Roundup: Same-sex marriage, Christian GLBQ youth, George Pell

The Bible’s message and same-sex marriage

“Clergy preaching that the Bible, in the name of God, defines marriage as between one man and one woman are wrong.”

UCGay

Uniting Chrisitian GLBQ Australian Youth: a website project of the New South Wales and ACT Synod Youth Unit, funded by the Next Generations project of the Uniting Church in Australia.

Beliefs must be tempered by facts

Advances in scientific understanding are occasioning a rethink of relevant biblical texts. As a result, straight Christians like me must take seriously the heartfelt desire of our gay and lesbian friends to share in the benefits and responsibilities of marriage.

Churches lay down law on gay marriage as vote nears

Church heavyweights have been spurred into action by bills before Parliament, with the heads of the Catholic, Anglican and Greek Orthodox churches issuing strong statements to their congregations yesterday urging them to oppose any move towards same-sex marriage.

Our man in Rome

The Rev. Shirley Maddox, a former New South Wales moderator of the Uniting Church, met Pell before an ecumenical memorial service for the Queen Mother in Sydney in 2002. “I made the usual harmless kind of conversation that I make to elderly gents from other denominations who are a bit surprised to find themselves talking to an ordained woman,” Maddox says. “But he couldn’t look at me. I got grunts in response.”