Rev. Lonnie Latham--Another Victim of the Southern Baptist Lie

[Ian David]

See related threads:

Baptist leader accused of soliciting male prostitute
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2021215

Oopsie! Local Baptist preacher busted for asking man for sex
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x52315


Rev. Lonnie Latham--Another Victim of the Southern Baptist Lie Regarding Homosexuality

Download this press release as an Adobe PDF document.

Soulforce issues statement regarding arrest of Southern Baptist Convention(SBC)pastor, Rev. Lonnie Latham, arrested Tuesday for allegedly soliciting oral sex from a male undercover police officer. Rather than attack Rev. Latham's reported hypocrisy, Soulforce points out that what "informs" his behavior is the SBC's campaign of LGBT defamation.

Lynchburg, VA (PRWEB) January 6, 2005 -- In response to today's news that the Rev. Lonnie Latham, a prominent figure in the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) and senior pastor of South Tulsa Baptist Church, was arrested Tuesday for allegedly propositioning a male undercover police officer, Soulforce founder Rev. Dr. Mel White says, "No one should have to come out via an undercover sting operation. That is its own evil. Until the Southern Baptist Convention ends their spiritual violence against gay and lesbian people, tragedies like this will continue."

Soulforce exists as an organization to end spiritual violence against LGBT people. “The false antigay teachings of the Southern Baptist Convention have claimed yet another victim,” said Robyn Murphy, Director of Public Relations and Media, for Soulforce. “Many people are attacking Rev. Latham for his hypocrisy, but instead we should be asking ‘what informs that hypocrisy’? The answer, tragically, is the SBC’s vicious and non-stop campaign of defamation against Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) people and same-gender families.”

Jamie McDaniel, a spokesperson for Soulforce who works to change the antigay polices of the SBC, said “It’s tragic that so many, like Rev. Latham, have never been told the truth that they can live with dignity and express their God-given sexuality in ways that are open, honest, loving and life-affirming. Trapped by Southern Baptist misinformation, many people of faith think their only option is to live a dark and secretive double-life. The SBC needs to be held accountable for causing this kind of needless suffering.”

The Southern Baptist Convention, with over 15 million members, is the 2nd largest denomination in the United States. Southern Baptist teachings are a source of misinformation about homosexuality and homosexual people. Southern Baptist leaders also attempt to rally their congregations to defeat legislation that could help LGBT Americans gain equality. In the past, the Southern Baptist Convention simply condemned homosexuals with anti-gay rhetoric, but in recent years Southern Baptists have stated their intention to "minister" to gays and lesbians by promoting ex-gay programs and so-called “reparative” therapy.


The purpose of Soulforce is freedom for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people from religious and political oppression through the practice of relentless nonviolent resistance.

###

More:
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/1/prweb329600.htm

[xchrom]

1. a lie indeed --

and yes it is a form of violence.

[Ian David]

2. Latest updates

» Beware the pious self-hating homosexual preacher
Media girl, CO - 9 hours ago
By media girl, posted Thursday 5 Jan 2006, 6:16 pm. (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) An executive committee member of the Southern Baptist ...
http://news.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=us/4-0&fp=43bef56872397583&ei=M2C-Q-nkDr7maOWb4cYG&url=http%3A//mediagirl.org/node/1032&cid=0&sig2=H2weiPZr7ttTXbsyDDol-g


SBC Has No Plans To Remove Pastor
Channel Oklahoma.com, OK - 9 hours ago
OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Southern Baptist Convention said Thursday it does not plan to remove a reverend from the convention's executive committee after he was ...
http://news.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=us/5-0&fp=43bef56872397583&ei=M2C-Q-nkDr7maOWb4cYG&url=http%3A//www.channeloklahoma.com/news/5872642/detail.html&cid=0&sig2=rMbIQwoUoi26EiO2rhxJ_A

Tulsa Church Pastor Put On Adminstrative Leave Following His ...
KOTV, OK - 13 hours ago
There are new developments involving the story of a Tulsa preacher who was arrested in Oklahoma City. The deacons of South Tulsa ...
http://news.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=us/5-0&fp=43be078021afcbe4&ei=g2C-Q_uKKI_OaI_oqdAH&url=http%3A//www.kotv.com/main/home/stories.asp%3Fwhichpage%3D1%26id%3D96582&cid=0&sig2=opn98TJQQv8ZSg2PlFikpA

