Pastors Declare "Civil War" After Supreme Court Rejects DC Gay Marriage Case

[MinneapolisMatt]

So much for toning down the rhetoric...


Pastors Declare "Civil War" After Supreme Court Rejects DC Gay Marriage Case

"A travesty of justice." That's what the religious right is calling the U.S. Supreme Court's refusal to hear a case challenging the District of Columbia's marriage equality law.

Rev. Anthony Evans, a D.C. minister who has worked with Bishop Harry Jackson, who brought the suit seeking to invalidate the 10-month-old same-sex marriage law in the District, accused the Supreme Court of forcing the law "down the church’s throat."


"hat the Supreme Court has set up is the greatest civil war between the church and the gay community," Evans said. "And let me just state for the record, we don't want that fight. We love our gay brothers and sisters. But if the Supreme Court is not going to acknowledge the fact that we have a right as religious people to have a say-so in the framework of religious ethics for our culture and society, then we reject the Supreme Court on this issue."

Using civil war imagery to set up a false dichotomy of "the church vs. gays" doesn't seem advisable in an atmosphere already rife with violent rhetoric. It also doesn't jibe with Evans' next sentence expressing "love" for gays and lesbians. Usually, people who want to express love for someone do everything they can to help those people live the best life possible - not prevent them from achieving full equality.

-snip-

"In America, we respect the right to vote. That right is explicitly protected by the D.C. Charter, but the government has succeeded for now in suppressing the voice of D.C. citizens," said Austin R. Nimocks, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund. "We had hoped the U.S. Supreme Court would restore this guaranteed right in the district. … We will remain diligent in looking for other legal opportunities to protect and defend the right of all D.C. residents to have their voices heard as the D.C. Charter clearly intended."

---------

Oh, where to begin with these statements? There's more at the link:

http://www.religiondispatches.org/dispatches/candacechellew-hodge/4077/pastors_declare_%22civil_war%22_after_supreme_court_rejects_dc_gay_marriage_case/

[chemp]

1. babbling fools

"And let me just state for the record, we don't want that fight. We love our gay brothers and sisters. But if the Supreme Court is not going to acknowledge the fact that we have a right as religious people to have a say-so in the framework of religious ethics for our culture and society, then we reject the Supreme Court on this issue."


You don't and you don't

[old mark]

2. K&R- "Religious ethics"?---Bigotry and hate mongering? With love, of course....nt

[justiceischeap]

3. "religious people to have a say-so in the framework of religious ethics"

The Supreme Court isn't denying their "say-so in the framework of religious ethics;" They're just saying you have no right to make your religious ethics into law that not everyone subscribes to. I gotta say, if it was put to a vote in DC, I don't think they would win that either.

[Viking12]

4. Why are the wingnuts obsessed with things being forced down their throats?

[Scruffy1]

24. Finally, something that made me laugh.

With all the crap and bad news laughter has been a scarce commodity. Thanks.

[Viking12]

28. Happy to be of service.

:toast:

[Warren DeMontague]

26. The hard, throbbing, turgid reality of gay marriage is parting our delicately flowered lips

and then being forced down our really-truly-unwilling throats!

[Viking12]

29. Someone has been reading to many LTTE

in Penthouse :evilgrin:

[Odin2005]

30. I thought that was an allusion to force-feeding, not oral sex.

:shrug:

[Pancho Sanza]

32. allusion

don't you get the joke? :rofl:

[Odin2005]

34. oops, typo.

[hobbit709]

5. A man of god calling for civil war over a legal matter?

"Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's"

These idiots do not even recognize their own hypocrisy.

[catabryna]

6. I was interested in the name of the case...

so I clicked on the link and toward the end of that article, I found the following:

"Evans, an official with the D.C.-based National Black Church Initiative, said local same-sex marriage opponents have began discussions with “our Republican friends” in Congress to take steps to challenge the D.C. marriage law. He declined to disclose further details but said he and others opposed to the marriage law lobbied GOP leaders on the Hill to strip congressional delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) of her voting privileges on the House floor.

Since Republicans took control of the House earlier this month, GOP leaders revoked Norton’s limited floor voting privileges that Democrats gave her when they took control of the House in 2007. House GOP leaders also revoked the limited voting privileges for delegates representing U.S. territories and Puerto Rico.

