Research on faith and internalized homonegativity

I am posting on behalf of William Skelton.

Your participation in a research project is requested. This study is seeking Gay men and Lesbian women, 18 years of age with either previous or current experience with Christian religion or spirituality. Although many of you are not Gay or Lesbian, you do have connections with individuals who are eligible for this study. Please, take a moment to forward this to your friends or if you are eligible take the survey. The title of the study is “The relationship Between Faith Maturity Development and Internalized Homonegativity”. The study is seeking information that will be useful in the fields of Psychology of Human Sexuality and the Psychology of Religion. The aims of the research are to examine internalized homonegativity and faith maturity. If you decide to participate in this research, you will be asked to do the following: Answer the questions on the following scales as appropriate: Reactions to Homosexuality Scale, the Lesbian Internalized Homonegativity Scale, the Faith Maturity Scale, and a Demographics Scale. The questionnaire is estimated to take no more than 30 minutes to complete.

http://www.psychsurveys.org/williamskelton/ihandfm

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the study or your participation in the study, you may contact me, William Skelton by email at william.skelton@mymail.barry.edu.

Violent prejudice against Jamaica's gay people must stop

Maurice Tomlinson (posted at http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jan/27/violent-prejudice-jamaica-gay-people?CMP=twt_gu&fb=optOut)

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Almost a year to the day that David Kato, the Ugandan human rights activist, was murdered in his home because of his sexuality, I am flying from Toronto to London to accept the inaugural the David Kato Voice and Vision Award, which recognises individuals who uphold the human rights and dignity of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people around the world. I should have been flying from Jamaica my country of birth and, until very recently, my home. After the ceremony I should be returning there to celebrate with fellow activists.

But this time there's no going home. In August last year I married Tom, a former police officer and a pastor in the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto. Media reports of my marriage, in Jamaica, have led to an increase in the threats against my life and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has written to the Jamaican government for the second time in a year inquiring what measures it will take to guarantee my safety. So far, the government has failed to respond.

Threats are nothing new for me. It's only the intensity that's changed. I'm a lawyer and activist in Jamaica, which has the distinction of being regarded as one of the most violently homophobic countries in the world. In a recent survey 82% of Jamaican people said they were prejudiced against gay people. Vigilante attacks against gay men are common – at least 35 people have been murdered because of their sexuality since 1997. Last year, two men were hacked to death because they were gay. The latest victim was a 16-year-old youth chopped to death in his home by early morning invaders because of his "questionable relations" with another man.

Former prime minister Bruce Golding set a tone of impunity for those prepared to use violence against gay people in Jamaica: during a BBC Hardtalk interview in 2008 he said that he would not allow gay people to be a part of his cabinet. According to the law, consensual sex between two men in Jamaica will get you 10 years of imprisonment and hard labour. Any "act of gross indecency" – kissing for instance – will get you two years.

The law is rarely enforced. More often, police use it for extortion. But the fact such a law exists inflames the vigilante groups. Even the police officer who recorded my first death-threat report ranted at me that he "hates gays, who deserve to die". In the past year, I have received three death threats for speaking out against the country's ferocious homophobia.

The threats to my life are a personal tragedy, but sadly not an uncommon one. Discrimination, stigma and abuse are the daily reality for millions of gay people. And now the battle has become entangled with the politics of aid.

Recently the Commonwealth faced up to its human rights record – particularly the criminalisation of homosexuality. David Cameron made it clear that states refusing to decriminalise homosexuality risk losing British aid. Ironically, however, he failed to acknowledge or apologise for Britain's role in imposing the anti-sodomy law on its former colonies, while his emphasis on homosexuality is inadvertently discriminatory as it ignores other egregious human rights violations being perpetuated in these countries.

His intentions might have been well meaning but they are also counterproductive: trying to force people to change their attitudes and cultural beliefs can play into the hands of repressive regimes – by portraying sexual rights as an imposition of "western colonialism". It allows them to mask broader issues of human rights, governance and corruption. Some countries use the issues of homosexuality to hide their own failures and show how donor communities are promulgating "gay lifestyles".

