Is this the end of Women's Sports? Results of "transgender" activism

Today, LifeSiteNews (among others) reports that in next week's Boston Marathon men will be allowed to compete as women. Should prove instructive. The GenderTrender website has a long list of men who declare themselves women, and then, unsurprisingly,  go on to dominate women's sports.

Just one example: How does a 53 year old become the leading scorer and rebounder on a college basketball team? Easy: just be a man and claim you’re a woman! 

In 2013, ESPN profiled Robert Ludwig, a 52 year-old man playing on a woman’s College basketball team. How obtuse the ESPN writer is is illustrated by first reading paragraph 27:

“What some of the nastier adversaries seemed to dwell on when Ludwig first began playing was the notion that she somehow had an unfair advantage against her opponents, but even at 6-6 that was not the case both because of female hormones reducing her muscle mass as well as the unavoidable fact that she is 52.”

Then rereading it armed with the additional information from paragraph 39: 

“’She's the leading scorer and rebounder, and this team is somewhat built around her,’ (Coach Corey) Cafferata said.”

Emphasis added.

Promoting Sodomy in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles

The Religious Education Congress of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles will be held this weekend. LifeSiteNews has an extensive expose of the sodomy-promoting individuals the archdiocese has welcomed. Excerpts:

Dr. Arthur Fitzmaurice, an open homosexual and LGBT activist who says that the Catechism of the Catholic Church is “evil” because of its language regarding homosexuals, will be giving two talks at the conference: “Transgender in Our Schools: One Bread, One Body,” and “Teaching Mercy: Accompanying LGBT Students.” At the Religious Education Congress in 2015, Fitzmaurice condemned the Catechism’s teaching that homosexual orientation is “intrinsically disordered,” asserting that “to keep this abusive language in the Catechism and other Church writings is, in itself, gravely evil.”

Fr. Bryan Massingale, who openly advocates the LGBT political agenda, will also be giving a talk with the title “Transgender in Our Schools: One Bread, One Body.” Massingale spoke last year at the annual symposium of the condemned homosexualist organization “New Ways Ministry,” which seeks to eliminate Catholic moral teaching against homosexual acts. According to the dissenting National Catholic Reporter, Massingale “shared a note he had received in 2002 from [Archbishop] Rembert Weakland” who had recently resigned after he was exposed as having paid hundreds of thousands of diocesan funds to a man with whom he had a homosexual tryst. Massingale quoted the note from Weakland stating, “On the gay issue, the level of fears is so high that the official teaching of the church skates so very close to the edge of a new ‘theology of contempt.”

Massingale has publicly opposed the Trump administration’s executive order to protect religious liberty because he regards it as “unnecessary and most likely would threaten the rights of LGBT persons.” Although Christians have lost their businesses for refusing to cooperate with the celebration or practice of homosexuality, Massingale writes, “Despite the rhetoric of persecution embraced by some, Christians are not under attack in this country.”

An open lesbian named Yunuen Trujillo will be giving two talks in Spanish, titled “Family acceptance project: Myths and realities regarding the gay community,” and “Catholic and gay: Answers to the most basic pastoral questions.”  

In a recent video, Trujillo claims that for homosexuals having a “partner” and being chaste are “equally holy.”

The article closes by quoting Joseph Sciambra, a Catholic who actually cares about saving those with same-sex attraction:

“During and after the 2017 Congress, I spoke with representatives of the LA Archdiocese, including Archbishop Gomez and told them about my concerns,” Sciambra told LifeSite. “Yet, this year, they inexplicably invited probably the most controversial speaker in the Catholic Church on the topic of homosexuality: James Martin, SJ…

“Unfortunately, many devout and faithful Catholics do not understand or even know what the Church teaches about homosexuality. Therefore, when they attend a lecture by [Fr. James] Martin at an official Catholic conference, they will assume that everything he wrote and says supports those teachings.”

“In other words, the Bishops, who allow such speakers, are contributing to confusion and the outright dispersion of lies.”

'Transgender' Man Proves He's a Man, Not A Woman

Our cracked "elite" culture may buy into the delusion that men can turn into women and women can turn into men, but nature always finds a way for the truth to come out.

A recent example of this was the July 19 HLN TV Dr. Drew Show, where Breitbart reporter Ben Shapiro angered Robert Tur, an Inside Edition Reporter who now thinks he's a woman and calls himself Zoey. Then this happened:

"...Tur grabbed Shapiro’s neck and growled, “You cut that out now, or you’ll go home in an ambulance.” Shapiro later alleged that Tur had threatened him after the appearance, “I’ll see you in the parking lot,” and that CNN security had escorted Shapiro to his car after ensuring Tur had left the premises. Tur also tweeted out on Friday that he would like to “curb stomp” Shapiro."

Can anyone imagine a real woman ever behaving in this way? It is totally male. As Shapiro said "...referring to transgender people by their preferred instead of biological sex is 'mainstreaming delusion.'” Mr. Tur's behavior amply demonstrated Shapiro's point, and Mr. Shapiro has quite properly filed a police report against Mr. Tur.

SF’s 1% Comes out against Archbishop Cordileone--Millionaires Urge Pope Francis to Remove Faithful Shepherd

On Wednesday, April 15, the San Francisco Chronicle reported “Prominent Catholics call on pope to oust S.F. archbishop.” The column began “In an unprecedented move, more than 100 prominent Roman Catholic donors and church members signed a full-page ad running Thursday in The Chronicle that calls on Pope Francis to replace San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone for fostering “an atmosphere of division and intolerance.”

Full-page weekday ads in the Chronicle cost $60,889, according to published information on the Nationwide Newspaper Advertising website. A 2013 article in SF Weekly confirmed the astronomical cost, reporting full-page ads in the Chronicle range $59,000 to $92,000. The advertisers may have bought more than the ad, or the Chronicle decided to throw in a bonus: photo #6 of 13 accompanying the Chronicle’s story was captioned “Archbishop. Your shocking intolerance, homophobia and sexual dread are not much threat at all anymore, and are actually increasingly quaint”:

The ad objected, among other things, to the Archbishop’s new initiative to keep Catholic schools Catholic, his defense of natural marriage, and his appointment of Fr. Joseph Illo as pastor of San Francisco’s Star of the Sea Church.

The Archdiocese responded to the ad, calling it “a misrepresentation of Catholic teaching, a misrepresentation of the nature of the teacher contract, and a misrepresentation of the spirit of the archbishop. The greatest misrepresentation of all is that the signers presume to speak for 'the Catholic Community of San Francisco.’

The Chronicle’s breathless report that “more than 100” persons signed the ad is reminiscent of their recent report that “over 100” people attended a March meeting opposing Star of the Sea’s pastor Fr. Joseph Illo. The Chronicle did not report that on Palm Sunday more than five times as many parishioners signed petitions of support of Fr. Illo.

