First Lady Michelle Obama told him, "We've got your back" and NBA player Jason Collins who recently announced he is gay is having a lovefest in the media. But Harry Jackson Jr., senior pastor of the Hope Christian Church in Washington, D.C., thinks it's a big public relations stunt for the pending Supreme Court ruling on the Defense of Marriage Act this summer.

"One of the reasons why there has been so much activity in terms of people coming out of the closet, which we hear over the last six months about various athletes, is because the nation knows that same-sex marriage is going to be ruled upon by the Supreme Court this summer," said Jackson in an interview with The Christian Post on Tuesday.

"It seems as though there is a very, very intense PR campaign being waged by people who want to redefine marriage in order to persuade the court of human opinion and the Supreme Court that the laws of our land are outdated," he observed. more >>

ESPN analyst Chris Broussard made gay advocates gasp and call him "hateful" when he challenged openly gay NBA player Jason Collins' recent claim that he is a Christian. But renowned theologian John Piper lauded Broussard, saying his comments were "solid steel."

Collins who is currently a free agent announced that he is gay in a Sports Illustrated article on Monday and intimated that he took his Christian faith seriously.

"My parents instilled Christian values in me," wrote Collins. "They taught Sunday school, and I enjoyed lending a hand. I take the teachings of Jesus seriously, particularly the ones that touch on tolerance and understanding," he added. But when Broussard, who also confesses the Christian faith, was asked on ESPN's "Outside the Lines" how he felt about Collins' claim, he said his actions were not consistent with biblical teachings. more >>

Boy Scouts officials in Houston, Texas, voted Monday to maintain the organization's policies that bar openly gay youth who seek to participate in troop activities.

The Board of Directors of the Sam Houston Area Council voted to support the current membership policy of the Boy Scouts of America, which "does not proactively inquire about the sexual orientation of employees, volunteers, or members, but does not grant membership to individuals who are open or avowed homosexuals or who engage in behavior that would become a distraction to the mission of the BSA," the council said in a statement.

The Houston-area council's vote followed an extensive survey of parents, adult leaders, chartered partners and financial partners, who, by a 75 percent majority, support maintaining the Boy Scouts national policy for membership standards, and oppose a proposed resolution that would lift the ban on openly gay members. Officials from the council said their survey results match the outcomes from an independent survey of their member parents and leaders that was conducted by the BSA. more >>

An activist of the LGBT community is gaining viral attention for a 2012 YouTube video in which she says the fight for the legalization of gay marriage will change the institution of marriage completely, and that she believes the institution of marriage should cease to exist altogether.

Pundits note that Russian LGBT activist and author Masha Gessen's argument is interesting, as many pro-traditional family advocates argue that the institution of marriage is essential to maintaining order and morality in American society.

Additionally, Gessen's comments seem to contradict the argument of many pro-gay marriage advocates, who suggest that the legalization of same-sex marriage will not affect the institution of traditional marriage. more >>

Chris Broussard, the Christian ESPN analyst, was asked to discuss his opinion on Washington Wizards Center Jason Collins announcing that he is a homosexual Christian and sparked a debate after questioning the athlete's faith.

Broussard, 44, appeared on ESPN's "Outside the Lines," alongside openly gay ESPN staff member LZ Granderson to discuss the topic of tolerance for homosexuality after Collins became the first active athlete in professional sports to speak about his lifestyle choice.

"Personally I don't believe that you can live an openly homosexual lifestyle or an openly premarital sex between heterosexuals. If you're openly living that type of lifestyle, the Bible says you know them by their fruits, it says that's a sin," Broussard said on ESPN Monday. "If you're openly living in unrepentant sin, whatever it may be, not just homosexuality, adultery, fornication, premarital sex between heterosexuals, whatever it may be. I think that's walking in open rebellion to God and to Jesus Christ." more >>

WASHINGTON – Military chaplains cannot be forced to do something in opposition to their theology, but they may have problems with being accused of "hate speech" for teaching what scripture says about homosexuality, Barry Black, the U.S. Senate Chaplain and a former military chaplain, told a Heritage Foundation audience Monday. He also said he does not believe that the occasions where military chaplains are expected to pray inclusive prayers is a serious problem.

The military directives make clear, Black said, that military chaplains cannot be forced to do something they are opposed to doctrinally. He added, though, that some military chaplains may find themselves in a bind because of the scripture passages that describe homosexual behavior as a sin.

"I can see many military chaplains having some problems because, to teach the passages of Paul with exegetical integrity would mean being accused of engaging in hate speech. So, this is a challenge that I think we're going to have to deal with going forward," Black said. more >>