#Metropolitan Community Church

[stanley578]

2023 Pride March in the Philippines

[walphs]

Believing Without Seeing

By Ralph R. Sarza

Original final script | April 23, 2023 Preaching for Open Table MCC | Gospel Reading: Luke 24:13-35

SA MISMONG ARAW NG MULING PAGKABUHAY NI HESUS, dalawa sa mga tagasunod Niya ang papunta sa Emmaus, isang komunidad na nasa labing-isang kilometero ang layo mula sa Jerusalem. Habang naglalakad sila at nag-uusap tungkol sa mga nangyari kay Kristo sa Jerusalem, they were interrupted by Jesus. Ang sabi ni Hesus, “Ano ang pinag-uusapan ninyo?”

Now, Luke states that the eyes of the disciples “were kept from recognizing Jesus.” Ibig sabihin, hindi si Hesus ang nakikita ng mga mata nila kundi isang estranghero.

Nakatayo lang yung dalawa, malungkot, at ang tanong ng isa sa kanila kay Hesus, “Ikaw lang ba ang nag-iisang estranghero sa Jerusalem na hindi alam kung ano ang mga naganap doon?” Now, this is actually a funny and ironic scene because, kung meron mang nakakaalam sa lahat ng mga bagay na nangyari sa Jerusalem, that was the stranger in front of them — that was Jesus.

So ang lola n’yo, patay-malisya: “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a PROPHET (emphasis sa PROPHET)… and how our chief priests and leaders handed Him over to be condemned to death and crucified him.”

I would like to emphasize the use of the word PROPHET, instead of MESSIAH, because it’s an implication that the two disciples had lost their faith in Jesus. In fact, sabi sa verse 21, “We had hoped that He was the one to redeem Israel.” HAD HOPED. Past perfect tense. Nawalan na nga sila ng pag-asa, nawalan pa sila ng pananampalataya.

And before I go on, I want to validate the disbelief of the two disciples. For indeed, we have witnessed numerous instances that have left us disenchanted and disheartened, ranging from the complexities of family dynamics, the intricacies of financial matters, and the often turbulent realm of Philippine politics.

LAST MONTH, sa loob lamang ng isang linggo, actually sa loob lamang ng dalawang magkasunod na araw, na-reject ako sa dalawang in-apply-an kong trabahong bet na bet ko talagang makuha. It was a humbling experience, it made me realize that I am not the best and the world doesn’t revolve around me, but it was also a very frustrating experience. Ang sakit kasi breadwinner ako, three years na kaming walang pay raise dahil sa ABS-CBN shutdown, at oras ang kalaban ko. I need a better-paying job, not today, not yesterday, but months ago.

At tulad ng “pagkabulag” ng dalawang tagasunod ni Hesus, nakakabulag din sa pananampalataya ko ang mga panahong frustrated ako, galit, malungkot, at talunan. “Bakit hindi ko maramdaman ang sinasabi nilang grasya ng Panginoon?” “Totoo ba ang ‘Jesus story,’ o inimbento lang ‘yan ng mga sinaunang tao para paniwalain ang mga sarili nilang may ‘forever’ after death?” “MAY DIYOS BA TALAGA?!”

In fact, nung may kinonsulta ako kay Pastor Joseph tungkol dun sa isang job application kung saan na-reject ako, I told him na nagiging agnostic na ako recently at nahihirapan akong magdasal.

Kapag napapagod na tayo sa buhay, kapag hindi natin nakukuha ang gusto natin, mas madaling sisihin ang universe o kuwestyunin ang existence ng Diyos dahil ‘yon ang mas convenient.

So the two disciples became doubtful after they learned that the body of Jesus was nowhere to be found: Verses 22-24: “Some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find His body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that JESUS WAS ALIVE. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Him.”

Sinabihan na silang JESUS WAS ALIVE, pero they still chose not to believe and just leave. So naimbyrena si Hesus at inawardan sila. Verse 25: “Then He said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into His glory?’”