The Archdiocese’s point “The greatest misrepresentation of all is that the signers presume to speak for 'the Catholic Community of San Francisco” is accurate. As the Chronicle story, the cost of the ad, and the names of many of the signatories indicate, the ad far over-represents the “1%”, wealthy and politically connected, which, in San Francisco, can mean only leftist and liberal.

Signatories included Brian Cahill, past executive Director of Catholic Charities. It was under Cahill’s tenure that Catholic Charities embarked on the disastrous partnership with Family Builders by Adoption, who described themselves as “about the gayest adoption agency in the country.” That partnership contractually obligated Catholic Charities to “Increasing the number of children adopted by Lesbian, Gay Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) adults” --deliberately placing children in situations that would deprive them of a mother or father. That dissolution of that partnership was announced in 2008 and Cahill was gone soon after.

Signatories also included former political consultant and President of the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities Clint Reilly, and his current wife Janet. As a political consultant Clint Reilly ran campaigns for pro-abortion, pro-same sex “marriage” politicians Dianne Feinstein, Barbara Boxer, and Nancy Pelosi, among others. He is now an extremely wealthy real estate mogul. As far back as 2004 an article in the SF Weekly mentioned “Reilly’s estimated $100 million fortune.” During her failed 2006 campaign for the Assembly, Janet Reilly “announced support for same-sex marriage and adoption by LGBT couples” according to the Bay Area Reporter. She also supports abortion rights and has been a regular at NARAL Pro-Choice America’s annual “Power of Choice” luncheons, appearing there in 2010, 2011, and 2014.

Another signatory, attorney Frank Pitre, a partner in Cotchett, Pitre, & McCarthy, told the Chronicle: “It seems he (Cordileone) is going in a direction that is completely opposite where Pope Francis is going and creating an atmosphere of complete intolerance.” It is hard to believe that a capable attorney such as Mr. Pitre is not misunderstanding Pope Francis, as it were deliberately. He chooses to ignore Pope Francis’s description of same-sex “marriage” as “a move from the father of lies” and of being part of the “ideological colonization” that attempts the destruction of the family. Ironically, Mr. Pitre’s statement came on the same day the Holy Father made headlines worldwide for blasting “gender theory.”

Another signatory was Larry Nibbi, from Nibbi Brothers Construction, one of the largest general contractors in San Francisco. In 2014, Nibbi had revenue of $199 million, according to Engineering News-Record annual report on the country’s top 400 contractors.

Another signatory is Terence Coleman, a partner in the law firm Pillsbury and Coleman (although the ad gives his affiliation as with the firm’s former name, Pillsbury & Lebvinson), with offices in San Francisco’s iconic Transamerica pyramid. His bio on P & C’s webpage says Mr. Coleman “was named a Northern California ‘Super Lawyer’ in 2006 through 2014.”

The wealthy, with honorable exceptions, have never been very fond of the Church, for obvious reasons—even when they are by birth “Catholic.” Jesus Christ himself said “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.” We must pray for the wealthy, for they are subject to greater temptations, and with the ability to indulge them. Jesus also said “Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of the needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.”

UPDATE: The Chronicle pulled the caption to the picture of Archbishop Cordileone, which we have screenshotted, above.

Anti-Family, Anti-Catholic Activists hosted at Most Holy Redeemer

Today's California Catholic Daily reports on SF's Most Holy Redeemer Church's January 22 hosting of a town hall meeting for the LGBT political action group Equality California. The article is aptly titled "Is this a Catholic Church?"

Of all the anti-Catholic events hosted at MHR, and there have been many (drag show, obscene bingo, years of sado-masochistic gatherings, etc.) this is the most obscene and the most anti-Catholic. No group that MHR has hosted, not the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, or the S/m Golden Gate Guards or the Inter-Club Fund are worse than EQCA.

The meeting was sold as focusing on access to health care. But that took up only a small part of the meeting. The majority of the discussion covered Equality California's broadening political agenda. That political and legislative agenda is diametrically opposed to the Catholic Church, That agenda will also target individual Catholics and Christians who attempt to uphold the truth of the faith.

The transcripts of some of the items under discussion, taken from the California Catholic Daily article are reproduced below in red. The speaker is Executive Director Rick Zbur.

On EQCA's opposition to religious exemptions to laws that the Catholic Church and its members could not obey without violating their faith, the moderator asked: "Do you see some of these religious liberty laws they’ve tried to get started in other states over the last year or so? And they did have an effort in California that I don’t think went anywhere. Do you see this happening again in the legislative session, and if so will Equality California oppose that?"

“Well, we definitely would oppose it. You know, I haven’t heard very much about them doing that, I think they’re focus is on unraveling AB 1266, that’s what we we’re hearing their focus is, but in California I haven’t heard anything recently, but obviously we would oppose it. The thrust really though, I think is at the federal level with the version of ENDA that passed the Senate that included a broad religious exemption that we were very very uncomfortable about, and most of the LGBT organizations that weighed in expressed a lot of nervousness about the decision to pass it with that broad religious exemption, and so we’ve already spoken out against that. 

“I think the thing that makes me nervous is the fact that it passed with that version and we’ve got a lot of states now that I don’t think that the next phase of us earning civil rights protection is going to happen at the federal level with Republicans in control of both houses of Congress. It’s really going to happen, as it has in California, in the states that don’t have that. So I’m really nervous about this religious exemption being used to sort of weaken civil rights laws that pass in the states. So that’s, we’ll continue engaging on that where we see it.”

This means EQCA opposes an exemption for, say, a photographer or a baker who refuses to participate in a same-sex 'wedding.'  They will work to prevent a Catholic from being faithful to the Church. They are announcing this intention in what calls itself a Catholic Church.

Note that in his answer, Mr. Zbur brought up AB 1266. The California Catholic Bishops were very clear about that bill: "If signed into law by the governor, AB 1266 will require public schools to allow a child of any age 'to participate in sex-segregated school programs and activities, including athletic teams and competitions, and use facilities consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil’s records.'"

What the bill means is that if a second grade girl (who is biologically a female) decides she wants to be a boy, she can use the boys’ bathroom if she chooses. She can insist on being called 'he' instead of 'she'. If a twelve year old boy (who is biologically a male) self-identifies as a girl, he—or 'she'—must be allowed to play on the girls’ softball team and share the locker room with the girls.

Explain that to your eight or ten year old, or your six year old."

The moderator followed up: "You just mentioned AB 1266, which is the law that went into effect last January, that provides that all students have access to the same facilities [bathrooms], including transgender students too, athletics and other things too. What do you see in different parts of the state around implementing that and how can Equality California help with that. You did mention earlier you were working on some school issues." Zbur responded:

“We’ve been partnering with other LGBT organizations, not us alone. The ACLU, one of our partners, has been really taking a lot of leadership on this. For example, I think it’s next week we are participating in a pretty big convening meeting in the Coachella Valley in which I think there is something like 8 or 9 smaller school districts that the ACLU and Equality California are helping provide some training for members of the school district and administrators and the school board on AB 1266 implementation. 

