Subject: GS!> SUBMISSION: A Radically Inclusive Pastor
From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 5 Nov 1996 20:34:06 -0500

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Attached is an article for your periodical to consider for publication.

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       About This Article 
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A RADICALLY INCLUSIVE PASTOR 
For over thirty years, Rev. Cecil Williams has included gay and lesbian
people in his ever-growing congregation. It is a part of what is calls his
"radical theology." His quotes alone tell the story; the other text just
helps them flow along.

The article is below -- after a section on how what to do if you want to
publish it and a section on how to get off this list.

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           The Article 
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by Gip Plaster

"Radical" is the word Rev. Cecil Williams uses to describe his view of
Christianity, and he says Christians should work to create a radical new
community for the twenty-first century.

Williams is the pastor of Glide Memorial United Methodist Church in San
Francisco. He is an African-American pastor whose church includes over a
third white members, about the same number of black congregants and includes
Asians, Hispanics and others.

"My theology is radical because we always start with those who are hurting
most," Williams said, noting they are often those who feel rejected by the
church. "If you're going to be radical you have to start at the root of the
matter."

Williams, a graduate of Perkins School of Theology in Dallas, has included
gay and lesbian people, often hurting from the wounds inflicted by family and
others churches, in his ever-growing congregation for more than thirty years.

He encourages people to present themselves to God as ones proud to be who
they are.

"Here I am; I come as I am; I am who I am," Williams said. "God says to me,
'Be yourself,' and I'm going to do it!"

Williams said religious conservatives do not believe liberal and inclusive
churches are led by God. These Radical Right leaders want everyone to agree
with their theology because they believe they hold a monopoly on inspiration
from God.

"I state my theology; I live my theology, but I don't have to twist arms,"
Williams said, commenting that his life is the example of his theology and
the success of his church speaks for itself.

He also said some of the passages in the Bible that can be interpreted to
condemn gay people may be the result of the writer's bias and not inspired by
the spirit of God.

"Some of the people who wrote some of the chapters and books that were
canonized in the Bible had some problems," Williams said.

It is up to individuals, though, to decide what they want to believe.

"I'm not threatened by other theologies," he said. "I got my own."

Christianity, according to Williams, should be more about deliverance of
people from oppression than about the salvation the Religious Right often
speaks about. Deliverance, he said, is experienced by someone who knows that
God's presence is within them today.

"I know that every moment of my life I need the eternal now," he said.

Believers who have been delivered then have an obligation to build a better
society.

"Let's stop trying to go to heaven before we deal with what's on earth," he
said. "We must begin to create new communities of faith that will withstand
any test."

They should be communities of unconditional acceptance, trust and love,
according to Williams. He urged attendees of a  conference on inclusion in
mainline churches held in Dallas at Cathedral of Hope, the world's largest
predominately lesbian and gay congregation, to join him in being activists
for the change necessary to build those communities.

"I'm taking on the Religious Right," Williams said. "In the new community we
must risk everything... We must be willing to go to jail or wherever for our
brothers and sisters."

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From [email-masked]  Fri Nov 22 07:04:32 1996
From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 22 Nov 1996 09:55:29 -0500
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Subject: Dornan Loss Official

_________________________________________________

NEWS from the
Human Rights Campaign

1101 14th Street NW
Washington, DC 20005
email:  [email-masked]
<A HREF="http://www.hrcusa.org">
WWW:    http://www.hrcusa.org
</A>
_________________________________________________

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, Nov. 21, 1996

                              DORNAN LOSS OFFICIAL

        New Congress a "Dornan-Free Zone, and Fair-Minded 
                     Americans are Jubilant," Says HRC

WASHINGTON -- Bob Dornan, R-Calif., the most anti-gay member of
the House of Representatives, has lost his seat in Congress.

     After counting all absentee ballots, the registrar of voters
in Santa Ana, Calif., put Dornan 665 votes behind his Democratic
challenger, Loretta Sanchez.  Of the 15,000 provisional ballots
that remain to be counted county-wide, only 1,300 apply to the
46th Congressional District. Based on these numbers, news
organizations have declared Sanchez the winner.

     "The 105th Congress will be a Dornan-free zone, and
fair-minded Americans are jubilant across the land," said David
M. Smith, HRC's communications director. "We have had to devote
enormous time and resources to fight against Dornan's
mean-spirited, vindictive, and often-times obsessive attacks
against gay people and people affected by HIV/AIDS. The absence
of Robert K. Dornan is a monumental relief."

     During his 1992 re-election campaign, Dornan made headlines
by asserting during an interview that "Every lesbian
spear-chucker in this country is hoping I get defeated."

     Even in this most recent race, Dornan attacked Sanchez as
"another Catholic for abortion and sodomy rights." 

     "I'm being fed a dream candidate," he said.

     "As it turned out, she was his worst nightmare," Daniel
Zingale, HRC's political director said at a news conference last
week, holding a symbolic spear. "And today, gay people across
this nation are heaving a collective sigh of relief, knowing that
they will no longer be subject to Dornan's capricious, sinister
attacks."

     Sanchez traveled to Capitol Hill this week to take part in
freshman orientation for new House members. On Monday, House
staff members decided to move her into Dornan's coveted office
space.

     Dornan, whose temper  is notorious, has alleged voter fraud,
although he has produced no evidence. He said he plans to meet
with the Orange County district attorney to discuss his
accusations and asked for an investigation by the House Oversight
Committee.

     "Dornan has lost with the same grace and rancor that marked
his 18 years in Congress," said Smith.

     Throughout his political career, Dornan obsessively launched 
attacks on lesbian and gay Americans, as well as people with HIV
and AIDS. In the last session of Congress, HRC worked with AIDS
and veterans groups to repeal a Dornan measure that would have
forced the military to discharge service members with HIV and cut
off basic benefits to their families.

     Dornan also provoked the ire of his House colleagues when he
launched a vendetta against fellow Republican Rep. Steve
Gunderson of Wisconsin, accusing him from the floor of the House
of having "a revolving door on his closet. He's in, he's out,
he's in, he's out." 

     At the time, Gunderson had not publicly revealed that he is
gay.

     HRC's political action committee contributed $5,000 to
Sanchez' general election campaign, the maximum allowed by law.

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