A first step, a set-back, and a triumph.
The Rev. Nadia Bolz Weber: “My testimony at the Colorado Senate Judiciary hearing on civil unions“
Much of the early church were convinced that gentiles could only become Christians if they changed into being Jews first (which, for the record, involved a rather unpleasant process), and much like our first century brothers and sisters there is a segment of the church today who thinks that if we extend the roof of the tent to include “the gays” then the whole thing will come crashing down around us.
And some will say that if we allow gay couples to have equal status under the law, the institution of marriage will come crashing down.
So there are some who see it as their job to stalwartly guard the boundaries of the tent to keep it from crashing, and some who think it our job to be bravely inclusive and stretch the tent.
Either way, it’s misguided because … it’s not our tent. It’s God’s tent. The wideness of the tent be it the church or society, should only concern me insofar as it points to the great mercy and love of a God who welcomes us all as friends. And of Jesus who welcomes all to his table.
You think I like that? You think I want to sit at the heavenly banquet next to Ann Coulter? Not so much.
But that’s what I’m stuck with because I’m in the Jesus business. And in the Jesus business there is not male or female, Jew or Greek, slave or free, gay or straight, there is only one category of people: children of God. Which means nobody gets to be special and everybody gets to be loved.
People born in this country aren’t special. Men aren’t special. Christians aren’t special. Straight people aren’t special.
And if the laws of our great land make it seem so, then Shame. On. Us.
Steven Goldstein, Garden State Equality: “Statement on the governor’s veto of the marriage equality bill” (via)
Because I do know [New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie], I also know he is not some anti-LGBT nut. He is no Rick Santorum. Frankly, I don’t think Chris Christie has an anti-gay bone in his body, however much I cannot say the same about his impending veto. His veto will be a brutally anti-gay act, pure and simple.
The Governor keeps calling for a referendum, which everyone knows will never happen in New Jersey. To borrow the Governor’s words, it’s time for him to stop engaging in political theater. Our lives are not La Cage Aux Folles: LGBT people fall in love, raise families, often children whom the rest of society shuns, and pay taxes in what is still one of the most heavily taxed states in the country.
Our Governor knows our contributions to society. He won’t veto the bill because he’s anti-gay. He’ll veto the bill because the 2016 South Carolina Republican Presidential primary electorate is anti-gay. …
Governor, rest assured that even though I came of political age in an era where political adversaries could be friends – and if you’re game, we’ll continue that good relationship – Garden State Equality and I will continue to fight you on marriage equality with every bone in our bodies. You would expect no less.
For us, this is not about politics. This is about our fundamental American right to conduct our lives with a full life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Equality.
And until we achieve it, we will fight with our every last breath. And we will win, so help me God.
Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire: Remarks at Marriage Equality Bill Signing, Feb. 13, 2012
I’m about to sign into law a bill making us the seventh state in the nation to give our gay and lesbian citizens marriage equality.
I’ll explain and sign the bill in a few minutes, but first let me say that as governor for more than seven years, this is a very proud moment. …
… Most surely it is a proud day in the history of the Legislature and the state of Washington.
It is a day historians will mark as a milestone for equal rights. …
A day when we did what was right, we did what was just, and we did what was fair.
We stood up for equality and we did it together – Republicans and Democrats, gay and straight, young and old, and a number of religious faiths.
I’m proud of who and what we are in this state.
I’m proud that our same-sex couples will no longer be treated as separate but equal. They will be equal.
I’m proud that children in our schools and neighborhoods will not have to wonder why their loving parents are considered different than other loving parents.
I’m proud of parents who have fought so fiercely for the rights of their much-loved gay and lesbian children. …
I’m proud that children who discover they are gay and lesbian can feel good about themselves.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In