“What we’re finding is implementation is spotty, that a lot of districts really don’t want to do it, that AB 1266 is one of those laws that there is a fair amount of controversy on. We saw a member of the California Assembly who lost re-election in Orange County and one of the key issues that was raised in her political campaign was the fact that she voted for AB 1266. So I think our opponents know that is an area where the public, where there is a lack of full understanding among the public. And they’re using that as a bit of a wedge issue.

“So we think that we need to really engage in education ahead of a potential ballot measure that they may very well try to put back on the ballot in the 2016 election cycle. They did try to gather signatures for 2014 and just fell short in gathering enough signatures to get on the ballot but we’re hearing that they are going to try again and so that’s an issue that we’ll be working on with the Transgender Law Center & the ACLU & National Center for Lesbian Rights and all of our partners”

AB 1266 is a vastly unpopular law, certainly opposed by a majority of Californians. As Zbur admits even "a lot of (public school) districts really don't want to do it." And we repeat: it was publicly opposed by the California Catholic Bishops. But EQCA announces, in what calls itself a Catholic Church, that, working with the ACLU, will be forcing compliance with this idiotic and immoral law in direct opposition to the Catholic Church.

EQCA's actions corrupt the minds of California's children by teaching them that it is simply their decision which determines whether they are a boy or a girl. But AB 1266 is not the only attack EQCA is making on children, the family, and reason in the public schools.  The moderator asked Mr. Zbur what EQCA's priorities were for the coming year. Zbur listed three, one of which was:

“We are talking to the ACLU about co-sponsoring a bill that would update sex-education criteria that are imposed in the schools, and there are requirements now that sex education programs in a very general way address and educate kids about the diversity of what a family looks like and because the standards are so general most school districts don’t really do what was intended by the existing legislation. So that the curriculum is being updated, the ACLU really wants more standards than that, so we’re really going to be focused on that as well.”

So the propaganda that goes under the name of 'sex education' in the public schools does not go far enough in Mr. Zbur's (or the ACLU's) opinion. To 'educate kids about the diversity of what a family looks like' is simply propaganda against the family, what Pope Francis himself called on January 16 the 'new ideological colonization that tries to destroy the family.'

Once again, Zbur announces that he will attack the fundamental teaching of the Church (exemplified by Pope Francis words) on the reality of man and woman and the family. Once again he announces his attack on the faith, (and the Pope), in what calls itself a Catholic Church.

Mr. Zbur is also seeking clerical allies in castrating the Churches. (He has two--two priest were in attendance at the meeting, probably Frs. McClure and Link of MHR). He unveiled EQCA's 'Faith Initiative'--apparently made public for the first time, at Most Holy Redeemer.

The moderator asked: "I know that when we talked you had mentioned something about Equality California planning a faith initiative. What would that entail?"

Mr. Zbur: “So we’ll be announcing the details, but I’ll give you a little bit of a preview. We’ve been in discussions with a group of faith leaders throughout the state who’ve actually already been engaging in work to both educate and outreach to the faith communities about the LGBT community and to advance LGBT equality and acceptance in the faith community, talking with them about providing a home and support for that and part of their ministry. 

“The group of faith leaders are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, includes a large group or them, so for us it recognizes the fact that some of achieving our goal of full acceptance of LGBT people will require us I think to have more outreach and education within faith communities and so that’s a priority for us and we are hoping that this new initiative is completed, but we’re hoping soon to announce the details of the faith initiative that is sort of really aimed at more outreach in the faith communities in California. 

“I think that other than that what makes me really excited is that you look at where the opponents of full equality are coming from, they’re using faith based arguments and religious exemptions to try and carve away the legal rights that we have already earned here in California and in other parts of the country, so having a group of faith leaders who are standing with us in our fight for full equality and acceptance, I think will be something that’s going to be important for us all as we engage in the political advocacy that we need and in the public education to sort of protect the rights that we have already earned.”

Equality California is at war with the Catholic Church. Inexplicably, the Archdiocese of San Francisco provided them with a beachhead. That Most Holy Redeemer would provide aid and comfort to the enemies of the Church will surprise no one who has been paying attention. As far back as August 28, 2007, in the post 'MHR and how it got that way,'  I argued that, existentially, Most Holy Redeemer is not a Catholic Church, it is a gay spiritual institution. I wrote at that time:

"The moral credibility of the Catholic Church, then, will be determined (by the members of MHR) by the extent to which it supports, or fails to support, the community-forming experience of the gay community. If...the sexuality is experienced as more important than the doctrines of the Catholic Church, one would expect the doctrines of the Church to be discarded when they come into conflict with the community-forming experience. And this is exactly what happens...And this leads to the acceptance of blasphemy in an ostensibly Catholic Church. But such events will not be experienced by the parishioners as blasphemous, because they validate the community-forming experience...Indeed, at this point, what will be experienced by the parishioners as blasphemous is that which denies the value of the community-forming experience." Such as the teaching that marriage is only between one man and one woman.

I also wrote at that time that the fault does not lie with MHR but with the Archdiocese.

Equality at the expense of sanity, "transgender" division

The picture is of Martin Rothblatt, who changed his name to "Martine." Has anyone ever seen a real woman pose like that? Such a pose is male to the core.

The picture is from the GenderTrender website. Heaven knows we don't agree with them on many things, but they certainly get the insanity of the "transgender" movement. The authors over there chronicle the invasion of "women only" spaces by men pretending to be women. Because the two sides are somewhat remote from the average American's experience, and because the mainstream media, (progressive to the core), always sides with whatever the latest "oppressed group" is, it does not get the coverage that it should. 

The vitriol targeting any 'anti-transgender' feminists is astonishingly hate filled. I cannot think of a comparable case, offhand. Pretty much everyone has heard about athlete Ray Rice's altercation with his girlfriend. But how many know about Fallon Fox (a male boxer) beating up (female boxer) Tamikka Brents? Because Fox is "transgender" he was able to get into the ring with Brents. He beat the crap out of her: gave her a concussion and an orbital bone fracture in under three minutes. LifeSiteNews did a story on it. GenderTrender's article on Fox/Brents covers a number of other "Transgender" men who have entered women's sports.

Valerie Schmalz's blockbuster series continues in Catholic San Francisco

Valerie Schmalz's must-read series describing the attack by homosexual activists on the Church continues in the September 19 issue of Catholic San Francisco. The digital version of the paper is already up. It's been on the paper's front page both last week and this week, and quickly reached #1 on the website's "Most popular news stories" list. This week's installment begins:


Faith the latest battleground for gay rights advocates
Faithful America targeting of Archbishop Cordileone showcases tactic

Don’t be surprised if same-sex partnered families are front and center in news coverage of the 2015 Catholic World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia – whether or not Pope Francis shows up.

