[MLPnews] MLP news December 6, 2004

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MLP News

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....working for the full inclusion of LGBT people of faith
in the life, ministry, and witness of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

	

Volume 1
Issue 10
Dec. 6, 2004



 

 

 

In This Issue

    Call for MLP chapters begins to bear fruit - tell us about your
    local MLP group
    Coming Out for More Light house parties are a great success
    MLP generates high enthusiasm at NGLTF creating change conference
    MLP releases its newest educational video volume: "Christian Values"
    Statement of support for Beth Stroud and Chris Paige
    NBC and CBS refuse to run UCC ad that mentions inclusivity
    Help put MLP materials in the hands of people who need them --
    support MLP


Call for MLP chapters begins to bear fruit
Tell us about your local MLP group

On November 17, we emailed an invitation 
<http://www.mlp.org/article.php?story=20041117155558980> to all MLP 
supporters to create a More Light chapter in your local area.  Response 
has been positive and has already brought us two new recognized 
chapters: MLP Big Sky (Yellowstone Presbytery) and MLP Cascades.  
Chapters are key contributors to the More Light movement, because it's 
locally within our own churches and Presbyteries where MLP supporters do 
the work of winning hearts and minds for LGBT equality.

If there's a More Light group or committee at your church, even if 
you're not ready to call yourselves a "chapter" yet, drop us a note at 
chapters at mlp.org and tell us who you are so that we can stay in touch. 
We'd love to list you as a support or working group on the MLP web 
site.  For more information about MLP chapters, see www.mlp.org/chapters


Coming Out for More Light house parties are a great success

On October 9 and 10, ten groups of MLP supporters around the country 
held house parties to benefit More Light Presbyterians as part of our 
first annual "coming out for More Light" event, held in solidarity with 
National Coming Out Day on Oct. 11.  Most of the parties showed an 
interview with field organizer Michael Adee from our Project Hearts & 
Minds <http://www.mlp.org/heartsandminds> video series, and all of them 
participated in a national conference call with Michael and MLP board 
members.  Together these house parties raised over $4000 and brought in 
dozens of new MLP members, a fantastic success for a first-time national 
MLP event.  If you'd like to host a More Light house party, there's no 
need to wait for next October -- drop a note to houseparties at mlp.org and 
we'll be in touch to help you organize and host your own More Light 
party -- or take a look at the MLP house party guide at 
www.mlp.org/morelightsunday/houseparty-guide.pdf


MLP generates high enthusiasm at NGLTF Creating Change conference

The week of November 8, MLP board members Erin Swenson and Marco 
Grimaldo and MLP field organizer Michael Adee attended the National Gay 
and Lesbian Task Force's Creating Change conference 
<http://www.creatingchange.org/> in St. Louis, one of the largest LGBT 
activist conferences in the country.  Michael Adee offered a workshop on 
"religious defense" which was extremely well-attended, and MLP ran a 
resource table which was so popular that we almost ran out of 
materials.  You can bet that MLP will be back at Creating Change again 
in 2005.  The unofficial theme for the conference was "Surrender, 
Dorothy?  Never!" and the opening keynote 
<http://www.thetaskforce.org/ourprojects/cc/cc04wrapup.cfm> by activists 
Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin noted that "the number one priority of our 
movement must be to support, nurture, embrace and /build our state and 
local grassroots infrastructure/."  (So, formed your local MLP chapter 
<http://www.mlp.org/chapters/newchapter.html> yet?)


MLP releases its newest educational video volume: "Christian Values"

On November 30, MLP announced the public release of volume three 
<http://www.mlp.org/article.php?story=20041130150006573> of our Project 
Hearts & Minds video series on DVD and VHS.  As part of our contribution 
to reclaiming language that belongs to all of us, the focus of this 
volume is on values, Christianity, and the Bible.  The Hearts & Minds 
series is a collection of 30-minute interviews, with study guides, 
designed to help people bring issues of LGBT equality to church and 
other groups in a non-threatening way.  The newest volume includes 
interviews with Presbyterian, United Methodist, and Mormon supporters of 
LGBT equality, as well as a sermon by Rev. Mel White of Soulforce. You 
can order any of the Hearts & Mind series online at 
www.mlp.org/heartsandminds


Statement of support for Beth Stroud and Chris Paige

We're grieved by the recent decision of the United Methodist Church to 
defrock Beth Stroud 
<http://www.umaffirm.org/news/2004stroudgaylordstatement.html> from 
serving as a pastor because she is a lesbian in a loving relationship.  
MLP stands in solidarity with Beth and her partner, Chris Paige.  Chris 
has served as the editor of The Other Side magazine, and her home church 
is Tabernacle United Presbyterian Church <http://www.tabunited.org/> in 
Philadelphia, a More Light church 
<http://www.mlp.org/index.php?topic=churches>.  Chris' parents are 
Carolyn and Ron Paige, longtime MLP leaders.

We also stand in solidarity with the Reconciling Ministries Network 
<http://www.rmnetwork.org/>, our sister organization working for the 
full inclusion of LGBT persons in the United Methodist Church.


NBC and CBS refuse to run UCC ad that mentions inclusivity

Many of you may have heard the news already, which broke on November 30: 
NBC and CBS have refused to run a TV ad by the United Church of Christ 
which says "Jesus didn't turn people away; neither do we."  The ad 
<http://www.stillspeaking.com> shows two bouncers outside a church 
turning people away, including two African-American children, a man in a 
wheelchair, and two men who might, or might not, be gay.  Although the 
ad says nothing about marriage, the rejection letter from CBS states 
that "because this commercial touches on the exclusion of gay couples 
and other minority groups by other individuals and organizations, and 
the fact that the Executive Branch has recently proposed a 
Constitutional Amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and 
a woman, this spot is unacceptable for broadcast."

You can see the ad at the UCC's site at www.stillspeaking.com and read 
the original UCC press release on the ban at 
www.ucc.org/news/u113004a.htm.  The Communications Commission of the 
National Council of Churches of Christ has condemned the ban 
<http://www.ncccusa.org/news/04uccad.html> in a statement whose 
signatories include PCUSA News Director Jerry Van Marter.

The UCC and several other organizations have set up web sites that allow 
you to send a letter of complaint to NBC and CBS.  Some of the sites 
that we know of are:
  www.ucctakeaction.org/action/
  www.pfaw.org
  www.now.org
  www.workingforchange.com/activism/petition.cfm?itemid=18182

Help put MLP materials in the hands of people who need them -- support MLP

What does your contribution to More Light Presbyterians do?  It 
distributes hundreds of copies of the "What We Wish We Had Known" MLP 
blue book <http://www.mkpc.org/Blue_Book_2001.pdf> at conferences.  It 
lets us offer workshops and materials 
<http://www.mlp.org/links.php?category=Dialog+and+Education> on pro-LGBT 
Christianity, publicize MLP, and make contacts with leaders in the 
larger gay rights movement at the Creating Change 
<http://www.creatingchange.org/> conference.  It sends our field 
organizer Michael Adee to Missouri, Texas, Alabama, Illinois, and dozens 
of other locations nationwide as part of our ongoing work to mobilize 
Presbyterians and PCUSA churches around the country to work for equality 
in our denomination.  If you haven't contributed to MLP in the past, now 
is a great time to begin, as we enter our budget planning cycle for 
2005.  Help MLP to have a successful and productive year working for 
your rights in 2005 - contribute today at www.mlp.org/join.html

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