Tongqi Association and Pink Space Sexuality Research Centre in Beijing: ¨Millions of women married to gay men in China¨

Chinese women married to gay men are often known as "tongqi"meaning "wives of comrades,"

¨According to the state run China Daily quoting a prominent gay rights campaigner, as many as 12 to 16 million women in China may be married to homosexual men.

Zhang Bei-chuan, a medical professor at Qingdao University and an expert on AIDS and HIV, says about 80% of an estimated 16 million gay men in China have either married or are of marrying age. The number of women with gay husbands works out to be about 12 million, he said, given that same-sex marriage is not legal in the country and men face social pressure to marry and have children regardless of their sexual orientation...¨  HERE

·  Thanks to Zhang Bei-chuan
·  Thanks to Tongqi Association 
·  Thanks to Pink Space Sexuality Research Centre, Beijing
·  Thanks to Fridae, sidebar

http://blog.noanglicancovenant.org/

SUCCESS: ¨... To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children. ¨ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Dedicated to a great ¨Success¨ and dear friend  Beverly ¨Mom¨ Emiko Nakatani Sakai, February 1, 2012, Antigua, Sacatapequez, Guatemala, Central America, R.I.P. 

Success
by Ralph Waldo Emerson

¨To laugh often and much;

To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;

To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;


To appreciate beauty,


To find the best in others,

To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child,

A garden patch or a redeemed social condition;


To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.

This is to have succeeded.¨

·  Thanks to Lay Anglicana, sidebar
·  Thanks to UK Anglican (inspiration)
·  Thanks to Doña Joan F., photo
·  Thanks to Ralph Waldo Emerson

THE LAST LAUGH: President Obama is succeeding in spite of the fact that he’s been up against a Republican Party willing to destroy the economy in order to destroy him.

President Obama Will Be Vindicated

As Ryan Lizza writes in the NEW YORKER:

“Obama didn’t remake Washington. But his first two years stand as one of the most successful legislative periods in modern history. Among other achievements, he has saved the economy from depression, passed universal health care, and reformed Wall Street.”

Mitt Romney, ¨a vapid twit paid for by corporate interests¨

¨So when are President Obama’s critics, people like Paul Krugman and Mitt Romney, going to offer President Obama an apology? Both have often loudly predicted that he made the economy worse and was putting America on the wrong economic path. Both are being proved wrong by the economic comeback we are in. I mention them not to pick on Krugman, who I respect or even on Romney (who I regard as a vapid twit bought and paid for by corporate interests) but to make a point: President Obama is going to have the last laugh on his critics, no matter what ideological spectrum they hail from...¨  read it all, by Frank Schaeffer,  HERE

·  Thanks to The New Yorker
·  Thanks to Ryan Lissa 
·  Thanks to Frank Schaeffer, sidebar
·  Thanks to President Barack Obama

Goddess Ix Chel (wife of Votan) and the Bishop of Salisbury, both intend to set the Anglican World into a healthier/happier motion!

Ix Chel is the Maya Goddess of the Moon, Water, Weaving and Childbirth. She is shown here in three of Her many aspects. Left to right: Chak Chel, the Old Moon Goddess, called the Midwife of Creation; Ix Chel in Her main form as Mother Goddess and Weaver who set the Universe in motion; and the Young Moon Goddess, shown with Her totem animal the rabbit.

The Maya Goddess Ix Chel is a giver of life and her name means ¨Lady Rainbow¨

I was personally, albeit, very discreetly and quickly, just ¨informed/illuminated¨ (while reading  Not the same stream  blog ) that Maya Goddess Ixchel is pleased with the NEW Anglican, Church of England, Bishop Nick Holtam, Bishop of Salisbury. 

The Goddess, in her multi-talented capacity which includes midwife of all creation considers him a man who may set (again) the ANGLICAN WORLD IN MOTION!   Just imagine, imagination is key here, that our Bishop Nick Holtam already discovered that IF the punative Anglican Covenant had been subscribed to earlier in our recent Anglican Communion history there would be NO WOMEN PRIESTS!  The very insanity and imbalance and unholiness of it all!

