I’m not a UCC member myself, but notable people who have been members of a UCC church include President Obama, who attended Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago for 20 years.

Kushner told Keshet:

When I heard about the Keshet contest, it seemed like a perfect fit: in the Purim story, Esther “comes out” as Jewish in a way that can be a model not just for Jews, or for GLBT people, but for everyone who feels different. I hope that The Purim Superhero will help inspire and reassure kids like Nate who don’t necessarily want to be like everyone else—and most importantly, I hope kids will enjoy reading and hearing the story.

Alas, the book is not yet available, although Keshet is working with a publisher to try and make it happen. Bonnie Rosenbaum, Keshet’s deputy director of communications and planning, told me:

Our selection committee of Jewish educators and librarians had a really hard time choosing the winner from the almost 50 manuscripts we received. We’re especially thrilled that in addition to The Purim Superhero, we also received a handful of other really impressive high quality manuscripts. If the publisher with whom we are working commits to publishing this one, we are considering self-publishing one or two more stories.

Personally, though, I’m glad they started with a Purim tale, because it’s just fun to listen to a child trying to say “hamantashen” (the filled cookies traditional for the holiday). Heck, I still have fun saying it myself. Hamantashen, hamantashen, hamantashen. . . . Now I have a craving.

Congratulations to Kushner! Can’t wait to read it.

The son’s church preschool. Now, it turns out the church is upset. In a follow-up post, Cop’s Wife writes, “I was told that some members were worried that I was ‘promoting gayness.’ I don’t even know what that means. The words I had written were not promoting anything other than unconditional love and tolerance.”

She was also told she had broken the 8th Commandment for bearing false witness, and needed to do penance or would be forbidden from taking Communion. At no point was she asked about her son’s well being. “My blog post was calling out the actions of a few people that said some unkind things in front of my son,” she explained. “I asked for love and tolerance. Was I angry? Yes.  I feel I had a right to be. Did I bear false witness? No. I spoke out against bullying. Now I am getting bullied from church.”

As she wrote, though, her experience is not meant to be an indictment of religion in general or Christianity in particular. What it does show, however, is that bullies may hide behind religion (among other things) to try and justify their actions. As one commenter on her latest post said, though, they’ve messed with the wrong mom this time. Please read her story and share.

Sanders writes:

More difficult to address are the myriad ways in which everyday churches that do a lot of good in the world also perpetuate theologies that undergird and legitimate instrumental violence. The simplistic, black and white lines that are drawn between conceptions of good and evil make it all-too-easy to apply these dualisms to groups of people. When theologies leave no room for ambiguity, mystery and uncertainty, it becomes very easy to identify an “us” (good, heterosexual) versus a “them” (evil, gay). . . .

With dualistic conceptions of good and evil and hierarchical notions of value and worth, it becomes easy to know who it is okay to hate or to bully or, seemingly more benignly, to ignore. And no institutions have done more to create and perpetuate the public disapproval of gay and lesbian people than churches. . . .

Ministers who remain in comfortable silence on sexuality must speak out. Churches that have silently embraced gay and lesbian members for years must publically hang the welcome banner. How long will we continue to limit and qualify our messages of acceptance, inclusion and embrace for the most vulnerable in order to maintain the comfort of those in our communities of faith who are well-served by the status quo?

It’s a great piece, well worth reading in full (and printing out and bringing to your place of worship, if you have one).

For comparison purposes, see the piece in the Washington Post’s On Faith column, “Christian compassion requires the truth about harms of homosexuality,” by Tony Perkins of the ultra-conservative Family Research Council. Perkins asserts:

Within the homosexual population, such mental health problems are higher among those who “come out of the closet” at an earlier age. Yet GLSEN’s approach is to encourage teens to “come out” when younger and younger—thus likely exacerbating the very problem they claim they want to solve.

I’m not sure where Perkins gets his information. All the studies I’ve seen attest to a better sense of self-worth and fewer emotional problems when one comes out earlier. But I wouldn’t expect the FRC to mention that.

Having said that, we need to be careful not to taint all religious organizations and believers because of the harm caused by some. Jumping back to my previous post, which mentions a piece by Rabbi Victor Appell about the comfort that religion can provide to youth coming out, I should note the “Do Not Stand Idly By” campaign launched yesterday by Jewish LGBT group Keshet with over 100 initial community partners. More than most communities, the Jewish community knows the dangers of standing idly by. The campaign encourages people to sign the “Jewish Community Pledge to Save Lives” and commit to ending homophobic bullying and harassment in synagogues, schools, organizations, and communities. (Thanks to Liz of Eat, Drink, and Be Mommy for the tip.)

