Someone asked me last night if I had seen an increase in hits on this website since the whole Prop 8 thing had put the church and gays in the spotlight. I shrugged and said that I hadn’t checked.
I did tonight and here are a few high-level stats:
The first month I enabled stats to be recorded:
(this site has been around since 2000)
The last four months:
I guess there is someone reading this. I’d better stay sharp (and thanks to you all!)
Besides the photos I shot at the Protest on Friday night, I shot a few scenes with my little Canon PowerShot A640. Here’s one (if you are bandwidth challenged, you may not want to click below):
Last night a few of we gay and non-gay, Mormon and non-Mormon friends gathered in downtown Salt Lake City to protest the insertion of the Mormon church into the “proposition 8″ discussion in California, which amended the state constitution to allow marriage only between “a man and a woman”.
Yesterday the church sent out yet another press release questioning why they should be singled out, since they were only part of a “coalition” and how shameful it is that people would protest at LDS properties for “being part of the democratic process”.
Huh? Since when are churches allowed to exercise democracy? I thought individuals did so. I don’t recall a “super delegate” with the LDS name on it.
The former bishop of the Utah Catholic diocese has also now chimed in — also via press release — questioning why the Mormons are being singled out. It sounds like he’s more afraid that the Knights of Columbus won’t get their “due” on the credit for pushing this through rather than that only the Mormons are being “punished”.
Here are a few photos I took of the crowd, which according to most press estimates was in “the thousands”:
Must be pretty high priority for President Monson & co. Click HERE for details.
In today’s Salt Lake Tribune:
Mormons not homophobic
Public Forum Letter
Article Last Updated: 02/25/2008 01:45:24 AM MSTConcerning Richard Goers’ letter, “God loves all” (Forum, Feb. 19), Sen. Chris Buttars’ opposition to Salt Lake City’s domestic partnership registry is not hateful toward homosexuals, nor does it indicate that he is out of tune with Mormon beliefs.
Yes, God loves everyone and has given us free agency, but he also counsels us to never condone or accept evil behavior. Homosexual acts degrade the individual, the family and society. Children are entitled to have both a father and mother. Salt Lake City should not support those who act on homosexual feelings by facilitating benefits for partners living together. Not having such benefits does not erode someone’s freedom to choose homosexuality.
Mormons do not hate homosexuals. We invite them to our Sunday meetings and pray that by showing them our love they will feel of God’s love for them and understand that living God’s laws of marriage will bring them lasting peace and happiness in this life and the next. Many Mormons oppose any government action that directly or indirectly supports homosexuality. We are not being bigoted and hateful - we are helping keep society’s morals on the track of prosperity and virtue.
Zach Maxfield
Logan
LDS church president Gordon B. Hinckley died last night of “causes incident to age” (he was 97).
Upon perusing the online news this morning, I noted:
We sometimes are forced to acknowledge that the LDS church is really a very small fish in a very big pond and that in spite of protestations to the contrary, not a very big player on the world stage.Â
Several mention that during Hinckley’s tenure, the church grew “from 9 to 13 million”. I did the math: that averages 307,692 converts per year; about 5 per missionary. Not exponential growth by any stretch of the imagination….
Perhaps with Thomas S. Monson, the church will begin to move into the late 20th century; albeit it 50 years late and still a long ways from the 21st.Â
An interesting change to the Bruce R. McConkie preface to the 1981 version of the Book of Mormon was unveiled (see details at this link) by the Church in a circuitous way.
Meanwhile, check out the dozens of pages of comments from critics and apologists at the bottom of the article for a laugh or two.
I get a monthly email newsletter from Carol Lynn Pearson, the eminent Mormon playwrite and author. In this month’s she include the following:
“GOOD THING IT WASN’T MINE!�
Recently back from Washington DC where I was given an award for FACING EAST and NO MORE GOODBYES at the national conference of Affirmation (Gay and Lesbian Mormons).
Boarding the full Southwest flight for Northern California, I was in “Group C� and knew my seating choices were limited. Quickly scanning the available rows, I saw just one face, the shining face of an African American man.
