Washington Blade - December 23, 2005

LOS ANGELES - M. Andrew Robinson-Gaither has preached a high-profile mix of politics, social protest and Christianity for almost 20 years, and the outspoken pastor now alleges it is his AIDS ministry that has led to his ejection, the Los Angeles Times reported. At his small South Los Angeles congregation, Faith United Methodist Church, the congregation alleges Robinson-Gaither was ousted for mismanaging church finances. But the pastor said he is unwanted at the church because he pursued a ministry dedicated to AIDS outreach. "People would say to me, 'You're trying to make this a gay church,'" Robinson-Gaither told the Times. "I really think that's what's behind this." Although the minister acknowledges financial troubles at the church, he denies any wrongdoing.

Minn. priest quits over Vatican ban on gay clergy

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. (AP) - A priest at St. John's University said he was resigning his leadership position because of the Vatican's latest statement that gays should be barred from entering the Roman Catholic priesthood. "Because I can no longer honestly represent, explain and defend the church's teaching on homosexuality, I feel I must resign," Rev. Bob Pierson said in an e-mail last week to administrators and students at St. John's and the nearby College of St. Benedict. The Vatican announced last month that it was toughening its stand against gay candidates for the priesthood, advising that men with "deep-seated" gay tendencies or who "support so-called gay culture" shouldn't be admitted to seminary or ordained. Several gay priests are now questioning whether they can continue serving the church. Pierson, the chaplain and director of campus ministry, said in the e-mail that he is gay and celibate. He said he did not accept several elements in the Vatican document, including the assertion that gays are "objectively disordered." "I am not an infallible person, but I cannot remain silent about my disagreement in conscience with this document, or the church's teaching on homosexuality," said the priest.

Florida school readies for anti-gay group

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. - Students at Port Charlotte High School are preparing to deal with a notorious anti-gay group that plans to protest the campus' new Gay-Straight Alliance, the Charlotte Sun reported. Students plan to simply ignore the protesters with the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., led by anti-gay crusader Pastor Fred Phelps. More than 20 members of the Topeka church planned to march with signs and posters in front of the school. Asher Levine, president of the alliance formed two months ago, said its members and the student body will take a vow of silence for the day and dress in white to represent purity, the Sun reported. "That's our way of basically standing up for ourselves," Levine said. "We're looking to approach this nuisance in a more mature manner."

Wisconsin judge rules against minister over his anti-gay highway sign

MADISON, Wisc. (AP) - A federal judge says a minister's free-speech rights were not violated when police told him to remove anti-gay banners from highway overpasses. The judge said Madison, Wisc., police ordered the banners down because they created a traffic hazard, not because of their message. The banners read, "Homosexuality is sin" and "Christ can set you free." They were put up in 2003 by Rev. Ralph Ovadal, chair of Wisconsin Christians United. He said he's thinking of appealing because he believes the city wanted to keep him from sharing his message. U.S. District Judge John Shabaz issued his ruling last week.

Catholic school approves Gay-Straight Alliance

PITTSBURGH (AP) - The president of Duquesne University, a Roman Catholic school, has approved the formation of a group called the Gay-Straight Alliance. While some students have said they believe the group is contrary to Vatican teaching, President Charles Dougherty said it is not. Dougherty said the church teaches that "homosexual conduct is wrong, ... but the Catholic tradition also says that it's not wrong to have a sexual orientation that is in the minority." Acceptance of the group does not mean the school endorses gay sex, and the group will be subject to restrictions that keep it in line with Catholic teaching, Rev. Tim Hickey, a priest who headed the committee that studied whether to allow the group, said the university is not approving of gay sex. School officials noted that all premarital sex on campus - gay or straight - is forbidden.

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