Scrolling around...November 27, 2012

Canada: Football star’s mom, a lesbian priest, no big deal in Anglicanism
...But stories like that of Rev. Margaret Cornish, who has been vicar of St. Alban’s Church in Richmond for almost seven years, are becoming commonplace in liberal Christian churches in Canada and the United States.

There are hundreds of women in the ministry in the Anglican Church and United Church of Canada who have either always been in lesbian relationships or have moved into them in their middle years.

Rev. Cornish had five children via male partners before taking on a female wife, Andrea Mann, who works with the Vancouver School of Theology. The Christian seminary on the University of B.C. campus has long been training men and women for the ministry who are homosexual. As they say in journalism, it’s “old news.” Even while shocking to some...

Dear Rob Bell, the Episcopal Church Welcomes You
...So as an Episcopal admirer, to Rob Bell I say, the Episcopal Church welcomes you and more than that we need you. You seem lonely preaching the gospel that Love wins, but we have been preaching that gospel a long time. You will find a welcome place for your theology in the Episcopal Church, but you can also find a new canvas for your artistry...

Bishop Guess Who: Jesus would back gay marriage
...Robinson said in order to both hold the Bible to be sacred and support gay marriage one must interpret the Bible as the "word of God, not the words of God," meaning not interpreting it literally and taking historical context into consideration...

Obamacare in crisis as 2013 approaches
...The bitter irony is that all of this billion-dollar confusion is happening because ObamaCare seeks to replace far less expensive and more efficient market forces with one-size-fits-all mandates and central planning. The purpose of these health care exchanges is to create a titanic fifty-state bureaucracy that helps consumers find the best Washington-approved health care policies, and collect all of the tax credits owed them – a sort of “Match.com” for health insurance, as Viebeck describes it.

In other words, it’s a hideously expensive and clumsy replacement for market competition and advertising. Instead of allowing insurance companies to compete across state lines and win over customers with advertising – by far the most efficient way to educate consumers about the features and benefits of any product – we’ve got a red-tape nightmare machine that’s already running over budget and failing to meet deadlines, as the federal politicians who seized control of the health insurance market belatedly realize their arrogance in presuming to know local conditions better than the people who live there...

Justice Ginsburg: We Need An All-Female Supreme Court
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg says there will be enough women on the Supreme Court when all nine justices are female...

Canada: 491 Babies Born Alive After Failed Abortions, Left to Die
...The lack of prosecution demonstrates two things: first, that political correctness surrounding the abortion issue trumps common sense, common decency and the rule of law; and second, that those who advocate for this type of behaviour are truly pro-abortion and not pro-choice. Let me explain: the only defense that could possibly justify such a procedure would be to save the life of the mother. But note well that in order to save the life of the mother a physician would only need to end the pregnancy – and that can happen, at this late stage of pregnancy, with either a live, albeit premature, baby or a dead baby. If the terminated pregnancy results in a human being dying after birth, it is because that death was the end goal; saving the life of the baby’s mother was only a pretext...

The Future of Marriage: Why “The Inevitable” Is Not Inevitable
Election Day was a drubbing for marriage. The ballot initiatives to protect marriage lost by over 4% in Maine, Minnesota, Washington State, and Maryland. Those who support same-sex “marriage” reportedly spent over $33 million, while those who defend marriage spent just over $10 million.

Many friends have said that same-sex marriage is inevitable. It is not. I have confidence that fence-sitters will enter the fray in support of traditional marriage. As we continue to debate this issue, three important forces can shift the outcome in favor of marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Consider first, public opinion; second, the methods and the message of LGBT activists; and third, reality...

Court clears path for health lawsuit; Bible publisher wins injunction
The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way Nov. 26 for a federal appeals court to take up a Christian college's challenge to the Affordable Care Act, reopening one of several lawsuits filed by religious and other groups who oppose elements of the law.

The court ordered the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to hear the argument of Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., that the health care law infringes on the Christian school's religious freedom. The court had rejected an earlier challenge by the university, made prior to the Supreme Court's June ruling upholding the health care law. The university appealed again, asking for its challenge to be considered in light of the June Supreme Court ruling...

Morsi's Egypt: More power, more persecution
Christian human-rights analysts warn the expanded powers seized by Egypt’s president means more anti-Christian persecution to come.

In a set of legal maneuvers this week, Muslim Brotherhood-anointed President Mohamed Morsi moved to sidestep the courts and make his office immune to judicial oversight. With no constitution to restrain him, Morsi holds broad executive and legislative authority...

2012 'Naughty and Nice' List Shows More Companies Now Say 'Christmas'
"Nice" companies that acknowledge Christmas far outnumber the ones that censor it, according to Christian legal group Liberty Counsel's 10th annual "Naughty & Nice" checklist. Those on the "Naughty" side include Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle Outfitters, Inc., and Banana Republic...

Angus T. Jones of 'Two and a Half Men' Finds Christ, Slams Show
Angus T. Jones of "Two and Half Men" fame converted to Christianity and denounced and criticized his past life and activities, including his role on the famous TV show. Throughout his two videotaped testimonies in October, he chronicled his journey to Christ and decried the worldly influence of entertainment... (also video testimony)

Germany expected to bring back law preventing sex with animals after rise in bestiality cases
Germany is poised to reinstate an old law forbidding sex with animals after a sharp rise in incidents of bestiality along with websites promoting it.

Parliament begins debating changes to the national Animal Protection Code this week with the agricultural committee of the Bundestag pledging fines of up to £20,000 for a first offence.

Bestiality dropped off the statute books as a crime in 1969 but in recent years the number of people believed to be participating in such acts has increased significantly...