Natural Law, Natural Families: Acquiring Manly Virtue

Gay men in the modern Western world are accustomed to accusations a homoerotic orientation is seen as effeminate, sissyish. This is a complete myth, as is easily shown by the many counterexamples from the butch, bear and leather-oriented sub-groups that co-exist with the more camp and drag groups. The words "gay male" cover an astonishing degree of diversity. Still, stereotypes persist. Sometimes, though, they are not what we would expect.

In classical Greece and in Tokugawa Japan, same sex lovers were especially associated with courage and with military prowess. Elsewhere, the important virtues of "courage, proficiency in hunting, and the ability to dominate women" were so closely identified with masculinity that they were routinely passed on to young boys in the most direct way possible - by direct transfer from older males to younger in pure male essence - in semen, by anal or oral sexual intercourse.

This is from David F Greenberg , "The Construction of Homosexuality":

“The homosexual practices are justified by the belief that a boy will not mature physically unless semen is implanted in his body by an adult. Valued male qualities, such as courage, proficiency in hunting, and the ability to dominate women, are transmitted in the same way. Repeated intercourse builds up a supply of the vital substance in the boy’s body.”

But, says Greenberg, intercourse with women is believed to be debilitating. While this pattern of childhood homosexuality is found in a minority of Guinean societies, where it was recorded, it was obligatory for all. From a remarkably early age (sometimes as young as seven, sometimes ten or twelve), boys learnt to accept the all-important semen from an older age group. As they matured, these boys in turn would pass on their own semen to those younger than they. Not until they were fully mature were they permitted intercourse with women – by which time, presumably they were strong enough to withstand the debilitating effects of the experience.

The semen was transmitted in different ways: sometimes by anal intercourse, sometimes orally – or even by insertion into special incisions in the skin. In these cases, the semen was obtained from the older men, following special ritual intercourse with women.

The practice of passing on of manly virtue or other skills by donating semen was not restricted to New Guinea, although it was most widely studied and recorded there. In some Australian aboriginal groups, such as the Bora of the Kimberley region, drinking semen formed a part of intitiation rites. In Brazil, apprentice healers learned their skills from older, experienced healers - and did so by "sexual communication". In parts of northern Morocco, an important skill for young boys was the ability to learn the Koran, but they believed this was impossible until they had first been penetrated. The ability to learn the Koran was passed on to the new generation in the semen of their elders. 

So - who's the sissy, then?

See also:

Gay Soldiers at the Foundation of Democracy

Epimondas: Military Hero, Gay

Gays in the Military: Japan

Books:

Naphy, William: Born to be Gay

Greenberg, David F: The Construction of Homosexuality

Herdt, Gilbert H: Same Sex, Different Cultures

Murray, Stephen O: Homosexualities

Natural Families: Acquiring Manly Virtue

Gay men in the modern Western world are accustomed to accusations a homoerotic orientation is seen as effeminate, sissyish. This is a complete myth, as is easily shown by the many counterexamples from the butch, bear and leather-oriented sub-groups that co-exist with the more camp and drag groups. The words "gay male" cover an astonishing degree of diversity. Still, stereotypes persist. Sometimes, though, they are not what we would expect.

In classical Greece and in Tokugawa Japan, same sex lovers were especially associated with courage and with military prowess. Elsewhere, the important virtues of "courage, proficiency in hunting, and the ability to dominate women" were so closely identified with masculinity that they were routinely passed on to young boys in the most direct way possible - by direct transfer from older males to younger in pure male essence - in semen, by anal or oral sexual intercourse.

This is from David F Greenberg , "The Construction of Homosexuality":

“The homosexual practices are justified by the belief that a boy will not mature physically unless semen is implanted in his body by an adult. Valued male qualities, such as courage, proficiency in hunting, and the ability to dominate women, are transmitted in the same way. Repeated intercourse builds up a supply of the vital substance in the boy’s body.”

But, says Greenberg, intercourse with women is believed to be debilitating.  While this pattern of childhood homosexuality is found in a minority of Guinean societies, where it was recorded, it was obligatory for all.   From a remarkably early age (sometimes as young as seven, sometimes ten or twelve), boys learnt to accept the all-important semen from an older age group.  As they matured, these boys in turn would pass on their own semen to those younger than they.  Not until they were fully mature were they permitted intercourse with women – by which time, presumably they were strong enough to withstand the debilitating effects of the experience.

The semen was transmitted in different ways: sometimes by anal intercourse, sometimes orally – or even by insertion into special incisions in the skin. In these cases, the semen was obtained from the older men, following special ritual intercourse with women.

The practice of passing on of manly virtue or other skills by donating semen was not restricted to New Guinea, although it was most widely studied  and recorded there.

In some Australian aboriginal groups, such as the Bora of the Kimberley region, drinking semen formed a part of intitiation rites.

In Brazil, apprentice healers learned their skills from older, experienced healers - and did so by "sexual communication".

In parts of northern Morocco,  an important skill for young boys was the ability to learn the Koran, but they believed this was impossible until they had first been penetrated. The ability to learn the Koran was passed on to the new generation  in the semen of their elders.

So - who's the sissy, then?

See also:

Gay Soldiers at the Foundation of Democracy

Epimondas: Military Hero, Gay

Gays in the Military: Japan

Books: Naphy, William: Born to be Gay Greenberg, David F: The Construction of Homosexuality Herdt, Gilbert H: Same Sex, Different Cultures Murray, Stephen O: Homosexualities

Natural Law, Natural Families

When I first put down some thoughts on sexual ethics here and at "The Open Tabernacle", it was quite specifically intended as simply a collection of principles that I have put together for myself, rather than any reasoned and coherent system of ethics.  Later, I referred rather off-handedly to the church, which developed its own teaching without any reference to   empirical data from external reality.

For this I was criticized by a reader, who pointed out reasonably enough that I too had presented no empirical data.  He went on to refer to the finding so Kinsey and biology as proof that “nature”, by hot wiring a direct connection between the genitals and the pleasure centres of the brain, predisposes and directs our sexual energies to reproduction.  As this is a variant of the “natural law”  basis for so much of traditional Catholic teaching on sex, I thought I would share with you some of the evidence, the “empirical data”, that directly contradicts the conclusion above.

