In this Issue:

The Eclipse of God: Commentary by Rev. Shelley Hamilton
There’s No Place Like Hope: Gala & Silent Auction supports H4PJ
Geneva Conventions cover Gitmo detainees
Some Texas clergy take stand against politics at the pulpit
It’s never been this easy: H4PJ Partners with GoodSearch.com

The Eclipse of God
Commentary by Rev. Shelley A. Hamilton

We always have beautiful, profound and deeply moving times of worship at the Cathedral of Hope. This past Sunday was especially so. We baptized and welcomed into our community two beautiful babies. We ordained and installed a new associate pastor, the Reverend Dawson B. Taylor. Dawson’s preaching was superb, the music (as always) powerful and transformative, scriptures were right on the mark, and Holy Communion, as it everlastingly does, brought us, the Whole Body, fully and incarnationally into the presence of our God. The joy of grace and the freedom it brings filled our hearts with humility and gratitude. Just doesn’t get any better than that!!!!!

After worship, my heart full of gratitude and joy, I went out and grabbed a sandwich. I came back to my office to eat, rest and read the New York Times. On page 3 of the news section was a lengthy article describing the Pope’s visit to Spain. There’s serious tension between Spain and the Vatican right now. Spain has a Socialist Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, who, to his credit, legalized Gay marriage and loosened divorce laws last year.

The Times article referenced a paper entitled, "Family and Human Procreation," which was issued by the Vatican just days after President George W. Bush urged the Senate to pass a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Is anyone surprised? The edict states forcefully that Gay marriage, abortion, and lesbians wanting to bear children and a host of other practices are viewed by the church as threats to the traditional family and are signs of "the eclipse of God".

I experienced immediate rage and then was overwhelmed with sorrow and sadness. Sorrow and sadness born of many years of listening to the personal, private, intimate lives of most of the people I love being argued and raged about in newspapers, on television, the radio, blogs, and papal edicts, from pulpits, class rooms and laboratories and a myriad of other platforms of moral, political, and ethical discussion.

I looked up the word “eclipse”. Mostly it is about the total or partial obscuring of one celestial body by another, the passing into the shadows of a celestial body. Solar and lunar eclipses are examples of what is being referenced. However, eclipse also means…..to omit or fail; a falling into decline, obscurity or disgrace. One doesn’t need to be a paragon of intellectual achievement to understand what the Pope is saying…Queer people’s loves and relationships obscure the presence of God in our world. They are a shadow, a blight creating a barricade between creation and God.

How dare the Pope talk about queer people being the eclipse of God when the Pope’s very own precious church is wracked with sexual perversion and oppression, abuse of power and wealth, not to mention complicity in some of the most heinous crimes against humanity ever committed throughout history into the present day.

I’ll tell you what “the eclipse of God” is:

• Theology and church doctrine that oppresses, excludes, denies, and completely ignores the teachings of Jesus.
• 852 million people world wide are hungry---up 10 million from a year ago.
• Every day more than 16,000 children and at least that many adults die from hunger related problems,
• Every year nearly 11 million children die before they reach their fifth birthday all preventable with appropriate medical care and nutrition.
• 40 million people are living with HIV/AIDS most not receiving the medical treatment needed to live with real quality of life
• 50% of first time marriages, 67% of second time marriages and 74% of third time marriages in America and across Europe end in divorce.
• Amnesty International documents that in 2003 there were over 1200 people executed in 28 countries. *4% of those deaths happened in four countries. People’s Republic of China killed 726 prisoners, Iran killed 108, the United States killed 65 (24 of them in Texas).
• Between 1990 and 2003 the world averaged executing 2, 242 people per year---most of those executions were for nonviolent drug related activities
• Since the war in Iraq there have been between 38,000 and 43,000 Iraqi civilians killed, including women, children, and the elderly.
• American soldiers have been accused of raping and killing children
• Regular execution of the mentally retarded and mentally ill

I could continue and fill pages with the evil and heinous realities that exist in our world which really are the eclipse of God. Realities that every person of faith and, particularly Christians ought to be focused on and working to heal and otherwise resolve. We have very serious issues and problems confronting the citizens of the world. Jesus was very clear in his teachings that we are to feed the hungry, heal the sick, take care of the poor, visit folks in jails and prisons, look after orphans, and anyone else disenfranchised or cast aside by mainstream society. We are to be peace makers and abhore violence of any kind.

Since the beginning of time Queer people have loved and cared for each other. We’ll continue to do that regardless of what the President of the United States, the Pope, or anyone else has to say about it. We know who we are. What our values are and where our allegiances lie. I consider the whole political up roar regarding gay marriage a distraction and a tool for those who depend on peoples’ fear and ignorance to control and manipulate outcomes that will empower the rich and keep those who are oppressed and disenfranchised outside mainstream society.