I wouldn’t be surprised if other religions and denominations have started similar campaigns. Let me know in the comments and I’ll add them to the list.

(Two posts in a row about religion? From agnostic me? Fact is, I spent five years of graduate school studying medieval intellectual history, which is in large part a study of the interaction between religion and society—so the subject holds a deep interest regardless of my personal beliefs.)

I am not myself religious, and would not ever say that religion is the best or only answer to bullying. I do know, however, that messages of hate disguised as religion help no one, and can do great damage to LGBTQ youth. On the positive side, religions have the power to offer great comfort and assistance to those within their communities of belief. Some might say they have a God-given duty to do so.

Appell explains:

It is difficult to have a positive self-image when much of society would tell you that what you are is abnormal or that you are a sinner and would seek to deny your civil rights and make your expressions of love against the law. Coming out in a religious context challenges all that. We can learn, in synagogues and churches that welcome us, that what we are is good; that we can love and be loved; that we are created, like everyone else, in God’s image; and that God loves us with an unqualified love. Religion has the ability to transform us. With people not only hating us but also trying to make us hate ourselves, we desperately need places where we can learn to love ourselves.

Regardless of your particular religious faith or lack thereof, go read the rest of his piece. Appell makes a point more people need to hear.

An Anglican elementary school in Bedford, Texas has denied admission to a girl because her parents are lesbians and married in Canada, reports NBCDFW. The head of St. Vincent’s School, Kenneth Monk, said that by allowing the the school would be “going off our canons” that say marriage is limited to one man and one woman. (Via MSNBC.com; thanks, Towleroad and @homopolitico.)

In May, a Roman Catholic school in Massachusetts also withdrew its acceptance of an 8-year-old boy because he has lesbian moms. A spokesperson for the Boston archdiocese said, however, that the archdiocese does not have a policy that would prohibit the children of same-sex couples from attending its schools.

A Catholic preschool in Boulder, Colorado similarly told a lesbian couple in March that their child could not return to the school next year—but in that case, the Denver Archdiocese supported the school’s decision. (For contrast, however, I recommend this essay in Commonweal magazine, in which a lesbian mom discusses her Catholic faith, her and her partner’s decision to send their children to Catholic school, and the welcome they received there.)

And lesbian moms Cate and Elizabeth Wirth were told last December by a Vermont district director of the Boy Scouts that they could no longer volunteer for their son’s Cub Scout troop after it became known that they are a couple.

Same-sex parents aren’t good for children? Only when others make it so.

Faith

• In an essay for Commonweal magazine, an anonymous lesbian mom discusses her Catholic faith, her and her partner’s decision to send their children to Catholic school, and the welcome they received there, in contrast to the experience of two moms in Colorado who were told their son could not return to Catholic school once it became known they were a couple. A must-read for anyone interested in matters of faith.
• A Vancouver teacher and lesbian mom says she was fired from her position at a Catholic girls’ school because she is a lesbian.

Schools and Youth

• The Illinois House passed an anti-bullying bill that will now go to Gov. Pat Quinn. The bill specifically covers bullying because of someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity, among other categories. (For more on why the enumeration of categories is necessary, see my longer piece on bullying.)
• While we’re on the subject of bullying, researchers at Harvard School of Public Health and Children’s Hospital found that people who have had a same-sex partner are up to two times as likely to experience violence, especially in childhood, and have double the risk of experiencing PTSD as a result.
• Some of you may remember Ceara Sturgis, a Mississippi student whose school told her she could not wear a tuxedo for her yearbook photo. Now, the school has released its yearbook, and removed any mention of Ceara at all. Mike Jones at Change.org says this is one more reason we need to push for the Student Nondiscrimination Act that has been introduced into Congress.
• Parents of transgender people joined with state representatives and the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition (MTPC) at the Massachusetts State House this week to support the Transgender Civil Rights Bill.
• Mara Drummond at Bilerico explains why the argument that transgender people “confuse” kids is a red herring. What’s wrong with confusion in the classroom? she asks. Good question. As I’ve said before, and as others have said as well, a little confusion can be a learning experience.
• Chile’s gay rights group, MOVILH, sponsored the country’s first forum on “education and sexual diversity,” hosting teachers, secondary school and university students.

