Members of religious organizations should proclaim and
defend their understanding of marriage. They can and should determine who can
be married in their midst, what the marriage means for the marriage partners
and the community of which they are members, and how they believe such
marriages honor God.

But members of religious organizations do not get to insist
that gay Americans should not have the same civil
right to marry as other Americans because of those members’ religious
beliefs. The Constitution does not allow any of us to impose our religious
beliefs on others. Catholics do not get to tell the rest of us that we can’t
practice birth control. Southern Baptists cannot tell other denominations that
they cannot ordain women. Christians cannot prohibit Jewish men from wearing
yarmulkes or Muslim women from wearing their head coverings. No American should
be able to prohibit gay Americans from marrying their choice of mate because of
her or his religious beliefs.

Religious liberty and civil rights are both protected by the
Constitution. However tricky the balance between the two might be, we should
celebrate such a balance in our rule of law.

The 900 students at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School in Cordova got some good news Wednesday morning, and some bad news.

“School was supposed to end on the 25th, but now it will end on the 24th,” Monsignor Peter Buchignani told students gathered in the sanctuary for Wednesday mass.

“That is my gift to you, an extra holiday,” he said. The students clapped and cheered.

The monsignor’s gift was a parting one. That was the bad news.

“I am retiring,” said Buchignani, the 72-year-old Memphis native who was ordained a priest in 1965 and who likes to spend a little time holding class before saying mass.

“What does that mean?”

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Congratulations to the Church Health Reader, a publication of the Church Health Center, which was among the winners in the Associated Church Press’s annual “Best of Christian Press” awards.

The Reader won four awards:

A Gold Medal (First Place) for Theme Issue, Section, or Series: Magazine for Fall 2011 Dying Well Section.

Honorable Mention (Third Place) for Theological: Theological Reflection (Short Form) for “Sacred Meals” by Daniel Deffenbaugh.

Honorable Mention (Third Place) for Devotional/Inspirational: Short Format for “Last Place on Earth” by Susan Palwick.

Honorable Mention (Third Place) for Theological: Biblical Interpretation for “Setting a New Table” by Butch Odom.

The Church Health Reader’s editor is Sarah Ranson; its managing editor is Rachel Thompson.

Dr. Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz, a well-known and somewhat controversial Catholic theologian who spoke in Memphis in March, died Sunday after a brief battle with cancer. She was 69.

Isasi-Diaz’s appearance in Memphis made news after Christian Brothers University withdrew its invitation to host a conference featuring her as a keynote speaker, due to her “divergence from a basic Catholic teaching.” The Drew University professor, who supported women’s ordination, also preached at a family member’s same-sex wedding in 2009.

Isasi-Diaz, founder of mujerisa theology, spoke at First Congregational Church, which agreed to host the Vanderhaar Symposium.

“After her lecture here, she was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer,” said Dr. Barbara Holmes, a former professor at Memphis Theological Seminary. “When she was made aware of the prognosis, she died as she lived with great dignity.”

Isasi-Diaz was born and raised in Cuba. She moved to the United States in 1960 with her family, and then entered the Ursuline novitiate in California. She was living in Madison, N.J. where she taught ethics and theology at Drew.

“She was a true prophetic woman of peace,” said Janice Vanderhaar. “It is hard to believe that Dr. Ada Maria passed this way less than two months ago to share with us her incredible message of Compassion and Solidarity at the Vanderhaar Symposium. We were indeed blessed by her powerful presence in our midst.”

The second annual Joint Dinner between Islamic Association of Greater Memphis & St. Luke United Methodist Church will be held at 5:45 p.m. Wednesday in St. Luke’s Cafeteria, 480 South Highland Street. RSVP requested.

Oak Grove Baptist Church’s basement became a makeshift boardroom Friday.

Executives from Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare met with local church leaders in the Riverview community on Friday to discuss the health needs of the impoverished neighborhood. (Mike Maple/The Commercial Appeal) (

Three dozen members of Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare’s senior management team held a strategy session in the church, which sits in the heart of one of the city’s most distressed neighborhoods.

“We’re a faith-based ministry of the United Methodist Church,” said Methodist President and CEO Gary Shorb, “but we’ve never done this before.”

