Recently in sanctity of marriage Category

It's one thing to oppose the harassment of gays, it's another thing to promote the lifestyle.

Legislature Passes Bill for "Gay Day" Celebrations in California Public Schools

For my fellow Californians, make sure to read up on Prop 8 before the upcoming election. Below is run down from ProtectMarriage.com (A broad-based coalition of California families, community leaders, religious leaders, pro-family organizations and individuals from all walks of life who have joined together to support Proposition 8.)

The Issue

California voters passed Proposition 22 in 2000 by more than 61%, saying that a marriage in California is between a man and a woman. Earlier this year, four activist judges based in San Francisco wrongly overturned the people's vote, legalizing same-sex marriage.

The Consequences

The Supreme Court's decision to legalize same-sex marriage did not just overturn the will of California voters; it also redefined marriage for the rest of society, without ever asking the people themselves to accept this decision. This decision has far-reaching consequences. For example, because public schools are already required to teach the role of marriage in society as part of the curriculum, schools will now be required to teach students that gay marriage is the same as traditional marriage, starting with kindergarteners. By saying that a marriage is between "any two persons" rather than between a man and a woman, the Court decision has opened the door to any kind of "marriage." This undermines the value of marriage altogether at a time when we should be restoring marriage, not undermining it.

The Solution

Vote YES on Proposition 8 to overturn the outrageous Supreme Court decision and restore the definition of marriage that was approved by over 61% of voters. Proposition 8 is NOT an attack on gay couples and does not take away the rights that same-sex couples already have under California's domestic partner law. California law already grants domestic partners all the rights that a state can grant to a married couple. Gays have a right to their private lives, but not to change the definition of marriage for everyone else.

For Catholic Californians, you can also check out CatholicsforProtectMarriage.com.

Catholiceducation.org has posted an excellent article by Fr. Raymond de Souza entitled Marriage Now Just a Sexual Relationship. Take the time to read it.

Here's an update on the article I had earlier about SpongeBob and 'Gay' Tolerance.

Focus on the Family, a conservative Christian group, is praising the removal of references to sexual orientation from materials accompanying a children's video starring SpongeBob SquarePants and about 100 other television characters...

...Caryl Stern, associate national director of the league, said the lesson plans referring to same-sex parents were edited out "to shorten the guide." She denied that changes were made under pressure by Dobson, saying, "Obviously, that wasn't the reason." (Read the article here.)

Here's an interesting article, especially for those of us who have young children .

In a new video to be distributed to 61,000 schools across the nation, homosexual activists are using popular children's TV characters such as SpongeBob SquarePants and Barney the dinosaur to surreptitiously indoctrinate young children into their lifestyle, a pro-family activist group charges...

Although Bella isn't allowed to watch Sponge Bob or Barney (that purple guy thing creeps me out) there are other cartoon characters invloved that she does watch. Most are from Nickelodeon, PBS, and the Disney Channel including the following shows: "Arthur," "Barney," "Bear in the Big Blue House," "Between the Lions," "Blue's Clues, Bob the Builder," "The Book of Pooh," "Clifford the Big Red Dog," "Dora the Explorer," "Jimmy Neutron," "JoJo's Circus," "Kim Possible," "Lilo & Stitch: The Series," "Little Mermaid," "Madeline," "The Magic School Bus," "The Muppet Show," "The Proud Family," "Rugrats," "Sesame Street," "SpongeBob SquarePants," and "Zoom."

UPDATE: Here is a more in depth article from American Family Association about the DVD and lesson plans.

Children's TV Unites to Launch Pro-Homosexual Campaign of 'Tolerance' by Ed Vitagliano January 10, 2005

(AgapePress) - It is as unprecedented as it is cunning, using all the right words and happiest faces in an attempt to speak directly to the nation's children about "tolerance and diversity." Once again, of course, those ideas include homosexual advocacy.

On November 10, 2004, a video remake of the song, "We Are Family," was created using the voices and images of over 100 beloved children's TV characters. On March 11, 2005, the video performance will air simultaneously on the Disney Channel, Nickelodeon and PBS. A similar video aired on those networks in 2002.