A coalition of four dissident Catholic groups, calling itself Equally Blessed, is recruiting for what it calls a pilgrimage to “speak out for the holiness of LGBT families” at the World Meeting of Families, to which Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput has invited Pope Francis.

The Equally Blessed coalition received a $200,000 grant in March from Michigan self-identified gay billionaire Jon Stryker’s Arcus Foundation. That brings Arcus funding of Equally Blessed since 2010 to $770,000.

In a press release, Arcus said the 2014 grant was to support “a coalition of pro-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual,transgender) Catholic advocacy agencies which will amplify pro-LGBT voices within the Catholic Church in preparation for significant international gatherings planned by Catholic bishops and the Vatican.”

The Arcus Foundation’s grant-making is part of a strategy by a handful of nonprofit and private foundations to use the language of faith to challenge traditional sexual morality by directly attacking individual faith leaders, including Catholic bishops but also Protestants and Jews.

They fund dissidents in the Catholic Church, as well as other Christians and Jews who share their worldview opposing marriage as only between one man and woman. The financial grants help amplify the voices of dissident Catholics with the intention of making it appear as if the dissidents constitute a vigorous, loud, and committed contingent within ordinary Catholic parishes...."

It's a long and well-researched article, and, as noted, a must-read. You can read the whole thing here. 

Here is her chart of the foundations funding the faux-Catholic groups. Click the image for a larger version.



Important: SF Archdiocese Exposes LGBT 'Catholic' Groups

This week's Catholic San Francisco, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of San Francisco has an important and comprehensive expose of the motivations and funding of 'Catholic' homosexualist groups seeking to undermine the Church. The article begins:

Gay rights money funds archbishop’s critics
Faithful America part of national progressive advocacy network

September 10th, 2014
By Valerie Schmalz 

"Many Catholics in the San Francisco Bay Area were surprised by the strong negative reaction to Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone’s decision to give a talk about traditional marriage at a June 19 Washington, D.C., rally organized to support marriage.

A national online petition from Faithful America and a nationally publicized June 10 letter from 78 politicians and others urged the archbishop to withdraw from the March for Marriage in Washington, D.C. The letter and petition citing “hate” speech by the National Organization for Marriage and the labeling participant Family Research Council as a “hate group” created a media storm and disturbed many local Catholics and pastors.

Most are used to attacks on the archbishop for his strong advocacy of the Catholic Church’s teaching on marriage and family, but the reaction seemed disproportionate to the event – which was a talk at a rally by a Catholic Church leader who has given many talks in support of marriage and family across the country and in the media.

 The cause for surprise among Catholics may be they assumed the powerful reaction was spontaneous. Now there is abundant evidence the reaction was both well planned and financed by Faithful America, an organization that is supported directly and indirectly by politically powerful and wealthy men and by grant-making foundations who have devoted millions of dollars to promoting acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) behavior...."

Flowchart showing funding behind the "Open Letter" to Archbishop Cordileone.
Courtesy Catholic San Francisco.

The article is part one of a three-part special report. It is very heartening to see this in an Archdiocesan newspaper. Not only that, the Archdiocese has a number of its ministries involved in the special report. Ms. Schmalz's article quotes Jesuit Father John Piderit, the Archdiocese's new moderator of the curia and vicar for administration. Fr. Piderit says:

“Similar to other groups, Faithful America is a well-funded pressure group that espouses a variety of viewpoints contrary to Catholic teaching. Informed Catholics are aware that such groups regularly promote their viewpoints in the media.... Catholics should treat these people with dignity, but Catholics also should be aware of their agenda and their tactics." 

Fr. Piderit adds:“The message is part of a larger strategy, and the appearance of open letters and demonstrators is planned, not spontaneous.”

In addition to Ms. Schmalz's expose, the paper also contains two related pieces by Mr. Ed Hopfner, the director of the Office of Marriage and Family Life for the Archdiocese. His first piece articulates the Church's teaching on marriage--what it is and what it isn't:

"The marriage vows reflect the love of God shown us in the person of Jesus Christ – freely given, faithfully and completely given, and fruitful (life-giving). Furthermore, through his life, death and resurrection, Christ has elevated marriage to a sacrament, which gives us the grace to overcome our lust – our disordered desire, our tendency to use others, even our spouse, instead of love them – and love our spouse in the way they deserve.

No other kind of 'love relationship' (parent-child, sibling, friendship, same-sex couple, polygamous ... ) has these features – thus no other kind can be a marriage in our understanding. While many states have legalized same-sex marriage, the church cannot recognize them as such. Pope Francis, while reminding us that we cannot judge the heart, only actions, with his famous 'Who am I to judge?' quote, has reiterated the church’s teaching on the unique character of ‘traditional’ marriage, calling same-sex legal marriage a 'destructive attack on God’s plan,' since it omits a key element of marriage, openness to new life."

Mr. Hopfner's second contribution articulates the Church's teaching on conscience:

"The Catholic Church does teach the primacy of individual conscience. It’s like a compass God has given us, to make moral decisions. In fact, the Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that we must always obey our consciences.

However it also tells us we have an obligation of proper formation of conscience, since we are all 'tempted by sin to prefer … (our) own judgment and to reject authoritative teachings.' Just like a compass can point in the wrong direction if a magnet is nearby, so our conscience can be pulled in the wrong direction, and make errors in judgment. The catechism tells us this is particularly true when we are subject to 'bad example by others ... (by) a mistaken notion of autonomy of conscience, (or) rejection of the church’s authority and her teaching.'”

New Pastor, Parochial Vicar for Most Holy Redeemer

An edited version of this article appeared last week in California Catholic Daily. They did not include what we consider to be one of the most interesting things about MHR, and why it is so hard for pastors there, addressed with utmost brevity in our second to last paragraph (in bold).


On June 2, Catholic San Francisco, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of San Francisco announced the clergy changes that will take effect in the coming year. The changes included the news that Fr. Brian Costello will be leaving the City’s notorious Most Holy Redeemer parish. Fr. Costello will be replaced by Fr. Jack McClure C.PP.S, who will serve as pastor, and Fr. Matthew Link C.PP.S, who will serve as Parochial Vicar. C.PP.S. is the acronym for Missionaries of the Precious Blood.

 On June 6, the National Catholic Reporter ran an article titled “San Francisco’s largest gay parish to get new pastors.” From the article:

 “(Fr.) McClure said when Link learned in January that Most Holy Redeemer would be looking for a pastor, he approached McClure and suggested they apply as a team. Eventually, the men met with Auxiliary Bishop William Justice, who heads pastoral ministry for the archdiocese….The Precious Blood Fathers have had an outreach to the LGBT community since 2007. They say the ministry was developed to foster dialogue, reconciliation and justice with people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender.”