Dr. Eric Winston, senior pastor of nearby Mt. Zion Baptist Church, said he’d never seen such a gathering. “I can’t remember the last time we had this many good-looking white people in this neighborhood,” he told the crowd.
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The Memphis-based Church of God in Christ just issued this statement regarding President Obama’s statement in support of same-sex marriage:

In direct response to President Barack Obama’s public statement of support for same sex marriage, the Church of God in Christ, Inc. (COGIC), reiterates its position on same sex marriage. The General Assembly of the Church of God in Christ, adopted a position statement on April 13, 2004. Our belief remains unchanged.

Marriage: A Proclamation to COGIC Worldwide

We, the Presiding Bishop, the General Board and the Board of Bishops of the Church of God in Christ, solemnly proclaim that the institution of marriage was established and ordained by God (Genesis 2:24). Therefore “God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him, male and female created he them” (Genesis 1:27). He created “the woman for the man” (I Corinthians 11:9). Therefore, “marriage is honorable” (Hebrews 13:4).

We believe that since the beginning of recorded history, in most cultures of the world; marriage has been defined as the lawful union of one man and one woman. The traditional form of marriage is one of the bedrock institutions of most societies. We, therefore, affirm the preservation of the present definition of marriage as being the legal union of one man and one woman as husband and wife.

Therefore, in spite of the progressive normalization of alternative lifestyles and the growing legal acceptance of same-sex unions; we declare our opposition to any deviation from traditional marriages of male and female. Notwithstanding the rulings of the court systems of the land in support of same-sex unions; we resolve that the Church of God in Christ stand resolutely firm and never allow the sanctioning of same-sex marriages by its clergy nor recognize the legitimacy of such unions.

President Obama said Wednesday that he now “personally supports” same-sex marriage after years of “evolution” on the issue. In an interview with ABC’s Robin Roberts, the president painted his endorsement of same-sex marriage as an outgrowth of his Christian beliefs. Read more here.

Here are responses from members of the Faith in Memphis panel:

Chris Altrock/Highland Church of Christ

Many discussions about same-sex marriage in the United States are driven by issues of pleasure or profit; status or stability.

Some conversations state that gays should be permitted to marry so they may enjoy the pleasure of having the same status as heterosexual couples in our culture. They should be allowed to experience the joy of credibility and respectability in the community.

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Getting your kids outdoors this summer can be good for their spiritual as well as physical well-being.

That’s the theme for a special parenting class at 6 p.m. Tuesday at St. George’s Independent School, 1880 Wolf River Blvd.

“Summer Experiences: Using Summer Months to Enhance Learning and Enrich Faith” will offer:

• New ideas to unite summer fun with learning
• Research into the benefits of outdoor education
• How summer can enrich family togetherness and faith
• PLUS: optional evening hike around campus

The session will feature a panel of speakers including: The Rev. John Leach, Church of the Holy Apostles; Brad Thompson, Executive Director, St. Columba Episcopal Camp & Conference Center; and St. George’s faculty & staff

The series is free and open to the public.

For more information, or to RSVP, visit www.SGIS.org or call 901.261.2300.

Nowhere was National Day of Prayer observed more fervently than in Frayser.

A dozen men and women gathered on the blue pews inside the big sanctuary of Union Grove Baptist Church at noon Thursday. For the next hour, they prayed without ceasing — some without sitting.

“We pray for our country, our community, but especially for Frayser, oh Lord,” Tiffany Swift prayed as she paced along the altar rail. “Frayser is a challenging place to live.”

No one is more aware of those challenges than the 40,000 or so people who live in Frayser.

In the past 10 years, Frayser’s unemployment rate has more than doubled to about 17 percent. Nearly six in 10 children live below poverty level. Housing and property values continue to drop.

Frayser has become synonymous with foreclosure, teen pregnancy, infant mortality and crime.

“We cry out loud, Lord,” Teresa Ward prayed as she sat in a pew. “We forgive those who have hurt us and our community in the past, and we also forgive ourselves. We rebuke fear. We denounce a victim mentality and will no longer accept the role of the victim.”

Nor will they accept the premise that Frayser doesn’t have a prayer.

“Frayser belongs to God,” J. Yvonne Mitchell prayed as she walked up and down the church aisles. “We agree that the power of God, along with diligent work, is necessary to transform the Frayser community from where it is today to where God has purposed it to be.

“We will see the hand of God move to help us to transform Frayser into a better place to live, work and worship.”