Instead, aid should be linked to good governance. Countries need to meet their wider human rights obligation by observing the indivisibility of rights. As Hillary Clinton said at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva: "Some have suggested that gay rights and human rights are separate and distinct, but in fact they are one and the same." (The US, however, has not done enough to curtail its own export of homophobia to countries such as mine by American evangelical Christian groups.)

For two years, I have collected the reports of victims as a legal adviser for international advocacy organisation Aids-Free World. Now I'm taking them to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, since the Jamaican Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms protects the laws against "sexual offences" from constitutional review.

The culmination of the work the charity and our Jamaican partners have been doing over the past two years is an unprecedented legal challenge to the Jamaican anti-sodomy law. If successful, it could be the beginning of the end of the criminalisation of homosexuals in Jamaica, and undoubtedly have a knock-on effect throughout the Caribbean. However, the Jamaican government could make the commission petition redundant by simply repealing the anti-sodomy law.

The new Jamaican prime minister, Portia Simpson-Miller, has indicated that she would have no objections to selecting a gay person for her cabinet. She also promised to call for a parliamentary conscience vote on the law. Let's hope she does so soon.

The reports of violence against Jamaican LGBTI remind me what we're fighting for. When I receive the David Kato award I will represent the millions of individuals worldwide whose lives are a daily struggle against hostility and persecution simply because of their sexuality.

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My Prayers are with your Maurice. You've done such a good job, continue to do what you can. We the ones remaining have to step up. Love you.

No General Homosexual Prohibition in the Bible

Rev Earl Thames, in his letter to the Editor, states that Jesus Wasn't Mum on Homosexuality (http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20120121/cleisure/cleisure2.html) in response to Henry Morgan's letter, Jesus Mum on Gays, So Why Aren't We? (http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20120118/letters/letters8.html). I decided to write a response and submit it. It seems the papers don't like my writings so I haven't been published in awhile, if they decide to publish me this time, I'll be sure to tell you.

Below is my response.

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In the debate over homosexuality, many read into Scripture what is not there, interpreting it to suit their message.

Rev. Thames and others assert that Christ referred to homosexuality generally, but the only way to justify such reference is to take Biblical passages out of context.

The sin of homosexuality referred to in Leviticus is not homosexuality in general as many would love us to blindly believe. The literal translation of the prohibition in Leviticus states: ‘And with a male you shall not lay lyings of a woman. It is an abomination’, the statement seems to condemn all forms of male same sex intercourse. This is where reading Scripture in context comes in play. The verses in Leviticus where written at a time when the children of Israel were in danger of falling to idolatry from the cultures of Egypt and Canaan.

Within the context that the ‘homosexual’ prohibition in Leviticus was written, it was in the idolatrous culture of Egypt and/or Canaan for men to have sexual intercourse with male priests as an act of worship. Women did not play part in this type of cultic worship practice, which explains why they are not mentioned.

Fornication, be it homosexual or heterosexual forms part of sexual immorality. However not all homosexuals are fornicators; committed monogamous relationships, which do not require the sanction of a state/country law, but are acceptable in God’s sight exist between homosexuals.

The condemnation of homosexuality in Romans 1:26-27 again refer to the practice within the context of idolatry. Furthermore verse 25 tells us why God did what He did in verse 26, yet it is often excluded from the quotation of the Romans prohibition.

The prohibitions against homosexuality do not operate in a vacuum, nor are they general. In almost all instances it is within the context of idolatry. Homosexuals are not condemned because they are homosexuals; rather, they like heterosexuals are sinners until they come into the fold of God.

 It is time the Christian church stop misinterpreting and misrepresenting the Word of God and using it to keep persons out of the Kingdom of God, in Jeremiah 23: 1 and 2 we are told; “Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!”“...Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done”.