Politics

• The Louisiana Senate defeated a bill that would have allowed joint adoption by unmarried couples.
• A bill to regulate IVF in India could limit the growing number of male couples from Western countries hiring surrogates in India.

Entertainment and Sports

• Momlogic interviews Iron Chef and lesbian mom Cat Cora, who discusses the “controlled chaos” of life with four boys under six. One of her secrets? “I also have a wife,” she said. Sounds like she and spouse Jennifer have a good balance of duties, though, so I’ll take her comment as a subtle dig at those who assume every woman takes on the traditional role of wife and mother. We lesbians are free to mix it up a bit more. I fail to believe, though, that the “kid-friendly” recipe at the end of the article is really from Cora. Pancake mix? And a rotisserie chicken? Surely she would have made things from scratch, even if prepared in advance.
• Melissa Etheridge, who also has four kids, offers her own parenting advice to Babble. “Love and strong boundaries” are the key, she says.
• Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant, who was just drafted by the Dallas Cowboys, told The Dallas Morning News he still doesn’t like his mom being a lesbian, although “I dealt with it and now I’m comfortable with it.” Before we slam him for homophobia, I’ll just note that it is sometimes a very different family experience when parents come out after having kids than when they come out before starting a family. Not that any of the issues are insurmountable either way, but they are different. I’m sure some of you can speak to that better than I.

One is Steven Goldstein’s piece at Blue Jersey, which I mentioned in my Political Roundup this week. Steven is the chair of Garden State Equality, which is now on the front lines of the marriage equality battle. He tells us not of an organizational initiative, however, but a very personal conversation with a member of the Hasidim, the ultra-orthodox Jewish community. They were protesting GSE’s rally and lobby day for marriage equality—but the conversation is not what you’d expect.

The other piece is by actor and lesbian mom Cynthia Nixon at HuffPo. She writes of lobbying New York State Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson, who told her that she was going to vote “no” on marriage equality because of her deep religious belief that marriage should be between a man and a woman. Nixon writes that Hassell-Thompson nevertheless considered not only the opinions of the many constituents who contacted her, but also several very personal matters. In the end, Hassell-Thompson voted yes. I won’t spoil Nixon’s narrative by giving too many details here, but you should go read.

By pure coincidence, Helen and I spent Sunday assembling IKEA furniture for our son’s room (new desk and shelves), and then celebrated with several slices of their Tårta Mörk Choklad (with which I have developed a slight obsession). I feel some cosmic connection even though I am neither Swedish nor Lutheran.

• ABC News looks back at the history of the “gayby boom,” and how things have changed (and not) over the past 20 years. It’s a rather good mainstream article, with many quotes from teen and adult children of same-sex parents.
• Ten-year-old Sophie Brescia offers Bay Windows her perspective on having two moms and being one of two children the family adopted from China. It’s a must-read, and one to share with your kids if they are of similar age.
• Utrecht University graduate Maite Vermeulen gives her views on having two moms in the Netherlands.
• Comedian Wanda Sykes and her partner Alex take their new twins for a stroll.
• Two police officers from Southampton, U.K., are believed to be Britain’s first gay couple to father a baby. The sister of one of the men was their surrogate. She is still the only legal parent on the birth certificate; the men must now adopt the child.

Politics and Law

• Carlos A. Ball at HuffPo covers the Charisma R. and Kristina S. custody trial that I posted about a few weeks ago. He asks the very good question, “Why Is a Right-Wing Organization Representing Lesbian Mothers in Court?”
• The Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales criticized former priest Terry Prendergast, now the head of a marriage counseling charity partly funded by the Church, when he told a gathering of gay Roman Catholics that children of same-sex parents did not suffer in any way, and that same-sex families “should be held up as role models and an advert for Catholicism.”

Family Creation

• Are Swedish lesbians causing a run on sperm banks in their country? Apparently, because of the shortage, more Swedish women are inseminated in Danish fertility clinics than in Swedish ones. Makes sense to me: pop over to Denmark to get inseminated and stock up on Legos, then back home to the land of Ikea for furnishings. It’s almost everything a parent might need. (Well, okay, Legos and Ikea wares comprise about 90 percent of the non-book portion of our household, but maybe we’re not typical.)