Archbishop: Maryland Isn't New York

The Archbishop of Baltimore, Edwin O'Brien, has a message for Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, who earlier this week vowed to support the renewed push for marriage equality.

“Maryland is not New York,” wrote Archbishop Edwin O’Brien of Baltimore in a statement to LifeSiteNews Tuesday. “During the 2011 session, Maryland lawmakers chose not to redefine marriage because they listened to their Maryland constituents and stood by their deeply-held moral convictions.” “Government’s interest in marriage has been to promote the procreation of children, protect the best method of raising children and therefore protect society for future generations,” he said. “There are many ways to protect basic human rights; sacrificing marriage is not one of them. The successful coalition that upheld the time-honored definition of marriage in Maryland, which includes many leaders of African-American churches throughout the state, remains intact and will continue to be vigorously involved in upholding marriage in Maryland,” said the archbishop.

PHILADELPHIA: Catholic Archbishop Steps Down Over Pedophilia Scandal

Embattled Philadelphia Archbishop Justin Rigali resigned today after years of growing scandal over his alleged shielding of pedophile priests.

Rigali, archbishop in Philadelphia since 2003, has been struggling to contain the pedophilia scandal in the wake of a Philadelphia grand jury report issued at the beginning of this year. Three priests, a monsignor and a church teacher were indicted as a result of the report. "We would have assumed," said the grand jury in a report, "by the year 2011, after all the revelations both here and around the world, that the church would not risk its youth by leaving them in the presence of priests subject to substantial evidence of abuse. That is not the case." The grand jury said that it found 37 such priests who have been kept in assignments that exposed them to children.

Rigali will be replaced by Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver. The Philadelphia archdiocese has over 1.5M members and is the sixth largest in the country.

OHIO: Catholic Bishop Bans Raising Money For Breast Cancer Research

Toledo Bishop Leonard Blair has banned his parishes and schools from participating in any fundraising for breast cancer research. Because one day, maybe, some of that money might be used for stem cell research.

Toledo Bishop Leonard Blair sent a letter banning the fundraising for Susan G. Komen for the Cure to all priests and parishes in the 19-county diocese over the weekend. Cincinnati's archbishop earlier this year decided that schools and parishes in the 19-county Cincinnati Archdiocese cannot raise funds for Komen for the same reason. Scientists say research on embryonic stem cells, which are usually taken from discarded embryos at fertility clinics, may lead to cures for diseases. The Catholic Church maintains that the destruction of the embryo amounts to the killing of human life.

The Komen Foundation says it has never funded stem cell research.

Hate Groups React To CA History Bill

Catholics For The Common Good

Claims that this bill is needed to reduce bullying against children that are experiencing gender confusion or take on 'gay' or 'lesbian' identities are absurd. Children must be taught respect for all persons because of their intrinsic value, not because they agree with their behavior or like their characteristics. In fact, reducing people to merely a sexual identity obscures the fact that they are so much more than that.

Traditional Values Coalition

SB 48 was priority number 1 for Traditional Values Coalition. We committed all the resources we had to try to make sure that SB 48 failed. We are talking about molesting the minds of young impressionable youth, as young as Kindergarten, with an agenda and message that is not age-appropriate and that is offensive to the values of a vast majority of California’s families. We have failed at our core educational mission and yet we are now going to inject gay studies into the classrooms. It’s absurd and offensive.

Save California

It's ridiculous that Jerry Brown says he's making history 'honest'. The bill he signed prohibits teachers and textbooks from telling children the facts that homosexuality has the highest rate of HIV/AIDS and other STDs, higher cancer rates, and earlier deaths. These important facts about lifestyles children will being forced to admire will be omitted. And Brown calls this 'honest'? This revisionist history will actually make more children believe a lie -- that homosexuality is biological, which it's not, and healthy, which is isn't."

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NOM To Hold Anti-Gay Hate Rallies On First Day Of Legalized New York Marriages

NOM has announced that it will hold anti-gay hate rallies around New York state on Sunday, July 24th - the first day of legalized same-sex marriage. Will they dare appear at Manhattan's city clerk office?

Brooklyn Bishop: Ban All Pro-Gay Lawmakers From Catholic Places

Brooklyn Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio is telling the Catholic schools and churches in his diocese to ban all visits from pro-gay state legislators.

DiMarzio, the leader of the Brooklyn diocese, has urged the Catholic institutions to decline donations and speaking engagements from Gov. Andrew Cuomo and any lawmaker who voted "yes" on the bill legalizing same-sex marriages. Calling New York's passage of gay marriage "another 'nail in the coffin' of marriage," DiMarzio issued a statement two days after the New York gay marriage bill was approved by the Legislature demanding that "all pastors and principals to not invite any state legislator to speak or be present at any parish or school celebration." The Catholic bishop also said the church should now speak more "forcefully and clearly" against gay marriage.

I'd like to see the Brooklyn diocese's list of top annual donors, just to cross-reference them with New York City's known mob-connected murderers and organized crime figures. Wanna bet there's a lot of names of both lists?

BROOKLYN: Catholic School Rejects Gift From Gay-Friendly Politician

New York state Assemblyman Joe Lentol voted in favor of same-sex marriage. Which means a Brooklyn Catholic school has to send back his $50 donation.