So ang ginawa ni Hesus, “nagpa-Bible study” ng Old Testament para i-remind ang dalawa tungkol sa ugat ng pananampalataya nila. And that’s very noteworthy, kasi minsan, kumbaga sa halaman, ano ba ang pumipigil sa pag-blossom ng bulaklak? Baka naman hindi nakakakuha ng sapat na nutrients, so didiligan mo nang sapat at maayos ang mga ugat nito. Minsan, kapag nawawalan na tayo ng pananampalataya at pumupunta na lang tayo sa MCC para sa mga “baklaan” at hindi dahil kay Hesus, kailangan nating balikan ang ugat ng problema na tumulak sa’tin para maghanap ng espasyong tulad ng MCC. At ang ugat ng problema na ‘yon ay ang katotohanang hindi tayo binigyan ng dati nating mga Simbahan ng espasyo na maging Kristyano at queer at the same time.

Kaya tayo nandito sa MCC kasi kailangan natin ng chosen family na gagabay sa’tin para mag-blossom tayo by being our authentic self. Kaya tayo nandito kasi alam nating may potensyal tayong maging magagandang mga bulalak, at alam nating hindi tayo mamumukadkad habang nasa konserbatibong hardin tayo at ang pinandidilig nila sa’tin ay kung anu-anong mga kathang-isip na kasalanan.

Nung malapit na sila sa Emmaus, nagpatay-malisya ulit si Hesus, and He walked ahead as if He were going on. Pero pinigilan Siya ng dalawang desipulo. “Stay with us because the day is nearly over.” Sumama sa kanila si Hesus. No’ng nasa hapag na sila, kumuha si Hesus ng tinapay, binasbasan N’ya ito, biniyak, at inialay sa kanila. Pagkatapos ay namulat sila, nakilala nila si Hesus, at bigla Siyang naglaho sa kanilang paningin.

“Were not our hearts burning within us while He was talking to us on the road, while He was opening the scriptures to us?” That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem, and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and He has appeared to Simon!” Then they told what had happened on the road and how He had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

The story of the Road to Emmaus prompts us to contemplate the profound impact of encountering the risen Christ and underscores the importance of community in our personal journey of transformation. It reminds us to actively seek guidance and support from others and to remain receptive to the possibility of encountering the Divine in unexpected and unconventional ways.

Naramdaman ko noong nakaraang eleksyon ang frustration na naramdaman ng dalawang tagasunod ni Hesus. Alam ko ang pakiramdam ng magpakapagod para sa kinabukasan ng bansa, at ang mapangakuan ng pag-asa at makita itong maglaho na parang bula dahil sa maling pagpili ng mga taong biktima ng bulok na sistema at nilang mga namulat na sana ngunit mas piniling hindi makakita.

Nakakagalit. Nakapanghihinayang. Pero tulad ng nangyari sa Daan Patungong Emmaus, mga estrangehero rin ang nagpakita sa akin ng daan pabalik sa muling paniniwala at patungo sa panibagong pakikibaka. Mga estrangherong galing sa iba’t ibang karanasan at katayuan sa buhay, ngunit pinagbubuklod ng isang kulay — isang kulay na simbolo ng pag-asa, hustisya, at totoong pagbabago.

The story of the Road to Emmaus is a compelling reminder that the Resurrection of Jesus transcends mere historical significance, but rather represents an enduring invitation to encounter the Divine and undergo transformation. It enlightens us to the unpredictable ways in which the risen Christ can manifest in our lives, be it through chance encounters with strangers or through introspective reflection. Embracing this invitation sets us on a transformative journey of growth, change, and renewal, affording us the opportunity to flourish into a life imbued with deep meaning and purpose.

Finally, the story of the Road to Emmaus reminds us that, if we have unwavering faith in Jesus, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, not even death can make us part.

-30-

[gaynglican]

A meaningful transgender day of remembrance to my siblings

[mammonscheeks]

demon brothers + dateables as destinations in the human world

✎ a/n: these are my opinions! i'm south and west asian, so i am most knowlegeable about those countries, please correct me if i've said anything incorrect!

LUCIFER

new york city, usa. he likes the cold, industrial corporate feel of nyc. it helps him avoid his feelings.

anywhere in germany. he likes their no-nonsense culture and unspoken social rules.

MAMMON

las vegas, nevada, usa. he always begs mc to take him there. the flashy lights and casinos are right up his alley.

dubai, uae. he loves the luxurious feel of it, and how its the center of celebrity gatherings, vacations, and parties.