I walked to his row and said, “That seat beside you needs to be filled and I would like to be the one to fill it.â€? He laughed and stood up and said, “I knew it would be you! The minute I laid eyes on you, I said–that is some interesting woman and she is going to sit by me!â€? Ordinarily nothing can make me put down my book on an airplane, but for four hours the three people on our row joyfully solved every problem in the world.
Earl a Christian/Mason, was out representing “The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers�–-Janice, a Catholic, was out representing “Rich’s Desserts,� and I, a Mormon, was out representing (according to the award in my luggage) “Understanding, Love and Acceptance.�
We decided that all world leaders ought to be forced to share a long airplane flight, so they could become clear that on Flight #277 or #112–-just as on Earth’s Cosmic Journey–-we are all in this thing together.
Often when I board a plane, I say to another passenger, “Hey, have a safe flight!�
Once, when my kids were little, I gave them each a balloon. Emily’s popped and she burst into tears. Johnny said, “Good thing it wasn’t mine!�
If Earl’s Southwest flight #277 had gone down, could I say, “Good thing it wasn’t mine?�
Can I look at your global warming and say, “Good thing it isn’t mine?�
Can any of us truly look at the suffering of a homeless man who is hungry–-the suffering of a girl in Afghanistan whose school is blown up–-the suffering of a gay person whose family or church has caused them to feel worthless and hopeless–-and say, “Good thing it isn’t mine�?
Jesus was pretty clear about that as he prayed for his disciples, “That they all may be one… (John: 17:21).â€? After I hugged Earl goodbye, I smiled all the way down the corridor. One!
Such a great number.
I updated my WordPress blogging software to the latest version and overwrote all of the images that were part of this blog (cautionary tale). I am attempting to recover or reproduce them, but suspect I’m hosed. If you see a ‘missing image’ designator or icon, just use your imagination.
Saturday afternoon we went to see our friend Lee in the Hale Center Theater’s production of Thoroughly Modern Millie. It was absolutely the best show that I have seen there. The production values were stellar. The cast was polished and professional. The musical by composer Jeanine Tesori and lyricist Dick Scanlan was upbeat, entertaining and totally familiar (we have had the Tony Award-winning soundtrack–starring Sutton Foster–for several years).
The money spent on costumes, props and in changing the revolving stage yet again must have been tremendous.
Well done, Hale Theater (and Lee)!
Saturday night we went upscale to the Abravenel Hall to see the Utah Symphony Orchestra in a tribute to Stephen Sondheim. Besided the full orchestra, there were four students with tremendous voices and Broadway favorites, Gregg Edelman, Alice Ripley and Tony Award-winning Faith Prince.
Another fantastic performance that made me glad that I live in Utah. Stephen Sondheim would have been proud and I caught myself wondering several times throughout the performance if he ever ventured out of NYC to attend events in far-flung venues like this one.
This afternoon, we had to tickets to see Plan B Theater Company’s production of Carol Lynn Pearson’s new play, Facing East.
This one is about LDS parents mourning at the still-open grave of their son. He had committed suicide after struggling a lifetime with being gay.
The mother wants to blame herself, her husband and especially her son for “not being valiant to the end”. The father blames himself and questions the church’s treatment of gay people.
The dynamic shifts when the son’s partner (previously unintroduced to the parents) shows up–unaware that the parents would still be there.
Positions change. Blame shifts. Hate–and love–surfaces. Tears flow. Especially among the ~100 people in the small black box theater.
Ms. Pearson continues to question the LDS Church on the general treatment of gay people and brings up the question as to who will have to answer for this treatment.
There is no exposition of answers. There is no resolution between the warring factions. There is softening and some understanding, but what the future holds remains a question–just as in real life.
I’ve never been to such an emotionally-empowering play that touches me on such a personal level.
Ms. Pearson has a new book that deals with LDS families and how they are choosing family over church when it comes to accepting their gay children. Perhaps that is also the message that we should take away from Facing East.
