October 2009 – Page 3 – Warren Throckmorton

Pentecostal Christians join Muslims against gays

I missed this when it first was announced in July, 2009:

Muslims Join Pastors in Gay Fight

Kampala — Muslims have teamed up with their counterparts from the Pentecostal churches to fight homosexuality. The leader of the Muslim Tabliqs, Sheikh Sulaiman Kakeeto, said the issue of homosexuality affects all people regardless of their religious affiliations.

“We have decided to make a bond with our fellow religious leaders to fight homosexuality,” Sheikh Kakeeto said at the launch of a campaign dubbed ‘The National Coalition against Homosexuality and Sexual Abuses in Uganda’ in Kampala on Wednesday. “We want to work together and eliminate sodomy and other forms of sexual abuses in our society.”

The two groups signed an agreement to guide their operations. Sheikh Kakeeto and Sheikh Muhammad Badru, the chairman the National Da’awa Association, signed on behalf of Muslims while pastors Michael Kyazze (Omega Healing Centre), Martin Ssempa (Makerere Community Church) and Solomon Male (Arising for Christ) signed on behalf of born again Christians. Sheikh Kakeeto called on the government to strengthen the law on homosexuality and incarcerate those caught in the act.

Pastor Ssempa said the coalition intends to embark on a campaign to sensitise communities about “the dangers of homosexuality.” “We shall offer counselling, legal and material support to the affected people,” he said.

Homosexuality is illegal in Uganda.

What is wrong with this picture? Apparently, more than the Family Life Network is involved. Ssempa was the spokesperson for another group called the Interfaith Rainbow Coalition Against Homosexuality which rallied against gays in 2007. Ssempa has been repeatedly connected to Rick Warren’s Saddleback church and is a campaigner for abstinence programming. I have contacted both Saddleback and Pastor Ssempa to find out their view of the new bill. I did hear from their representatives last night that a statement may be coming soon.

Gibbs: FOX News is unfair (sniff)

I have not followed the White House whining about Fox News very closely but I took notice of this:

White House officials once again advanced its contention that Fox News and its commentators are not journalists, rather a propaganda wing of the Republican Party. During the gaggle, an informal on-the-record but off-camera briefing between the White House press secretary and some members of the media, Robert Gibbs and ABC’s Jake Tapper had this conversation:

Tapper: It’s escaped none of our notice that the White House has decided in the last few weeks to declare one of our sister organizations “not a news organization” and to tell the rest of us not to treat them like a news organization. Can you explain why it’s appropriate for the White House to decide that a news organization is not one –

(Crosstalk)

Gibbs: Jake, we render, we render an opinion based on some of their coverage and the fairness that, the fairness of that coverage.

Tapper: But that’s a pretty sweeping declaration that they are “not a news organization.” How are they any different from, say –

Gibbs: ABC –

Tapper: ABC. MSNBC. Univision. I mean how are they any different?

Gibbs: You and I should watch sometime around 9 o’clock tonight. Or 5 o’clock this afternoon.

Tapper: I’m not talking about their opinion programming or issues you have with certain reports. I’m talking about saying thousands of individuals who work for a media organization, do not work for a “news organization” — why is that appropriate for the White House to say?

Gibbs: That’s our opinion.

Read the whole report. The White House and the left-leaning press is unhappy. Moveon.org wants Dems to stay off Fox, a kind of boycott.

I have trouble getting worked up over this given the savaging that Sarah Palin took during the campaign, especially from MSNBC. As noted in this blog report, an unnamed White House contact said the purpose of the FOX war is to get journalists to think twice about what to cover.

“We’re doing what we think is important to make sure news is covered as fairly as possible,” a White House official told POLITICO, noting how the recent ACORN scandal story started because Fox covered it “breathlessly for weeks on end.”

Yeah, that’s going to work. When an administration actively attempts to control the press coverage in this manner, they expose their real objective. FOX News will probably work a little harder to find the stories which the other networks ignore. And perhaps, one hopes, the real journalists in the other organizations will wake up.

Additional thoughts: I should have paired this story with the one about the unnamed White House advisor telling the liberal left to take off their pajamas and get dressed. Message to right or left who question the big boys: How’s your cat?

UPDATE: David Axelrod tells the New York Times Thursday:

“This is a discussion that probably had to be had about their approach to things,” Mr. Axelrod said. “Our concern is other media not follow their lead.”