As I explored the evidence though, I soon realised that there is so much of it, in such startlingly diverse abundance, that it would be impossible to cover the topic properly in just a single post.  Instead, I will tackle it in a series, looking at it from several different perspectives.  By way of preview, these are just some of the headings I propose to tackle first:

• The contradictions in the concept of “natural law” as used in Christian theology, and the factual errors about animal biology that underlie it.
• The abundant evidence for homosexuality in traditional African societies from the Stone Age onwards, which flatly contradicts the claims that it was foreign to Africa and introduced by the Western colonisers – or by the Arabs,
• The institution of compulsory homosexual practices for boys, as a means of acquiring many virtues.
• The widespread recognition of homosexual orientation in individuals as a spiritual gift
• The common practice of sustaining homosexual relationships in parallel with heterosexual marriages
• Examples from the animal world
• The Middle Eastern context of the biblical world
• China, Japan and Korea
• Pre-modern Europe

I do not have any rigid structuring principle for the order in which I shall tackle these, but will probably do so roughly inversely to their familiarity – starting with the least well known, so the first two should  be on African homosexuality,  and on same sex experience as part of acquiring virility.

Anybody have special preferences?

See also:

"Traditional" Family Values

Naphy, William: Born to be Gay

Greenberg, David F: The Construction of Homosexuality

Herdt, Gilbert H: Same Sex, Different Cultures

Murray, Stephen O: Homosexualities

"Traditional" Family Values?

This is fun!

From the great state of South Carolina, we were diverted some months ago by the fascinating tale of how one can now go "hiking the Appalachian trail" in Argentina.  Now, in quick succession, it appears that there are two more emerging stories of interest:  Mike Rogers reports that rumours about the sexual orientation of a certain Lieutenant - Governor, which have been doing the rounds long enough that even I, on this side of the Atlantic have heard them before, have been "confirmed" (but instead of evidence, Rogers simply points to his "100% track record" on previous outings). Also,  from FitsNews.com ("unfair; unbalanced". the site proudly proclaims), we have:

"S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford may be an amateur Romeo, but it looks like he’s got nothing on his appointment to the S.C. State Board of Education.

Kristin Maguire, an Upstate evangelical and one of South Carolina’s most respected social conservatives, has been one of the governor’s closest education policy advisors for years.  She’s also Sanford’s appointment to the S.C. Board of Education, which last year elected her its Chairwoman.

What else is she?

The prolific author of hardcore erotic fiction on the Internet, according to documents provided to the governor’s office earlier this summer and later obtained by FITS.

Maguire, a professed Christian who home-schools her four children, declined to comment for our story but did not deny that she had previously frequented websites that feature such X-rated material."

Ah, that grand tradition of  "defending traditional family values",  as espoused so fervently by Larry Craig, Congressmen Vitter & Foley, preacher Ted Haggert ...and all the others whose names I have forgotten and am too lazy right now to look up.  You know them better than I do.

In any case, pointing out the hypocrisy is too easy.  There are two other points behind this that deserve closer attention, because they are less frequently pointed out.

Outing the Church

First, I applaud Mike Rogers for his commendable work on outing the political hypocrites.  (For the record, I am a "fierce defender" of any individual's rigut to privacy.  While I strongly endorse the personal and community value of coming out wherever possible,  that final qualification is crucial:  sometimes it is just not possible).  BUT:  when some closeted queer goes on the attack aginst the community, all rights to sympathy are waived.  This is a position which I believe is fairly widely shared.  So when are the professional ecclesiastical  journalists, in the Vatican or around the world, going to start to follow suit?

It is widely reported that a large and growing proportion of priests, at all levels in the hierarchy, are gay.  Others are heterosexual, but non-celibate.  Professional Vatican watchers, it is said, know not only who many of these people are, but also their partners and preferred sexual practices.  As with politicians, I would prefer that they should have the courage to come out publicly, difficult as this would be, but where they choose not to, we must respect their privacy. But as with politicians, where they actively connive in the church's demonization of "homosexuals"  and other sexual minorities, they should lose that right to provacy.  There have been plenty of reports of gay bishops and cardinals emerging after their deaths, or after nasty blackmail scandals - so why not when they are alive?

It is also often said that tthe pope's balls are one of the three most useless things in the world.  So.........come on, you professional clerical journalists:  are your cojones any more useful than His Holiness's ?

"Traditional family":  a modern invention

Raymond and I had a wonderful day today enjoying  the English landscape, driving around Jane Austen's beloved Hampshire. I got to see Jane 's house where she spent the last ten years of her life, as well as the nearby Gilbert White's House.  Jane Austen is well known as the most popular English novelist, totally respectable and a model of gentility and propriety.  Gilbert White is less well known, but equally respectable.  He was a clergyman, renowned as a naturalist for his careful observations and detailed notes on natural history and gardening.  Guess what?  Neither of these models of English respectablity lived in "traditional" family structures.  During her years at Chawton, Jane and her similarly unmarried sister Clarissa lived with their widowed mother - and a friend, who lived with them, but occupied a bedroom a little apart.  Jane's brother Thomas had earlier left the family - because he had the good fortune to have been "adopted" by a wealthy childless couple, the Knights, who felt in need of an heir to take charge of their large estate.   The Rev White was unmarried - but does not appear to have lived alone in his large, rambling house and extensive garden.

Nor did many people at this time (late 18th and early 19th centuries), or earlier, live in "traditional"  family structures.  If you were rich enough, you might get to live with your family in a grand country house  - but also with the extensive staff required to run it.  Tradesmen and working professionals shared their homes with apprentices and servants. Conversely, if you were not rich enough, you probably left your family to live with your employer (if you had one), as an apprentice,  in domestic service, or as a farm labourer, or travelled the country as an itinerant tradesman.  And if a man was lucky enough to live with his woman and children, perhaps in a farm cottage - it was entirely possible that they were not married at all:  marriage was largely a legal matter of settling property, of little practical value or religious importance if there was no property to settle. (Marriage was not required, nor treated as a sacrament by the church, for many centuries),

Biblical Times.