LEVIATHAN

tokyo, japan (especially the akihabara/electronic district). he's always updated on pop culture and the newest technology/games.

seychelles island, africa. he likes swimming, but not socializing on the beach. that's why he likes isolated islands.

SATAN

london, england. he's interested in their medival history and seeing the places that inspired novels like harry potter and the sherlock holmes franchise.

cat island in japan, or any mediterranean country where cats freely roam.

ASMODEUS

paris, france. he'd love paris fashion week. he also just seems french to me, idk.

seoul, south korea. he'd adore seoul's culture, everything from the modern sappy kdramas to traditional dresses, like hanbok. he would bring an empty suitcase to stuff it with beauty products.

BEELZEBUB

mumbai, india. this metropolitan city in india offers so many different kinds of food. he would love to eat his way through the city, if not the entire country.

every city in mexico. he'd try the regional cuisine, but also hang out at the beach with his brothers and mc (so cute).

BELPHEGOR

cairo, egypt. he was once fascinated with humans, and often watched them build civilizations from heaven when he was an angel. he would enjoy the historical wonders of egypt.

reykjavic, iceland. idk why he just gives me iceland vibes. life there can be slow and cold, and it often gets less light than other countries.

DIAVOLO

transylvania, romania. he loves its breathtaking castles and culture, and is intrigued with all the pop culture references of vampires.

petra, jordan. this is a significant place in abrahamic religions, known for being haunted by demons, or jinn. diavolo would be fascinated by this history, whether its actually haunted or not. i know he'd eat up those scary ghost tours (insert fic about that here) and even probably try and scare a few tourist groups, despite barbatos advising him against it.

BARBATOS

istanbul, turkiye. istanbul has well-maintained structures from the byzantine empire, the ottoman empire, and even "newer and hip" neighborhoods. barbatos, being able to see the past and future, would appreciate the blend of it all here, like he's walking through time.

kathmandu, nepal. he'd enjoy the peace of monasteries and mountains, which are as old as the earth itself.

SIMEON

tuscany, italy. he'd enjoy the vast fields, heavenly sunsets, small towns and historic churches. he would find tuscany a peaceful place to write, but appreciates the community feel of small italian towns. would definitely be so friendly he'd get invited to eat dinner at a random family's house.

thessaloniki, greece. he would absolutely love seeing all the greek orthodox churches there, with their blue and white colors and dome roofs. he is just amused to see the religious structures humans have created. he'd also probably be interested in greek mythology, even though he's an angel.

LUKE

cape town, south africa. he would be so excited to see penguins at the beach and would enjoy the burst of color south africa offers. he'd also enjoy the modern bakeries and desserts in south africa.

lyon, france. the country is known for desserts. luke would probably take a baking class there to learn how to bake more things.

SOLOMON

salem, or just any small town in massachusetts. as a sorcerer, he's intrigued with their history of "witch hunting" and the paranormal.

lalibela, ethiopia. being old, he's intrigued with how ancient cities like lalibela have changed since biblical times. he also probably enjoys learning about different cultural practices and what they have in common with his sorcery. he also wants to learn how to cook more dishes from different countries, but fails miserably

[pepperf]

