News from the Religious Institute

Growing up Jewish in the 1960’s my understanding of nuns was shaped by Sally Field as Sister Betrille, the Flying Nun, and Audrey Hepburn as Sister Luke in The Nun Story. They were both passionate, courageous and authority defying, as well as loving, caring, and dedicated to the poor.

I didn’t actually know any nuns until I began my seminary studies, when I had the privilege of taking a class with Sister Mary Boys at Union Theological Seminary, spending time at the Peace Council with Sister Joan Chittister, and being guided in an independent study by Sister Margaret Farley at Yale Divinity School (YDS). These Roman Catholic theologians inspired me with their brilliance, their deep understanding of ethics, and their unending compassion for their students and the world.

Last week, my adviser at YDS, Sister Margaret Farley was publicly condemned by the Vatican for her 2006 book, Just Love: A Framework for Christian Ethics. They said it could cause “grave harm” to the faithful, in presenting a sexual ethic based in justice. My denomination, the Unitarian Universalist Association, actually encourages our candidates for ministry to read this book for grounding in sexual ethics. Ironically, the Vatican’s action means that Farley’s book now has an audience much larger than ever before: it’s gone from being a somewhat obscure read for seminary students to apparently selling out its print run on Amazon.

The statement against Farley follows the Vatican’s public crackdown on the Leadership Conference on Women Religious, an organization that, according to their website, includes 80% of American nuns and whose mission is to “further the mission of the Gospel in today’s world.” The Vatican has called for a full-scale overhaul of the LCRW, because they have not done enough to speak out against abortion and same sex marriage—an accusation that could be leveled at the Gospels as well since neither issue is ever mentioned in them. The Board of the LCRW went to Rome earlier this week to speak directly to the Vatican officials, calling the charges “unsubstantiated accusations and the result of a flawed practice that lacked transparency.”

This attack on American nuns is nothing short of incongruous by the all-male, celibate Roman Catholic hierarchy. On the one hand, they are censuring Farley because of her public stance on sexuality; on the other hand, they are trying to take over the LCRW because of their lack of a public stance on sexuality. This should come as no surprise after the U.S. Roman Catholic Bishops declared earlier this spring that removing contraception from health care reform would be their number one public policy priority, even though overwhelming numbers of American Catholics find birth control morally acceptable. As Roman Catholic theologian Mary Hunt notes, “The Roman men are hell-bent on reining in American nuns, if only to prove that they can rein in somebody in a world that pays them increasingly little heed.” There seems to be no end to the Roman Catholic hierarchy wanting to prioritize sexuality issues.

Except perhaps among their own ranks. Ironically, just as the news of Farley’s censure was being reported, so was a news story that the Milwaukee Archbishop had paid sex-abusing priests to leave the priesthood, rather than holding them accountable for their actions. The U.S. Roman Catholic Church has spent millions of dollars settling cases of priest sexual misconduct with children and adolescents. No other religious denomination has been tainted by such widespread abuse of children, cover up of cases, or moving abusing clergy to other parishes.

Meanwhile, the Sisters are speaking truth to power and standing for the full inclusion of women in religious life. I am hopeful that the Sisters going to Rome will let the Vatican know that it is way past time for the male hierarchy to cease seeking to control Roman Catholic women, either secular or religious.

I noted in my Huffington Post piece that the LCRW posted a prayer on their website that ends with these words:

New Resources

All Politics is Religious: Speaking Faith to the Media, Policy Makers and Community by Rabbi Dennis S. Ross
This new book by the Director of Concerned Clergy for Choice identifies the religious themes in today’s sexuality debates—full inclusion of LGBT people, church-state separation, reproductive rights, and access to sex education, contraception and abortion care—and offers language and methods for effective communication on the positive role faith can play in personal and public life.
Read more here.

The Truth About Religious Freedom
Catholics for Choice has released a new resource, The Truth About Religious Freedom, to aid in understanding what Roman Catholics believe about “religious freedom, ” what it means, and to counter misinformation.
Read more here.

Faithful Voices Network

by J. Michael Cobb
Director, Communications and Outreach

June is Pride Month, and 2012 marks 43 years since the Stonewall Riots that effectively mark the beginning of the modern gay rights movement. As such, this is a good opportunity to take a step back and survey the landscape for progress and setbacks since that long-ago weekend.

I wonder how history will look on President Obama’s “evolution” on the point of marriage equality. He has noted that his own objections to marriage equality had softened over time, in part as he got to see the real harm done to his LGBT staff members. History will tell whether this endorsement will help or harm President Obama in the elections later this year, but what’s certain is that public attention around marriage equality is not going away. In fact, many celebrities have recently expressed their support in a way that would have been unthinkable even last year.