The nation's children will be all too familiar with the characters on the video, incuding those from Arthur, Barney, Blue's Clues, Bob the Builder, The Book of Pooh, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Dora the Explorer, Jimmy Neutron, Kim Possible, Lilo & Stitch: The Series, Little Mermaid, Madeline, The Magic School Bus, The Muppet Show, Rugrats, Sesame Street and SpongeBob SquarePants.

Also in March, the DVD of the song will be distributed to 61,000 public and private elementary schools across the country. It will be accompanied by a teacher's guide, designed by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a group that, among other things, promotes the normalization of homosexuality.

Driving the project is the We Are Family Foundation (WAFF), which states on its website that the song was remixed "to speak the message of diversity and tolerance to elementary school children nationwide."

On the surface, the project may appear to be a worthwhile attempt to foster greater understanding of cultural differences among all Americans. However, a short step beneath the surface reveals that one of the differences being celebrated is homosexuality.

WAFF was founded as a non-profit organization in 2002 by Nile Rodgers, who wrote the song "We Are Family" with his late music partner, Bernard Edwards. The WAFF site says that the group "celebrates our common humanity and the vision of a global family ...."

The website is filled with pro-homosexual materials. A "Tolerance Pledge," for example, created by Tolerance.org, part of the leftist Southern Poverty Law Center, encourages signees to pledge respect for homosexuals and work against "ignorance, insensitivity and bigotry."

Most Christians are now aware of what those code words mean, said American Family Association chairman Don Wildmon. "If you are a person who accepts the homosexual lifestyle, then you are tolerant," he said. "If you don't, then you are a bigot who is motivated by ignorance and hate."

One of the teacher's guides available online at the WAFF website is called "Writing for Change: Raising Awareness of Difference, Power, & Discrimination." Full of politically correct lessons on feminism, it is also a primer for teachers who want to indoctrinate children regarding sexual orientation issues.

Lessons include such topics as "Talking About Being 'Out'" and "Uncovering Attitudes About Sexual Orientation." In these lesson plans, teachers are taught how to introduce students to "the concepts of homophobia and compulsory heterosexuality."

According to the teacher's guide, children should be taught to reject the idea "that women are 'naturally' or innately drawn sexually and emotionally toward men, and men toward women," or that heterosexuality is normal and should be the only model for marriage.

Students are expected to be influenced by the lesson plans. One of the follow-up questions asks the kids: "How will understanding these definitions change your thinking about compulsory heterosexuality and homophobia?"

The ADL has partnered with WAFF on the "We Are Family" project in other ways. The WAFF site includes the ADL's pamphlet, "Close the Book on Hate," a diversity tome that normalizes homosexuality. It also contains a reading list for children and adults that includes such homosexual favorites as Daddy's Roommate, Growing Up Gay, Heather Has Two Mommies, Is It a Choice?, Two Teenagers in Twenty, and What If Someone I Know Is Gay?

Wildmon said it is difficult taking a stand against such projects. "Nobody I know has a problem with teaching children to be respectful and tolerant. It is wrong, however, to use such concepts to open the door to a secondary discussion about a controversial subject like homosexuality," he said.

For those people who find it difficult to understand AFA's objection, Wildmon said they should imagine a scenario in which the shoe is on the other foot. "What if these television characters were singing about personality, but then when children went to the website, or when the teacher opened up the accompanying lesson plan, the topic was Christianity?" he said. "A lot of people would be angry with that kind of approach. And that's why many Christians will be upset with the strategy taken by the We Are Family Foundation."

While the March launch of the school project was still a couple of months away, Wildmon advised parents to be on the lookout to see if the DVD, teacher's guide, and other WAFF materials find their way into their local schools.

Here are some interesting reads regarding same-sex marriages:

Not Letting Facts Get in the Way of Same-Sex Marriage - Hype Overshadows Scientific Data

Dangers of Same-Sex Couples Adopting Children (Part 1)

Dangers of Same-Sex Couples Adopting Children (Part 2)

Here's an excellent editorial from the The National Catholic Register.

How to Defend Marriage
July 25-31, 2004

Here is an updated version of our resource list of arguments and actions for readers.

Why homosexual marriage is wrong.

World cultural and legal history has never thought of marriage as anything but one thing: the union of a man and a woman.