Lawyers’ offices shut down, high street shops were boarded up, GP practices closed early and MPs were told to consider working from home as 41 of the 43 local police force areas in England and Wales braced for potential disorder. About 6,000 riot-trained officers were drafted in to tackle the expected rallies and an estimated 30 counter-protests after immigration law firms and refugee centres were listed as potential targets in a far-right chat group on the encrypted messaging app Telegram. But instead, thousands of counter-protesters took to the streets of Liverpool, Birmingham, Bristol, Brighton and London to protect their communities. At 7pm in Liverpool, hundreds of people formed a human shield outside a targeted church that hosts an immigration advice centre while women held banners saying: “Nans against Nazis”. Similar scenes were witnessed in the east London boroughs of Hackney and Walthamstow as thousands of local people and anti-fascist activists came together and held placards saying “we are one human race” and “unite against hate”. In Brighton, the handful of anti-immigration protesters who gathered outside a targeted law office were surrounded by police for their own protection after they were outnumbered by about 500 counter-protesters who chanted: “Off our streets, Nazi scum.” Later, the gathering took on a street carnival atmosphere with a samba band and loud singing. But tensions flared in Aldershot in Hampshire after a group chanting “stop the boats” clashed with protesters holding “stand up to racism” placards who had been chanting “refugees are welcome here”. Dozens of police officers rushed onto the road to stop the groups from getting too close to each other. There were also reported skirmishes in Blackpool. Northamptonshire police said three people had been arrested for public order offences in Northampton, and were in custody, and no members of the public or police had been injured. The Metropolitan police said eight people had been arrested in Croydon for assaulting emergency workers, possession of offensive weapons and other offences after about 50 people gathered “to cause disruption and fuel disorder”. “They’ve dragged and thrown objects down the road and thrown bottles at officers. This is not linked to protest, this appears to be pure anti-social behaviour,” the force added on X. But by 9pm few far-right protesters were seen at the alleged targeted sites, although counter-protests continued to grow. A police source with knowledge of law enforcement’s view of the national picture said “no significant public order issues” had been reported by mid-evening, with no known events where counter protesters and the far right had turned up at the same time. The source said: “It’s not looking as widespread as expected yet but still very early.” Some 15 events across England and Wales were known of by police, mostly involving counter protesters. It was believed some far right led gatherings were taking place, though on a much smaller scale than expected.

Keep racists afraid!

[workingclasshistory]

On this day, 24 June 1973, an arsonist ignited a fire that engulfed the LGBT+ bar called the Up Stairs Lounge in New Orleans, killing 32 people and injuring 15. The fire was the deadliest attack on a gay bar in American history prior to the 2016 Pulse Nightclub Massacre. In a city where LGBT+ culture was largely hidden, the Up Stairs Lounge was one of the few establishments catering to the gay community and one of the only gay bars that welcomed Black men and lesbians. On the fourth anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, patrons assembled at the bar for the weekly beer bust. Sixty-five people remained when Bartender Buddy Rasmussen heard the doorbell ring and asked friend Luther Boggs to answer it. As Luther opened the door, flames rushed into the lounge. Buddy led 20 survivors onto the roof of a nearby building while others unsuccessfully attempted to escape through barred windows. The fire department arrived at 7:58 and extinguished the fire quickly, but the powerful flames had already overpowered many patrons. Among the victims were 12 members of Metropolitan Community Church, the first church serving LGBT+ individuals. They included Rev. William "Bill" Larson, associate pastor Duane "Mitch" Mitchell, and Mitch's boyfriend Horace Broussard. Unlike other tragedies, the Up Stairs fire did not amass community support. Although newspapers reported the fire, journalists enflamed anti-gay sentiment by perpetuating vulgar rhetoric and harmful stereotypes. Articles painted the victims as "thieves, burglars, and queers," while other reports named the tragedy a "fruit fry." Eyewitnesses told author Johnny Townsend that they overheard either police or firefighters saying: "Let the f*****s burn". No formal memorials were planned, and churches refused to provide services. This reaction galvanised the New Orleans' LGBT+ community to organise for gay rights as they mourned those who died in the tragic fire. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=649971757176043&set=a.602588028581083&type=3

[tim-ee-sis]

6. (If you're out) do you wish you came out sooner? Later? or was it the right time? 19. Do you feel safe and accepted in your local community? 32. Do you do arts and crafts? Post a pic of a project you've done:

(If you're out) do you wish you came out sooner? Later? or was it the right time?

Because of where I went to school, I think coming out earlier would have been very difficult, and I was the "perfect little Christian church piano player" so I had some other mental battles to accept myself being gay before coming out.

Do you feel safe and accepted in your local community?

Largely yes! I live in a larger metropolitan city in the Midwest, but I haven't experienced any overt homophobia.

Do you do arts and crafts? Post a pic of a project you've done:

I like legos 🤗

[orthopunkfox]

I'm a seminarian!!!

Hey friends, I've kept a pretty tight lid on this until all the ducks were in a row, but I have some exciting news. I have been accepted as a postulant for Holy Orders in The Convergent Catholic Connexion of Saint Maria Skobtsova, an inclusive and affirming faith community practicing in the Eastern Orthodox tradition.