“Outreach to the LGBT community” won’t be necessary at Most Holy Redeemer. On page 29 of Jesuit Father Donal Godfrey’s chronicle of MHR Gays and Grays: the Story of Most Holy Redeemer Parish, he describes events in the parish, circa 1983: “The two gay men (on the MHR advisory board) suggested we start a gay and lesbian outreach. And that was approved 12 to nothing.” Further down the page he writes: “The Gay and Lesbian outreach Committee—so unique, so bracing, so critically what the parish needed when it needed it—eventually withered away, a victim of its own success, when the entire parish had taken on the work it was formed to begin.” In other words, “gay and lesbian outreach” was no longer necessary because the entire parish had become a locus for the celebration of homosexuality. By 2002, the New York Times was reporting “…about 80 to 90 percent of the members are gay.”

Fr. Brian Costello, the outgoing pastor, truly had the spiritual welfare of his parishioners at heart. Some parishioners did not see it that way. The NCR reported that Fr. Costello had requested a transfer last August, and quoted him:

"It just didn't work out. I did the best I could. My best was just not good enough for a lot of people here," he said. "There are real challenges here, and the truth is I just didn't have the gifts to meet those challenges."

One example of the tension between Fr. Costello and “a lot of people here” occurred early in his tenure. On April 19, 2012 CalCatholic reported that in the previous week transvestites had MC’d/judged a Castro Country Club fundraiser at the parish. The MC went by the name “Laybelline” and the judge “Syphilis Diller.” In October of 2012 the same group wanted to come back, but the Archdiocese and Fr. Costello nixed the event. The homosexual oriented Bay Area Reporter covered the story, and quoted Fr. Costello ““I am the new pastor…There is a new archbishop. The archdiocese told me straight out, ‘No drag queens.’… “I am big on compromising.” Fr. Costello said “[Castro Country Club] would not work with me. It was all or nothing. And they got nothing.”

The Archdiocese eventually made the ban more generally applicable, thus appeasing homosexualist activists. Following the ban, Costello had received push-back from parishioners, which MHR’s business manager, Michael Poma, described as “education.” Poma was quoted in Bondings, the blog of New Ways Ministry: “‘Father Brian wasn’t educated about the importance of drag queens in the gay community…We are part of the community here and to think that we’re banning drag queens is obnoxious and ridiculous.”

Another example was related by Fr. Costello himself in the March 3, 2013 MHR bulletin:

“Two weeks ago, after Pope Benedict XVI had announced to the world that he would be resigning the office of Peter as of February 28th, I put the Pope’s picture, that usually hangs in the rectory, in the church. A handful of people told me that they would rather it not be there. They explained that the feeling was while he was Pope, as well as his time as a Cardinal, Pope Benedict had made hurtful and hateful statements regarding the LGBT Community and thus, his picture should not be placed on the altar of MHR. I was also warned, many parishioners would walk out of Sunday Mass if the picture was not removed. I spoke with a close priest friend of mine, and even though both of us were saddened by this, the wisest course, I felt, was to remove the Pope’s picture.”

The difficulties Fr. Costello experienced, and that Frs. McClure and Link will face, are formidable. Psychologically, the parishioners at MHR are “a chosen people”—a group formed by the shared minority experience of same-sex attraction, followed by the shared experience of an apparently hopeless and fatal epidemic, but one which against all hope was overcome, followed by the shared experience of undreamed-of political victories and power. That “chosen people” attitude was expressed by Fr. Godfrey on page 130 of Gays and Grays: “A parish such as MHR calls the rest of the institution to conversion.” Such an attitude is not conducive to salvation. One comes to the Catholic Church not to convert, but to be converted.


That’s difficult material to work with. If Frs. McClure and Link have an easier time of it than did Fr. Costello, it’s probably a sign they’re doing something wrong.

Simply Evil: New York City's official policy to deny children a mother or a father

More "Heather Has No Daddy."

From the Wall Street Journal today comes the news that it is now the official policy of the city of New York to deny children a mother or a father:

"New York City is launching a campaign to recruit gay and lesbian foster parents, part of a major push to expand the kinds of families who consider fostering and to find more welcoming homes for children who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer."

This evil campaign follows in the footsteps of the city of San Francisco. As we reported many times when covering the disastrous partnership of Catholic Charities of San Francisco, the policy of the city of San Francisco, as enunciated in the 2006 "Request for Proposals #309" required: 

"Increasing the number of children adopted by Lesbian, Gay Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) adults."

That is, increasing the number of children in households in which a child has no mother or father--sacrificing children in the name of "equality."

San Francisco to Offer Taxpayer-Funded "Sex-Change" Operations

From the Associated Press:

"San Francisco has approved a measure that utilizes taxpayer funds to pay for the sex-change operations of the uninsured, becoming the first city in the nation to do so."

The city's Public Health Director Barbara Garcia  "...described the move as 'a symbolic process' for now because the city currently does not have the expertise, capacity or protocols in place to provide the surgeries through its clinics and public hospital.'The community felt the exclusion on Healthy San Francisco was discriminatory and we wanted to change that as the first step,' she said.

Instead of expanding the existing plan, the Health Commission approved the establishment of a separate program that covers all aspects of transgender health, including gender transition. Garcia hopes to have it running by late next year, but said her department first needs to study how many people it would serve, how much it would cost, who would perform the surgeries and where they would be performed."

In addition to enabling those living in a fantasy world, the move comes as city officials are trying everything to retain existing services. Christian News reports:

"It was approved despite Mayor Ed Lee’s slashing of other city services and increased taxes due to record budget needs of $7 billion dollars....'Taxpayers cannot afford this, as there are unintended costs and unintended consequences unrelated to the actual surgery, such as their longer-term hormone treatment, psychology needs and other longer term health issues,' said resident Thomas Moyer.

According to reports, male to female surgeries cost approximately $37,000 and female to male surgeries cost $77,000."

The move coincides with newly released Census Bureau statistics that show California has the highest poverty rate in the nation.

“An abstraction of what a family used to look like."

“An abstraction of what a family used to look like."
Mark Leno’s Latest Redefinition

On July 2, the Daily Mail UK reported: “From the dawn of time, the natural order of things has been that a child has two parents: a mother and a father, but a new bill that is currently before the California state Assembly might change all that.

State Senator Mark Leno (shown left at the Dore Alley leather fair, photo cortesy SFist) has proposed legislation to allow a child to have multiple parents. ‘The bill brings California into the 21st century, recognizing that there are more than Ozzie and Harriet families today….

SB 1476 stemmed from an appellate court case last year involving a child's biological mother, her same-sex partner, and a man who had an affair with the biological mother and got her pregnant while she was separated temporarily from her female lover.”

The Daily Mail quoted Karen Anderson, of the California Protective Parents Association, who objected to the bill: ‘It's hard enough for children to be split up two ways, much less multiple ways,’ she told the Sacramento Bee."

