University Of San Diego Bars Brit For Gay Marriage Support

A few weeks ago, British theologian Tina Beattie joined about two dozen other Catholics in signed a letter published in The Times of London in which they support marriage equality.

"[It is] perfectly proper for Catholics, using fully informed consciences, to support the legal extension of civil marriage to same-sex couples," that pro-equality letter read.

Mary Lyons, president of the University of San Diego, disagrees with Beattie's stance and last week notified Beattie (pictured) that her fellowship at the school's Frances G. Harpst Center of Catholic Thought and Culture had been canceled because Beattie "dissented publicly" against official Catholic Church position.

From that letter:

[The Center is] to provide opportunities to engage the Catholic intellectual tradition in its diverse embodiments: doctrinal, spiritual, moral, literary, artistic and social. This would include clear and consistent presentations concerning the Church's moral teachers, teachings with which you, as a Catholic theologian, dissent publicly.

In light of the contradiction between the mission of the Center and your own public stances as a Catholic theologian, I regretfully rescind the invitation that has been extended to you.

Beattie petitioned Lyons for a reconsideration but was turned down. On her blog, Marginal Musings, she points the finger not only at Lyons, but at Catholic bloggers who began a campaign against her:

I do not know the exact reasons for the cancellation of my visit, but I have been the target of a blog campaign in recent weeks, which began with a concerted endeavour to have a lecture by me at Clifton Cathedral in Bristol cancelled.
…
The cancellation of my visit is not the most important issue in all this. The real issues are academic freedom, the vocation of lay theologians in relation to the official magisterium, and the power of a hostile minority of bloggers (some of whom are ordained deacons and priests) to command the attention and support of the [Catholic doctrine overseer Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith]. The latter is the most sinister development of all, and it is a cause for scandal which brings the Church into disrepute.

According to ABC News, Gerard Mannion, director of the Center of Catholic Thought and Culture , was not consulted before Beattie was given the boot, and says he's "very surprised, shocked and deeply disappointed". Other faculty and students at the private Catholic university plan on holding a protest against Lyons and her knee-jerk decision.

George Takei's Big Weekend: VIDEO

Congrats to the fabulous gay man, excellent actor, hilarious Facebook photo-poster, and all-around mensch George Takei on his big weekend. Not only is today the 46th birthday of Star Trek -- the show on which Takei became famous as Mr. Sulu, maybe the first heroic TV role ever given to a Japanese American -- but this is also the first weekend of previews for Allegiance, a new musical by Jay Kuo, Marc Acito, and Lorenzo Thione, in which George Takei stars at San Diego's Old Globe Theatre.

From the Old Globe's website:

Allegiance is an epic story of family, love and patriotism set during the Japanese American internment of World War II. Sixty years after the attack on Pearl Harbor, a chance meeting forces WWII veteran Sam Kimura (television and film star George Takei) to remember his family's relocation from their California farm to the Heart Mountain internment camp. As they struggle to adjust to their new home, Young Sam (Telly Leung – Godspell, "Glee") and his sister Kei (Lea Salonga, Tony Award winner for Miss Saigon) find themselves torn between loyalty to their family and allegiance to their country. With its moving score, ALLEGIANCE takes audiences on a journey into our nation's history through the eyes of one American family.

As it happens, Mr. Takei spent a portion of his childhood in one of the United States' Japanese internment camps. Here you can hear him discuss the experience on PRI's The World. And AFTER THE JUMP, you can hear one of Allegiance's songs and view some photos from rehearsal.

Allegiance officially opens at the Old Globe on September 19th.

SF Archbishop's Mom Talks About His DUI, 'The Gays': VIDEO

San Diego's CBS affiliate caught up with the mother of Oakland Bishop Salvatore Cordileone, who was arrested for drunk driving in San Diego over the weekend. Mama Cordileone says that people just kept filling up the 'Father of Prop 8's' glass.

The newly appointed SF Archbishop, Cordileone released a statement:

While visiting in San Diego this past weekend, I had dinner at the home of some friends along with a priest friend visiting from outside the country and my mother, who lives near San  Diego State University. While driving my mother home, I passed through a DUI checkpoint the police had set up near the SDSU campus before I reached her home, and was found to be over the California legal blood alcohol level.

"I apologize for my error in judgment and feel shame for the disgrace I have brought upon the Church and myself. I will repay my debt to society and I ask forgiveness from my family and my friends and co-workers at the Diocese of Oakland and the Archdiocese of San Francisco.  I pray that God, in His inscrutable wisdom, will bring some good out of this."

Cordileone's mother hopes he'll be successful in San Francisco, where "the gays" are very active.

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

Newly-Appointed SF Archbishop, 'Father of Prop 8', Arrested in San Diego DUI

Oakland Bishop Salvatore Cordileone, who was recently named by Pope Benedict as the new Archbishop of San Francisco and a central strategist in the campaign to pass Proposition 8 in California, was arrested for driving under the influence, the San Diego Union Tribune reports:

Bishop Salvatore J. Cordileone, 56, who was appointed archbishop in July, was taken into custody Saturday at 12:26 a.m. after being stopped on College Avenue near Montezuma Road, police said. Cordileone, who is a San Diego native, was booked into county jail on a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence and later posted bail...he Archdiocese of San Francisco has not returned a call asking for comment on the arrest.

In June,  Cordileone attempted to force a LGBT Catholic group to sign an oath of integrity which included remaining celibate.

Gay Bishop Gene Robinson to Attend 'Gay Marriage Summit' at San Diego Megachurch: VIDEO

A San Diego megachurch is holding a summit on same-sex marriage today in an attempt to ratchet down the rhetoric, the Union Tribune reports:

Pastor Jim Garlow is promising something different as he welcomes several notable figures to his Rancho San Diego megachurch, including Gene Robinson, the first openly gay person to serve as a bishop of a major Christian domination.

“I feel like there’s way too much misunderstanding and way too much name-calling on this issue and not enough civil, respectful dialogue,” Garlow said.

The setting is not exactly neutral territory. Garlow helped spearhead the passage of Proposition 8, the 2008 ballot measure that blocked same-sex unions in California. His evangelical church, Skyline, is widely known for its social conservatism.

Robinson applauded Garlow's move: "I think the real goal is not to change other people’s minds, but to show that people with opposing views can have a civil dialogue."

Earlier this year, Garlow warned that gay marriage "may cost us our lives." Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

Republican Lawmakers Rip Pentagon for Allowing Troops to March in Uniform in Gay Pride Parade

Two senior Republicans on the House and Senate Armed Services committees are incensed that the Pentagon granted a special one-time dispensation to troops allowing them to march in uniform in the San Diego Gay Pride Parade, The Hill reports:

Said Rep. Randy Forbes (R-VA) in a statement:

I am calling on the DoD to halt these dangerous exceptions to policy for political purposes. This decision was an outrageous and blatantly political determination issued solely to advance this Administration’s social agenda. Sadly, this is yet another violation in what has become a pattern of this Administration’s assault on the longstanding history of the Department of Defense as a nonpolitical organization.

Rep. James Inhofe (R-OK) is also incensed and wrote a letter to Defense Secretary Leon Panetta:

"If the Navy can punish a chaplain for participating in a pro-life event or a Marine participating in a political rally, it stands to reason that DOD should maintain the same standard and preclude service members in uniform from marching in a gay-pride parade. I respectfully request a detailed explanation of the rationale you used to grant this ‘one-time waiver’ of DOD policy, who requested the waiver, why this waiver was considered justified over other requests, and whether you are considering other exceptions to current policy.”

Watch troops discuss what marching in uniform meant to them HERE.