American Christian Extremists Want to Rewrite Constitution: This too can Happen to Jamaica

Remember the article Slippery Slope (re-read it here)?

Well Ms. Jackson wasn't far off in her writing at all. I saw a post about The Declaration of American Values (though not a new document, published in July 2008), which is 'a ten-point plan to recreate the United States of America into a Christian version of Sharia Law' (The New Civil Rights Movement: Christian Extremists Rewrite The Constitution, And You’re Not In It).

It includes statements such as; “We declare our allegiance” to “the unborn from the moment of conception,” and “the union of one man and one woman [is] the sole form of legitimate marriage and the proper basis of family”. It also seeks “to secure the free exercise of religion for all people, including the freedom to acknowledge God through our public institutions and other modes of public expression and the freedom of religious conscience”, on pornography it states, “obscenity, pornography, and indecency debase our communities, harm our families, and undermine morality and respect.”

You see this was happening from 2008, it has gotten bigger and louder. To read the Declaration of American Values visit: http://www.lc.org/media/9980/attachments/declaration_of_american_values.pdf

JLP Pandering to Homophobic Crowd to Gain Political Mileage

A picture is worth a thousand words, this video will be worth 10x that. The integration of church and state, the total disregard for persons rights to religious freedom.

The world must see what's happening in Jamaica.

Jamaica's Reaction to Statement By Portia Simpson Miller XI

Mullings slams Simpson Miller over buggery law review plan

'No nation that seeks to move away from God's words can succeed'

BY MARK CUMMINGS Editor-at-Large Western Bureau cummingsm@jamaicaobserver.com

MONTEGO BAY, St James — Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) candidate for West Central St James Clive Mullings has blasted Opposition Leader Portia Simpsom Miller for promising to review the country's buggery law, should her party return to power.

Armed with a Bible, a stone-faced Mullings urged scores of Labourites at a mass meeting in Montego Bay's historic Sam Sharpe Square on Thursday night to unite against the repealing of such a law.

Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) candidate for West Central St James Clive Mullings greets party supporters at Thursday’s mass meeting in Sam Sharpe Square, Montego Bay. (Photo: Mark Cummings)  1/1

"We must understand that for a nation to be blessed, for a nation to grow, we cannot depart from God's words. No nation, no nation that seeks to move away from God's words can succeed," he declared.

Quoting scriptures, Mullings pointed the large gathering to Genesis Chapter 19: verse 24, citing the reason why "the Lord poured down sulphur and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah."

Simpson Miller, in responding to a question raised during the final political debate convened by the Jamaica Debates Commission on Tuesday night, said that should the PNP return to power, she would initiate a review of the buggery law.

She also said that her party would not prevent anyone from becoming a member of her Cabinet based on their sexual orientation.

Recently, several countries, including the United Kingdom and the United States, have suggested that they might withhold aid to countries that are not doing enough to protect the rights of homosexuals.

But Mullings, an attorney, urged the horn-blowing supporters on Thursday to take a stance, arguing that the United Kingdom's position is contrary to what we have learnt and know under the word of God.

"We are no longer a colony of Britain, so if that's the way they want to go, let them go, but let us not depart from God's word," he argued.

He told the jubilant supporters that next Thursday's general election should not be viewed only as it relates to the creation of jobs.

"We must understand carefully that the choices we make must not be only as it relates to employment, it should also be regarding the moral direction of your country and the future for your children," the JLP candidate argued.

"So Labourites, Jamaicans, when we go out to vote think seriously about the direction of your country. I implore you to understand that while we are here at this point before general election, don't misunderstand what we are facing. It is not just the economy, it is in regard to the future of the country for our children and you must now decide whether you want a nation that will be overtaken by those who have punitive lifestyles or whether you are serious about building our country."

Earlier this week during a mass meeting in Annotto Bay, St Mary, JLP candidate for West Portland Daryl Vaz also criticised the opposition leader for suggesting that a future PNP government will review the buggery law.