In the San Jose Mercury News, Ed Howard, senior counsel for the Children's Advocacy Institute at the University of San Diego School of Law, and an advocate for the legislation offered this justification: "It's not us who have changed the nature of families; families have done it on their own…It is cruel to prevent judges from ruling a way that protects kids in favor of an abstraction of what a family used to look like."

This is not the first redefinition engineered by Leno. He sponsored a number of bills attempting to redefine marriage in the state of California , all of which were vetoed by then-governor Arnold Schwarzenneggar. He is also the sponsor of SB 48, a bill with the professed intention of the prevention of “bullying” but whose actual intent is brainwashing children into the affirmation of homosexuality. As Leno said in a press release announcing the bill "Most textbooks don't include any historical information about the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) movement, which has great significance to both California and U.S. history…" Pro-Family groups are currently trying to overturn SB 48.

Leno is one of the worst of the many bad San Francisco Democratic politicians who have completely “demoralized” California government. Leno is a supporter and regular attendee at San Francisco’s disgusting Folsom Street Fair. From a September 2010 article in the Bay Area Reporter “The city's long-established leather community tends to enjoy a strong relationship with city government. ‘Local politicians have been very friendly and supportive,’ said Liza Sibley, executive producer of Ms. San Francisco Leather. ‘[State Senator] Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) has always been fabulous for the leather community. [Assemblyman] Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) has always been wonderful in talking to the leather community." In addition, she observed, District 8 supervisor candidates Rebecca Prozan, Scott Wiener, and Rafael Mandelman were present at this year's annual Leather Walk.’ ‘This is a rare Folsom I'll miss,’ Leno told the Bay Area Reporter.”

The almost unbelievable immorality of San Francisco’s political structure was highlighted this past week with the arrest of long-time “gay rights icon” Larry Brinkin. Brinkin, a highly respected member in San Francisco politics, who served for more than 20 years on the City’s Human Rights Commission, and received a salary of $135,000, was arrested for the possession of child pornography. The alternative “SF Weekly” reported “The warrant (for Brinkin’s arrest) claims these e-mails contained images of children as young as perhaps a year old being sodomized by and performing oral sex on adult men. Zack3737@aol.com -- whom the police allege is Brinkin -- provided graphic commentary on the photos of interracial adult-child sex. Comments included "I loved especially the n***** 2 year old getting nailed. Hope you'll continue so I can see what the little blond b**** is going to get. White Power! White Supremacy! White D*** Rules!" Editing added..

On his retirement from the Human Rights Commission, the City’s board of Supervisors named the first week in February “Larry Brinkin Week.” As CalCatholic reported, Brinkin was joined on the Human Rights Commission by Patrick Mulcahey, a man who openly keeps a “slave” and gives workshops promoting the “Master/slave” lifestyle. Publication of Brinkin’s arrest, which occurred on Friday, June 22,was delayed until Monday, June 25, so as not to cast a pall over the City’s “Gay pride” parade, held on June 24. The response to the Brinkin case seems rather mild. The San Francisco District Attorney is still deciding whether to file charges. The San Francisco Chronicle has not followed up on this case, which took place in its own backyard, and which has made news internationally, since the initial story of Monday, and a second story on June 26.

MHR UPDATE: Second Non-Catholic Minister who Advocates Same-Sex "Marriage" to Speak at Vespers Services

On November 22, California Catholic Daily reported on the scheduled appearance of retired Episcopal Bishop Otis Charles at San Francisco's Most Holy Redeemer Church. Bishop Charles is the invited speaker for the church’s November 30 Advent Vespers service. The Episcopal Church severed ties with the Bishop when he “married” another man in 2004.

Bishop Charles is not the only 2011 Vespers speaker invited to Most Holy Redeemer who is a same-sex “marriage” supporter, nor the only one who has been disciplined by his church. According to the November 27 Most Holy Redeemer bulletin, the scheduled speaker at the December 14 Vespers service is a “Ms. Jane Spahr.” Unless there are two Jane Spahr’s knocking around San Francisco, she’s not “Ms.” Jane Spahr; her correct title is the Rev. Dr. Jane Adams Spahr. From her biographical page at the Lesbian, Gay Bisexual, & Transgender Religious Archives Network: “The Rev. Dr. Jane Adams Spahr, Janie, as she prefers to be called, describes herself as a lesbian, feminist, Presbyterian minister committed to justice issues for the lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender community, pursuing connections for wholeness with other oppressed communities claiming their freedom.” Other “queer” religious websites refer to her simply as a “lesbyterian.”

In August of 2010 a regional court of the Presbyterian Church meeting in Napa, California “rebuked” Reverend Spahr for celebrating 16 same-sex “marriages.” The “marriages” took place in 2008, during the time when such things were legal in the state. The Christian Post reported: “In a 4-2 vote by the Redwood Presbytery Judicial Commission, the Rev. Jane Adams Spahr was found guilty of representing the ceremonies as marriages, persistently disobeying church law, and violating her ordination vows.” Rev. Spahr had received a previous censure from the Presbyterian Church for performing two such “marriages” in 2004.

While there has been no public response from the Archdiocese of San Francisco on Most Holy Redeemer’s hosting of Bishop Charles and the Reverend Spahr, others have taken note. One group which is watching carefully, and who say they are encouraged by Archbishop Niederauer’s silence, is the homosexual activist Rainbow Sash Movement. On November 23, Bob Anderson wrote at the Rainbow Sash blog: : "The Rainbow Sash Movement is encouraged by Archbishop Niederauer lack of action on this matter, and believes he is taking a role in responding to the rampant homophobia that is alive and well in the Church."

Mr. Anderson should be encouraged. It is precisely due to 30+ years of inaction on the part of the Archdiocese that these two speakers were invited to MHR at all. Even if the Archbishop prevents Bishop Charles and Reverend Spahr from speaking, that does not address the underlying issue. The problem is that the community-forming experience and the real lived religion at MHR is not Catholicism, it is the celebration of homosexuality. That’s why ministers, even non-Catholic, even non-Christian, are welcome speakers at vespers. They are welcome even though they oppose the Church on non-negotiable issues. They are welcome because they oppose the Church on non-negotiable issues. Faced with a choice between Catholic truth and the celebration of homosexuality, the parishioners at MHR will, quite rationally from their point of view, choose the celebration of homosexuality every time. If Catholic truth on sexuality is ever preached MHR, I think it quite likely that most parishioners would leave. That does not mean the Archdiocese is excused from preaching it.

Referendum to Overturn SB 48 Begun

That did not take long.

From today's San Francisco Chronicle:

A socially conservative organization based in Sacramento filed documents Friday afternoon to start a voter referendum on a controversial law that adds the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans to school instruction.