The Good and Great Goddess of Moon, Water, Weaving and Childbirth, Ix Chel, is fully aware, along with the new Bishop of Salisbury, that the proposed Anglican Covenant intends to exclude whole groups of God loving human beings (even the ones who do or don´t believe in Maya Gods and Goddess) .  The architects of the Anglican Covenant document declare they are innocent and are not causing, nor promoting, any reason for dread.  They promise no inquisition. The Goddess and the Bishop of Salisbury have both heard similar lies before.

·  Thanks to Not the same stream, sidebar
·  Thanks to Votan, HERE
·  Thanks to The Maya Goddess Ix Chel
·  Thanks to The Bishop of Salisbury
·  Thanks to Paul Bagshaw, HERE

http://blog.noanglicancovenant.org/

Beloved Beverly Emiko Nakatani Sakai ¨Rest in Peace and Rise in Glory¨

Beverly Emiko Nakatani Sakai, February 1, 2012, Antigua, Sacatapequez, Guatemala, Central America

For all who need comfort, for all who mourn

All those whom we cherished will be reborn


All those whom we love but see no more


They are not perished, but gone before


And Lord keep them safe in your embrace


And fill their souls with your good grace


For now they see you face to face


Where they rest in peace, and rise in glory.
 
···
Para todos los que necesitan consuelo, para todos los que llorar



All those whom we cherished will be reborn Todos aquellos a los que va a renacer preciados


All those whom we love but see no more Todos los que amamos, pero no ven más


They are not perished, but gone before Ellos no han perecido, pero ha ido antes


And Lord keep them safe in your embrace Y el Señor mantenerlos a salvo en tu abrazo


And fill their souls with your good grace Y llenar el alma con su buen talante


For now they see you face to face Por ahora te ven cara a cara


Where they rest in peace, and rise in glory Donde descansan en paz, y el aumento de la gloria
 
Rest in peace and rise in glory 
Beloved Beverly Emiko

Beverly ¨Mom¨ and son Paul

One of my favorite stories that Beverly shared was of Pearl Harbor Sunday...she rushed her little sister home from Sunday School (she didn´t have a house key but knew where one was hidden to unlock and get in on emergencies)...she kept looking up at the sky to see the many airplanes circling about with O´s on their wings...the skies were black with smoke. Beverly´s Mom was a head nurse at Queens Hospital (Queen Anna of holy Anglican memory/history) and working hard to take care of the wounded and critically injured as they entered for care...it always struck me that Beverly was doing the same thing, taking good care of others on that deadly Sunday in Hawaii. A fine family of notable Japanese Americans...they´ve been a positive force in all of our lives for generations.   Leonardo Ricardo/Len

There were three.  They were a trio.  Sons Tom and Paul joined ¨Mom¨ years ago (and she happily joined them as she was a widow).  They first opened a Art Gallery in Hawaii and the three provided all of the much needed skills of good taste, muscle, maticulous accounting, responsible service and vibrant visual presentation that make a business a solid success.

¨Mom¨ amongst the fine art treasurers in the house that Tom and Paul built

Year after year the little ensemble of three traveled to the far corners of the earth in search of original, and authentic, art treasurers for their home and business...they were/are quite the ¨fine art¨ collectors and their home was filled with lovely personal statements of what they cherished and used through out as decor.  In most recent years they became collectors of Maya textiles and learned much about them, their intended use and their evolution into modern day ¨traje¨...their collection of  textiles is amongst the most beautiful and interesting to be found anywhere.

¨Mom¨  was always present amongst them/us at every social function in recent years.  Only in the last year did she begin to slow down and required a little more rest and intensive care...she was clearly amongst the treasures in all of our everyday lives.  Thanks be to God for our dear friend Beverly.

Leonardo Ricardo/Len,  Antigua, Guatemala

JOHN SENTAMU FACE YOUR OWN MISDEEDS:¨Archbishop of York says church leaders who betray trust must take responsibility for actions.¨

Dr. John Sentamu ought act on his own advise!