My sincerest thanks go to my spiritual director, my sponsors, my bishop, and Metropolitan for supporting me and affirming my call to ministry. Those of you who know me well know this has been a long and complex journey, but such is the will of God. That said, God willing, I will be a priest in Christ's Holy Apostolic Church. For friends who pray, I covet your prayers. For those who do not, I cherish your good thoughts and well-wishes. I am beyond excited to step into this new journey and I cannot wait to continue ministering to my queer siblings of faith.

εἰρήνη ὑμῖν, peace be with you!

[inkcurlsandknives]

Pride History Trivia

The Philippines made Pride History by hosting the first LGBT Pride March in Asia, June 26th 1994 Thirty Years Ago!

This event was organized by the Progressive Organization of Gays in the Philippines (PROGAY Philippines) and the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) Manila. The march was small in number, with 60 participants in fact. As they marched from EDSA at Quezon Avenue to Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City

I love that my queer filipino fantasy will be coming out just one day before the 30th anniversary of this remarkable pride march

Share this post! Preorder your copy today! Buy link: https://linktr.ee/gabriellabuba

Head to gabriellabuba.com to find more fun pride events coming up on the #SaintsOfStormAndSorrowPrideAdventCalendar to celebrate the Launch of my debut novel Saints of Storm and Sorrow coming out June 25th with @titanbooks

In this an enthralling Filipino-inspired queer epic fantasy, a nun concealing a goddess-given gift is unwillingly transformed into a lightning rod for her people's struggle against colonization. For fans of R.F. Kuang, Tasha Suri, and The Hurricane War.

[ohsalome]

The Glazyev tapes were first made public by Ukraine’s SBU [Security Service] in August 2016, with more recordings revealed during the trial (in absentia) of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.  They appear to be intercepted telephone conversations between Sergei Glazyev, a senior adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin and various other figures, including Konstantin Zatulin, Director of the Russian Institute of CIS Countries who was declared persona non grata in Ukraine back in 2006 for activities linked with seeking Crimea’s secession from Ukraine.

The tapes unfortunately cover only a very small period of time – from 27 February to 3  March 2014.  It is, however, very clear even from the conversations intercepted on those days that Glazyev and Zatulin were “financing” supposedly separatist protests in Crimea, Kharkiv, Odesa and Zaporizhya. The amounts of money mentioned are high enough to mean that this was no private venture on Glazyev’s part and easily enough to ensure a considerable number of paid ‘pro-Russian protesters’.  It is equally evident that certain Ukrainian politicians (Vadim Kolesnichenko; Oleg Tsarev; Viktor Medvedchuk and Serhiy Kivalov), as well as one religious figure (Metropolitan Agafangel from the Orthodox Church under the Moscow Patriarchate) were, at very least, seen as allies.   

On 27 February, for example, Zatulin mentions to Glazyev that he has already spent 25 thousand dollars, and that he needs a further fifty thousand by the next day.  The money seems earmarked not only for Crimea, but for paying people in Kharkiv and Odesa.

Later that day, Zatulin reports that “we have financed Kharkiv, financed Odesa”.  There are ‘applications’ from other regions, he adds, but that he’s put them on hold while the question of finance is resolved.

With regard to Crimea, Zatulin mentions that there are about six thousand people with Russian flags, and a few ‘talking heads’, but that two prominent pro-Russian politicians Sergei Aksyonov and Sergei Tskekov are nowhere to be seen.  Glazyev uses vulgar language, adding: “and we fed them so much”.  In the following conversation, it becomes clear that Glazyev does not support Aksyonov’s supposed ‘election’ as Crimean ‘leader’ on the afternoon of 27 February.

Of those six thousand pro-Russian demonstrators, it is likely that many were the ones brought in by coaches for a counter-demonstration to the 10 thousand-strong demonstration organized by the Mejlis (representative assembly) of the Crimean Tatar People on 26 February.  It was that demonstration which almost certainly preventedv Russia’s plan of carrying off an apparently ‘parliamentary’ coup with pro-Russian politicians forcing through a ‘vote’ to change Crimea’s status.

One of the key ideas that Glazyev pushes during his conversations is that all ‘uprisings’ must appear to be from the local population. This had been the plan in Crimea on 26 February that the Crimean Tatars and other Ukrainians who gathered in support of Ukraine’s unity thwarted. The tapes show that the same attempts were planned in Odesa and Zaporizhya.

[officiallordvetinari]

I know you've all been waiting eagerly for it, and here it is: the first Wikipedia poll of the new year! Links and summaries below the cut as always.

