Date: Thu, 03 Feb 2000 16:45:21 -0800 From: Jean Richter Subject: 2/3/2000 P.E.R.S.O.N. Project news, pt. 2 1. CT: Conference on sexual orientation and Christianity ============================================================ X-Sender: cf59@cf59.mail.yale.edu Date: Sat, 29 Jan 2000 00:42:14 -0500 From: Chong-Hao Fu Subject: Announcement chong-hao fu publicity coordinator Opening Doors PO Box 206161 New Haven, CT 06520 203-436-8018 openingdoors@yale.edu www.yale.edu/openingdoors **************************** PRESS RELEASE Symposium to Widen Debate on Sexual Orientation and Christianity The relationship between Sexual Orientation and Christianity ranks among the "hottest" topics in our culture today. The intensity of the controversy on this issue is in some ways not surprising; after all, both religion and sexual orientation lie at the core of human identity. Unfortunately, many of the most strident voices in this debate are ones that stifle true dialogue with intolerance and brash condemnation. A group of students at Yale University intends to begin changing the polarity of this debate. They have planned and launched Opening Doors: Entering a Conversation On Sexual Orientation and Christianity, a symposium which invites participants to enter into a dialogue that will aim to question assumed divisions and increase interaction between Christian communities and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered (LGBT) communities. This precedent-setting event will take the form of a series of keynote addresses, panel discussions, and small group conversations spread over four weeks. The speakers include nationally known church and political leaders, lawyers and professors, as well as individuals whose lives have been affected in profound ways by this controversy. In addition, participants will be invited to attend ecumenical prayer services and concert performances. The discussions for the week of February 4th will focus on "Dispelling the Myths: Prejudices and Stereotypes among Christian and LGBT communities." Leading the panel discussion will be Troy Perry, founder of the Metropolitan Community Church (the only nation-wide church whose focus is ministering to LGBT communities). Also included on the panel will be Steven Charleston, president and dean of Episcopal Divinity School and Irene Monroe, of Harvard Divinity School, and Jane Ralph, Educational Services Manager of The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD). The panel discussion will take place at 3:00 pm at Linsey-Chittenden Hall on the Yale University campus and is free and open to the public. The week of February 11th, the topic considered will be "Faith in Practice: Historical and Contemporary Trends in Christianity" with Father Robert Nugent, from Dignity, which works toward the inclusion of LGBT persons in the Catholic Church and Dale Martin, Professor of Religion at Yale University. On February 18th, Rich Tafel, founder of the Log Cabin Republicans, a group of LGBT and LGBT-supporting Republicans, will speak on "Confrontation and Collaboration: Christianity and Sexual Orientation in the Political Sphere." The series will conclude on February 25th by addressing the issues of "Theology and Legality: Same-Sex Marriage, Family and Adoption" and will feature a keynote address by Jimmy Creech, a former Methodist minister who has drawn national attention for performing same-sex unions. A panel discussion on legal, personal, and theological perspectives will follow including Maureen Murphy, a New Haven lawyer dealing with gay and lesbian issues, John Allen, founder of the New Haven Gay and Lesbian Community Center, and Mark McCormick, lawyer and parent in a same-sex union. Opening Doors is generously funded by the Knutson Foundation, Yale Religious Ministry, Yale Lutheran Campus Ministries and other organizations. For the past year, Yale undergraduates, graduate students from the Yale Divinity School and School of Management and Yale Faculty have worked together to plan this event and gather resources to help other college communities stage similar conferences in the future. This commitment to the future is in line with the ultimate goal of the Opening Doors Symposium: to motivate people of all faiths and sexual orientations beyond reflection to focused action that fosters inclusivity, acceptance and respect. For more information, please contact: Opening Doors PO Box 206161 New Haven, CT 06520 203-436-8018 openingdoors@yale.edu www.yale.edu/openingdoors =============================================================================== Jean Richter -- richter@eecs.berkeley.edu The P.E.R.S.O.N. Project (Public Education Regarding Sexual Orientation Nationally) These messages are archived by state on our information-loaded free web site: http://www.youth.org/loco/PERSONProject/