Archbishop of York, advising spiritual ¨morality¨ in LGBT bloodrenched Jamaica

Pro LGBT Equality ¨campaigner¨ Portia Simpson Miller (right), prime minister of Jamaica welcomes the
PUNATIVE ¨Anglican Covenant¨ promoter John Sentamu, Lord of York

¨THE INFLUENTIAL archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, is of the view that one the challenges bedevilling the Church is the failure of leaders to accept responsibility for misdeeds...¨

Sir Patrick Allen (foreground), governor general of Jamaica, and his wife, Lady Allen (centre), greet and chat with the Rev Dr Howard Gregory (right), bishop of Montego Bay, and Archbishop of York John Sentamu (second right) during a courtesy call on the governor general at King's House on Friday. - Rudolph Brown/Photographer

IS DR. SENTAMU ¨EARNING FORGIVENESS¨ FROM THE LGBT ANGLICAN COMMUNITY IN JAMAICA, UGANDA, NIGERIA AND BEYOND? 

WE AWAIT YOUR APOLOGY FOR ATTEMPTING TO EXCLUDE US FROM ALL LEVELS OF CHURCHLIFE!

"I believe that anyone in leadership is in a position of trust and to betray that trust requires a greater acknowledgement than just saying I have messed up, and I am going to try to earn forgiveness from the community that I have wronged," asserted the high-ranking cleric in the Church of England...¨  Dr. Sentamu
HERE (emphasis and comment in blue added by Leonardo Ricardo)

·  Thanks to Gary Spaulding
·  Thanks to The Gleaner, Jamaica
·  Thanks to Three Rivers Episcopal, sidebar

http://blog.noanglicancovenant.org/

A QUICKIE TRIP TO OLE´ MEXICO

VIVA MEXICO!

Dear Friends,

Sorry I missed you these past days/daze.  I´ve been frolicing, but mostly shopping and eating, in Olde Mexico...it was a flavorfilled blast (and otherwise) and the Tostadas, Chicken Mole and THE SHRIMP were delicious...just ask and I promise to tell.   There was NO CRIME in the streets and everyone seemed orderly and happy as they went about the business of being the hospitable people that MEXICANS are.

Thanks to Mexico, the Mexicans and all of you for visiting while I was away.

Un abrazo fuerte,
Leonardo Ricardo/Len

HONORING IN MEMORY -- DAVID KATO: ¨Bishop Senyonjo spoke of David Kato as a selfless leader who served the gay community in Uganda to challenge discrimination and stigma for homosexuals.¨

The ¨fear meant to be instilled in the Ungandan Homosexual community after the death of David Kato (pictured above) is broken by God¨

¨Gay rights activists in Uganda on Thursday paid tribute to murdered gay rights defender, David Kato, one year after his murder.More than 100 activists, human rights defenders and allies to Uganda’s gay community remembered David Kato as a distinguished campaign for equality at a memorial service in held in Kampala.

His killer, Nsubuga Sydney, was sentenced to 30 years in jail on his own plea of guilty when charged with killing Kato.

Retired Bishop Christopher Senyonjo, the head of the St. Paul Reconciliation and Equality Centre (SPREC) and US based pastor, Joseph Tolton said the mass.

Kato’s mother, sisters and family members attended the function.

Known to the Ugandan LGBTI community as Nnalongo (mother of twins) Kato’s mother said she was thankful for the love extended to her in the last one year since her son’s death.

She said often Kato’s friends had shown her “love, care and compassion” whenever she had been depressed thinking of her son, and that this generosity of spirit had kept her going.

Bishop Senyonjo spoke of David Kato as a selfless leader who served the gay community in Uganda to challenge discrimination and stigma for homosexuals. “I respect you all homosexuals. And my message is a message of love as God’s children,” Bishop Senyonjo said during the sermon.

Pastor Tolton said he stood by the US Episcopalian Church’s inclusion of gay ministers in the church. He said, “The fear that was meant to be instilled in the Ugandan homosexual community after Kato’s death had been broken by God.”