We are nearing a tipping point for marriage equality. We know that the struggle for equal rights is far from over—for example, North Carolina’s voters approved a constitutional amendment to prohibit marriage equality on the same day as President Obama’s announcement—but these actions seem like a final attempt to rewrite the rules, rather than the building of anti-LGBT momentum. In fact, a new poll released earlier this month shows that the biggest plurality of Americans yet is in favor of marriage equality. Another federal judge in Massachusetts—the fifth Federal judge to do so—has ruled the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional, which could ultimately lead to its being overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Here are some things members of the Faithful Voices Network can do to help bring about full equality for all:

Speak Out in Faith Communities: Help your congregation prepare a Pride Sunday or future service on marriage equality. The Religious Institute has prayers, study guides, sermons and much more you can use to advocate for LGBT rights in your congregation. You can read them here.
Embrace Full Inclusion: Evaluate how your congregation embraces full inclusion and not just welcome of LGBT people. Acting Out Loud is a free online publication of the Religious Institute with ideas and approaches recommended by leading clergy, theologians and advocates across the country. Read it here.

Speak Out Online: Integrity USA just produced "Voices of Witness: Out of the Box” – a powerful video telling the stories of Episcopal LGBT people living lives of openness and honesty. Click here to see it, then tweet it and post it on Facebook. Let your networks know that you support the right of LGBT people!

Thank you for working towards sexual justice in faith communities and in society.

Religious Institute News

Episcopalians Headed to General Conference
Will you be attending the Episcopal General Convention in Indianapolis next month? Might you be able to help the Religious Institute at its exhibit spread its message about sexual justice, education and health? If so, we would be grateful for a few hours of your help! Email us here for more information – and thanks!

July 11 is World Population Day
This is a fine opportunity to preach, pray or discuss family planning issues in your faith community. Many prayers, readings, sermons and other resources are available here.

Welcome Alexa Sullivan!
Alexa Sullivan, a sophomore at Mount Holyoke College, will be working at the Religious Institute as its Administrative Assistant this summer, as the Religious Institute searches for a new Office Coordinator. She can be reached at sullivan@religiousinstitute.org

A Time To Build now available!

Newly revised and greatly expanded edition. A Time to Build: Creating Sexually Healthy Faith Communities outlines the building blocks of a sexually healthy faith community. Sections examine sexually healthy religious professionals, worship on sexuality issues, pastoral care on sexuality, youth and adult sexuality education, safe congregations policies, welcoming and affirming programs, and how congregations can advocate for sexual and spiritual wholeness in their communities. This resource also includes checklists for congregations to assess their own programs and policies, and presents ideas for strengthening the commitment to be a sexually healthy congregation.
Get your free copy here.

Thank You For Your Support!
The challenges of the last three months have come with one very welcome silver lining: the love and support of many, many people. Recent contributions include:

The Rev. Rosemary Bray McNatt, Greg DuBow, and the Unitarian Universalist Trauma Response Ministry spent a day with the staff of the Religious Institute
Additional congregations shared a portion of their weekly offering on our behalf.

Our deep gratitude goes to each and every member of the Phoenix Circle, a group of more than 550 individuals who offered personal financial support when it was most needed and transformed our time of crisis into a time of rebirth. To add your name to the Phoenix Circle, please make your donation by June 30, 2012 here.

From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you.

Religious Institute on the Road

June 17, 2012, The Unitarian Society, East Brunswick, NJ
Director Michael Cobb will preach at the worship service.
Read more information here.
June 24, 2012, St. Mark's Episcopal Chapel in Storrs, CT
Marie Alford-Harkey will be preaching and leading worship at 7:45 and 10 am.
Read more information here.
July 5-12, 2012, General Episcopal Convention 2012, Indianapolis, IN
Education and Training Director Marie Alford-Harkey will be running the Religious Institute’s exhibit. We will be offering low pricing on bundles of all Religious Institute study guides, so visit us at booth 1121 (right side of the hall, on the wall, near the Consultation) and say hello.
Read more here.
July 15, 2012, The Unitarian Church in Westport, Westport, CT
Debra Haffner will be preaching at the 10 am worship service.
Read more here.
July 22, 2012, St. Mark's Episcopal Chapel in Storrs, CT
Marie Alford-Harkey will be preaching and leading worship at 7:45 and 10 am.
Read more information here.
July 28, 2012, Unitarian Universalist Society of Martha's Vineyard, Martha’s Vineyard, MA
Debra Haffner will be preaching on sexuality issues at the worship service.
Read more here.

The Religious Institute will issue a summer 2012 newsletter.
Look for it in early August.