But just as most abortion proponents want to skip the debate about when life begins and argue about "choice" instead, most homosexual activists want to skip the argument about what marriage is.

Instead, they argue about rights or about discrimination. But the fact is, the law already severely restricts who can and can�t marry. Marriage is restricted by age, by previous marriage status and by kinship, for starters. And marriage necessarily has to be "discriminatory." Its definition has to exclude other pairings (roommates, brothers and sisters, etc.) from claiming the benefits given to married couples.

Why does society have to restrict marriage so severely? Because marriage performs a crucial function for society. Its purpose is the propagation and protection of children, and to conform sexual relationships to morality. Homosexual "marriage" would do none of these things.

If either of your parents chose a homosexual marriage, you wouldn�t be here. And the uncomfortable truth that few are acknowledging is that homosexual lifestyles are not healthy � physically, emotionally or morally.

Proctologists advertise heavily in homosexual publications, because homosexual sex injures its participants. Even in countries where homosexuality is accepted, homosexuals suffer higher rates of depression and suicide than the general public.

And children are bound to suffer if their parents are part of the homosexual scene. From the Village People song "YMCA" to the Showtime television show "Queer as Folk," homosexual culture has long celebrated sex with teens. One of the most-often searched for pornography terms on the Internet is "twink," which is homosexual slang for underage teen-age boys. In The Gay Report, by homosexual researchers Karla Jay and Allen Young, the authors report data showing that 73% of homosexuals surveyed had at some time had sex with boys 16 to 19 years of age or younger.

What will follow homosexual marriage?

It�s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that legalized homosexual marriage will mean simply keeping things the way they are, only offering health benefits to homosexual couples.

In fact the changes will be dramatic: Public schools will include texts and materials treating the two types of marriages identically. If you die, your children could be adopted by either a homosexual couple or a heterosexual couple � to prefer one over the other would be illegal prejudice. Homosexual couples would be spotlighted whenever romance is spotlighted: On Valentine�s Day at the public library, in Christmas specials on television, and in billboards on the Interstates.

Why a marriage amendment is needed.

Now that homosexual marriage is legal in Massachusetts, it will effectively be legal in your state, too. Federal precedent protects the status of people who move from state to state. Some 80% of the people who entered into civil unions in Vermont left the state after that. It will be the same in Massachusetts.

Many argue that marriage laws ought to be a state matter. But a national situation requires a federal response � and it�s easier to have one fight at the federal level rather than to wage 50 battles when losing any one would mean a total loss.

What you can do.

Write to your representatives in state and federal government. Find their names and addresses by typing in your ZIP code at www.vote-smart.org. Use the arguments above or your own arguments. Tell them you back the Federal Marriage Amendment and are appalled that the U.S. Senate killed it. Ask what they plan to do to stop this assault on marriage.

Pray. In his apostolic letter on the rosary, Pope John Paul II called for daily rosaries for peace in the world, and for defense of the family. He said attacks on the family were "menacing � so as to make us fear for the future of this fundamental and indispensable institution and, with it, for the future of society as a whole."

Evangelize. The only long-term solution to this crisis will be the re-Christianization of society. Take up the Holy Father�s straightforward and simple challenge to promote Sunday Mass, confession, prayer and community service. Print out and distribute the "How to Be Catholic" guides at www.ncregister.com.

I saw this article posted at Being! entitled War Over Boy Raised By Gays. Remember a few years back when a New York court awarded custody of a baby to a gay couple over a woman they claimed to be a surrogate?

Well, the little boy with two daddies is now six and

He punches and kicks his teachers, hits and bites himself, curses and says he wants to kill himself as often as twice a month, according to the new report, completed in January by NYU's Child Study Center.

It also says he repeatedly kisses and touches classmates inappropriately and once ran around naked.

Hello? Doesn't this raise a red flag to anyone? If his parents were conservative, religious homeschoolers everyone would be up in arms to remove him from his home. Yet, when the boy's mother challenged the custody ruling in light of the boy's disturbed behavior, the judge refused to listen.

Ugh, I can't even discuss it without getting angry so I better shut up and get on my knees for these people.