Bishop Senyonjo said that Kato lives on, and that although he had been killed to instil fear among the Ugandan gay community, homosexuals had prevailed.

One after the other, friends of David Kato spoke of him as a leader saying he had leadership qualities worth emulating, while others prayed for his soul to rest in peace...¨  please read it all, HERE

Tomorrow marks the one-year anniversary of the day David Kato, a gay activist in Uganda, was beaten to death in his neighborhood with a hammer after his photo appeared in a local paper under the headline "Hang Them."

¨sexual preferences are a private matter¨ President Thabo Mbeki

¨The former president of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, has risen to the defense of homosexuals in Uganda, saying the proposed Antihomosexuality Bill (now languishing in Uganda's Parliament) is irrelevant.¨

“I would say to the MP [David Bahati, mover of the bill]; sexual preferences are a private matter,” said Mbeki. “I don’t think it is a matter for the state to intervene.” Mbeki said he was certain that Bahati would disagree with his stand and argue that African culture does not permit same sex relations, a reason at the heart of the continent’s wide spread antipathy towards homosexuals.... HERE

·  Thanks to Black Looks, HERE
·  Thanks to LGBT Asylum News, sidebar
·  Thanks to The Rt. Rev. Christopher Ssenyonjo, Anglican Bishop, Uganda
·  Thanks to The Reverend Joseph Tolton
·  Thanks to Thabo Mbeki, Former President of South Africa
·  Thanks to Episcopal Cafe

THE GLORY OF ANGLICANISM: ¨...I am tired of people telling me that I am not as Christian as they are simply because I think differently than they do¨

Dr. Rowan Williams, The Archbishop of Canterbury and The Reverend ¨Canon Librarian¨ Doll of Norwich are kidding themselves/others if they do not recognize the Anglican Covenant as a punishing document

¨I am tired of the wrangle though. I am tired of people telling me that I am not as Christian as they are simply because I think differently than they do. I have always thought that Anglicanism was based on not ‘having a window into men’s souls.’ I will never deny anyone communion at the table I serve because it is not my table to guard. It is the Lord ’s Table I serve and from what I read in the Gospel, Jesus fed all who came with abundance left over.¨  Muthah+

¨A white paper has been written for the Bishop of Norwich by a C of E which is being recommended by the Archbishop of Canterbury in support of the Anglican Covenant. Written by the Canon Librarian of the Norwich Cathedral, Peter Doll resurrects much of the froth and bother that began to be developed in the US some 10 years ago as the extreme conservatives in the US House of Bishops began to lose power. There were accusations of lack of collegiality, appeals to history, uncertain theologies, lack of catholicity, etc. by those bishops then and Doll seems to return to their arguments.


It begins with a nod to the academic delving into the history of Christianity in the US with all the appropriate footnotes, but it is a history of the American ‘popular church’ that is no more characteristic of the Church in which I have served for the past 30 years than a barrel of monkeys. And after his nod at scholarship he goes on a 5 page rant about how ‘un-Anglican’ and even ‘un-Christian’ TEC is because we have been so high-handed in what we have done by consecrating openly gay and lesbian clergy to the office of bishop. It is interesting that there is no reference to the Anglican Church of Canada who did many of the same things.


Doll was born in the US and a Yalie, and perhaps feels that he is an authority on all life in America. But it is clear from his writing that he has no experience of the church he is supposed to be writing about. He has spent most of his adult life ordained for the C of E, living in the culture of the UK. The C of E and TEC are not the same but we come from the same roots.

Doll’s statement : ”The American religious experience is like no other, and even if American Anglicans have historically identified themselves as standing apart from evangelical Protestantism, as being a cut above socially and intellectually, their actual experience is nevertheless deeply imbued with these same primordialist assumptions” is not only not true in the Episcopal Church since WWII, it is offensive to those of us who find their spiritual home in a church that straddles the catholic/protestant abyss today in ways never appreciated in other parts of the Communion. It is clear he has a singular prejudice against the concept of a faith rooted in experience with nips and digs at the evangelicals that are presently ascendant in American politics and the Methodists for their lack of orthodoxy (really?) and then paints the whole American religious canvas as gnostic.