After returning home, I began reading the introduction to Bernadette Brooten's "Love Between Women".  Just in theopening chapter, I came acros numerous references to same-sex marriages in the classical period - in Rome, in Sparta, in Canaan, in Egypt and elsewhere.  It is well known that family structures of the Hebrew Bible hardly conformed to the "traditional" family we keep hearing about, with all-powerful men holding absolute power over the women, children and slaves of the household, with multiple wives and concubines, arranged marriages and extended families living together.  In the Christian New Testament, I can't off the top of my head think of a single instance of a "traditional" family unit.  Certainly not Christ's own biological family, nor His later family of choice, nor the household of Martha, Mary and Lazarus, nor those of the apostles, who were urged to leave their families behind, nor the Roman centurion and his "paidion" (or male slave, commonly used for sexual purposes).

No, wait: there is one, if you ignore the palace staff.  The family of Herod, Herodias and Salome lived together as Daddy, Mummy and daughter.

So which of these do you suppose is referred to by "traditional family" values?

Gay Parents: Recommended.

My regular readers will now that gay adoption rights are a personal, touchy area for me.  As a father and grandfather myself, I am acutely conscious that what matters to a child is not the status or orientation of the parent, but the depth of love and the quality of the care.  My daughter Robynn has gone on record in stating , on the first occasion, that her experience when living with my partner and myself gave her a more stable emotional environment, and better examples in moral standards, than she saw given to her classmates from more "conventional" backgrounds.  Later, she made it clear in a post here at QTC, that we should listen to the voices and experiences of children themselves who have grown up in gay - headed households, before making judgements.  Giving her own verdict, she concluded: "Gay parents? I recommend them".

The issue of gay adoption tends to get less press than same sex marriage, but in many ways has greater importance for long term progress to gay equality and inclusion.  Here in the UK , gay adoption is fully accepted in law, but a Catholic adoption agency has just won an important court appeal, granting it exemption from  the statutory requirement of equal treatment for all candidate parents. This is a topic I am not yet ready to discuss properly, but will do at some stage.  In the US, the situation varies by state, but in only one state, Florida, is there an outright legal ban.  There is no sign of this ban being lifted by legislative process any time soon, but meanwhile there have been a string of favourable court decisions, with an important court ruling due any day now. In the meantime, here is another personal story of one child  who would clearly agree with Robynn, and recommend gay parents.  In his case, he voted with his feet, and actively left his one-mother-one-father version family for a gay single father - and in the process made a huge improvement in his life:

From Palm Beach Post:

Grade-A gay 'parent' saved a child from two-parent straight home

James was a bright boy with a dark future looming when he made a decision to change his destiny.He traded his two-parent home in the Midwest for a single-parent abode in Florida. At 12, he discerned that his odds of success were better if his uncle raised him. His mother has abused drugs for most of his life. His father simply enables her. And, far too often, James has been the primary caretaker of his younger siblings. He wanted better. So last June, he headed south with his mother's brother — my cousin. "I want," he told me, "a better life for myself." He got one. His uncle, Benn Setfrey, is an educator who has seen firsthand the results of inept parenting. He wanted to make a difference in his nephew's life by doing it the right way. He also is gay. He chose the pen name Setfrey when he wrote a book on homophobia because, in doing so, he felt set free. But in Florida, the only state that denies gays the right to adopt, he's not truly free. (They can't marry either, but that's a subject for another time.) James had a 0.5 grade-point average when he arrived at Mr. Setfrey's home. After a few months, he had a 3.5. In an essay titled "The Fresh Prince of Hallandale Beach," James credited his uncle. "He told me I have to de-program and re-program my brain, and it worked," James wrote. "It also took love, sweat and tears. I have a great life in Florida."

(Read More)

Now, from my experience working as a market research analyst, I know very well that one cannot draw firm conclusions from samples of one, or of two, although they can offer a degree of what the marketers call "insight". But we don;t have to depend on personal anecdotes: there is an abundance of research evidence which shows that same -sex parents are as good as any others at parenting, and in some cases, may even be better. I have reported on some of this before. Now there is a new study, which presents the same finding, from a slightly different perspective. This is from Psychology Today:

Does the gender of parents really matter?

The assumption that children need both a mother and a father is widespread. It has been used by proponents of Proposition 8 to argue against same-sex marriage and to uphold a ban on same-sex adoption. In 2006, the New York Court of Appeals, ruling against same-sex marriage, found that ‘‘the Legislature could rationally believe that it is better, other things being equal, for children to grow up with both a mother and a father. Intuition and experience suggest that a child benefits from having before his or her eyes, every day, living models of what both a man and a woman are like'' (Justice Robert Smith in Hernandez v. Robles, 2006). To what extent do these rational beliefs, intuition, and experience match the findings from scientific studies?

This is the question addressed by the lead article in the February issue of Journal of Marriage and Family. Extending their prior work on gender and family, Dr. Biblarz and Dr. Stacey of New York University, analyzed relevant studies about parenting, including available research on single-mother and single-father households, gay male parents and lesbian parents. Their review included 30 studies that compared two-parent lesbian couples to heterosexual coparents, 1 compared gay male to heterosexual coparents, and 2 compared lesbian to gay male coparents. They also reviewed 48 studies of single male or female parents.

In their analysis, the researchers found no evidence of gender-based parenting abilities, with the "exception of lactation," noting that very little about the gender of the parent has significance for children's psychological adjustment and social success. They found there are far more similarities than differences among children of lesbian and heterosexual parents. On average, two mothers tended to play with their children more, were less likely to use physical discipline, and were less likely to raise children with chauvinistic attitudes. Studies of gay male families are still limited.

As the researchers write: "The social science research that is routinely cited does not actually speak to the questions of whether or not children need both a mother and a father at home. Instead proponents generally cite research that compares [heterosexual two-parent] families with single parents, thus conflating the number with the gender of parents." So the Court of Appeals was right in saying that children benefit in some ways from the resources that come from having two parents, but their intuition was wrong in believing that those parents had to be of different sexes. Hopefully the California court that is currently considering Prop 8 will follow in the footsteps of the Iowa Supreme Court in relying on scientific reason over intuition.