The proponent of the proposed referendum, Paulo Sibaja, filed a request for a title and summary with the attorney general's office. Sibaja said he acted on behalf of the Capitol Resource Institute, which had officially opposed the bill throughout the legislative process before Gov. Jerry Brown signed it Thursday. Sibaja is the legislative director of that organization.

The Capitol Resource Institute is a hard-line, socially conservative organization that has long opposed efforts in California to expand rights for the LGBT population. Backers eventually would have to collect 433,971 signatures to allow voters to decide whether to keep the law in place or reject it.

Sibaja said that a coalition has formed behind the proposed measure, though he would not name the other members. He said a news conference Wednesday would give more details. When asked how the group planned to fund the referendum, he said, "That's what the press conference will be about."

Speaking of SB 48, Bill May, of Catholics for the Common Good, weighs in this morning in an article at the Catholic News Agency.

More Anti-Family Legislation: AB 1349 to Redefine Fatherhood

AB 1349, the third of an unholy trinity of bills introduced or co-sponsored by California anti-family homosexual activists is now before the state senate. The three bills are SB 48, AB 499, and AB 1349. All three bills are opposed by the California Catholic Bishops.

SB 48, co-sponsored by Equality California and by openly homosexual State Senator Mark Leno (D-SF) will change K-12 textbooks to reflect “historical information about the gay rights movement.” In a December 13, 2010 Equality California press release Senator Leno was quoted "Most textbooks don't include any historical information about the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) movement, which has great significance to both California and U.S. history.” Even the liberal Los Angeles Times is opposed to SB 48, on the grounds that “Politicians should not be in the business of writing textbooks.”

A second bill is AB 499, introduced by Assemblywoman Toni Atkins (D-SD). Ms. Atkins is a same-sex "married" open homosexual. AB 499 would allow children 12 years and older to be vaccinated for contagious and specifically venereal diseases without the consent of their parents.

The third bill is AB 1349, introduced by Assemblyman Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo), and co-sponsored by Equality California. Bill May, of Catholics for the Common Good, writes:

“AB 1349 is a bill that is intended to redefine fatherhood for children born to unmarried mothers. It undermines the entire notion of natural parenthood. It also undermines the rights of fathers and the internationally recognized right of every child to know and, as far as possible, be cared for by his or her biological mother and father … When a child is born to an unmarried mother, biological fathers are currently encouraged to file a declaration of paternity, which the State Department of Child Support Services indicates helps children ‘gain the same rights and privileges of a child born within a marriage. Some of those rights include: financial support from both parents, access to important family medical records, access to the non-custodial parent's medical benefits, and the emotional benefit of knowing who both parents are.’

AB 1349 is in direct conflict with the goods intended by voluntary paternity declarations. The legislature should carefully consider this and the other wide-ranging and unintended consequences of this bill.

This bill provides mothers with inordinate power for depriving a child of a relationship with his or her father by controlling access to the child and laying the groundwork for having a voluntary declaration of paternity set aside using the criteria included in the bill. It is wrong to give any one person so much power in a proceeding that is adjudicating the rights of both parents and the child.

This bill would provide that a voluntary declaration of paternity is invalid if, at the time the declaration was signed, the child already had a presumed parent, as specified, or if the man signing the declaration is a sperm donor.”

There is, however, a stipulation in AB 1349 which protects the “rights” of sperm donors who specifically intend through this unnatural means to beget children. Sacramento’s Around the Capitol analysis of the bill says "This bill would enable a sperm donor to be treated as a natural father if it is agreed to in writing signed by the donor and the woman prior to the conception of the child." This cut-out would seem to be designed for male homosexuals. It is pretty well attested that normal men actually enjoy the traditional way of creating children—only homosexual men or an extraordinarily small number of heterosexual men would resort to sperm donation.

The genesis of AB 1349 may be in the Quale/Smith case of 2009. A brief history: Kim Smith and Maggie Quale were two Santa Cruz lesbian women who decided they wanted to have children. A man named Shawn Wallace was used as a sperm donor to impregnate Ms. Quale. She became a mother; he became a father. Ms. Quale gave birth to twins. Six months later Ms. Quale and Ms. Smith broke up. Ms. Quale then began a romantic relationship with the father, Mr. Wallace. Ms. Quale then limited contact between Ms. Smith and the children. Ms. Smith then filed an action against Ms. Quale. On February 1, 2010, the Advocate online newspaper reported: “Representing Smith, Deborah Wald of the National Center for Lesbian Rights calls the case ‘a very dangerous precedent for lesbian couples having children with the assistance of known sperm donors’ if custody is not awarded to Smith.” Eventually, the two women arrived at a settlement that acknowledged the rights of both as “parents” to the children.

All three bills are part of an ongoing campaign to undercut the natural family, its authority, and its definition. For the “equality” sought by homosexual activists to be successfully imposed on society, radical redefinitions of the family, of motherhood, and of fatherhood are required. AB 1349 does that. The embracing of unhealthy sexuality requires children to be freed from the healthy effect of their parent’s wisdom. AB 499 does that. Finally, a program of indoctrination will be necessary in schools. SB 48 does that.

Posted by Gibbons J. Cooney

Legislation to Alienate Children from Parents Introduced by Same-Sex "Married" Assemblywoman

In California, there is an ongoing legislative war against the family. It is being led by openly homosexual legislators.

Four times this year we have reported on SB 48, a bill that would change California textbooks and curriculum to bring the sexuality of gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual people to the attention of all students K-12 in social studies classes. Bill May, of Catholics for the Common Good noted that the bill was so bad even the Los Angeles Times editorialized agains it. The bill was authored by openly homosexual state Senator Mark Leno.

Mr. May also notes that SB 48 "...replaces the word 'sex' with 'gender'. This is significant considering that word 'gender' in the Education code is being redefined in AB 887, a bill sponsored by Equality California and authored by gay rights advocate Assemblywoman Toni Atkins of San Diego. In that bill 'gender' is defined as 'sex, and includes a person's gender identity and gender expression. ‘Gender expression’ means a person's gender-related appearance and behavior whether or not stereotypically associated with the person's assigned sex at birth.'”

Today, California Catholic Daily reported on Assembly Bill 499, also introduced by Assemblywoman Toni Atkins. Ms. Atkins is a same-sex "married" open homosexual. AB 499 would allow children 12 years and older to be vaccinated for contagious and specifically venereal diseases without the consent of their parents.

On June 24, the California Catholic Bishops sent out an action alert: “The bill would allow children aged 12-18, access to the HPV vaccine Gardasil without their parents’ knowledge or permission,” said the bishops. The bill is an unfortunate -- but not unforeseen – continuation of California’s trend to diminish parental rights and give teenagers ‘permission’ to keep secrets from their parents.”

The bishops also said "Urging young teens to engage in behavior that is designed to be kept hidden from their parents may cause irreparable harm to the parent-child relationship to say nothing of the exposing children to physical danger from an adverse reaction to the vaccine itself."

