News Tidbits

NBC News: What Would Ted Cruz Do, Ask Pro-Immigration Evangelicals?

MassLive: Springfield pastor Scott Lively looks to expand his brand of Christian ministry to California's legal system

Al Jazeera America: Rape victims ‘hopeless’ after Bob Jones University response

Pink News: Indiana Governor: We will ‘fix’ religious freedom law even though it doesn’t discriminate

Christian Science Monitor: Arkansas follows Indiana into 'religious freedom' fight

News.com.au: Poland: Priest carries out mass exorcism at religious camp for children — leaving them screaming and in tears

Sydney Morning Herald: Sydney mother pleads guilty to manslaughter of her son, 7, who had 'plethora of injuries'   (Trigger warning)

The Guardian: Church sorry for saying a 'faith filled' Jill Meagher would not have been killed

The Guardian: Northern Ireland: 'Gay cake' bakery discriminated against client over sexual orientation, court told

News Tidbits

Al Jazeera America: Evangelical college's contraception lawsuit proves divisive

The Advocate: Right-Wingers Claim Gay Republicans Are 'Wrong,' 'Terrible Role Models'

Boston Business Journal: Accreditation board gives Gordon College a year to review policy on homosexuality 

Associated Press: 5 things to know about the Vatican's family synod

Pew Research Center: Vatican synod on family highlights discord between church teachings and U.S. Catholics’ views 

The Advocate: NOM's Grasping at Straws in Oregon

Gay Star News: Arrest made over 'gays are worthy of death' UK leaflet hate campaign

Catholic Herald: Polish bishops urge legislators not to ratify European pact on violence against women

Commentary Tidbits

Overturning Tables: Changing the Homeschool Narrative: Child Advocacy in Richmond

The Cosmic Cathedral: Babel, Pentecost, and the House of Prayer: My Time at IHOP-KC

The Atlantic: The Facebook of Mormon

Towleroad: Christian Rapper Bizzle Records Anti-Gay Version of Macklemore's 'Same Love'

Religion News Service: The church’s role in, and against, homophobia across Africa

Toronto Star: Gays in Africa face rise in state-sponsored homophobia

RH Reality Check: Anti-Choicers Drop the ‘Life’ Pretense, Increasingly Admit They’re Angry About Sex

Slate: What happens when public schools become churches on Sundays?

New York Times: The Polish Church’s Gender Problem

Think Progress: Focus On The Family: Nondiscrimination Protections Discriminate Against Christians

Right-Wing Groups Sneer at Global Climate Change Conference

The United Nations Climate Change Conference recently took place in Warsaw, Poland from November 11-23. The recurring conference provides an opportunity for global leaders to cooperatively address climate change and its impact across multiple sectors of society. An array of workshops discussed the relationship between climate change and urbanization, agriculture, gender issues, and multilateral environmental agreements. Stakeholders, including religious groups observed the conference with great interest, according to Religion News Service.

The conference was not without controversy. On November 21st, humanitarian and environmental groups walked out of the conference in protest of its insufficient agenda, according to the Guardian. In a collective statement, thirteen organizations (including ActionAid, Greenpeace, Oxfam International, and WWF) accused wealthy countries at the conference of "directly undermining the UNFCCC itself". The statement accused conference participants of valuing energy company interests over the needs of global citizens, criticizing Japan, Australia, and Canada by name for their environmental policies.  Representatives from Christian Aid and SCIAF lamented missed opportunities for progress, according to Christianity Today.

After a long deadlock, delegates paved the way for a global climate treaty in Paris in 2015, reported BBC News. According to a November 23rd press release, the conference decided to create an international mechanism to protect vulnerable populations from climate change impacts, such as sea level rise and extreme weather events. The conference also arrived at decisions to address greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation.

While the UN Climate Change Conference in Warsaw was flawed, such gatherings are necessary if the world is to confront climate change. Climate change is very real, and it continues to have a significant impact on public health, food security, and migration. Vulnerable populations such as people in poverty, females, and children are disproportionately affected and deserve special attention. Even if global gatherings such as the Warsaw conference experience problems, climate change is still an urgent problem, and global conversations are still vital.