(Read More)

Now, there's a thought:  using reason and evidence  instead of mere intuition and prejudice when taking decisions on these important family matters!  Wouldn't if be good, too if the Catholic Church could follow the same principle?  Oh, for some reality-based theology!

Irish Bishops' Humpty Dumpty Language

"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said in a rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean – neither more nor less." "The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean so many different things." "The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master – that's all." Alice was too much puzzled to say anything, so after a minute Humpty Dumpty began again. "They've a temper, some of them – particularly verbs, they're the proudest – adjectives you can do anything with, but not verbs – however, I can manage the whole lot! Impenetrability! That's what I say!"

Lewis Carroll, "Through the Looking Glass"

In Ireland, the Catholic bishops are concerned about the imminent passing of legislation to allow civil partnerships.  In voicing their opposition, they are using an argument used before in Washingto DC, and in Boulder Colorado, to restrict the religious freedom of gay and lesbian Catholics. This time, though, the application of the argument is so breathtaking it would do Humpty Dumpty proud:

In a statement, Why Marriage Matters, released by the bishops yesterday, they describe provisions in the Civil Partnership Bill as “an extraordinary and far-reaching attack on freedom of conscience and the free practices of religion – which are guaranteed to every citizen under the Constitution”.

Irish Times

Now correct me if I am wrong, but I thought that freedom of religion and of conscience meant allowing those who disagree with you, to act in accordance with their own conscience, and not force them to comply with your own.  The proposed bill is about civil partnerships, not religious marriage, and imply no obligations whatever on the actions or religious beliefs of anyone who does not wish to participate.  I would have thought that permitting civil partnerships for those who disagree with the Church's teaching on same sex marriage was a way of implementing, not restricting religious freedom.

But then, I use words as Alice does - not as Humpty Dumpty does.

Global Marriage Equality: Slovenia Advances

The global spread continues.  Slovenia has begun the legislative process towards full same sex marriage.  Will this be the first former Easter bloc country to get there? From Box Turtle Bulletin

Slovenia marriage bill passes first reading

Timothy Kincaid

March 4th, 2010

The government of Slovenia is proposing a revised Family Law bill which would legalize same-sex marriage and allow for gay adoptions. The bill was proposed on September 21, 2009 and has gone through a period of public debate. Yesterday, after heated debate – with much emphasis on the adoption provision – the Slovenian Parliament passed a first reading of the bill by a vote of 46 to 38. According to the NYU Law School, a bill undergoes three readings, the first of which is a debate over the reasons, principles, and goals of the law.

Stephen Sondheim, Broadway Composer and Lyricist

Theatrical lyricist and composer

b. March 22, 1930

"Art, in itself, is an attempt to bring order out of chaos."

Stephen Sondheim is hailed by The New York Times as the greatest artist in American musical theater. His most famous scores include “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” “Sweeney Todd,” and “Into the Woods,” for which he wrote both lyrics and music, and “West Side Story” and “Gypsy," for which he wrote the lyrics.

Sondheim was born in New York City, a son of wealthy dress manufacturers. As a result of his parents’ divorce, he grew up on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and on a farm in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. 

Sondheim had the good fortune of befriending Jimmy Hammerstein, son of the well-known lyricist and playwright Oscar Hammerstein II. Entering into an informal apprenticeship with his friend’s father, Sondheim found in Oscar Hammerstein an inspiring mentor as well as a surrogate dad. 

At prep school in Pennsylvania, Sondheim wrote a comic musical about the students and faculty. Expecting accolades, Sondheim proudly showed his musical to Hammerstein, who told him it was the worst work he had ever seen, and then offered his help. Sondheim claimed he learned more in that afternoon than in his entire formal education. 

Sondheim graduated magna cum laude from Williams College in Massachusetts in 1950 and went on to study composition with composer Milton Babbitt. He found initial success with “West Side Story” (1957), for which he wrote the lyrics. The unexpected rhymes and clever use of language that became Sondheim’s signature helped “West Side Story” win the 1958 Tony Award for Best Musical. In 1961, the musical was adapted for film and won 10 Academy Awards. 

Sondheim’s groundbreaking musicals often tackle unconventional topics—like the Victorian murder-revenge story “Sweeney Todd” (1979) and the anti-fairy-tale “Into the Woods” (1986)—or have innovative structures like the nonlinear and plotless “Company” (1970) and the characterless “Pacific Overtures” (1976). Broadway performers such as Chita Rivera, Bernadette Peters, Ethel Merman, Angela Lansbury, Patti LuPone, Nathan Lane and Whoopi Goldberg have starred in his musicals.

Sondheim has won an Academy Award, a Pulitzer Prize, and seven Grammy Awards. A winner of more Tony Awards than any other composer, he was honored with a Tony Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008.

Recordings, DVD

Gypsy: A Musical Fable (1959 )

West Side Story (Full Screen Edition) (1960)

Company (1970)

Follies in Concert 

A Little Night Music (1973)

Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1979 )

Assassins (1991 Original Off-Broadway Cast)

Other Resources

Broadway: The American Musical (2004)

Websites

Sondheim.com

Related articles

• AUDIO: Sondheim his own harshest critic (cbc.ca)
• Grant program will honor Sondheim, reward teachers (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Theatre named in honour of Sondheim (mirror.co.uk)

Rosie O'Donnell, Comedian, actress and activist

b. March 21, 1962

"I don't think America knows what a gay parent looks like: I am a gay parent."

An award-winning comedian, television host, author and media mogul, Rosie O’Donnell used her celebrity as a platform for activism and philanthropic causes.

Born in Queens, New York, O’Donnell got her big break when she auditioned for “Star Search” and won five times. With her $14,000 winnings, she relocated to Los Angeles and landed a role on the sitcom “Gimme a Break.”