Several other speakers, including JLP deputy leader Desmond McKenzie, also blasted Simpson Miller for her stance on the buggery law during Thursday night's meeting.

Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/No-nation-that-seeks-to-move-away-from-God-s-words-can-succeed_10451336#ixzz1hUFfIJQd


Mullings Rips Into Gleaner For Supporting Portia

Bobby Montague (left), JLP deputy chairman, has the attention of Darly Vaz (centre) and Prime Minister Andrew Holness at a JLP meeting in St Mary on Wednesday night.

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Janet Silvera, Senior Gleaner Writer

WESTERN BUREAU:The Jamaica Labour Party's (JLP) candidate for West Central St James, Clive Mullings, has blasted The Gleaner for its editorial which congratulated People's National Party (PNP) president Portia Simpson Miller for her announcement that a government led by her would lead a review of the buggery laws.

Addressing a JLP mass meeting in Sam Sharpe Square in Montego Bay on Thursday night, Mullings, with his Bible in hand, tore into The Gleaner.

"I want the editor of The Gleaner to listen to the word of God. For a nation to grow and prosper, it cannot depart from God's word," said Mullings, as he quoted several scriptures and argued that no nation which moves away from God's plan can succeed.

"God brought down fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah," added Mullings.

Criticising the United Kingdom, which he said has taken a position to do something contrary to the word of God, Mullings noted that Jamaica was no longer a colony of Britain.

"So if they (the British) want to go in that direction, let them go."

Grabbing the Bible tightly in his hand, Mullings stressed that it was critical for all Labourites and other Jamaicans to understand carefully the choices they are making regarding the moral direction of the country, and the future of their children.

The issue of the Buggery Act came up on Tuesday evening during the leadership debate, when Simpson Miller responded to a question on the subject.

She said then that it was time that the act be "reviewed" and all members of the House of Representatives provided with an opportunity to vote on the matter based on their conscience.

Janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com

Jamaica's Reaction to Statement By Portia Simpson Miller X

The following are letters to the editor, published in the Jamaican Gleaner

Shame On JLP For Mockery

THE EDITOR, Sir:

Why have I finally decided to vote for Portia Simpson Miller? Spiritually good people don't belittle others. Bad people do.

If the Jamaica Labour Party displayed a good spirit to others, they wouldn't be belittling anyone, especially a lady of our soil, culture, race and creed. I am really ashamed of the JLP's approach.

Portia Simpson Miller is being herself and being a good person. God doesn't love the criticism and He encourages us to walk in His footsteps.

This is why I cannot vote for a party that belittles anyone that resembles me.

H. MILLER

thetruthspeak@ovi.com

Issue:Keeping Out The Gays?

Homosexuals are people too

THE EDITOR, Sir:

Many Jamaicans are oblivious of the laws that prohibit homosexuals the rights that characterise them as human beings.

Most of you do not think about your rights, and they are frequently taken for granted. Also, numerous people have preconceived notions of how homosexuals behave. Attitudes toward homosexuality are overwhelmingly negative.

All I ask of you is to look around. Homosexuality is part of society. People, such as your neighbour, hairdresser, relatives, friends, and people you have known all your life, could be gay! Does that make them different?

Many people say that homosexuality is not natural. But I ask you, what is natural? They are a component of society, and we must grant them equal rights. Homosexuals face religious criticism and social injustice every day of their lives. So for the prime minister to be saying that his sentiment must be guided by the sentiment of Jamaica, that, essentially, is homophobic.

Some aspects of human identity are so fundamental that they should be left to each individual, free of all non-essential regulation, even when manifested in conduct. An individual should not be penalised personally or prohibited socially from enjoying basic rights and freedoms because of sexual orientation or the country he/she is from unless that person's behaviour inflicts harm on other people.

Government should provide basic rights, freedom, and justice to every person without regard to an individual's sexual orientation. Governments should offer to all citizens the civic rituals and arrangements that are offered to any citizen.