The American Episcopal Church IS a unique church. That is part of the glory of Anglicanism. All our national churches are unique to the cultures we serve. We do provide an alternative to the Calvinistic and Roman Catholic strands of Christianity that make up the majority the Christian experience here. We are a small presence in the total mainline tree of Protestantism in the US. But we do like to think that we provide a place for a thinking person’s response to faith. We are a vital leaven in the whole Christian loaf that makes up the US.


Unlike the C of E, we are not an academic-bound church. We have good theological schools and have produced fine teachers, but we do not expect our bishops to be scholars. Like the Lutherans we put much more emphasis on the pastoral duties of our bishops, priests and deacons. We find ministry to those in the pew, the celebrations of the sacraments and service of the needy lively ways to live out what it means to be the Church of Christ in our area. We believe that these stem from our Baptismal covenant and are central to how we not only experience faith but also how we share it. In other words, the laity is the primary order in the church not priest or bishop.


We are aware that we are not only a church in a very powerful country but in 9 other nations of the world. TEC often stands in opposition to the actions of US national interests as a voice for the poor, disenfranchised and the voiceless. We too stood with South Africa in her fight against apartheid. And it was the dogged work of Bishops John Walker and Archbishop Tutu that brought the US sanctions that finally helped topple the moneyed interests in South Africa. TEC too has voiced our concerns against the misuse of power that often accompanies global industries which pollute or disorient local economies. We try to address the issues of our day in the light of the Gospel. We are not the church of the moneyed class any longer.


We are truly trying to encounter this new era of technology and post-modernism with the message that the Incarnation is present now as it was in times past. Granted this newness is not going to look like it always has, but it will continue to challenge a new era by inviting a whole new generation into the intimacy with their God. Now, if that is what is to be called ‘cultural imperialism,’ so be it. It seems to me that this is what mission is about. It is also what happens when there are great movements in history that change the way that people embrace the truth of their existence in relation to their surroundings. We need but see the movements in faith history over the past 4 millennia to see what is happening in our world today.


In the past almost 10 years, I have found it almost comical that TEC is blamed for GAFCON leaving the Communion. We have forced no other church to force people or churches or dioceses from the common Table. We have not demanded that others think or act the way we do. We have gone ahead and acted on 40 years of study and ministry to best serve the people we have in our Church. We find that honesty about sexual orientation is preferred to hiding behind celibacy or denial. We believe that both the scientific and spiritual communities have spoken to the issue of homosexuality clearly and it is important to address the injustices of furthering discrimination as we have done on issues such as slavery, racism, colonialism and sexism. We do not demand other parts of the communion to believe as we do. But we do expect that when we send our leaders to be in council with other parts of the Communion that they will be respected and welcomed as Christ just as we would welcome and respect the leaders of other churches....¨  please read it all,   HERE

The Reverend Canon is kidding himself if he does not recognize the Anglican Covenant as a punishing document

·  Thanks to Stone of Witness, sidebar
·  Thanks to Muthah+ , Texas

“After ten years of outcry, the nation of Ecuador has entered into a commitment with civic organizations and society in general to deconstruct the belief that homosexuality is an illness...

¨The appointment of a lesbian politician as Ecuador’s new health minister has caused a stir this week, as she announced a campaign to shut down religious ´lesbian cure´ clinics .

Ecuadorian president, Rafael Correa, announced the appointment of Carina Vance Mafla, who is openly gay, as the newest member of his cabinet.

The American-born activist hit the ground running, with an announcement that the health ministry will be working closely with lesbian rights group Fundacion Causana, and other civil rights groups, to shut down the remaining religious clinics which promise to ‘cure’ lesbians.

HERE

¨This announcement has also meant further praise for the president Correa, who has been complimented for supporting a pro-LGBT constitution.¨

·  Thanks to Pink News, sidebar
·  Thanks to President  Rafael Correa, Equador
·  Thanks to Carina Vance Mafla, Health Minister, Equador