How To Protect LGBT Employees In Catholic Institutions

Stone Madonna and child with stained light

In this past year, at least one dozen people were fired from Catholic institutions because of LGBT issues. Some were fired because they legally married a same-gender partner. Others were fired because of their support for such marriages or because of their gender identity. In 2012, five people were fired for these reasons, so we…

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Happy LGBT History Month!

October is designated as LGBT History Month. Although it feels like LGBT history is being made every day, it’s worth noting that we have only achieved the gains we have today because of the toil and effort of those who came before us. LGBT History Month is an opportunity to look at the people, places, and…

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Queer Voices: The Role Of The Outsider

A woman wearing glasses is looking at an ornate cathedral.

I am reminded several times a week that both a sizeable and vocal portion of the Christian world considers the coexistence of homosexuality and Christianity within the same person to be at best an interesting conversation piece, and at worst, an aberrant abomination. I think this largely has to do with any number of stereotypes…

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Friends Without Benefits

Black and white photo of two people holding hands.

“It is not good for man to be alone.” Genesis 2:18 For those who strive to rebut charges of anti-gay discrimination by underscoring their love of sinners, friendship has become an important rhetorical device. The National Organization for Marriage’s Jennifer Roback Morse said of a hypothetical gay man or woman, ”What I would hope for…

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Out Of Order: A Filmmaker Reflects

A group of people standing on a porch with cameras.

Christy Pessagno is a videographer with THEY bklyn working on the independent documentary Out of Order, which follows the journey of three queer members of the Presbyterian Church (USA). I once had someone ask me if I thought of myself as an activist. For a split second I felt ashamed that I couldn’t answer ‘yes’ to this question.…

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Love Will Make A Way: Interracial & Same-Sex Marriage

My parents wrestled with the idea of me marrying my partner. The sanctuary was packed but my father didn’t come. Dad was brought up in the Deep South and my husband looked like the people who had practiced the nauseating hatred of Jim Crow in my father’s hometown. News of the support of our union,…

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Anniversary Reflections On Marriage Equality

Okay, here’s the overly-cute truth of it: I love being married. Now, I don’t think marriage is for everybody. I don’t think it’s part of God’s plan for all of us to be cutely married to some cute person and have a bunch of cute kids. As you can probably tell, that’s all a little…

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My Faith Taught Me To Love

It was an ordinary morning, except my partner was the one still lazing about in bed rather than me. I intended to wake her with a kiss and a cup of tea but I was suddenly stopped short. I stood fixed in the bedroom doorway watching her sleep when it struck me: I love her. This was…

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Marriage Equality Is A Conservative Cause

A bride and groom standing at the altar in a church.

The party of Theodore Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan has now lost the popular vote in five of the last six presidential elections. The marketplace of ideas will render us irrelevant, and soon, if we are not honest about our time and place in history. Unfortunately, much of the discussion has focused on cosmetic solutions to,…

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Celebrating Transgender Equality

The logo for the national center for transgender equality.

Last night, I attended the ninth anniversary celebration of the National Center for Transgender Equality. The organization gathers each year to celebrate the past year’s progress and honor those who are working to secure full equality for transgender people. The event was my first opportunity to meet fellow LGBTQ activists in Washington, D.C., and I…

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