What do you suppose would happen if all the concerned citizens in America stopped paying taxes, going to their jobs, and participating in societies and systems that oppress us and deny us equal access to all the rights and privileges of citizenship?

I say it is time to take to the streets. If you don’t want to march, at least tell the President, Pope and American Catholic Bishops - WE ARE NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANYMORE!

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There’s No Place Like Hope
Gala & Silent Auction supports H4PJ

Dear Friends,

Time is running out for you to reserve your seat for this year’s gala. In fact, you only have 2 more weeks left. Emmy winning comedian Bruce Vilanch will be the headline entertainer for “There’s No Place Like Hope,” our annual Gala to be held on Saturday, July 29 at the Westin Galleria in Dallas. Jazz group “Signature Band” will provide fun dance music following Vilanch while guests make their final bids at the Silent Auction.

This year’s event promises to be truly spectacular. So far, dedicated volunteers have collected over $50,000 worth of art and merchandise for the Silent Auction and hundreds have already got their tickets to see gay rights activist Bruce Vilanch. We’re saving a place for you, but the sooner you purchase your tickets, the better the seat we can give you.

When you purchase your tickets for this event, you are supporting the peace and justice programs of the Cathedral of Hope and Hope for Peace & Justice. This year, we hope to raise over $25,000 for the organizations. You just need to be there.

Individual tickets are $85 or $100 and may be purchased online at www.theresnoplacelikehope.com or by calling Roger Stanley at 214-351-1901. Thank you for your support of There’s No Place Like Hope Gala & Silent Auction.

Blessings,

Mack Campbell
Development Specialist
www.theresnoplacelikehope.com

About Bruce Vilanch
Perhaps most recognizable from his four-year stint on “Hollywood Squares,” Vilanch is one of the most sought-after comedy writers in Hollywood. Winner of two Emmys for his contributions to the Academy Awards, Vilanch got his big break when Bette Midler hired him to provide material for her club act. His long collaboration with Midler dates from 1970 and includes co-writing the 1980 film “Divine Madness” and the television specials “Bette Midler: Ol’ Red Head Is Back” (1978) and “Bette Midler in Concert: Diva Las Vegas” (1997). Vilanch has written for many other entertainers including Lily Tomlin, Billy Crystal, Roseanne Barr, Rosie O’Donnell, Whoopi Goldberg and Robin Williams. Most recently, he appeared as Edna Turnblad in the Broadway smash hit musical “Hairspray” and lost 20 pounds on VH1’s Celebrity Fit Club. He is a columnist for “The Advocate” magazine and is tireless champion of LGBT causes.

About the George Anderson & the Signature Band
Dallas’ own “Signature Band” will provide live music throughout our Gala celebration. Known as a “get the party going” band, Signature Band will begin the evening, during dinner, with the soft, romantic sounds of Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett-style standards, as well as smooth jazz and some romantic vocal songs. After our meal and featured entertainer, well, IT’S PARTY TIME! The dance floor will surely be packed as Signature Band plays the best of Motown, Classic Rock, Young Country, 70’s Disco and today’s current hits.

Related Links

There’s No Place Like Hope
Cathedral of Hope

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Geneva Conventions cover Gitmo detainees
By John Diamond and Joan Biskupic
Originally published by USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — Bowing to the Supreme Court, President Bush has extended international treaty protections against "humiliating and degrading treatment" to all military detainees, administration officials said Tuesday.

Though the White House acknowledges the Geneva Conventions apply to military detainees, Bush seeks Congress' help in re-creating the tribunal system struck down last month by a 5-3 court ruling.

By involving Congress, the administration would address a court concern that under the conventions, prisoners must be tried and sentenced by a "regularly constituted court." Such a court must either exist or be created by Congress.

Administration lawyers told senators Tuesday that if Congress didn't act, terror suspects, including the 450 held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, would have more rights than U.S. civilians facing criminal prosecution.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Steven Bradbury told the Senate Judiciary Committee the administration believes the conventions' ban on "outrages upon personal dignity" is so vague that U.S. troops could violate it by mistake. Congress, he said, should approve rules that allow tribunal officers to admit evidence that has been coerced under interrogation.

"There are gradations of coercion much lower than torture," Bradbury said. "There's room for discussion on that point. There's no room for discussion on torture."

Military commanders were alerted to the policy shift in a memo signed Friday by Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England and first disclosed Tuesday by the British newspaper Financial Times.

The move is "not really a reversal of policy," White House spokesman Tony Snow told reporters. Bradbury and Pentagon Deputy General Counsel Daniel Dell'Orto told the committee that the shift simply acknowledges last month's Supreme Court ruling.

Bradbury and Dell'Orto said captives may not cooperate if they learn they have the right to remain silent. The lawyers said standard courts-martial could result in terrorists gaining access to classified information.