ALEX M. LODGE

alexlodge1992@yahoo.com

Jamaica's Reaction to Statement By Portia Simpson Miller Part IX

The following letter to the editor was published in the Jamaican Gleaner.

Christians Should Not Discriminate

THE EDITOR, Sir:

There is so much talk with regard to the 'don't ask, don't tell' statement made by the leader of the Opposition during last Tuesday's debate.

She was very specific. She said that she would not pry, and that she would make decisions based on ability. She also stated that she would review the buggery laws in consultation with the Jamaican people. That was a very diplomatic statement.

I am, however, stunned by the response from some among the body of Christ. These betray the very foundation of the Christian principles. We should not discriminate against any human being because of sexual preferences. We can debate the issue from now until judgement day, we cannot win, for all of us are sinners.

Many among us fornicate, commit adultery, steal, lie, we could go on and on. Even though we cannot understand the deviant sexual behaviour, let us acknowledge that we all have to account for our sins.

The million-dollar question is, how would Christ deal with the homosexual? He did not treat the lepers or the adulterous woman as outcasts. Let us pray for our brothers and sisters.

VERNA GORDON BINNS

theashton@cwjamaica.com

PO Box 123

Simpson Miller- Gays can serve in my cabinet [Youtube Video]Comments [Pictures]

Church angry, gays happy Comments [Pictures]

Jamaica's Reaction to Statement By Portia Simpson Miller Part VIII

I think I missed the memo that Jamaica had become a theocracy. The following was taken from the Jamaica Observer. 

Church angry, gays happy

PNP on collision course with Christians

THE perennially controversial issue of homosexuality appears to have set the Opposition People’s National Party (PNP) on collision course with some sections of the Christian Church.

PNP Leader Portia Simpson Miller shocked the television audience watching her debate with Prime Minister Andrew Holness Tuesday night, with her suggestion that the buggery law should be reviewed and that she was not opposed to having gays in a Cabinet led by her.

MILLER… it is saying that moral values become secondary to ability to perform  1/4

“That is very concerning for me [reviewing the buggery law] and I am disappointed that we are still insisting to go back in that direction, because the matter was dealt with in the amended Bill of Rights earlier this year,” said Rev Al Miller, pastor of the Fellowship Tabernacle in Kingston.

Miller said he was equally disappointed with the Opposition Leader’s stance that she had no problem admitting anyone to her Cabinet once they were qualified to carry out their duties.

“I am seriously concerned about that, because it is saying that moral values becomes secondary to ability to perform,” the pastor said, adding: “That kind of approach would be difficult for Christians to support because character and integrity takes precedence over ability.”

Associate pastor of the Tower Hill Missionary Church, Rev Mark Dawes also took offence at Simpson Miller’s stance: “If we remove the buggery law, then we might be opening the floodgate for sexual anarchy,” he cautioned.

He said, however, that he understood her belief that no one should be prevented from being apart of a Cabinet once they were qualified to do so, even if they subscribed to the gay lifestyle.

“If the person is not promoting that lifestyle, then I could grow to be comfortable with them in the Cabinet, but if it is somebody who is championing the lifestyle and advocating for it, then I’ll have a problem,” Dawes said.

In the debate, Simpson Miller said: “We should have a look at the buggery law,” distancing herself from Former Prime Minister Bruce Golding who told a British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) interviewer he would not allow a homosexual in his Cabinet.

The Seventh-day Adventists also rejected the call to revisit the buggery law, while saying they had no problem with gays in a Cabinet.

“The issue is with reviewing the law, that’s where the church has an issue. Like any other faith-based organisation, we are concerned because it goes against the biblical side of things,” said SDA director of communication, public affairs and religious liberty, Nigel Coke.

But general secretary of the Jamaica Baptist Union, Rev Karl Johnson commended Simpson Miller for tackling the issue head on when asked by a journalist in the debate. Reviewing the law did not necessarily mean that a change would occur, Johnson argued.