After film roles in “A League of Their Own,” “Sleepless in Seattle” and “The Flintstones,” she was offered her own daytime television talk show. During her six years as host of “The Rosie O’Donnell Show,” she started Rosie’s For All Kids Foundation, which awarded more than $27 million in grants to 1,400 child-related nonprofit organizations.

In 2002, O’Donnell outed herself and became an outspoken advocate for gay parenting. She worked with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in an attempt to overturn Florida’s ban on gay and lesbian adoption.

O’Donnell and Kelli Carpenter married in 2004. They are parents of four children. The couple launched R Family Vacations, the first-ever cruise for gay families.

O’Donnell became the moderator of ABC’s all-women daytime talk show, “The View.” She starred on Broadway in “Grease,” “Seussical” and “Fiddler on the Roof,” and founded Rosie’s Broadway Kids, which provides a free theater experience.

Among O’Donnell’s many honors, she has received 13 Emmy Awards, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) Vito Russo Award, an induction into the Kid’s Choice Awards Hall of Fame and a Women in Film Lucy Award.

Bibliography
Lee, Felicia R. “On HBO, Rosie O’Donnell’s Cruise for Gay Families.” The New York Times. April 3, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/03/arts/television/03rosi.html
Leff, Lisa. “Rosie O’Donnell Weds Longtime Girlfriend.” The Washington Post. February 26, 2004
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10636-2004Feb26.html
Kuczynski, Alex. “She’s Out of the Closet. Now What?” The New York Times. March 3, 2002
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C07E2D61031F930A35750C0A9649C8B63
Nordlinger, Jay. “Rosie O’Donnell, Political Activist – A Celebrity and her Platform.” National Review. June 19, 2000
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MTkxYzkwYjNiNzk1ZGNhZWZlOGQ2ODkxOWU4ZTM0OTI=
Parker, Ray. “Fighting to keep a family.” The Advocate. April 30, 2002
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1589/is_2002_April_30/ai_85281818/print?tag=artBody;col1
“Rosie Comes Out as ACLU Launches LetHimStay.com.” GLAAD. March 13, 2002
http://www.glaad.org/publications/archive_detail.php?id=348
                       
“Rosie O’Donnell.” People. July 2, 2008
http://www.people.com/people/rosie_odonnell
“Rosie O’Donnell Marries Girlfriend in San Francisco.” CNN. February 27, 2004
http://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/TV/02/26/odonnell.ap/index.html
Other Resources
All Aboard! Rosie’s Family Cruise
http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/allaboard/synopsis.html
R Family Vacations
http://www.rfamilyvacations.com/
Rosie Chat
http://www.rosiechat.com
Rosie’s Broadway Kids
http://www.rosiesbroadwaykids.org/
Rosie’s For All Kids Foundation
http://www.forallkids.org/
Websites
Official Rosie O’Donnell Website
http://www.rosie.com

College Students For Marriage Equality

It will not surprise anyone that college students are more supportive of same sex marriage than other groups.  Still, the detail contained in one recent survey is fascinating.  

First consider just the scale of the support: 65% of all college students support full marriage. That's "support", and "marriage".  The remaining 35% are not by any means all against - they're split between those against marriage, but support civil unions; those who are undecided or just don't care; and the remainder who are specifically opposed.  That's looks like a pretty strong endorsement, to me.

But why are college students so much more supportive of marriage than the population at large?  Is it just that they are younger, and that each age cohort is more supportive than those before them?

Digging into the data suggests that while that may be so, there is something else going on.  In 2004, 57% of people entering college were supportive.  By graduation four years later, 69% of  that same age cohort were supportive.  While it is true that support across the country has increased during those years, this jump of 12 percentage points is substantially stronger than for the country as a whole. The report does not go into reasons for this,but we can speculate.  I would suggest two complementary processes at work in the college experience. First, the greater exposure to people of different backgrounds, at just the age when many people are working out their own sexual identities, will given many students their first exposure at close quarters to out fellow students in all their diversity.  Familiarity here breeds not contempt, but acceptance. Secondly, the educational experience itself is designed to replace uncritical assumptions with sound reasoning. That too would help to change young minds.

Comparison between sub-groups is also revealing. There was clear support for same sex marriage in every religious grouping, with the greatest support from Buddhists, Jewish, and "no religion", followed by Catholics.  However, all denominations had at least 50% support.  Ethnically, support was weaker among black students than among either whites or Hispanics:  but blacks also showed the strongest differential support, when compared with their counterparts in the wider population.   

Whichever way you look at it, younger people (including religious young, and also including religious conservatives) are moving strongly still further in the direction of support for full marriage equality.

  (See the Chronicle of Higher Education)

Marriage Equality: In Europe, a Human Right?

I have shown before how marriage equality has been spreading relentlessly across Europe, but in some cases (as in the UK), this takes the form of strong civil unions rather than full marriage.  There are also a few countries, notable staunchly Catholic Italy and Poland, which are holding out. This could change.

(Dark blue - full marriage; light blue - civil unions; yellow  - legislation in preparation; red - prohibited.)

The European Union has been drawing ever more closely together politically, and in the field of human rights. As some British conservatives have found to their costs, there have been numerous cases where European human rights directives have forced changes in British law.  Now, an Austrian couple have taken their fight for the right to marry to the European Court of human Rights.  On the face of it, the prospects are good.  The court has a good record on LGBT rights, and the parameters are clear: human rights are defined to guarantee both the right to marry, and freedom from discrimination on the grounds of orientation.

"Their European case argues that in refusing them a marriage license, Austria violated articles of the European Convention on Human Rights that guarantee the rights to marry, protect one’s property and not be discriminated against based on sexual orientation."

However, there is a catch.  The couple, Horst Michael Schalk and Johann Franz Kopf, first sought their marriage licence in 2002.  After a succession of unsuccessful appeals in Austria, it reached the European court, where it has taken five years just to get a hearing.  (In the meantime, Austria has already introduced civil unions).  The wheels of justice turn slowly.

From Bay Window:

Euro Court considers same-sex marriage case

The European Court of Human Rights held its first-ever hearing in a same-sex marriage case Feb. 25.

