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Bishops together on an island somewhere?
Actually, I almost hope the Bishops decide to go ahead with all their reactionary and mean-spirited actions. That way more and more people will see what they really stand for, perhaps!
Check it out:
Fri Jun 18, 8:06 PM ET
Tom Musbach, PlanetOut Network
Gay employees of the Catholic Church in Massachusetts could be fired if they marry same-sex partners, according to a proposal the state's bishops are considering.
The Boston Herald reported on Thursday that the proposal is one of several under consideration in Massachusetts, the only U.S. state that allows same-sex couples to marry. A more lenient policy, which would allow church employees to follow their consciences, has also been proposed.
The Rev. Christopher Coyne, spokesman for the Archdiocese of Boston, confirmed the possible firings have been discussed among the bishops, adding, "It's obviously a very volatile issue."
"The church has long had a position that the people working on its behalf need to display conduct consistent with the beliefs of the church," Daniel Avila, associated director for policy and research at the Massachusetts Catholic Conference, told Reuters news agency.
The Catholic Church teaches that homosexual relationships are sinful.
The Washington, D.C.-based New Ways Ministry (NWM), which serves gay and lesbian Catholics, criticized the motives behind the possible firing of gay church employees.
"This news shows that Massachusetts church officials are more concerned with politics than with pastoral care and human needs," said Francis DeBernardo, executive director of NSM. "Anti-gay prejudice and a politically inspired move to block gay marriage are at play in this decision."
"If Catholic bishops in Massachusetts adopt this policy," DeBernardo told the PlanetOut Network, "then they should be consistent and fire all church personnel, regardless of sexual orientation, who do not follow church teaching. This would include married couples who practice birth control, priests who do not live their vow of poverty and, most importantly, bishops who did not take seriously their responsibility to protect young people from sexually predatory priests."
In recent weeks the church has come down aggressively against same-sex marriage and its supporters, to the point of possibly influencing Massachusetts voters and denying communion to those who disagree as a matter of conscience.
U.S. bishops are meeting this week behind closed doors in Colorado to clarify their position on denying the sacrament to politicians and other Catholics who disagree with the church on such issues as abortion, stem-cell research and same-sex marriage.
Matthew Gallagher, executive director of DignityUSA, the nation's largest group of GLBT Catholics, called the Massachusetts firing proposal "outrageous."
"Individuals in long-term loving, committed relationships are a sign of stability, which leads to good, stable employees," Gallagher told the PlanetOut Network. "When will the bishops wake up and realize the damage they are doing to our church?"
"Always forgive your enemies...nothing annoys them quite so much." Oscar Wilde
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Any way to put Texas republicans & Massachusetts Catholic... 