Exodus comments about Ugandan situation on blog

On their blog, Exodus International commented today about the proposed “Anti-Homosexuality 2009” bill.

The Ugandan government is seeking to further stigmatize and criminalize (to death or extreme punishment) people who deal with homosexuality. It seems that the government has no respect for freedom. Especially as it pertains to free will or self-determination on what a person does with their own same sex attractions. This sweeping, hateful, public policy being promoted threatens anyone struggling with same sex attractions, and their loved ones, with death or imprisonment.

Then the post refers to Don Schmierer, one of the American participants in the infamous ex-gay conference in Kampala, Uganda back in March.

I asked Don, who travels all around the world, about his thoughts on what is happening now in Uganda. He responded:

“What this David Bahati is introducing does not reflect the Ugandans that I have ministered too. The only place where I have run into this thinking is from some former Russian hardliners and that was only a very small percentage of the participants attending my seminars. After some challenges from me (except for one person) they softened up and came around to a more redemptive position.”

Hard to see where anyone softened.

The individuals who hosted the conference where Mr. Schmierer spoke, Family Life Network, were identified today by conservative Ultimate Media as “fighting against what they call a proliferation of homosexuality in the country…”

We can agree with Thomas when he writes:

We definitely need to be praying for Uganda and working with whatever contacts we have there to try and stop this horrible legislation from passing.

Additional links:

Uganda’s strange ex-gay conference

More on the Ugandan ex-gay conference

Ugandan ex-gay conference goes political: Presenter suggests law to force gays into therapy

Reparative therapy takes center stage at Ugandan homosexuality conference

Gay Ugandan man seeks asylum in UK: EU group condemns Ugandan ex-gay conference

Open forum: Report from the Ugandan conference on homosexuality

Christian Post article on the Ugandan ex-gay conference

Scott Lively on criminalization and forced therapy of homosexuality

Christianity, homosexuality and the law

Uganda anti-gay group holds first meeting

Follow the money: Pro-family Charitable Trust

NARTH removes references to Scott Lively from their website

Aftermath of the Ugandan conference on homosexuality

Uganda: The other shoe drops

Ugandan travelogue from Caleb Brundidge and the International Healing Foundation

Dispatch from Uganda: Family Life Network identified as backing effort

Coming this morning is a report from Ultimate Media of the recent call from human rights groups for Uganda’s politicians to reject the proposed anti-gay law there. Note who this article points to as being in the lead on the public push for political action – Family Life Network.

Human Rights organisations have written to the government of Uganda urging for the withdrawal of a bill that seeks to heavily punish those involved in homosexuality.

This follows the presentation of a draft “Anti-Homosexuality Bill” introduced by Ndorwa West MP, David Bahati on October 14, 2009 providing for a death penalty for those engaging in homosexuality.

A group of 17 human rights organisations led by Human Rights Watch say the bill is unnecessary and will suppress many Ugandan gays and anyone who is suspected of engaging in homosexuality.

In the letter released today, the orgnaisations said the draft bill’s proposals will result in gross human rights abuses and hamper the fight against HIV/AIDS as gay people will fear to come forth for HIV testing, counseling and treatment if they are found HIV positive.

Homosexuality is already a crime in Uganda, but the Minister of Ethics and Integrity, Dr. James Nsaba Buturo has been complaining that the law is inadequate to curb homosexuality that is reported to be on the increase in Uganda.

He says the current law requires the state to prove that a person is indeed engaging in same sex relations, which has been difficult for the police to establish.

Apart from occasional arrests, torture and harassment, no one has been convicted of homosexuality since the law was introduced in Uganda’s Penal code (Section 140) by British colonialists.

The High Court ruled in favour of gays in a landmark case last December that was filed by gay Rights activists, contending that all Ugandans are entitled to the same rights and freedoms, including from torture and discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, ethnicity or other grouping.

The proposed law now seeks to criminalize those who promote homosexuality, including publishing information or providing funds, premises for any activities by gays or giving them any other resources.

The bill also seeks to punish by up to three year imprisonment anyone including heterosexual people, who fail to report within 24 hours the identities of everyone they know who is lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender.

But how all these crimes will be proved and prosecuted is not clear in the draft bill.