“I think it is a commendable thing to always review our laws to see whether they speak to current realities, whether they are still informed by values and norms that we can sustain both as a country and I would say as a religious community,” he said.

President of the Jamaica Association of Full Gospel Churches, Bishop Rohan Edwards said he believed that a review of the buggery act would not affect the way the church viewed the homosexual lifestyle.

“We don't have a problem with the revisiting buggery law, but we know the law that we have to answer to which is the word of God. So they have the right to revisit anything they want to,” he said.

For its part, the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (JFLAG) welcomed Simpson Miller’s position. Executive director of the lobby group, Dane Lewis, said: “We are very encouraged by the statement, it was a very bold statement by a political leader knowing the history of statements which our leaders have made and so we look forward to seeing what is to come if they certainly do form the next government.

“It really speaks loudly to a respect for the human rights of all Jamaicans, including those who are gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or transgender,” he noted.

He said he was disappointed with the response given by Holness who was very cautious in his response when he stated that his “sentiment must be the sentiment of the country”.

“We are disappointed that the prime minister, even though he had another opportunity to make certainly a bold statement, he didn’t,” he said. “It is very clear that he is going to pander to the religious community and vaguely step around the issue,” Lewis asserted.

Adventists say no problem with buggery law review, but Comments [Pictures]

Vaz Says Constituents Stand Firm Against Homosexuality Comments [Pictures]

Idiot plan that-Many Jamaicans Buggery Law Review Comments [Pictures]

Jamaica's Reaction to Statement By Portia Simpson Miller Part VII

So the Adventists are saying that it's ok to review the bugger law, but there will be a problem if it is repealed? 

I wonder what is their understanding of review the law?

The following was taken from the Jamaica Observer

Adventists say no problem with buggery law review, but...

Director of communication, public affairs and religious liberty for the Jamaica Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, Nigel Coke, has clarified a statement made in yesterday's edition of the Observer that the church rejected the promise made by Opposition Leader and People's National Party President Portia Simpson Miller to review the buggery law should her party come to power.

He said the church does not have a problem with a review of the buggery law, since it does not mean there will be a change to the legislation. However, he said the church would voice its concerns if the law is repealed or changed.

Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Adventists-say-no-problem-with-buggery-law-review--but---_10447231#ixzz1hPRp70DI

Jamaica's Reaction to Statement By Portia Simpson Miller Part VI

The following was posted in the Jamaica Observer.

Where was the church all along?

Dear Editor,

This is an open letter to all the organised groups of churches in Jamaica.

My name is Jevon Minto. I am currently in my second year at Northern Caribbean University, pursuing a Bachelor of Arts Degree in religion and theology.

Jamaica is one of those countries where the church still influences the decisions of the State. And while this opportunity exists, no other group of people is more unconcerned about social life than the church. Every other group is speaking out, except the church. I think you all deserve a beating from God for rejecting the prophetic ministry that He has called you to, especially where it concerns politics.

If secularism takes over Jamaica you all should be blamed! If Opposition Leader Portia Simpson Miller did not propose to review the buggery law — if she is re-elected — would Jamaica hear anything from you [the church] at this time?

Imagine, three national political debates and not one of the panellists represented the church. Not one question was asked regarding the church. Why speak now and talk ill of the proposition made by the Opposition?

I am definitely not in support of homosexuality, but if the church did not assume such a passive role in the affairs of the nation, then we would not have a leader even thinking about making such a proposal in public.

It leads me to question your integrity. Are you Christian, or are you Christian excused? Did Jesus, our Lord and Saviour, behave in such a passive manner where the issues of the nation were concerned? Was He hypocritical, or was He a self-aggrandiser?

Did He not care for the entire man instead of just the Spiritual man? Until you care more about Jamaica rather than the church, reserve your comments. They only make people laugh at you and make God disappointed in you!

Jevon Minto

jminto10@stu.nuc.edu.jm

Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/letters/Where-was-the-church-all-along_10447129#ixzz1hOTQslUG