Officials at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in Williamsburg sent back a $50 gift from Assemblyman Joe Lentol (D-Brooklyn) - following Brooklyn Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio's edict to refuse any honors from pols who backed same-sex marriage. DiMarzio also told pastors and principals not to invite any state lawmakers to speak - whether or not they voted for the bill - because the diocese objects to the bill's dead-of-night approval. Lentol said he's been giving small donations around graduation time at the church's Queen of the Rosary Academy for the last 20 years - and was "disappointed" to have it sent back last week. "This was a civil issue involving equality for all people," Lentol said.

A diocese spokesman endorsed sending the money back, saying it was "preposterous" for his school to give pro-gay people a platform.

Quote Of The Day - Timothy Dolan

"We do worry indeed about this freedom of religion. Editorials already call for the removal of guarantees of religious liberty, with crusaders calling for people of faith to be coerced to acceptance of this redefinition. If the experience of those few other states and countries where this is already law is any indication, the churches, and believers, will soon be harassed, threatened, and hauled into court for their conviction that marriage is between one man, one woman, forever, bringing children into the world." - Archbishop Timothy Dolan, writing on his blog. Dolan adds that the "next step will be another redefinition to justify multiple partners and infidelity."

Bishops Denounce RI Civil Unions

Unsurprisingly, Catholic Bishops are ever so pissed about Rhode Island's civil unions bill.

“In no way can civil union measures be considered a permissible compromise or a step in advancing the common good, said Bishop Salvatore J. Cordileone, Chairman of the U.S. bishops' Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage, in a July 1 statment. “Instead, they directly violate principles of justice and accelerate the push to redefine marriage itself.” The bill, likely to be signed by Governor Lincoln Chafee, would allow same-sex couples to enter into a “legal union” with “all the rights , benefits, protections, and responsibilities” as those of people who are married,” according to a statement released by the Senate. The bill passed with a vote of 21-16. Speaking on behalf of the U.S. bishops, Bishop Cordileone said that marriage, “the communion of husband and wife,” is a unique reality that has no equivalent. He also noted that the legalization of civil unions in Rhode Island would harm the unique status and meaning of marriage, and promote the “crossing of moral boundaries.”

NOM Staffer Explains Why NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo Should Be Denied Communion

Thomas Peters is the NOM staffer who embarrassed himself by posting a preemptive National Review article declaring that same-sex marriage had been defeated in New York. He's also the son of the Vatican adviser who earlier this week called for Gov. Cuomo to be denied Holy Communion. Yesterday the younger Peters appeared on a Catholic news program to explain why. (And how gay does he seem? Of course!) Peters first appears at the 11:00 mark after some recapping of the New York marriage vote.

Vatican Adviser: New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo Should Be Denied Communion

One day after World Net Daily called for NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo's arrest for supporting same-sex marriage, a top Vatican adviser has declared that Cuomo should be denied Holy Communion.

A senior adviser to the Vatican, who is a theology professor in Detroit, blasted the Catholic governor of New York for his strong backing of same-sex marriage, saying that he should be punished for his "brazen" violation of Catholicism by being denied Holy Communion — a key part of the Catholic faith. He's also calling for the Catholic Church to investigate Gov. Andrew Cuomo for violating church law, calling the politician's actions a "danger" to faithful Catholics. Professor Edward Peters of Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, a consultant to the Vatican's highest court, hopes that punishing Cuomo would "serve as an example" to other Catholic politicians and clergy across the U.S. who might be considering same-sex marriage in light of New York's approval on Friday.

TOTALLY FUCKING RELATED: The Vatican adviser quoted above is the father of Thomas Peters, the douchebag NOM staffer who made news last week by preemptively declaring in the National Review that gay marriage had been defeated in New York. (National Review yanked the article within a couple of hours.) The younger Peters writes a blog titled The American Papist, which is hosted on CatholicVote.org.

Bill Donahue Melts Down

ZOMG! In less than five minutes, Catholic League mental case Bill Donahue hits on every viciously anti-gay lie in the religious right's arsenal. Polygamy, procreation, incest, and even some wild shit about prongs and sockets. SRSLY. Huge huge kudos to the show's host for firing back at every bit of Donahue's batshittery.

Bill Donahue On New York Marriage

"Ultimately, this issue will not be resolved in the courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court: it will be decided by a constitutional amendment. Though the Federal Marriage Amendment prevailed in the House in 2006 by a margin of 236-187, it failed to achieve the necessary 290 votes required to pass a constitutional amendment; two-thirds of both chambers of Congress, and three-fourths of the states (38), are needed.

"Standing in the way of a constitutional amendment is the legitimate reluctance on the part of federal lawmakers to decide what many believe to be a matter for the states. But given that we are left with the scenario of the people vs. the elites, we are quickly reaching a tipping point, and when that happens, chances are good that this issue will be resolved by a constitutional amendment." - Catholic League blowhard and pedophile defender Bill Donahue, writing on his personal blog.

Timothy Dolan: If We Allow Gay Marriage, Men Will Start Marrying Their Sisters

"That’s what’s going to happen here. You think it’s going to stop with this? You think now bigamists are going to want their rights to marry? You think somebody that wants to marry his sister is going to now say 'I have a right.' I mean it’s the same principle, isn’t it?" - Archbishop Timothy Dolan of the New York Catholic Coalition for the Protection of Boy-Fuckers.

According to Dolan, the gay marriage battle is akin to David Vs. Goliath, and he, one of the leaders of a multi-trillion-dollar global criminal enterprise, is the underdog David.