Pastor accused of propositioning a cop
Gay.com UK, UK - 1 hour ago
The Reverend Lonnie Latham, an outspoken opponent of homosexuality and a national figure in the Southern Baptist Convention, was arrested on Tuesday in US ...
http://news.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=us/0-0&fp=43be078021afcbe4&ei=g2C-Q_uKKI_OaI_oqdAH&url=http%3A//uk.gay.com/headlines/9444&cid=0&sig2=ivTdojqd2Mkcs2jiTIRWNg


Tulsa Church Pastor Put On Adminstrative Leave Following His ...
KOTV, OK - 13 hours ago
There are new developments involving the story of a Tulsa preacher who was arrested in Oklahoma City. The deacons of South Tulsa ...
http://news.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=us/5-0&fp=43be078021afcbe4&ei=g2C-Q_uKKI_OaI_oqdAH&url=http%3A//www.kotv.com/main/home/stories.asp%3Fwhichpage%3D1%26id%3D96582&cid=0&sig2=opn98TJQQv8ZSg2PlFikpA

Anti-gaming religious leader arrested for solicitation
Tulsa Native American Times, OK - 18 hours ago
One of the leaders against last year’s effort to allow expanded Indian gaming has been arrested for soliciting an undercover policeman posing as a prostitute ...
http://news.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=us/9-0&fp=43be078021afcbe4&ei=g2C-Q_uKKI_OaI_oqdAH&url=http%3A//nativetimes.com/index.asp%3Faction%3Ddisplayarticle%26article_id%3D7413&cid=0&sig2=z4TYnymPAJZtPH-x-8_6YQ



Pastor accused of propositioning a policeman
Christopher Curtis, GAY.COM/PlanetOut.com Network
Friday 6 January, 2006 10:32

<snip>
The Reverend Robyn Murphy, a spokeswoman for Soulforce, an organisation devoted to changing the hearts and minds of religious leaders who engage in anti-gay campaigns, was sympathetic to Latham.

"The anti-gay bias has now claimed another victim," Murphy said. "Now he will be ridiculed for being gay."

"What he needs some is some sanity and grace, and that's the message he should have been spreading all along," she said. "We wish him well, and we wish he didn't have to be outed in this fashion."

Matt Foreman, the executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, suggested that Latham's arrest was indicative of a larger pattern.

"This is just another example of people who are the most viciously homophobic and at the same time are clearly gay," he told GAY.COM, adding that he suspects the same is true for many anti-gay leaders.

"It's nearly impossible to explain the irrational hatred of our opponents, other than to think they have internal conflicts about their own sexuality," Foreman concluded.

More:
http://uk.gay.com/headlines/9444



Anti-gaming religious leader arrested for solicitation
Pastor led charge against tribally owned casinos

OKLAHOMA CITY OK
Native American Times 1/5/2006

One of the leaders against last year’s effort to allow expanded Indian gaming has been arrested for soliciting an undercover policeman posing as a prostitute.

<snip>

Latham has been senior pastor at the church since 2002, and he has used his position to speak out against Indian gaming. In 2004, he spearheaded efforts to place an anti-gaming measure on the state ballot.

“The petition would be to allow the state’s people to vote on whether or not they want this kind of casino gambling in the state,” he said. “…. We’re hoping that we can gather not only 51,000 names but also many more who will see this as the moral issue that it is.”

Latham also said the social costs of gaming outweigh its benefits, and he opposed efforts to establish a state lottery.

State voters eventually approved both expanded Indian gaming and a lottery.

Latham also supported a Baptist Convention directive that encourages befriending homosexuals in an effort to persuade them to become heterosexual and reject their “sinful, destructive lifestyle."

More:
http://nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=7413

[xchrom]

3. the loathing emanating from the sbc regarding

this is just barely constrained.

it amazes me that people in this day and age, gay or straight, want to put themselves through this kind of loathing for the crime of being human.