“ur first action was to make sure that Eleanor didn’t get a vote as punishment for her wholehearted support for same-sex marriage in this city and also for her to ignore the black religious community,” Evans said. “There is a consequence to her actions. That was one of them.”

A Norton spokesperson could not be immediately reached for comment.

http://www.washingtonblade.com/2011/01/18/supreme-court-rejects-d-c-marriage-challenge/

How disturbing is this? Ms. Norton punished by the GOP for supporting civil rights... but, they found a way to make it appear they weren't targeting her specifically by stripping all delegates of the same privileges. Sickening.

[msongs]

7. respect the vote? so if slavery is voted in these nuts will go back into slavery? oh nt

[democrat_patriot]

8. What does marriage have to do with religion?

The church part is a CEREMONY. The marriage part is the law.

They have nothing in common.

[Kber]

9. I'm confused. Does the D.C. law require pastors to perform gay marriages?

Currently, Catholic Priests and Rabbis can refuse to marry interfaith couples. Does this law negate that? Does it tell pastors how to run their church's internal affairs?

Or does it guarantee the civil and legal rights of all citizens, regardless of orientation, religion, or lack of religion?

Just because if it's the latter, than the pastor can go pound sand.

[Bluenorthwest]

11. Have you heard of the First Amendment?

I am sick of even hearing this 'argument'. It is not legal to limit religious activity in the US. Right now, clergy is free to marry gay people or not, the government has nothing to do with that and never will. The equality issue is 100% about civil law, not anything to do with any 'faith' at all. The Church up the street would marry us this morning, but the government would not acknowledge that, which means that the only actual religious freedom being restricted is that of the clergy who do same sex unions which are rejected by the government.
Point being, you can always skip the silly fake framings and cut to the sand pounding.

[polmaven]

17. It is indeed the latter.

There is nothing that compels any religious institution to bless any union.

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Iggo]

12. You're goddam right you don't want that fight, Reverend.

Get too close to the constitution and you might get burned.

[patrice]

13. Dog-whistling to Lou Engle who has supported Civil War against the right to choose reproductive

services.

[krabigirl]

14. Lol, maybe they will secede to some island somewhere and leave us alone.

[Angry Dragon]

15. Where in their bible does it say that gays can not marry??

They are free to practice their religion any way they want, they just can not tell others how to live their lives.
I do not think I have met very many true Christians.......just saying

[polmaven]

19. Thank you,

True Chrisians do not act or speak as this man does.

[Angry Dragon]

20. Inmy world there are two types

There are Christians ........ people trying to live the life that is written in their Bible

There are "christians" ........ people that feel they know the true path to salvation and feel that everyone else is a sinner except them

[Initech]

16. They're not helping their case by using the phrase "force down the church's throat"

[jdp349]

18. now there is an idea for an X rated political cartoon

[Initech]

22. Too bad I can't draw for shit!

:rofl:

[marmar]

21. "accused the Supreme Court of forcing the law "down the church’s throat."

Speaks volumes about some members of the clergy and their belief that they are above "earthly" law.

[starroute]

23. Bishop Harry Jackson is bad news

He's got one of those kind of anonymous names that people don't notice much, but when you start googling on him a lot comes up.

Among other things, he's a client of the PR firm of long time right-winger Craig Shirley -- who also represents David Bossie of Citizens United and the small Catholic group that was making a fuss about Obama being invited to speak at Notre Dame back in 2009.

It might not exactly being a Vast, Right-Wing Conspiracy going on over there, but there's certainly a lot of birds-of-a-feather-ness. And Jackson is definitely part of it.

[Stuckinthebush]

25. What church is he a Bishop in?

Or is he one of those charlatan ministers who give themselves a title that sounds good?

[MountainLaurel]

27. Hope Christian Church

Here's some info:

http://www.thehopeconnection.org/index.php/understand-hope/senior-pastor/

[Stuckinthebush]

35. So he is a Bishop by his own hand

in his own church. No denominational oversight. Great job if you can convince enough people to buy it.

[Odin2005]

31. But, but, both sides uses equally violent rhetoric!!!1!11!!!

:sarcasm:

[GoneOffShore]

33. Evans - STFU!