A United Methodist council's decision on whether to accept him could have political implications too.
By Stephanie Simon, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
September 9, 2007
BALTIMORE — The Rev. Ann Gordon stood in front of her United Methodist congregation last fall and announced that she was now he…..
…. But when Phoenix, 48, was reappointed to another year of ministry this spring by his bishop, it sparked a protest in the United Methodist Church.
The denomination's highest authority, the Judicial Council, will take up the case next month, deciding whether the church should accept transgender pastors. The decision will determine Phoenix's future; it could also have political implications.
Presiding over the Judicial Council is Dr. James W. Holsinger Jr., President Bush's nominee for surgeon general and a longtime lay leader of the United Methodist church. Democrats have objected to Holsinger in large part because of work he has done for his church over the years……
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If that does not work you can get other passwords here Bug Me Not and use; www.latimes.com
Read about Dr. James W. Holsinger Jr., President Bush's nominee for Surgeon General.
'Homosexuality Isn't Natural or Healthy'
Bush's Choice for Top Doc Compared Human Genitalia to Pipe Fittings and Said Homosexual Practices Can Cause Injury or Death
By JAKE TAPPER
June 7, 2007
President Bush's nominee for surgeon general, Dr. James W. Holsinger Jr., wrote a paper in 1991 that purported to make the medical argument that homosexuality is unnatural and unhealthy. Doctors who reviewed the paper derided it as prioritizing political ideology over science, and Democratic aides on Capitol Hill say the paper will make his confirmation hearings problematic, if not downright bruising….
Among the highly scientific arguments against homosexuals the good doctor wrote was…
Holsinger's paper argued that male and female genitalia are complementary -- so much so "that it has entered our vocabulary in the form of naming pipe fittings either the male fitting or the female fitting depending upon which one interlocks within the other." Body parts used for gay sex are not complementary….
You can read the whole story here
The UMC is generally known for being more accepting. One of the biggest GLBT churches in town is United Methodist. But there are bigger politics in play here.
ReplyDeleteHolsinger is obviously a moron. I don't know how else to sum him up except that he and Bush must get along so very well.
I should go read the articles, but I actually don't want to get a headache from it, so I won't.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the last paragraph, about pipe fittings, sounds like something from the Onion. Holsinger is clearly a product of one of those scary universities, like Liberty U, where people are taught to reason from hysterical opinion, not historical fact. He's obviously never been in an ER when men have come in 'attached' to non-complimentary (acc. to him) items.
What a putz, PUN INTENDED!
This is not the first time the UMC has faced this issue. A number of years ago they pretty much forced a MtF trans woman to resign her pastoral position or face a trial. Sometimes the last place you find Christian behavior is in Christian Churches! Her name is Rebecca Ann Steen and she was pretty much forced out of he pastoral position in 1999. Hopefully the UMC will be more enlightened now.
ReplyDeleteOh, ohohoh... *shaking head*
ReplyDeleteLike Cat said, I'm not going to read the whole article and get all wound up into a knot. grrrr...