Unfortunately, some observers think otherwise. Voices from the Eagle Forum and the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow blasted the Warsaw conference for its alleged attacks on developed nations and favoritism toward poor countries. In their caricatures of the conference, eco-imperialists spouted junk science, delegates urged rich countries to give hand-outs to poor ones, and women were relegated to poverty.

In a November 20th commentary, Schlafly blasts the conference with her usual venom. Schlafly claims that the UN climate change conference is a ploy to get more money from the U.S. She insists that the idea that Americans are part of a global economy is "a deceitful message to con us into a plan to add the poor countries around the earth to our list of welfare handout recipients."

Schlafly accuses the UN of piling blame on the U.S. and other developed nations for the state of the environment. She caricatures arguments made by environmentalists and development voices, claiming that the UN is scapegoating developed nations for benefiting from industrialization.

"The UN talks are about blame. The UN has made the case that developed nations (i.e., the United States) are to blame because we enjoy the fruits of the industrial revolution in our lifestyles by polluting a finite atmosphere and that causes global warming.

Our standard of living is supposed to be cheating developing nations from achieving lifestyles like ours. The UN calls it our “historical responsibility” to pay reparations in money and technology."

Instead of acknowledging the reality of global warming and the need for global conclaves (no matter how imperfect), Schlafly dismisses global warning outright.

"These talks started with the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. These pompous globalists have convinced themselves, and now want to convince the world, they can both predict and control the weather.

The UN persists in its goal to convince the world that human activity causes global warming, and that global warming will devastate the earth. Even though the earth has not warmed since 1998, UN agencies continue to issue reports claiming that global warming not only exists but is getting worse.

Their claims are based on pseudoscience and unreliable computer models used to predict weather patterns. China and India are two of the biggest carbon emitters but they refuse to contribute to the poor nations."

Other voices at Eagle Forum were hostile to the Warsaw conference as well. In a November 24th piece, Eagle Forum's Cathie Adams accuses the conference of adopting futile anti-poverty measures and favoring poor countries over rich ones. Adams expresses disappointment that the U.S. "caved" on the loss-and-damages strategy and the Green Climate Fund.

"The UNFCCC is following the model of the American “war on poverty” that did nothing to lift people out of poverty, but did great damage to families by making them dependent upon the government. Likewise, starve 1.3 billion people around the globe of their ability to produce energy and they will be forever beholden to handouts from the UN.

Poor countries are always the winners and the rich countries are always the losers, yet radical environmentalists never let up on their goal to globally redistribute wealth. And it is heart-wrenching to watch the U.S. agree to its agenda ... The radical environmentalists, like Marxists throughout history, refuse to recognize that economic utopia, absolute equality, is a pipe dream."

Eagle Forum was not the only right-wing group lambasting the Warsaw conference. The Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT) devoted several blog posts to ridiculing the Warsaw conference. It should be noted that CFACT's board of advisors includes E. Calvin Beisner (spokesman for the Cornwall Alliance).

In a November 24th CFACT commentary, Craig Rucker warned that "age of eco-imperialism is upon us". Rucker made no attempt to hide his disdain for the "warning-left pressure groups" of the "radical enviro-left" who walked out of the conference. He warned that environmental NGOs are still "in control of the game" and will work diligently toward their agenda.

"The outcome of the Warsaw climate summit is too tepid to satisfy the radical enviro-left. Their complaints will be shrill and many.

Realists who disagree with the UN’s take on global-warming science and policy will take comfort from the outcome’s lack of firm commitments, weasel words, and delays. If they let down their guard, they will demonstrate the true meaning of global-warming denial.

While the UN’s global-warming mandarins and profiteers may have liked more, they jet out of Warsaw still in control of the game. They leave Poland with the U.S. finally inside the global-warming tent, no nettlesome procedural reforms, and their road to a Paris global-warming treaty difficult but still in sight. They will immediately resume their endless series of backroom deals at quiet subsidiary meetings. Bureaucracy may be inefficient, but it is persistent. When UN global-warming bureaucrats are persistent, you pay."

