Many people lump together all of the social changes that have taken place in American history as part of one broad march of “progress” toward a more just society. If this view is correct, does the march of progress ever reach completion? There is a classic debate between progressives and traditionalists on social issues. It […]
In a decision that has significant implications for business owners who hold the historic view on issues of marriage and sexuality, a County Judge ruled on February 18th that it is illegal to refuse business for same-sex ceremonies if you are willing to provide business for any weddings at all. Superior Court Judge, Alex Eckstrom, […]
As Christians around the world got ready to contemplate the innocence of the child Jesus, last week the Russian Orthodox Church took on a UNICEF paper that says children have LGBT rights. The Patriarch’s Commission on the Family of the Russian Orthodox Church released a scathing statement criticizing a UNICEF position paper that urges countries […]
On Human Rights Day, homosexual activists converged on UN headquarters to make the case that “LGBT rights are human rights.” But only a few countries within the United Nations agree. Undersecretary General Jan Eliasson called the promotion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender rights (LGBT) an “unfinished human rights revolution.” He lamented the lack of international […]
After decades resisting even mentioning the word, governments and advocates extolled the “family” at two special sessions at the UN last week. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the International Year of the Family. Pro-family advocates feared it would pass unnoticed, a casualty of the culture war. Some at the UN portray the family […]
Pope Francis starkly warned European leaders last month they have lost trust by enacting policies that are “insensitive” and “harmful,” giving Europe the image of a “grandmother, no longer fertile” and breeding “certain rather selfish lifestyles.” They must guard against misusing the concept of human rights, he stated. One European Parliamentarian called it “a timely […]
While it’s great news that substantial political pro-life victories were won in the mid-term elections, we must now ask ourselves, “What do these victories mean for the protection of human life and family?” Pope Saint John Paul II inspires and instructs us in this opportune and pivotal moment to rally in defense of life: “What […]
How did it happen that so many prominent Catholics, especially those in politics and in academia, moved from being ardent defenders of the unborn and the culture of life to advocates of the culture of death with such ease. It all seemed so smooth and unremarkable. In such a short time after the January 1973 […]
Despite our vigilance, the dissolution of the marriage ethic and the chaos that it creates have arrived on our doorstep. We live in an America that has become unmoored from nature and reality, where justice and mercy have been rejected and self-serving pleasure reigns. Living in a state where the spurious “marriage” of homosexuals remains […]
The highest human rights court in Europe shattered hopes that it would judicially impose same-sex marriage when it told a male to female transsexual and his wife that a civil union should be good enough for them. European human rights law does not require countries to “grant access to marriage to same-sex couples,” according to […]
The United Nations put a damper on “gay pride” festivities last Thursday when it re-affirmed that the natural family is the fundamental unit of society. The Human Rights Council adopted a resolution on “Protection of the Family” with a traditional definition of the family last Thursday, even as revelers readied themselves to celebrate gay pride […]
It happened when I was in middle school. The Presbyterian Church held its annual General Assembly in Baltimore one year and Philadelphia the next. My father was selected to be a delegate from his presbytery, the first year as a seminary student and the second year as a member of the clergy. It was my […]
Western pressure on African countries to liberalize policies on homosexuality has had a boomerang effect, uniting Africans against it and resulting in what some see as a new non-aligned movement of countries. Last week the United Nations elected a Ugandan as president of the General Assembly over last-ditch efforts by activists who, along with the […]
The seemingly inevitable march of gay rights in the Americas was slowed last week when an inter-American gathering in Paraguay refused to impose same-sex marriage. The Organization of American States will not “impose” any norms or recommendations on same-sex marriage, said Secretary General José Manuel Insulza Salinas in a press conference after the conclusion of […]
There’s a conflict between non-discrimination laws and religious freedom. Where religious freedom exists to limit government’s intrusion into matters of conscience, non-discrimination laws invite government into private dealings and empower them to force people to do things they otherwise would be unwilling to do in the name of ending discrimination. As non-discrimination laws become stronger, religious freedom becomes […]
The Vatican Ambassador to the UN told UN leaders last week that “children do not belong to the state.” Archbishop Francis Chullikatt told a gathering of UN delegates and NGO representatives celebrating the International Day of Families that children also do not belong “to any special interest group whose agendas are actually inimical to the […]
Recently, Christopher White wrote a commentary on the ethical problems associated with “surrogate parenthood for money.” He argued that paying for surrogate parenting is actually a form of human trafficking. His position is an interesting one, particularly because he presents his perspective in the context of many surrogate mothers who have later regretted their decision to carry […]
A new graphic novel, Pregnant Butch: Nine Long Months Spent in Drag, chronicles the pregnancy journey of a lesbian named Teek and her partner, Vee. While the novel is fiction, it’s based on the author’s own experience parenting her son. It’s a humorous take on the subject of lesbian pregnancies with one reviewer noting “This […]
Sister Jane Dominic Laurel, a Dominican nun who has recently come under fire for a presentation she made to a group of Catholic students in North Carolina, has been doing the same type of presentation for years. Her subject matter is Catholic teaching on the truth about human sexuality—popularized by Pope John Paul II as […]
European pressure on African nations to change laws on homosexuality has created a backlash that may threaten this week’s meeting between leaders of the two continents European officials have been scrambling to appease African leaders ahead of this week’s summit of EU and African leaders in Brussels. The summit is meant to address a host […]
“This is unacceptable,” said Zimbabwe’s delegate. Her voice broke from frustration and regret. A resolution on HIV/AIDS, championed by the poorest African countries most affected by the deadly disease, was changed after negotiations had finished. The Netherlands demanded protections for children be removed, subtly giving a nod to sexualizing children and putting people at greater […]
You’ve probably heard the news by now that yet another state has lost the latest round in the battle over marriage. On Friday, March 21st, a district judge in Michigan decided that the state’s ban on same sex marriage was unconstitutional, despite a measure that was approved by a majority of voters several years ago; […]
One summer afternoon during the Sixties, I watched as pods from another planet grew replacement bodies to invade the human race with duplicate, soul-less creatures. After watching the original version of The Invasion of the Body Snatchers, as an eight-year-old, I felt fearful walking around my neighborhood as if there was something out there. Many years later, […]
Angry over not getting a same-sex-friendly definition of the family into a new UN document, the Obama Administration tried to delete language agreed upon by the founders of the UN and repeated in documents since then. Regularly contentious in recent decades, the family has been a diplomatic football with one side eager to recognize “diverse […]
