Gay Minister to Face Jury of Methodist Peers: "Stroud's sermon was a challenge to the national church's rule against self-avowed gay men and women in the ministry, and it set in motion an investigation and charges that will culminate Wednesday in a church trial before a jury of fellow ministers. If Stroud, 34, is found guilty of "practices declared by the United Methodist Church to be incompatible with Christian teachings," she may lose her credentials as a minister.
Like many other mainline Protestant denominations, the Methodist Church has been deeply divided for three decades over homosexuality, particularly in the clergy. Stroud is the third minister to face trial for violating its "don't ask, don't tell" policy...
[Stroud] asked parishioners to concentrate on providing emotional support to her and to one another.
'You're a great church for protest marches. You're not always so great at casseroles,' she said. 'But this situation may call for casserole.'"
Colleges Can Bar Army Recruiters: "Universities may bar military recruiters from their campuses without risking the loss of federal money, a federal appeals court ruled yesterday...
The 2-to-1 decision relied in large part on a decision in 2000 by the United States Supreme Court to allow the Boy Scouts to exclude gay scoutmasters. Just as the Scouts have a First Amendment right to bar gays, the appeals court said, law schools may prohibit groups that they consider discriminatory."
Season tis--time to decorate! Since school is going to preclude me from getting a Xmas tree this year, decorating is happening on a smaller scale with Wreath In The Dock. At least the pine-scented handsoap in the bathroom give the the hint of a tree. As for gifts, my family needs to content themselves with my love. Some might say it's nearly golden.
The usually five hour drive to New Jersey took eight and a half hours on Wednesday. Blame needs to be assigned and the first portion goes to the people of Massachusetts. Honestly folks, the tolls on the Mass Pike have FastLane so use it. Don't worry about the government tracking you--they do that already. Let's also blame the rain.
Going back to New Hampshire is very hard. Happy Will wanted me to stay; he offered me his extra toothbrush. The good New York Times sections arrive on Saturday here instead of Sunday. WNYC features the soothing voices of Leonard Lopate and Brian Lehrer (sorry, Laura Knoy). Creature comforts. I am a creature and I wanted to be comforted.
'The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul,' said Prof. Jeffrey C. Tuomala, quoting Psalm 19. 'The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.'"
No, really, what part of separation of church and state do you not understand? The students better be praying every night that the school gets ABA-accreditation by the time they graduate or they can not take the bar exam. God must be on their side because that is not an $18K/year for three years gamble I would take.
On the other hand, I better be praying hard just to make it through finals.
Capital letters: "There is an unfeasible number of cats at large in the Eternal City. And they are tended to by a long-established army of cat feeders, mainly women... Cats are almost as sacred here as cows are in India.
The law of Lazio, the region around Rome, gives stray cats the right to stay wherever they are born. Stray cats are protected as 'biocultural heritage' and Romans are obliged to make sure they are fed and given medical assistance.
Cats cannot be put down - unless they have incurable diseases or are in pain - but they can be neutered or spayed. The local government provides the service for free, and regular check-ups thereafter"
My bionical finger is coming to an end. As of Monday, my right ring finger will be freed from its plastic shell and will feel the cool freeze of freedom on its digits again. The doctor seemed happy its progress since September in the three minutes he saw me. Apparently my medical file is going to be tagged with a large warning that I am a baby lawyer from now on. But really, doctors and lawyers should be friends and complain about the heavy textbooks together.
Grandma DJ rocks Russian village: "A 70-year-old Russian grandmother is taking a small village east of Moscow by storm. Yuliya Ryabinina, the director of culture for Bolshiye Otary, has decided that discos are the best way to connect with local teenagers.
And she has taken it on herself to spin the discs. Under the guise of DJ Baba Yuliya, Mrs Ryabinina holds regular dance parties at the village hall . . . Hardly a spring chicken any more, the groovy granny keeps her strength up at the turntables by taking a potion of herbs and roots."
My brother, a man of divinity in Ohio, and I discuss the election:
matthew: i'm rather upset about the election
[...]
christopher: 51% is hardly a mandate
matthew: at least NH went for Kerry
matthew: i'm glad i did a small part for that
christopher: oh might have
christopher: if kerry hadn't conceded
christopher: all the absentee and provisional ballots haven't been counted
matthew: well, NH was a battleground
matthew: just a really small one
christopher: bush was up by 136K, but there were 300k still to count
matthew: can you damn your parishioners?
christopher: i often do
matthew: really? brimstone even?
christopher: well, not to their faces
matthew: you need to step it up a bit