The hearing considered the admissibility and merits of a case from Austria, Schalk and Kopf v. Austria. A decision on those points will be forthcoming.

The court granted permission to Prof. Robert Wintemute to make oral submissions on behalf of four intervening parties: the European Region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association; the Advice on Individual Rights in Europe Center; the International Commission of Jurists; and the Fédération Internationale des Ligues des Droits de l’Homme.

Horst Michael Schalk and Johann Franz Kopf are a gay couple in Vienna. They were denied a marriage license in 2002 by the Vienna Municipal Office, which said people of the same sex can’t marry.

The couple appealed to Vienna’s regional governor and then the Constitutional Court, losing both times.

Their European case argues that in refusing them a marriage license, Austria violated articles of the European Convention on Human Rights that guarantee the rights to marry, protect one’s property and not be discriminated against based on sexual orientation.

The sometimes notoriously slow ECHR has been sitting on the case for more than five years.

Gay Marriage, in Church: Denmark Next?

Last year, Sweden approved full marriage equality, including church weddings if desired, for gay and lesbian couples. Up to now, this has been the only country where it has been possible for same sex couples to have a full religious wedding in a major denomination, and have it recognized by the state. (The other countries which recognize gay marriage, do so only for civil marriages.) However, support for full religious marriage has been building steadily, among voters and in some of the churches themselves. It now seems likely that Denmark will soon follow Sweden's example. This is not surprising - they have similar religious traditions, and similar social outlooks. Denmark was the first country in the world to approve civil unions, but has been slow to convert to full marriage. However, 1997 the bishops approved church "blessings" of civil unions, as long as the words "husband" and "wife" were omitted, so there's not a long way to go.

Now the government is considering a proposal to go he whole way, and allow full religious weddings. With almost two thirds of voters expressing support for the measure, and six out of ten bishops also ready to agree, it looks like an open goal just waiting for the final push.

Apart from the obvious impact for the Danes themselves, there are two important implications for the rest of us. It provides further evidence of steady growth in support by voters, thus increasing the pressure on the remaining countries of the EU to folllow suit; and it shows that even religious leaders are accepting that there is at least room for dissenting interpretations of the old clobber texts in Scripture. The more we see major religious groups like the ECLA, Episcopalians, Swedish and Danish Lutherans conducting gay marriages, the more difficult it becomes for the religious right to persuade moderate voters that religion "demands" gay exclusion

From AFP:
Two thirds of Danes back gay Church weddings

Nearly two thirds of Danes support a call to allow gay and lesbian couples to be married by the Church, a poll showed Wednesday.
Denmark was the world's first country to allow a civil union for homosexuals, in 1989, but its parliament is now split over a move by the centre-left opposition to amend the law to allow religious weddings too.
The minister for religion Birthe Roenn Hornbech has urged lawmakers to think the question through in-depth before reaching any decision.
But according to a poll published by the Christian daily Kristelig Dagbladet on Wednesday, 63 percent of the Danish population would be happy to see gay couples married at the altar.
A quarter of respondents said they would oppose the move, while 12 percent gave no opinion, according to the Capacent Research poll of 1,304 people carried out of March 5.
Separately, the Berlingske Tidende daily found that six out of 10 bishops with the Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church would agree to see gay couples make their vows in Church.

Small Victory in Pennsylvania.

Not exactly a step forward here, but a backward move averted.  In an unusual move, Democratic members of a Pennsylvania Senate committee held firm against a proposal to write a marriage ban into the state constitution - and three out of nine Repugs broke ranks to kill the proposal.  There have been increasing signs for months that  this is no longer the vote getter for the GOP that it once was, and this confirms that some moderate GOP politicos are starting to find anti-gay bigotry is becoming politically toxic instead.

For all Maggie Gallagher's triumphalism last November over the "victories" in Maine, and later NY and NJ, it is worth remembering that these were essentially "as you were", stalling decisions. The cause of full marriage equality has yet to win at the ballot box, although Washington came close with its "everything but the name" alternative, and there have been the well known victories in the courts and the state legislatures.  For the opposition, it is now some substantial time since her NAM (National organisation Against Marriage) had any success in pushing back existing marriage or civil union rights, anywhere.

This does not yet leave Pennyslvania in the clear: the bill could conceivably still be revived, and if not there remains on the statute book a ban in law, if not in the state constitution.  Still, stalemate is better than a clear  backward step, and local activists will be pleased at the evidence that GOP opposition is no longer monolithic. Perhaps it is now time to develop a strategy, even along term strategy, to change the existing law.

From On Top Magazine:

3 Republicans Cross Aisle To Defeat PA Gay Marriage Ban

Three Republican senators crossed the aisle Tuesday to help defeat a Pennsylvania resolution that sought to define marriage as a heterosexual union in the state constitution.

The 8-to-6 vote in favor of tabling the measure in the Republican-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee leaves the joint resolution on limited life support.

Senator John H. Eichelberger, Jr. first announced he would sponsor the resolution in May of last year but postponed its introduction until January due to the economy, the conservative lawmaker said.

Eichelberger's resolution would insert the following language into the state constitution: “Only a union of one man and one woman shall be valid and recognized as a marriage in this Commonwealth.”

But three Republican and five Democratic lawmakers disagreed. Joining all the committee's Democrats in killing the resolution were Republicans Pat Browne, Jane Earll and Mary Jo White.

(Read More)

Boulder parents: 'They told us in church to love everyone'

In their continuing series on the Boulder school which accepted then turned away the children of lesbian parents, NCR now has the second in a series of four interviews with other parents. In the previous interview, the parents highlighted how the decision in this case contradicted the practice of the school in dealing with other children whose parents were not living in full compliance with Church teaching. In today's interview, the couple interviewed talk about the contradiction between this rejection, and the church's own teaching, and its boasts about diversity. They also point out that the school's reputation in the community will likley suffer, as will its enrolment - and that ironically, a decision which was supposedly taken to avoid having to teach the children about same sex relationships, has instead led to a situation where the children now talk of it constantly.

Here are some extracts. Read the full interview at NCR online:

NCR: Are you members of the parish?