In a November 22nd CFACT piece, Christina Wilson accused the UN of "exploiting gender issues to hustle its new climate treaty." Wilson championed coal, oil, and nuclear power, insisting that combating poverty through "affordable energy" would help women more than climate change initiatives. In making this assertion, she ignores the considerable environmental risks of such energy sources, as well as evidence that climate change is a significant issue for women and girls worldwide.

"They are just distracting from the real issues here. If the climate crowd truly cared about women’s issues, they would focus on the link between poverty and affordable energy instead of wasting time, money, and resources on policies based on junk science.

A new climate treaty would do nothing meaningful to alter global temperature and would do even less for gender issues. The real reason women and men are affected adversely by natural disasters is due to inadequate resources and access to energy.

The developed world has less gender inequality than those in developing nations. This is because wealthier nations have developed using affordable, reliable resources like coal, natural gas, oil, and nuclear power. To deny developing nations access to these same resources would be morally wrong."

Right-wing voices can ignore climate change and mock efforts to confront it, but they will find themselves increasingly on the fringe. Climate change is too pressing to ignore, with too much evidence to dismiss. Instead of caricaturing climate change talks, right-wing groups should look at them with nuanced eyes. Instead of sneering at the idea of climate change, right-wing figures should take constructive action to combat it.

The road to a more environmentally conscious world will be a bumpy one, as evidenced by the difficulties of the Warsaw conference. However, global conversations are still vital for confronting environmental issues, and global treaties can still do good. Future climate change talks should seek to avoid the problems that plagued the Warsaw conference and develop collaborative strategies and policies.

What IS It with Conservative Bishops and Anti-Violence Measures?

I've noticed a pattern among conservative Catholic bishops in the west. When legislation or a human rights convention related to violence against women is up for consideration, some conservative bishops will loudly oppose it on the grounds that it will undermine stereotypical gender roles and support LGBTQ persons.

Lithuania, which is deliberating on whether or not to sign a human rights document on violence against women, is one example. According to Catholic World News, Lithuania's Catholic bishops have discouraged the Lithuanian government from becoming a signatory to the Council of Europe's Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women.

According to a May 9th statement from the Lithuanian Bishops Conference (Lietuvos Vyskupu Konferencija), the convention frames gender as a "social construct", which allegedly ignores human biology. The bishops argue that the conventions definition of gender identity is so broad that it could have problematic ramifications for Lithuanian law.

"Konvencija Lietuvos teisėje įtvirtintų naujus draudimo diskriminuoti dėl „socialinės lyties“ ir „socialinės lyties tapatybės“ (Konvencijos 4 straipsnis) pagrindus, kurie gali būti interpretuojami plačiai ir nevienareikšmiškai. Nebuvo paaiškinta, kaip šios nuostatos būtų taikomos praktikoje ir kokias naujas pareigas bei problemas sukurtų valstybės institucijoms, švietimo įstaigoms, verslui ir visai visuomenei."

("Enshrined in the Convention is the prohibition of discrimination due to the new "social sex" and "gender identity" (article 4 of the Convention), which can be interpreted in a broad manner. It did not explain how these provisions are to be applied in practice and what new duties and challenges they will create for public institutions, educational institutions, businesses, and society as a whole.")

The bishops' statement lambastes the Convention's calls for social change to eliminate customs and practices rooted in misogyny, claiming that Lithuania's cultural and religious traditions would be deemed threats to women. The statement warns that schools could be obliged to teach "homosexuality and transgenderism" if Lithuania becomes a signatory. The bishops discourage the Lithuanian government from signing the convention because the documents goals are allegedly "contrary to the nation's identity."

"Ypatingą susirūpinimą kelia Konvencijos 14 straipsnio nuostatos ją pasirašiusioms šalims uždedančios pareigą įtraukti į visų formaliojo švietimo lygių ugdymo programas mokymo medžiagą apie „nestereotipinius lyčių vaidmenis“, nes pastarieji, be kita ko, gali reikšti ir homoseksualumą bei transseksualumą ... tiek daugelio tėvų moralinėms vertybėms, diegimu sukuria precedentą, keliantį pagrįstą nerimą."

