Homosexuality

In the days leading up to the highly publicized vote on a Maine gay marriage law, citizens are being called to respect one another's First Amendment rights.

"While the issue of same-sex marriage stirs lots of passions on both sides of the debate, one thing that should be clear is that citizens should feel free to support groups that share and advance their views without fear of recrimination enabled by government," said Sean Parnell, president of the Center for Competitive Politics, in a statement Friday.

His statement comes as a complaint was filed against a high school guidance counselor and licensed social worker, requesting that his license to practice social work be stripped away. more >>

XXXChurch.com pastor Craig Gross is attending the Atlanta Pride Festival this weekend to apologize for the way religious people have often treated gay individuals.

In hopes of diminishing the disconnect between the homosexual community and the church, Gross is setting up a booth in Piedmont Park with the simple message: "We Are Sorry."

The annual LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) event is the last stop in Gross' unconventional "Jesus Loves You" tour. For the past couple of months, he and Jason Harper have been promoting the simple message to gluttons, criminals, porn stars, the poor and even the religious. more >>

Christian conservative groups will be keeping a close watch over how new hate crimes legislation will be enforced after President Obama signed it into law Wednesday.

“Although we don’t know the full ramifications of this bill as of yet, my staff and I will be watching closely for any possible infringement on the rights of our members and pastors to speak out against the sin of homosexuality based on the Word of God,” said Dr. Gerald B. Kieschnick, president of The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod, in a statement.

Like Erik Stanley, senior legal counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, Kieschnick said he doesn’t believe there will be “immediate” prosecution of pastors and churches for teaching that homosexual behavior is sinful, but the threat to free speech is “nonetheless real.” more >>

The D.C. Council heard testimonies on Monday from residents hoping to either legalize same-sex marriage in the nation's capital or ban it.

More than 100 people attended the hearing on a bill, co-sponsored by 10 of the 13 council members, that would allow same-sex couples to wed in the District.

Councilmember Mary Cheh described the same-sex marriage issue as "the most important civil rights issue of our era." more >>

Three churches in northern California cut ties with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and joined a smaller and more conservative denomination this month.

Among them was Trinity Presbyterian Church in Clovis which was officially constituted as an Evangelical Presbyterian Church congregation on Sunday.

During a meeting earlier this month, EPC's Presbytery of the West examined several pastors and their requests to transfer from the PC(USA) to the EPC. The Rev. Chuck Shillito of Trinity was received and on Sunday installed as pastor. more >>