On 29 September 1940, a mid-air collision occurred over Brocklesby, New South Wales, Australia. The accident was unusual in that the aircraft involved, two Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Avro Ansons of No. 2 Service Flying Training School, remained locked together after colliding, and then landed safely.

On 11 May 1812, at about 5:15 pm, Spencer Perceval, the prime minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, was shot dead in the lobby of the House of Commons by John Bellingham, a Liverpool merchant with a grievance against the government. Bellingham was detained; four days after the murder, he was tried, convicted and sentenced to death.

The Dorset Ooser (/ˈoʊsər/) is a wooden head that featured in the 19th-century folk culture of Melbury Osmond, a village in the southwestern English county of Dorset. The head was hollow, thus perhaps serving as a mask, and included a humanoid face with horns, a beard, and a hinged jaw which allowed the mouth to open and close.

The Ediacaran (/ˌiːdiˈækərən/; formerly Vendian) biota is a taxonomic period classification that consists of all life forms that were present on Earth during the Ediacaran Period (c. 635–538.8 Mya). These were enigmatic tubular and frond-shaped, mostly sessile, organisms. Trace fossils of these organisms have been found worldwide, and represent the earliest known complex multicellular organisms.

John Rykener, also known as Eleanor, was a 14th-century sex worker arrested in December 1394 for performing a sex act with John Britby, a man who was a former chaplain of the St Margaret Pattens church, in London's Cheapside while wearing female attire. Although historians tentatively link Rykener, who was male, to a prisoner of the same name, the only known facts of the sex worker's life come from an interrogation made by the mayor of London.

Norwich Market (also known as Norwich Provision Market) is an outdoor market consisting of around 200 stalls in central Norwich, England. Founded in the latter part of the 11th century to supply Norman merchants and settlers moving to the area following the Norman conquest of England, it replaced an earlier market a short distance away. It has been in operation on the present site for over 900 years.

Olive Elaine Morris (26 June 1952 – 12 July 1979) was a Jamaican-born British-based community leader and activist in the feminist, black nationalist, and squatters' rights campaigns of the 1970s. At the age of 17, she claimed she was assaulted by Metropolitan Police officers following an incident involving a Nigerian diplomat in Brixton, South London. She joined the British Black Panthers, becoming a Marxist–Leninist communist and a radical feminist.

Paul Palaiologos Tagaris (Greek: Παῦλος Παλαιολόγος Τάγαρις, c. 1320/1340 – after 1394) was a Byzantine Greek monk and impostor. A scion of the Tagaris family, Paul also claimed a somewhat dubious connection with the Palaiologos dynasty that ruled the Byzantine Empire at the time. He fled his marriage as a teenager and became a monk, but soon his fraudulent practices embroiled him in scandal.

The Royal baccarat scandal, also known as the Tranby Croft affair, was a British gambling scandal of the late 19th century involving the Prince of Wales—the future King Edward VII. The scandal started during a house party in September 1890, when Sir William Gordon-Cumming, a lieutenant colonel in the Scots Guards, was accused of cheating at baccarat.

In a protracted conflict during the Spanish colonization of the Americas, Spanish colonisers gradually incorporated the territory that became the modern country of Guatemala into the colonial Viceroyalty of New Spain. Before the conquest, this territory contained a number of competing Mesoamerican kingdoms, the majority of which were Maya.

[californiastatelibrary]

Reverend Troy D. Perry, LGBTQ+ activist and founder of the Metropolitan Community Church in 1968, spoke at three churches as shown in this "Spiritual Renewal '71" flyer. This historical document, from the California History Section, highlights the early efforts to create affirming spiritual spaces for the LGBTQ+ community.

[lboogie1906]

Seaman Reby Cary (September 9, 1920 - December 7, 2018) educator, community activist, politician, entrepreneur, and WWII veteran he was born in Fort Worth to Reverend Smith and Maggie B. Cary. He has a BA in History from Prairie View A&M College. He completed the requirements for his MA in history but WWII interrupted his studies. He returned to Prairie View and completed his MA.

He enlisted in the Coast Guard, becoming one of the first African Americans to be commissioned in the ranks of apprentice seaman. He became a Radioman Second Class and was assigned to the USS Cambria. He noted that thousands of other Black women and men in WWII still had to ride on segregated trains.

