Catholic bishop supports benefits for gay couples

Ch 6 ^

[narses]

Boston-AP) -- The Catholic Church in Massachusetts may be open to extending some benefits to gay couples.

That was the message of Worcester Bishop Daniel Reilly at today's Statehouse hearing on legalizing gay marriage.

Reilly said the church is firmly against gay marriage and civil unions, but believes that the state should provide gay couples with certain economic and social benefits, including bereavement and hospital visitation rights.

Gay rights advocates welcomed the Catholic Church to the debate, but said that denial of marriage would be a violation of same-sex couples' civil rights.

The Judiciary Committee today hosted the first-ever legislative hearing on the legalization of gay marriage or civil union.

The panel also heard testimony on an abortion bill that would require women to wait 24 hours before consenting to the procedure.

[Canticle_of_Deborah]

You got another post pulled the other day on the Schiavo threads I see. That makes two threads in twice as many days. I'm sure there are more.

Keep going. These threads are quite revealing.

[sinkspur]

You got another post pulled the other day on the Schiavo threads I see.

I don't get posts pulled. And I didn't get the post pulled in which you asserted that a "Catholic deacon" is ridiculing posters who want to save Terri Schiavo. That was a blatant lie, which you refused to retract.

That makes two threads in twice as many days. I'm sure there are more.

I have no idea what you're talking about here, except that you're deflecting blame for a falsehood that YOU posted!

[Canticle_of_Deborah]

It is poor form to continue disputes from previous threads onto future threads. I suspect you cannot let go of this because I accurately hit a nerve. Are you trying to get this thread hijacked and pulled also?

My comment was not that you got someone else's posts pulled on the Schiavo threads, it was that YOUR posts were pulled because they were offensive.

I notice you have changed the subject of this thread by posting to me and ignoring everyone else's assertions.

[sinkspur]

YOUR posts were pulled because they were offensive.

I doubt it. Maybe you could post the offensive posts, since I'm sure you saved them.

BTW, I saved an e-mail from a moderator that you might be interested in.

Seems he did some research into your post.

[utahagen]

I caution Freepers to read more about this before assuming the article's conclusion is accurate. It is possible this Catholic bishop is saying that a dying person may cite any person as the one he wants besides him as he dies; whether this person were a lover (homosexual or heterosexual) would be irrelevant. This bishop may not intend to be acknowledging "gay couples" per se.

[Canticle_of_Deborah]

Seeing as how I've had no communication from them regarding any of my posts, I guess there was no problem.

Can you drop this now? You're acting like a psycho stalker.

[JNB]

The arguements go nowhere. Sinkspur means well, no doubt about this, but he in many ways defines Amchurch in lacking knowlege or acceptence of established church doctrines, dogmas and other teachings, the main difference is he has a R next to his name rather than a D that most AmChurch clergy and self appointed laity do.

As for you sinkspur, you do provide a intresting counterpoint in these threads, and like a certain blogger from elsewhere in your state, provides a view to what most Amchurch clergy think about the important issues. Lasty to see how well your approach is doing, St Mary the Virgin in your diocese has supplised 3 seminarians out of maybe 500-600 parishoners, how many young men does your parish have in the seminary Deacon?

[narses]

You've gone out of your way to lecture me about how wrong it is to carry a flame war from thread to thread. You've decided to try and bait Deb into getting banned. Your sick MO is known though, and with this warning Deb will know what your game is. Good luck finding your next victim.

[Antoninus]

Ya, just get the dying gay to renounce his life as errant and just decades full of endless sin, so that he might evade the hotcakes of hell at the last moments. Sounds highly merciful and caring to me.

I know you're being sarcastic, but in reality, it is the most compassionate thing anyone can do. If not on the deathbed, when? Afterwards is too late.

Actually it sounds highly abusive.

It's only highly abusive if you're an atheist who believes we become worm food when we die. If you believe that it is necessary to repent of your sins and die in a state of grace or else you go to hell, then NOT to do do so is highly abusive.

I would not let you or your ilk anywhere near the dying room of such a person.

Not surprising. They wouldn't let a priest in to see Terri Schiavo on her deathbed either. That's the Culture of Death for you.

[Antoninus]

Yawn. When the proposition comes up that 40 year old men should have legal sex with 16 year old boys, much less 12 year old boys, let me know, and I will oppose it vigorously.

It's already passed in Britain. What makes you think such legislation won't rear its ugly head in this country? Or worse, be imposed upon us by a court ruling. I mean heck, sodomy is a civil right, according to our courts.

[Antoninus]

children in gay families

There's no such thing as a 'gay family.' It's only a collection of individuals mimicking a family--"playing house". Putting children into such an environment is the equivalent of abuse and should certainly never be countenenced by anyone with pretensions of office within the Catholic Church.

[Torie]

Fair post. I don't disagree with a word of it, except the hyperbolic reference to the culture of death, which is getting to be a mantra, but really does little to persuade or advance the debate.

[Antoninus]

This is a stupid and deceitful non issue/issue.You should truly be ashamed of yourself.

Exactly. I knew it was a non-issue as soon as the 'deacon' claimed that homosexuals were being kept from seeing their "partners" in the hospital. Of course, he had absolutely no proof of this. Just a made-up crisis to score political points.

[Torie]

Relax. The courts are not going to rule that a 40 year old has a Constitutional right to have sodomy with a 16 year old any time soon. The California legislature might though. :)

[Torie]

Do you think it is prudent public policy to yank children away from their gay parent? If not, your argument in my view sort of falls by the wayside. If you do, then see ya in the public square from the opposite end.

[Antoninus]

If siding with the Catholic Church is "siding" with homosexuals, then I plead guilty.

For the record, you are NOT siding with the Catholic Church but with a couple of bishops who's pronouncements are off the reservation. The Catholic Church teaches that homosexuality is a "grave disorder" and Cardinal Arinze himself called it a "mockery of the family."

[narses]

Siding with the Church? I doubt that. Watching the self described 'deacon' siding with the admitted adulterous Kobe was bad enough, watching him sow discord among the defenders of life on the Terri Schindler threads was worse, now watching him defend hierarchs who want to surrender to the lavender lobby is putrifying.

[Antoninus]

And I didn't get the post pulled in which you asserted that a "Catholic deacon" is ridiculing posters who want to save Terri Schiavo. That was a blatant lie, which you refused to retract.

I saw what you were doing on those threads, "deak." Ridiculing is pretty close to it. Or was the "falsehood" in that Deborah claimed that you were a deacon when in reality, you're just some schlub who claims to be a deacon to gain an air of authority on Church issues?

[narses]

Of course, we all saw it. But don't play into his hands. Even though he started the flaming here, responding will only allow him more ability to manipulate the admin moderator into banning folks.

[Antoninus]

You've gone out of your way to lecture me about how wrong it is to carry a flame war from thread to thread. You've decided to try and bait Deb into getting banned. Your sick MO is known though, and with this warning Deb will know what your game is. Good luck finding your next victim.

I see I'm not the only one who's gotten some of the good "Deacon's" little love notes.... He better watch his step or HE might get labelled a trouble-maker by the moderators.