We (and certainly not only we) have noted the totalitarianism inherent in the homosexual activist movement. Like all totalitarianism, it is based on alienation from the natural world. They try to make the alienation the reality by forcing others, including our children, to share it.

The Bishops' webpage allows you the opportunity to express your opposition to AB 499.

SF Mayor Leads "Transgender" March, Wonders Why City Has so Few Kids

On June 25, Mayor Ed Lee leads the "Trans" march.

On June 26, Mayor Ed Lee tries to figure out ways to address the fact that San Francisco has one of the lowest percentages of children in the country.

Mr. Mayor, nowadays you can be the Mayor of San Francisco, or you can support families, but you cannot do both.

Posted by Gibbons J. Cooney

"As Bad As Any We Have Seen" ACTION ALERT On Calfornia SB 48

Here's a letter from our friend Bill May at Catholics for the Common Good on the latest California legislation attempting to normalize homosexual behavior.

SB 48 Hearing Wednesday, June 22
Assembly Education Committee
"Not permissible for anyone to remain idle"

When Pope John Paul II wrote the phrase quoted above in 1988, he could not have imagined SB 48, a bill that would change California textbooks and curriculum to bring the sexuality of gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual people to the attention of all students K-12 in social studies classes. This bill is so bad, that even the LA Times has editorialized against it. SB 48 will be heard in the Assembly Education Committee on Wednesday, June 22 at 1:30 PM -- the final step before going to the Assembly floor and to the Governor for signature.

This bill is as bad as any we have seen.

The hearing came up on short notice. As of yesterday, the bill had not even been posted on the Assembly Education Committee’s online agenda. School board members and taxpayer groups that should be concerned with this bill are distracted by budget negotiations. The bill has budgetary consequences, but, on a technicality, legislative leaders have been able to hide them and avoided any scrutiny by fiscal committees. It is presented as an anti-bullying bill, but it is clear it has nothing to do with bullying. It will sexualize California students starting in Kindergarten and contribute to the effort to redefine sexuality, marriage, and family in the minds of children. It is geared to help them identify their parents as old-fashioned at best, more likely as hateful bigots, unless they conform to the radical agenda to redefine marriage.

See the far-reaching consequences of SB 48 in our extensive analysis. We have also included a link to the letter that CCG sent to the Assembly Education Committee yesterday asking them to vote against the bill. You must take the time to understand this bill and share the information with friends and family members.

Action

We have outlined specific, easy to take action on the website that includes contacting members of the Education Committee, particularly if you live in their districts, and sharing the action page on Facebook and through other social media. It is urgent that we spread the word as quickly as possible on this. Please take action immediately.

We also suggest that people within driving range of Sacramento come to the SB 48 hearing and respectfully state your opposition and indicate any group that you might be able to represent. As we have done on a few prior bills, we can gather at 12:30 in the cafeteria in the basement of the Capitol. It will be good to meet you.

The committee is likely to pass the bill. This hearing is critical because it is the last chance for providing testimony and getting expressions of opposition into the record. Please act on this right away.

Please offer prayers for the members of the committee and the respectful advocacy of concerned people from all over California.

For the Common Good,

Bill May
Chairman, Catholics for the Common Good

Monsignor Vincent Foy on "The Betrayal of Homosexuals"

Monsignor Vincent Foy has a moving article, published in LifeSiteNews on the betrayal of same-sex attracted persons by the culture and, more troubling, by persons within the church:

"Among the evil fruits of this decadent age there is an unparalleled betrayal of homosexuals. That evil fruit we consider here briefly, emphasizing the betrayal as the rejection of justice and charity towards a significant number of God’s sons and daughters."

The Monsignor makes it crystal clear that our duty is love, not tolerance:

"The words of Christ 'Love your neighbor as yourself' apply to all in their attitude towards homosexuals. Like all, they are called to chastity and holiness and we owe our cooperation in this magnificent vocation. It has been said that the only real tragedy in life is not to become a saint. Certainly the only true tragedy is not to die in God’s love and grace."

Read the whole thing.

Monsignor Foy makes the same point we were attempting to make in an article on the Catholic Charities adoptions fiasco in California Catholic Daily back on April 8, 2008--that the Archdiocese of San Francisco was betraying both same-sex attracted persons and it's duty to those persons:

"Those supporters of the new adoptions policy said over and over again that their concern was the good of the children. But from a Catholic point of view, that’s insufficient. What wasn’t considered was the good of the homosexual/transgender adoptive persons. And from God’s point of view, they are every bit as important as the children. The Vatican said that allowing children to be adopted by homosexual persons amounted to “doing violence to the children.” But what was never said is that allowing adoptions by homosexual/transgender persons does violence to those persons. No adoption agency would give a child to a person they considered unfit. CCCYO allowed homosexual persons to adopt until the Vatican ordered it stopped, and it now staffs an agency that specifically targets homosexual/transgender adopters. CCCYO thus implicitly asserts that it’s OK to live a homosexual/transgendered lifestyle.

But since homosexual behavior is sinful, and sin alienates one from God, the Church must never say that it is OK. By doing so, they are abandoning the homosexual/transgender persons.

In approving this compromise, the archdiocese is saying to them: 'We don’t care about you, except insofar as you can provide a materially decent environment to this child.' The archdiocese thus violates one of the most basic precepts of Catholic moral philosophy: they are treating persons as means rather than ends. The homosexual (and now transgender) adoptive parents are treated as just that, as parents, as functions, rather than as persons, as souls infinitely precious to God. As souls, as persons, they are considered expendable. But no human being is not a person, and no person is expendable. Not gay people, not 'transgendered' people. No one."

Celebrating Holy Thursday at USF: "Freedom, Gender, and Sexuality Seder"

Another entry for our "Contributions of the LGBT Movement to American Society" series.

Social Justice Passover Seder: Freedom, Gender, and Sexuality
April 21, 6PM, USF Main Campus, Fromm Hall, Maraschi Room

The third annual Social Justice Passover Seder of the USF JSSJ Program will be led by long-time social justive activist Rabbi Camille Shira Angel, the spiritual leader of Congregation Sha'ar Zahav, a progressive Reform synagogue comprised of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and heterosexual Jews and non-Jews. Light Pesadic snacks will be served.

From Sha'ar Zahav's "About Us" page:

"We are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and heterosexual Jews, together with partners, family and friends, both Jewish and non-Jewish. We come from a wide range of religious, ethnic, class and cultural backgrounds to worship God with egalitarian, feminist and gay-positive Jewish liturgy."

As Michael Medved commented in the "Why are Jews Liberal?" symposium:

"Why and how? In 3,000 years of well-documented tradition prior to, say, 1970, there was not the slightest hint of any sort of endorsement of homosexual coupling."

I guess they know better up at USF...

Posted by Gibbons J. Cooney