Minnesota: From kids with homosexuals playing house, to sad nuns playing religion

At a rally Thursday in front of the state capitol in St. Paul, Minn., more than 1,000 people—including at least 60 clergy members from across the state—turned out to protest a proposed state constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.

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"I'm here out of my faith," the Reverend Tim Tennant-Jayne, an ordained United Methodist minister, said at the rally. He said that he and fellow supporters of marriage equality "haven't been as loudly a part of this. Conservative viewpoints have been very loud."

OK, I know it's a small thing. But do you suppose Tim, being raise in one of
those households with a concatenated name "Tennant-Jayne", was influenced by
parents who could not unite under either of their single names? Just a theory.

And from Reverend Mari-ann...

Reverend Mariann Edgar Budde of St. John the Baptist Episcopalian Church in Minneapolis, said that those who want to ban same-sex marriage "claim this amendment protects families and protects marriage. We know it would do no such thing."

She added that issues like unemployment and homelessness damage the institution of marriage more than any same-sex union could.

Another of these poor liberal arguments. Mariann is either saying that since we
have unemployment and homelessness, that same-sex union is OK, or that

same-sex union would damage marriage less than unemployment and
homelessness, so being the lesser evil, same-sex union should proceed.

Another case of liberal "feelings" over thinking. Mariann states boldly
against the claim that "[this] amendment protects families and protects
marriage. We know it would do no such thing."

How does she know the
amendment would not protect families and marriage? I guess she just feels tha way.

And how are the Catholics doing in Minnesota?

At St. Joan's parish, we
have a Catholic theologian, renown feminist and ethicist, Mary Hunt. Let's see
what she has to say...

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Hunt believes that the GLBT community and their families are rapidly approaching the end of tolerating rejection from the Catholic Church.

Right now, the way the Catholic Church is guiding our lives is simply not adequate to obtain our faith.

Hunt suggests that sexism is usually paired with colonialism. The Roman Catholic Church is formed and run like a top down model, quite similar to the military.

A solution would be for parishioners to act like an ecclesia, a congress or assembly, pretty much how a community gets together as a discipleship of equals. Hunt believes that “Church is not a democracy. This Kyriarchy, or structure of lordship, is not a democracy, but an Ecclesia is.”

Hunt believes what persists in today’s Catholic Church is a top down leadership at its worst. She defines this governing as a “Kyriarchal hold on congregations. Financial giving is still up, yet we don’t have a say on how it’s spent.” Hunt suggests that “We, the people, need to have our Stonewall moment”, nee, the 1969 Stonewall Riots, where we stand up, speak out and resist. “We should respond to the hierarchy bullying in the same way.”

We need to embrace new models of ministry and face this terrible issue of heterosexism that is so rampantly controlling the decisions of the Church. Hunt offers “rethinking the center so people in the margins are taken more seriously.”

I'm sure a little Sunday talk by Hunt does more for God's people than Vespers
ever could. And why does feminism so often mean lesbian and secret code "GLBT"? Oh well.

I have a pet peeve about Liturgists. After all, the liturgy is pretty set
in place for all Catholics. After VaticanII, Liturgists started hanging nice
colored banners from the ceiling, and choosing the hymns. They had a small role
to play, but are now way to over-educated.. sometimes requiring a B.S. or
Masters to obtain a job in progressive churches like St. Joan of Arc. So what
happens? The job expands and expands.

Here's the "credits" section from the St. Joan Sunday bulletin for the Late
Mass...

Hosts: The Raeker-Rebek Family
Cup Ministers: Don & Michelle Dehn, Ceclie Bedor, Debra Anthony
Slide Projectionist: Luke Burris
Musician: George Thome

Hosts, Cup Ministers, Slide Projectionist, and Musician "ministries". You
just know a Liturgist with a Masters Degree had to have a hand in organizing
such a fine production to show our Lord.

If you should find yourself driving through the hinterlands of Minnesota
late on Sunday,
and see a light beaming from the door of the Late Mass,
slide projections whizzing across the the stadium screen,
people marching solemnly with hosts and cups,
and theologian Hunt leading the pack...

Be afraid... be very afraid.