay and lesbian couples because of the owners’ religious beliefs has managed to raise over $800,000 in donations on a crowdfunding site.
Both Crystal and Kevin O‘Connor stated their discomfort with gay and lesbian couples and that they would refuse to serve at a same-sex wedding, with Mr O’Connor even going as far as to describe homosexuality as a “choice”, and questioning why he should be “beat over the head to go along with something they choose?”.
The family allegedly went into hiding due to ‘abuses’ levied at the business, which included leaving ‘gay reviews’ on Yelp and other review sites. However, according to Blaze.TV the family have made a stunning ‘comeback’ after receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars from well-wishers across the country.
Lawrence Billy Jones III one of the Television Opinion Contributors at BlazeTV set up a crowdfunding, on GoFundme, “To relieve the financial loss endured by the proprietors’ stand for faith.”
The funder that has now been closed received over 29,000 donations totalling $842,637 (£564,770) to the owners of Memories Pizza. Donations began to pour in after a segment on an emotionally led interview on BlazeTV’s Dana Loesch’s show, in which the gun loving, conservative commentator called the O’Connor’s story a “culture war” – and “when you stand for faith, you don’t stand alone.”
According to the organisers of the funding page “The final act on our end is to give contact info of the O’Connor family to GoFundMe. No need for concern as GoFundMe will only release to this family and this family alone. After this, it is all between the family and GoFundMe.”
GoFundme, the crowdfunding site that hosted the campaign initially failed to tackle any of the homophobic comments made by pledgers.
Brett Jeffreyes who donated $250 said,
“Sadly this is the first wave. We are seeing the rise of GAY SHARIA. They will go to any length to destroy people of conscience and good will. I expect to see Gay Sharia violence supported by both Social and mainstream Media in my lifetime.”
And Brennan Doherty who donated $10 said,
“God bless them for not agreeing to support the farce of gay marriage.”
Comments have now been removed and all donations are registered as “anonymous”.
First-term Republican Governor Mike Pence has now signed a ‘fix’ to the law so that it does not discriminate against the LGBT community. He has insisted, however, that the law wasn’t the problem, but how it was being perceived. The law now has protections based on sexual orientation for the first time in its history.