The Supreme Court case arose from charges against Salim Ahmed Hamdan, a Yemeni national accused of working for Osama bin Laden and delivering weapons for al-Qaeda.

Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the Judiciary Committee chairman, said responding to the Supreme Court ruling is a "very complex matter." Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy, the committee's ranking Democrat, said he was willing to work on "bipartisan legislation," but the administration's "kangaroo court procedures" damaged the United States' reputation around the world.

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Some Texas clergy take stand against politics at the pulpit
by Terri Jo Ryan
Originally published by the Waco Tribune-Herald

Waco Baptist preacher Raymond Bailey said a church member accused him of “partisanship in the pulpit” two years ago when he said in a sermon that Jesus could not be elected as “mayor of Waco, much less president of the United States” if he campaigned in the flesh.

“It was ‘Christ the King Sunday’ and I was asking whether people would really want Jesus to be their king,” said Bailey, pastor of Seventh and James Baptist Church, a century-old congregation enveloped by Baylor University.

The clergyman not only objected then to charges of partisanship, he’s now taking measures to keep politics out of his pulpit.

The minister recently joined more than 100 Texas spiritual leaders in launching a campaign to protect houses of worship from partisan political battles in the upcoming election season.

Bailey and local Methodist ministers the Rev. Robert Kenji Flowers and the Rev. Pamela Dykehouse have signed on to the Respect Our Faith campaign, sponsored by the 600-member Texas Faith Network.

RespectOurFaith.org is a project of the Texas Freedom Network Education Fund. The Texas Freedom Network formed a decade ago as a watchdog of the religious right.

The campaign calls on clergy and lay people to promote civic engagement in congregations while protecting sacred spaces from party politicking, said Dan Quinn, a Texas Freedom Network spokesman.

Flowers, who serves at a student center adjacent to the Baylor University campus, said he signed the “Respect Our Faith” pledge because “I am acutely aware of the machinations of the religious right, both in general and in my own context of United Methodism.”

For example, he said, President George W. Bush and fellow Methodist, newly-elected Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, have been invited to attend the United Methodist quadrennial General Conference in 2008.

Flowers said he was one of many in his church opposed to this and to any other political leaders taking part in this religious conference.

‘Pressure groups’

Texas Freedom Network leaders say they are particularly worried by a group called the Texas Restoration Project, headed by the Rev. Laurence White, pastor of Our Savior Lutheran Church in Houston. White’s group, founded a year ago, says it mobilized more than 2,000 conservative clergy and their congregations across Texas last fall to help secure the victory of Proposition 2, the ballot measure that effectively banned same-sex marriage in the state.

Quinn said, “pressure groups such as the Texas Restoration Project have recruited pastors in an effort to make churches into partisan political machines backing favored candidates, issues and viewpoints to the exclusion of all others.”

White, a former Southern Baptist, could not be reached for comment last week or Monday. A call asking for a group spokesman to comment was not returned.

But in published interviews, White has said the group will not endorse a candidate in the upcoming elections. Federal law prohibits tax-exempt churches from endorsing candidates.

However, critics note Gov. Rick Perry spoke at each of the six “briefings” the Texas Restoration Project conducted last year specifically for clergy, and it has not extended speaking invitations to any of the other gubernatorial candidates.

Flowers said the “so-called prohibitions from the IRS for churches to not be involved in partisanship” are not being enforced and pointed to violators from both sides of the political aisle.

“When politicians appear in ecclesial settings, the spurious and inherent message is that God likewise is on ‘their side,’ ” he said. “We should never be so presumptuous as to try and manipulate, contain, control or possess the spirit and movement of God in our midst.”

Perry campaign spokesman Robert Black said Texas Freedom Network wants to put up roadblocks to keep religious people from being involved in the political process.

“For them to stand up and say that we don’t want people inside the churches to be engaged in the debate of public issues, I’m a bit offended by that,” Perry said. “I don’t think people of faith need the Texas Freedom Network protecting them.”

But too many churches have become tools of certain politicians and parties, Bailey said.

“Not only is Jesus neither Democrat or Republican, he is not American, Russian, German or a patriot of any particular nation or form of government,” Bailey said. “Partisan politicking has become a plague on our country and a disgrace to the kingdom of God.”

Christians are citizens of two kingdoms, Bailey said, the “Kingdom of God” and the political state.

“As Christians, we are expected to be involved in both,” Bailey said. “It is appropriate for Christians to involve themselves in public policy issues and to work for peace and justice.”

His congregation is interested in issues of social justice and inclined to take strong positions, Bailey added.

“But within the church, we must resist partisanship and respect the views of our sisters and brothers who interpret scripture and society differently,” he said.

Related Links

Texas Freedom Network
Respect our Faith

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