It seems like the topic of marriage is on many minds. After my little discussion of marriage this morning I found this excellent post from Gregory Popcak at HMS. He wrote THE MACFARLANE DIVORCE IS HITTING THE BLOGS. PEOPLE ARE ASKING, "WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO US?" HERE ARE 7 LESSONS.

Brian and I were talking about marriage and divorce in general the other night. We have been hearing a number of Catholic couples (on blogs and in person) say, �If divorce can happen to prominent Catholics, what chance do we have?� I say we have the best chance in the world because we have the grace of the Sacrament of Matrimony! However, grace is not a magical fairy dust. We need to cooperate with that grace and work tooth-and-nail to live it throughout our lives. That means a heck of a lot of praying and a heck of a lot of dying to self. (You can�t have one without the other.) Satan is on the prowl and we must be vigilant, particularly in the area of our marriage and family.

It is not something I am stressed about with Brian and me. Yes, concerned to continue working on our marriage but not stressed. Some laugh that I�m just naive because I come from solid Catholic parents, so how would I know? Yes, my parents are solid but they are far from perfect and they have traveled a rocky road. You only see the outward appearance of my family now. I know the struggles my parents went through when I was young. I remember crying myself to sleep when my parents came close to divorcing, back when they were not practicing their faith. But I�ve also seen the power of marital grace in action when humbly lived before God. I�ve seen lives change because of that grace and the iron resolution that �divorce is not an option; we�re gonna work this out if it kills us!� (36 years and 9 kids later, they are still alive and together.)

I praise God for that experience because it has shown me that marriage is not all romance and pleasure. Sure, that is there to an extent, but entwined with it are trials and toils. However, it seems that problems in marriage don�t �suddenly� pop up out of nowhere. They start to fester long before and need to be nipped in the bud ASAP. By working at having a strong prayer life/relationship with Christ as well as by conquering the small daily trials and weeding out your own faults (rather than pointing out your spouses,) it is easier to face the inevitable major trials that will come along. Each day Brian and I have to learn to die to self as individuals, as a couple, and as a family. Personally, I am selfish and stubborn and it is a daily struggle but I have hope in my Savior, who gives me the grace and strength I need to live out my life as a Catholic wife and mama. Brian feels the same way in his own vocation as a husband and father. We�re not arrogantly claiming �it will never happen to us,� rather, we are humbly relying on God grace and diligently working to stop marital destruction before it starts.

Are you a NFP user and a Palm user? Well, check out the new free "NFP Software Program" designed for Palm OS that allows a woman to track her fertility throughout a menstrual cycle using a set of simple daily measurements. There are a number of nifty features as welll as reviews for other NFP software suitable for Palm and Windows. The site is not "Christian" oriented but simply for any user of NFP, also known as known as the Sympto-thermal Method, Fertility Awareness Method, or Ovulation Method. Get more info here: NFP for Palm OS - program for A Palm OS program for tracking fertility.

Oh, come on. What's going on? I have loved the work of Catholicity for a long time and was thankful to Bud and Bai Macfarlane for all they do for the church and the promotion of the Christian family but from a number of blogs I found out that now Bud is filing for divorce!?...and Bai ("Maria") is fighting it.

Here are related articles: Divorce, American style: What if one mate says no? (3/13/04) and Letter to the Editor: Far Too Many Spouses Are Coerced to Divorce (3/21/04) (Scroll to the bottom letter from Maria McFarland.)

It's sad to see how far Bud has come in his conversion only to have this happen. Satan must be working overtime on this situation because the tragic thing is that not only will their family (see photo) be suffering but it will most likely damage the credibility of their apostolates at Catholicity and the Mary Foundation. Please keep them all in your prayers that as tragic as it is, God can bring good from it.

I had the privilege of hearing Mary Ann Glendon speak a few years back. She's an intelligent and faithful woman. She recently wrote an excellent article entitled: For Better or for Worse? The Federal Marriage Amendment Would Strike A Blow for Freedom. It addresses those that ask: 'Why should I care whether same-sex couples can get married?' 'How will that affect me or my family?' 'Why not just live and let live?'

"Marriage is holy, while homosexual acts go against the natural moral law."

Envoy brought us this heads up: CDF CONDEMNS HOMOSEXUALITY. EXHORTS POLITICIANS