("Of particular concern is the provisions of Article 14 of the Convention, which places an unfair obligation on signatory countries to include in all levels of formal education curricula teaching material for non-stereotyped gender roles; because this, among other things, can also mean homosexuality and transgenderism ...For many parents' moral values, the installation creates a precedent, causing reasonable concern.")

Sadly, this is nothing new. In 2012, after opposition from Poland's Catholic leaders, the Polish government initially refused to sign the Council of Europe's Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women, according to Polskie Radio/Dla Zagranicy. However, Poland eventually signed the document in December 2012, according to the Warsaw Voice. Poland's Catholic bishops were outraged, insisting that the document would force the Polish government to “promote non-stereotypical gender roles such as homosexuality and transsexualism.”

Even in the U.S., conservative bishops have resisted anti-violence measures on the grounds that they would promote LGBTQ rights. In March 2013, when President Obama signed the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) into law, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops criticized VAWA for its pro-LGBTQ content.

Such conservative bishops have shown how skewed their priorities are. The Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women could be an important tool for addressing gender-based violence, but some bishops have let their homophobia, transphobia, and sexism blind them to its merits. If preserving antiquated notions of gender and keeping LGBTQ persons invisible is more important to bishops than ending gender-based violence, something is very wrong.

(Hat tip to Pink News)

News Tidbits

Washington Post: Churches under fire for using gun classes as outreach

Windy City Media Group: Anti-gay Illinois groups mobilizing coalition against same-sex marriage

Metro Weekly: Catholic University Allies Rejected

Telegraph: Polish Catholic group compares abortion to Newtown massacre

Pink News: US Pentecostal churches blamed for homophobia ‘surge’ in Africa

Pink News: Homophobic Ugandan Pastor Martin Ssempa uses fruit and vegetables on TV to show he believes gay men and women have sex      (NSFW!)

News Tidbits

Topeka Capital-Journal: ReignDown USA, Brownback draw crowd to prayer movement

BBC News: US evangelicals question Republican ties

Huffington Post: Rick Perry: Banning Abortion is "My Goal"

Detroit Free Press: EMU to pay $75,000 to counseling student Julea Ward who refused to counsel gay client

U.S. Catholic: Bishops blast Poland for signing pact to fight violence against women

The Portsmouth News: Gay marriage will ‘pervert’ families, says Portsmouth bishop

The Grio: Justice Scalia makes incendiary remarks on LGBT rights at Princeton

Commentary Tidbits

Gallup Polling Matters: Religiosity Remains Huge Predictor of Presidential Vote Choice

Rosa Rubicondior: What A Waste Of A Life

Perrspectives: Jewish Voters, Republican Chutzpah

Leaving Fundamentalism: The Key to Understanding Fundamentalist Psychology

Truth Wins Out: Americans Add New Ex-Gay Fuel to Poland’s Antigay Climate

(Hat tip to Infidel753 for several of these links.)

Commentary Tidbits

Salon: The dog-whistle dictionary: A GOP debate viewer's guide to coded Christian language

Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters: Slur spewing pastor taking center stage in North Carolina

Equality Matters: NOM: Homosexuality Is “Immorality,” “Evil,” “Darkness Parading Around As Light”

Wall of Separation: Memo To The Religious Right: On Sept. 11, 2011, Americans Can Pray – Even Without Government Direction

Truth Wins Out: Joseph Nicolosi and His Scamming Operation Kicked Out of Polish Medical School

Joe.My.God: The Way of the Mister

SPLC Hatewatch: 9/11 Rally to Include Hard Rightists From Around World

Righ Wing Watch: Joyner: "The Lord Is Using Islam" To Punish America for "Perversions" and "Abortions"

Right Wing Watch: Focus on the Family Doubles Down On Their Fight Against Anti-Bullying Programs