Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair Lends Support to Gay Catholics

Tony Blair, the former Prime Minister of Great Britain is a recent convert to Catholicism. In an interview with Attitude magazine a British gay lifestyle magazine, Mr. Blair goes onto describe his disagreement with the pope on LGBT issues and calls for a more inclusive and liberal thought process within the church.

Blair describes a big "generational difference on the issue and that ordinary Catholics are more liberal-minded than their leaders"

He goes on to say that "we need an attitude of mind where rethinking and the concept of evolving attitudes becomes part of the discipline with which you approach your religious faith," Blair said. (Yahoo)

You can get in touch with Tony Blair at:

The Office of Tony Blair
P.O. Box 60519
London
W2 7JU
United Kingdom

info@tonyblairoffice.org

Demonstration Against Pope's Anti-Gay Policies in London

An event billing itself as the "London Demo for a Secular Europe" will be protesting over the pope's interference on gay rights, women's rights, gender equality, and secular rights will march through central London on Saturday.

Saturday's protest, which starts at 2pm outside the Natural History Museum and ends up at the Italian Embassy in Grosvenor Square, is in support of a simultaneous protest taking place in Rome, which is demanding that the Vatican end its interference in Italian politics.

CONTACT INFO
Marco Tranchino - marco.tranchino@gmail.com - 07806647903
Serena Bassi - serena.bassi@googlemail.com - 07796891091

Five Vigils Planned Today in Front of Catholic Cathedral's Nationwide

Dignity USA, New Ways Ministry, and Call to Action are holding 5 vigils in different cities across the country to protest the Vatican's position to not support a U.N. resolution to decriminalize homosexuality. The legislation is trying to make it illegal to imprison or execute people based on sexual orientation. The vigils will be held at various Catholic Churches listed below.

Boston, MA

6:30 PM Eastern Time
Holy Cross Cathedral
1400 Washington Street
Boston, MA
Contact Person: Rocco Pigneri, 617-421-1915, dignityinfo@dignityboston.org
Directions: http://www.angelfire.com/ma4/cathedral/directions.html

Dallas, TX

5:30 PM Central Time
Cathedral Guadalupe
2215 Ross Avenue
Dallas, TX
Contact Person: Jon Garinn, 214-621-9530, garinns@sbcglobal.net
Directions: http://www.cathedralguadalupe.org/about/directions.cfm

New York, NY

12:30 - 1:30 PM Eastern Time
Fifth Avenue & 51st Street (in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral)
New York, NY
Contact Person: Jeff Stone, 646-418-7039, jefastone@aol.com

San Francisco, CA

5:00 - 7:00 PM Pacific Time
Pink Triangle Memorial Park
Castro & Market (near the northwest corner)
San Francisco, CA
Contact People: Jim McGarry or Kathy Curran, kathycurran@yahoo.com

Seattle, WA

4:45 - 5:30 PM
St. James Cathedral
804 Ninth Avenue
Seattle, WA
Contact Person: Leo N. Egashira, 206-723-4759, legashira@yahoo.com
Directions: http://www.stjames-cathedral.org/Main.htm

Hold Fox News Accountable for Gay-Baiting

On the front page of the Fox News website there is an article titled "Sex Rights Brawl Slams Vatican." This is in reference to the recent protesting over the Vatican's decision to oppose a U.N. global decriminalization legislation which opposes imprisonment and the death penalty for gays.

This is not a "sex rights" issue, this has nothing to do with sex, people are being imprisoned and killed due to homosexuality regardless of whether they were discovered engaging in sexual relations or not. This has to do with human rights and human dignity. This has to do with right not to be imprisoned and executed based on ones identity.

Under that article is another titled:
"Vatican Sucked Into Sex-Rights Culture War" it seems Fox News has sex on their mind, even though the issue here has nothing to do with sex.

The two articles below that have zero to do with the U.N. legislation and are just further used as a fear tactic to make gays seem radical, outlandish and potentially morally reprehensible. The articles are titled "Same-Sex Marriage Backers Urge Workers to 'Call in Gay'", "Group Plans 'Pink' Christmas: Two Josephs, Two Marys."

It is wrong and unfair of Fox News to misrepresent the truth and to gay-bait.

Tell them to be "Fair & Balanced" on issues pertaining to gay rights.

Click here to contact Fox News.

Catholic Church Against Making Gay Death Penalty Illegal

The Catholic Church a body that has been staunchly opposed to the death penalty does not want to include international protections by the United Nations for gay people who face death penalty charges in countries where homosexuality is illegal. The Vatican is voicing opposition and plan to go against the French proposal that is introducing this piece of human rights resolution.

"This week the Vatican's permanent observer to the United Nations, said the Holy See would oppose a resolution that would protect gays from being killed, just because they are gay because it would "add new categories of those protected from discrimination" and could lead to reverse discrimination against traditional heterosexual marriage.

The French resolution, scheduled to be proposed this week, recommends protecting Gays and Lesbians from being jailed or killed because of their sexual orientation and is being introduced to the UN on behalf of the European Union.

But Archbishop Celestino Migliore said, if adopted, the resolution would create “new and implacable discriminations," and also said that states which do not recognize same-sex unions as 'matrimony' will be pilloried and made an objects of pressure.

However, the French resolution, which is supported by all 27 members of the European Union, says absolutely nothing about gay marriage; it is about ending jail and death penalty sentences gays yet face in more than 85 countries including Afghanistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen where you can still be killed for being gay."(LGR)

This is so disgusting and hypocritical of the Church. They are against the death penalty but don't want to be on the record opposing it for gays and lesbians?

Permanent Observer Mission of the
Holy See to the United Nations

25 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016-0903

Tel: (212) 370-7885
Fax: (212) 370-9622