He found that vocational training programs for veterans were restricted to white former servicemen only. He co-founded the McDonald College of Industrial Arts for African Americans

He was a counselor and history/government instructor at Dunbar Middle School. He became an assistant professor of history at Tarrant County Junior College and became the first Black professor hired at the University of Texas at Arlington. He led a successful crusade to remove Confederate symbols from the UTA campus.

He established a successful real estate company. He was a noted local historian who authored several books on African American history in North Texas.

He became the first African American elected to the Fort Worth School Board. He ran for the Texas State Legislature, becoming the first State Representative elected in District 95. He introduced the bill to create the Texas Commission on Human Rights to fight racial discrimination across the state. He became a Republican.

He was a member of New Rising Star Baptist Church and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. He served the Boy Scouts of America, the United Way, and the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce.

He married Nadine Spencer Cary (1945-2013). #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence #alphaphialpha

[orthodoxydaily]

SAINTS&READING: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2024

november 8_november 18

St TIKKON'S ELECTION, ENTHRONEMENT (1917)

In 2017, we mark the centennial anniversary of the tumultuous events that would radically alter the historical course of the Orthodox Church worldwide, particularly in Russia and North America. The main cataclysmic event precipitating these changes was the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia in late 1917.

The key historical figure for Church life in North America and Russia at this time was Saint Tikhon, Patriarch and Confessor of Moscow, Enlightener of North America.  He tirelessly traveled throughout the continent during his arch pastorate in North America from 1898 to 1907. He always met with local clergy and laity to discuss the most pressing issues of Church life.  Out of these gatherings arose the idea of an assembly of clergy and laity from throughout the North American diocese.  Held in 1907, this assembly, later known as the First All-American Church Sobor (Council), focused its deliberations on the theme “How to Expand the Mission” and made crucial decisions regarding the administration.  This Council was the prototype for the All-American Councils, which continue to be regularly convened as the highest legislative and administrative authority within the Orthodox Church in America.  Saint Tikhon also laid out a vision for a local, administratively united, autocephalous Orthodox Church in America ministering to all ethnicities.  For a decade after Saint Tikhon’s departure to Russia, only the Russian Church had hierarchies in North America.  It was, in part, the events of 1917 in Russia that led to the appointment of hierarchs from other Orthodox Churches throughout the world to North America and the establishment of the various jurisdictions that exist today. While the administrative unity of all the Orthodox in North America has yet to be achieved, various efforts have been made towards this goal, and the Orthodox Church in America remains steadfast in embracing Saint Tikhon’s vision of unity.

The events of 1917 also would soon create dire consequences for the Church in North America.  Communication between Russia's North American Church and Church authorities became extremely difficult and even impossible.  Funding for the Church in North America from Russia was cut off.  The North American Church was left to govern itself.  The Second All-American Sobor was convened in 1919 to elect a new ruling hierarchy for the North American Diocese.  This election of Archbishop Alexander [Nemolovsky] was subsequently confirmed by Saint Tikhon, as was the election of Metropolitan Platon [Rozhdestvensky] three years later.  Saint Tikhon continued to take a keen interest in the life of his former diocese in North America and provided fatherly direction to the North American Church to the extent that circumstances would allow.

The oppressive burdens of patriarchal ministry under the totalitarian Soviet regime undermined the health of Saint Tikhon, and he reposed in the Lord at the age of 60 on March 25/April 7, 1925.  It is significant to note that despite controversies and divisions that enveloped the Church in the 20th century, Saint Tikhon was the one uniting figure who was considered irreproachable; he was respected and venerated by all sides.  He was glorified among the saints by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia [ROCOR] in 1981.  During the Millennium celebrations of the Russian Orthodox Church held in Moscow in 1988, Metropolitan Theodosius, Primate of the Orthodox Church in America, in an address to the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, urged the Russian Church to officially recognize Patriarch Tikhon as a saint.  Some in Russia, including hierarchs, criticized Metropolitan Theodosius for this public pronouncement, because they felt that the mere mention at that time of the possible glorification of Saint Tikhon by the Moscow Patriarchate could be perilous for the Church in the Soviet Union.  However, less than 18 months later—in October 1989—conditions for the Church in Russia had changed and Saint Tikhon’s glorification took place in Moscow.

