believer, you cannot say if God is opposed to same-sex marriage or not. you can say that your (and my) group's book seems to say that. still you can't organize a secular nation along any one religious group's guidelines.

guess what, folks? Jeremiah and lots of other preachers often give jeremiads from the pulpit. it's their job.

this does not make Roy Moore correct. did you ever hear Roy Moore speak? what a throw-back....

ForZionsSake, you don't know the answers to these puzzles, either. the Bible is comforting on this issues - but unprovable. You sound like a tribal shaman when you rant like that.

"...liberalism and atheism, under the disguise of secularism..." Wow! Really scary stuff!!!

and I do mean 'epitaph,' not 'epithet,' since I believe the anti-gay marriage movement, at least in the US, is nearing death.

one thing is for sure: his claim to be an evangelical Christian has not raised Americans' opinion of that term. he makes evangelical Christians look like gumps. not a fair assessment... what sensible person would really follow George Bush's lead? i hope we never have an "evangelical" the likes of Bush or Carter in the White House again!

And Tim Graham, the Director of Media Analysis at the Media Research Center, accuses NEWSWEEK of saying, essentially: "Religious conservatives are troglodytes on the wrong side of history." Gee, I wish I had thought of that epitaph. It's quite good, really.

also, i spend very little time trying to convince myself that i am right. i'm not trying to convince you that you are wrong, either. i just try to live the christian life as i see it - and i have no interest in YOUR opinion of my life (or what YOU say is God's opinion of my life). the people who just KNOW they are on God's side - or God's on THEIRS - have done the most horrible...more

also, i spend very little time trying to convince myself that i am right. i'm not trying to convince you that you are wrong, either. i just try to live the christian life as i see it - and i have no interest in YOUR opinion of my life (or what YOU say is God's opinion of my life). the people who just KNOW they are on God's side - or God's on THEIRS - have done the most horrible damage in this world.less

abso, as my uncle used to tell the Witnesses and other evangelists who showed up at his front door, "I tell you what: Why don't you go to your church, and I'll go to my church? How about that?" Whether either of us thinks the other is "really" Christian is of no consequence. (And whether you think God's word told you that your church is Christian and others ar...more

abso, as my uncle used to tell the Witnesses and other evangelists who showed up at his front door, "I tell you what: Why don't you go to your church, and I'll go to my church? How about that?"

Whether either of us thinks the other is "really" Christian is of no consequence. (And whether you think God's word told you that your church is Christian and others are not is of no matter, either - even if you really, really, really, really believe you are right.) Really.less

i saw the film: no great shakes... pretty crude, really

konewone2: "If the Bible was not literally true then Christ is not raised from the dead and we would all have no hope......" i don't take that part literally, but i have great hope - as do millions whohave never heard of jesus. do some christians really think they are the only people with hope? pathetic...

besides, the 19th-century argument about vestments was MUCH more heated that this gay-issues argument. we Americans have such short memories! but the head a seminary should know better. he doesn't.

this man does not understand anglican 'territory.' he is free to go off and start any little Baptist churrch he wants to. the Baptists don't require an education or any allegiance to hierarchy. this is a great strength of the Baptist movement. but don't impose it on us Episcopalians.

Yikes!

why does the person before me take such comfort in knowing whether he is in the wheat or the tares? human nature has not changed. he (and we) are just as childish about Biblical fairy tales as we have always been. grow up, people!

i am still an Episcopalian. i am proud that my church has joined the UCC, the UU and other progressive bodies to put this divisive issue to rest. (and we WILL rest about it, even if others want to keep getting their 'knickers in a knot' over the issue. the church has faced bigger divisions than this, and the church will survive, even prosper, and will continue to minister to people who n...more

i am still an Episcopalian. i am proud that my church has joined the UCC, the UU and other progressive bodies to put this divisive issue to rest. (and we WILL rest about it, even if others want to keep getting their 'knickers in a knot' over the issue. the church has faced bigger divisions than this, and the church will survive, even prosper, and will continue to minister to people who need it. i told a Jehovah's Witness who came to my house the other day: 'If the Jehovah's Witnesses is still a going concern 100 years from now (as i fully expect it to be), you WILL have gay clergy. he disagreed but said he would like to discuss the matter. he and i are willing to do that. i hold no animosity towards anyone who feels he must leave the episcopal church. go in peace. and if two separate American Anglican bodies form, so what? what's new? Americans 'hiving off' (like the Scots alway have) to form a new church? big deal....

don't waste your breath (or fingers) on a jeremiad to me. i will listen, but i will not turn away from inclusiveness.less

this fuzzy thinker needs to have his essays thoroughly reviewed my a CP board of editors - before publishing (even only on-line). this is one of his better articles - but no great shakes, of course. i have come to not expect much from Mr. Craven. This piece is, still, pleasant enough...

here's an interesting slide show. i wish WE could get over some issues the way these Mexicans have. http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2008/12/07/weekinreview/1207-MUXE_index.html

it's difficult for me to tell which parts to keep. but i know that thoughtful people in this world are working on that. an interesting pbs special on today was "Jesus to Christ." this scholarship eventually trickles down into the general education of the populace. many "parts to leave out" have indeed been left out by most of Chrisendom by now (21st century). many more par...more

it's difficult for me to tell which parts to keep. but i know that thoughtful people in this world are working on that. an interesting pbs special on today was "Jesus to Christ." this scholarship eventually trickles down into the general education of the populace. many "parts to leave out" have indeed been left out by most of Chrisendom by now (21st century). many more parts will drop away under scrutiny and better education. the best paarts of the Bible will never fall away, because they are helpful to us and our fellows. every 50 years it is remarkable to see the 'useless' scripture gone, where the valuable part survives - and always will.less