Chris: No, we've been going to St. Thomas Aquinas, [a neighboring parish]. We now have two young children, 13 and under, and they're talking about this and upset with it. The first day our sixth-grade son, Aidan, said, "Dad, they told us in church that we're to love everyone, even gay people. So what's going on?" That was his expression.

Fr. Bill and the archbishop are in this together. They are monolithic and they are calling all the shots. It is my impression that their priority is to enforce their policy, and that it's more important for them to have not only the last word, but the only word. That's more important than children, teachers, parents or anything else.

Cathy: A lot of people want to talk to Archbishop Chaput or send letters. We've been through other situations at the school. You don't get a response. It's pretty much closed. We can't talk about it. It's very secret. Everything is very secret and if you don't like it, they don't really care if you leave.

NCR: Are you implying that you think that this incident is going to cause a change in enrollment?

Cathy: I think it will hurt enrollment. They run ads showing kids of different ethnic backgrounds to show how diverse we are, implying that it's a welcome place for everyone. Yes, I think it is. But now my kids didn't even want to go into Target without putting a jacket over their Sacred Heart uniforms because they are so embarrassed. They are afraid to be seen wearing their uniforms.

NCR: Presumably the second grader has very little understanding of this.

Cathy: They know something. Some at the fourth grade level are aware, particularly if they have older siblings. The excuse the parish used to get rid of the children [of the lesbian couple] is that they would be taught that homosexual or gay marriage is bad. I asked my daughter yesterday who went through the entire nine years there, "Did they ever talk to you about gay marriage at all?" They barely do sex ed. They do girls in a room and boys in a room, and just go over bodily stuff in fifth grade. That's it. They never talked about homosexuality, but now they are all talking about it because of Fr. Bill.

Epimondas: Gay Military Hero, Democrat, Cultured Statesman

Epaminondas lived before the Christian era, outside the Jewish tradition, and has no claim whatsoever to be treated as a “saints in any literal sense. However, taking the term much more loosely, including those we might consider as role models, he clearly fits the bill. If that doesn’t suit you, think of him as included in the “others” of my title.

Together with his lover Pelopidas, Epaminondas was one of the celebrated “Sacred Band of Thebes”, a military company of 150 pairs of lovers. That’s right, an army band where it was compulsory to be gay – and partnered. We usually think of the Spartans as the most military of the Greek cities, and with good reason. While Athens (and some other cities following them) valued democracy, philosophy and intellectual life generally, young Spartans were educated for one thing only – war. After Sparta had convincingly beaten Athens and her allies in the Peloponnesian War, the victors extinguished democracy in the vanquished cities, and placed their allies in command as local despots.

In the case of Thebes, they met strong resistance from the defenders of democracy, in the form of the band of male lovers. Founded initially by Georgidas, on the principle that men never fight more bravely than when fighting to protect and support their loved ones alongside them, the founding proposition was soon confirmed. In their first engagement with the Spartan enemy, victors in the recent Peloponnesian war, the new company of Theban lovers overcame a Spartan army of two to three times their number, and were able to reinstate democracy in their city.

Epaminondaswas initially somewhat hidden in the shadow of his friend Pelopidas, who succeeded Georgidas as leader just a year after the band was founded. Together, they won many famous victories. Later, overshadowing his friend, he found the more enduring fame, and for many notable qualities beyond his illustrious military career.

After assisting in the re-establishment of democracy in Thebes, he developed a career as an orator and statesman as well as a soldier. Although he was instrumental in defeating Sparta in establishing Thebes as the dominant geek power, he refused to use this power to to subject other cities to Theban domination and pillage, so that he was known as a military liberator, not a conqueror. Many scholars have described him as Greece’s greatest warrior-statesman. Diodorus Siculus wrote that he excelled all the others in valour and military shrewdness – but also in “eloquence of speech, elevation of mind, contempt of lucre, and fairness…”.

The Romans also admired him, although less enthusiastic about his cultural achievements. Cornelius Nepos included him in his Book o Great Commanders, but found it necessary to excuse his reputation as a musician and dancer on the grounds that the Greeks had a fondness for these pursuits. He “praises without reservation Epaminondas’ intellectual and athletic prowess, and finds he meets roman standards of temperance, prudence and seriousness….. and was such a lover of truth that he never lied, even in jest.” .

He died in 362, in a battle which once again defeated the Spartans, but also ended Epaminondas’ own life.

This could be my kind of guy – accomplished, virtuous, a democrat and liberator – and good-looking. Except that he lived about two millennia too soon, he could easily be seen as a great Renaissance man. My only objection? Surely he’s just too good to be true. Yet this is the picture that comes down to us from the ancients.

And to think that men of this calibre are not permitted to serve openly in the US army.

(Source: The material above condenses a passage from “Homosexuality & Civilization” by Louis Crompton, which makes an excellent and stimulating introduction to the history of homosexuality.)

Gay Bishops: John of Tours (promiscuous, gay) and Ralph of Tours

In  1098!

With all the current fuss about the decision of the US Episcopal Church to consecrate openly gay bishops, and the Catholic Church's declared hostility to gay priests and to gay marriage or even civil unions, we forget that in the older history of the church, it is not gay priests and bishops that are new, or gay marriage, but the opposition to them.  Many medieval and classical scholars have produced abundant evidence of clearly homosexual clergy, bishops, and even saints, and of church recognition of same sex unions.

Gay Bishops in Church History

One story is particularly striking.  At the close of the 11th Century, Archbishop Ralph of Tours persuaded the King of France to install as Bishop of Orleans a certain John  - who was widely known as Ralph's gay lover, as he had previously been of Ralph's brother and predecessor as Bishop of Orleans, of the king himself, and of several other prominent men.   This was strongly opposed by prominent churchmen, on the grounds that John was too young and would be too easily influenced by Ralph.  (Note, please, that the opposition was not based on the grounds of sexuality, or even of promiscuity.)  Ivo of Chartres tried to get Pope Urban II to intervene.  Now, Urban had strong personal reasons, based in ecclesiastical and national politics, to oppose Ralph.  Yet he declined to do so. In spite of well-founded opposition, John was consecrated Bishop of Orleans on March 1, 1098, when he joined two of his own lovers, and numerous  others, in the ranks of openly homosexual Catholic Bishops.