May the example of Saint Tikhon’s holy life and vision continue to guide the Church in the 21st century.

O Holy Father Tikhon, pray unto God for us!

MARTYRS GALACTEON AND HIS WIFE EPISTEME AT EMESA (253).

There was a rich and distinguished couple named Kletophon and Leukippe who lived in the Syrian city of Emesa. For a long time, they were childless. They gave much gold to the pagan priests, but they remained childless.

The city of Emesa was governed by a Syrian named Secundus, put there by the Roman Caesars. He was a merciless and zealous persecutor of Christians, and to intimidate them he ordered that the instruments of torture be displayed on the streets. The slightest suspicion of belonging to “the sect of the Galilean” (as thus Christians were called by the pagans), was enough to get a man arrested and handed over for torture. In spite of this, many Christians voluntarily surrendered themselves into the hands of the executioners, in their desire to suffer for Christ.

A certain old man by the name of Onuphrius concealed his monastic and priestly dignity beneath his beggar’s rags. He walked from house to house in Emesa, begging alms. At the same time, whenever he saw the possibility of turning people away from the pagan error, he preached about Christ.

Once, he came to the magnificent house of Leukippe. Accepting alms from her, he sensed that the woman was in sorrow, and he asked what was the cause of this sadness. She told the Elder about her familial misfortune. In consoling her, Onuphrius began to tell her about the one true God, about His omnipotence and mercy, and how He always grants the prayer of those turning to Him with faith. Hope filled the soul of Leukippe. She believed and accepted Holy Baptism. Soon after this it was revealed to her in a dream that she would give birth to a son, who would be a true follower of Christ. At first, Leukippe concealed her delight from her husband, but after the infant was born, she revealed the secret to her husband and also persuaded him to be baptized.

They named the baby Galaction and his parents raised him in the Christian Faith and provided him a fine education. He could make an illustrious career for himself, but Galaction sought rather an unsullied monastic life in solitude and prayer.

When Galaction turned twenty-four, his father resolved to marry him off and they found him a bride, a beautiful and illustrious girl by the name of Episteme. The son did not oppose the will of his father, but by the will of God, the wedding was postponed for a time. Visiting his betrothed, Galaction gradually revealed his faith to her. Eventually, he converted her to Christ and he secretly baptized her himself.

Besides Episteme he baptized also one of her servants, Eutolmius. The newly-illumined decided on the initiative of Galaction, to devote themselves to the monastic life. Leaving the city, they hid themselves away on Mount Publion, where there were two monasteries, one for men and the other for women. The new monastics had to take with them all the necessities for physical toil, since the inhabitants of both monasteries were both old and infirm.

For several years the monastics struggled in work, fasting and prayer. Once, Episteme had a vision in her sleep: she and Galaction stood in a wondrous palace before a radiant King, and the King bestowed golden crowns on them. This was a prefiguring of their impending martyrdom.

The pagans became aware of the existence of the monasteries, and a military detachment was sent to apprehend their inhabitants. But the monks and the nuns succeeded in hiding themselves in the hills. Galaction, however, had no desire to flee and so he remained in his cell, reading Holy Scripture. When Episteme saw that the soldiers were leading Galaction away in chains, she began to implore the Abbess to permit her to go also, since she wanted to accept torture for Christ together with her fiancé and teacher. The Abbess tearfully blessed Episteme to do so.

The saints endured terrible torments, while supplicating and glorifying Christ. Their hands and legs were cut off, their tongues were cut out, and then they were beheaded.

Eutolmius, the former servant of Episteme and who had become her brother in Christ and fellow ascetic in monastic struggles, secretly buried the bodies of the holy martyrs. He later wrote an account of their virtuous life and glorious martyrdom for his contemporaries and posterity.

Source (all texts): Orthodox Church in America_OCA

Colossians 2:13-20

13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. 16 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, 17 which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ. 18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God. 20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations-

Luke 12:13-15, 22-31

13 Then one from the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me." 14 But He said to him, "Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?" 15 And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses."

22 Then He said to His disciples, "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on. 23 Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. 24 Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds? 25 And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 26 If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest? 27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith? 29 And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. 30 For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. 31 But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.