Many religious leaders in Uganda and the Family Life Network have been fighting against what they call a proliferation of homosexuality in the country and accuse some individuals and organization of recruiting homosexuals in schools and luring students with money and gifts.

The Gays in Uganda have refuted these accusations arguing that they are aimed at presenting homosexuals as predators taking advantage of innocent children.

Additional links:

Uganda’s strange ex-gay conference

More on the Ugandan ex-gay conference

Ugandan ex-gay conference goes political: Presenter suggests law to force gays into therapy

Reparative therapy takes center stage at Ugandan homosexuality conference

Gay Ugandan man seeks asylum in UK: EU group condemns Ugandan ex-gay conference

Open forum: Report from the Ugandan conference on homosexuality

Christian Post article on the Ugandan ex-gay conference

Scott Lively on criminalization and forced therapy of homosexuality

Christianity, homosexuality and the law

Uganda anti-gay group holds first meeting

Follow the money: Pro-family Charitable Trust

NARTH removes references to Scott Lively from their website

Aftermath of the Ugandan conference on homosexuality

Uganda: The other shoe drops

Ugandan travelogue from Caleb Brundidge and the International Healing Foundation

Back in the Spring, I reported on an ex-gay conference in Kampala, Uganda and hosted by Family Life Network (see links at the end of this post). Three Americans spoke by invitation of the FLN – Don Schmierer, Caleb Brundidge and Scott Lively.

(L to R, unknown woman, Scott Lively, Caleb Brundidge, Don Schmierer, Stephen Langa).

At the time, Schmierer and Lively received much critical attention for their presentations but the role of the International Healing Foundation and Caleb Brundidge went largely under the radar. No one from IHF, including Brundidge commented on the Ugandan trip at the time. However, Brundidge has broken his silence in the most recent IHF newsletter available on Richard Cohen’s website. Given the recent introduction of a bill in Uganda which would impose the death penalty on some offenses involving homosexuality and dramatically suppress free speech and assembly, it is appropriate to examine how IHF portrayed the conference and effects to the organization’s constituents.

Note that Cohen bills the trip to Uganda as a mission trip and seems proud of being represented there by Brundidge. As noted here and in footage provided by ExGayWatch, Cohen’s materials have been used by the group which convened after the ex-gay conference.

According to a report from an unidentified person in the ex-gay conference, Brundidge supported the continued criminalization of homosexuality.When he was asked by someone in the crowd: “Do you feel it is okay to decriminalise homosexuality?” he did not speak against it, instead indicating

That for the law to be effective, one must be caught in the Act. Laws should be done through a value of standards from which legislators draw a given law.

I am not sure what the last sentence means. While this may not be what Brundidge said, he has not replied to requests to describe what he said in Uganda.

However, in the IHF newsletter, he referred to the repressive situation in Uganda.

My trip was extremely busy and event filled. Here is a brief synopsis of what took place: My first engagement was to give a brief two to five minute testimony to the Ugandan Parliament.

Believe it or not, in present-day Uganda, homosexual behavior is either punishable by life in prison or death! Also pornography is illegal. The members of parliament are being pressured by Western and European sources to make pornography and homosexuality legal. Yes, homosexual behavior is incompatible with God’s Word, however, we tried to make them understand that there are definite causes for someone’s same-sex attraction (SSA), and therefore, change and transformation are possible. Our efforts were to help them understand a more compassionate response to anyone who experiences SSA.

While he says now that he advocated for compassion, I cannot find a clear statement that he opposed criminalization. Elsewhere in the article, Brundidge said:

One thing that God showed me while there is that many people are suffering in silence because of their SSA. As I mentioned, homosexual behavior is illegal and punishable by life in prison or even death. They have fear to go. On the other hand, the word is out on the street to the young people: If you want to make good money, pretend to be “gay.”

Reading the entire account, I don’t get the impression that Brundidge or Cohen would support death for homosexuals. However, there is little indication that they comprehend the dire situation there. Brundidge ends his account with a surreal appeal for more money.

I would like to thank those who supported my mission to Uganda. Please know that the work of IHF is being carried into all corners of the world. We so appreciate your contributions to keep hope alive!

On the contrary, the situation now is more dangerous and less conducive to hope than when Brundidge went to Uganda. Instead of appeals for money, I hope that IHF will issue an appeal to their Ugandan hosts to defeat the proposed bill.

Additional links:

Uganda’s strange ex-gay conference