An earlier example was St Paulinus of Nola, whose feast day was celebrated earlier this month.  Paulinus was noted as both bishop and poet: his poetic "epistles" to his friend Faustinus are noted in the on-line Catholic Encyclopedia.  What the CE does not remind us, is that Pulinus ans Faustinus were lovers, and the "epistles" were frankly homoerotic verse, which may be read today in the Penguin Book of Homosexual Verse.  Church history for its first twelve centuries at least is littered with further stories of male and female clergy, some canonized or popularly recognised as saints, with clear homosexual orientations.  Some of these, as clergy, probably lived celibate lives.  Many clearly did not.

In England, there was Bishop Longchamps, the bishop that Richard the Lionheart made Regent. The well-knonwn line on him was that the barons would trust their daughters with him, but not their sons.

Gay Saints in Church History

Church history for its first twelve centuries at least is littered with further stories of male and female clergy, some canonized or popularly recognised as saints, with clear homosexual orientations. Some of these, as clergy, probably lived celibate lives. Many clearly did not. Among many examples from Church history, some of the better known are:

Aelred of Rievaulx (probably celibate, but wrote intensely ardent love letters to male friends);

St Patrick (believed to have worked as a prostitute in his youth, and may have taken a male lover in later life);

SS Sergius & Bacchus( Roman soldiers, lovers & martyrs)

St John of the Cross (Well known mystic, whose metaphorical poetry of his love for Christ uses frankly homoerotic imagery)

Cardinal John Henry Newman (soon to be beatified, was so devoted to his beloved friend Aubrey St John, that he insisted on being buried with him in the same grave.)

Same Sex Unions in Church History

The earliest church, in Rome and in the Slavic countries, recognised some forms of same sex union in liturgical rites of  "adelphopoein" .  It is not entirely clear precisely what was the precise meaning of these rites.  They were clearly not directly comparable to modern marriage - but nor were the forms of heterosexual unions at the time.  Some claim that they were no more than a formalised friendship under the name of  "brotherhood" - but many Roman lovers called themselves "brothers".  Some of the couples united under this rite were certainly homosexual lovers, but it is possible not all were.  What is certain, is that the Church under the Roman Empire, for many years recognised and blessed liturgically some form of union for same sex couples.  As late as the sixteenth century, there is a clear written report of a Portuguese male couple having been married in a church in Rome.

This recognition also extended to death.  From  the earliest church until at least the nineteenth century, there are examples of same sex couples, both male and female, being buried in shared graves, in a manner exactly comparable to the common practice of married couples sharing a grave - and often with the parallel made clear in the inscriptions.

The modern Church likes to claim that in condemning same sex relationships, and resisting gay marriage and gay clergy, it is maintaining a long church tradition.  It is not.  To persist in this claim, in the light of increasing evidence from modern scholars, is simply to promote a highly selective  and hence dishonest reading of history.

See also on "Queering the Church":

• Gay Saints & Others
• Gay Lovers in Church History
• The Church's Changing Tradition

From the "Lesbian and Gay Catholic Handbook"

The Calendar of Lesbian and Gay Saints

The Passion of Sergius & Bacchus (Roman soldiers, lovers and martyrs)

Two Texts for Rites of Same Sex Union

Gay Marriage in 16th Century Rome

Also available on-line:

Burials in Greek Macedonia (Valerie Abrahamsen)
Books:

• Donald Boisvert:  Sanctity and Male Desire - a Gay Reading of Saints
• John Boswell:  Christianity, Social Tolerance and Homosexuality
• Jon Boswell: Same Sex Unions in Pre-Mopdern Europe
• Matthew Kuefler (ed): The Boswell Thesis
• Bernadette Brooten: Love Between Women  -Early Christian Responses to Female Homoeroticism
• Alan Bray:  The Friend
• Andrew Harvey: The Essential Gay Mystics

Gay Popes: The Embarrassing Death of Paul II

I've been reading Martin Duberman's anthology, "Hidden From History", and in particular James Saslow on Homosexuality in the Renaissance. One of Saslow's key points is that at this time, men who had sex with men were not exclusive - in modern terms, they w0uld more likely be described as "bisexual". In a passage about how the rich and powerful freely made sexual use of their subordinates, I came across this throwaway reference:

Similar patterns prevailed among the clergy and educated humanists. Charges against Paul II and Julius II centred around their seduction of much younger men; Cellini's autobiography records a beautiful and talented youth, Luigi Pulci, who made a career out of service to Roman bishops.

Now, I knew about Julius II  - and for that matter, Julius III - but this was the first sexual gossip I have come across concerning Paul II, so I explored further.  This is what I found: it seems he died while being sodomized by  a page boy.

Paul II died, on July 26, 1471 of a stroke, allegedly whilst being sodomized by a page boy. After his death, one of his successors suggested that he should rather have been called Maria Pietissima, "Our Lady of Pity", because he was inclined to break into tears at times of crisis. Some historians have suggested the nickname was rather due either to Paul propensity to enjoy dressing up in sumptuous ecclesiastical finery, or his likely homosexuality.

Nor was he the only cleric who enjoyed some male company.  Here's Saslow again:

The intimate living arrangements of the all-male clerical world and the opportunities that educational and religious duties afforded for privacy and empiotional intimacy, while not themselves "causes" of of homosexuality, may have contributed circumstantially to their expression.  Priests in fifteenth century Venice and Stuart Sussex were convicted of sex with young parishioners, unpublished records of church trials in Loreto, Italy, in the 1570's detail the activities of a choirboy who slept successively with various older monks......

Remember, while Paul II was enjoying his adventures with co-operative pages, elsewhere in Italy and the rest of Europe, "sodomites" were being burned at the stake for their "sin".

Nor was it only Paul's interest in boys that got my attention.  On his election as pope back 1464, the cardinals tried to rein in papal power (and thus to increase their own), by imposing s range of tight conditions, which:

• bound the future pope to continue the Turkish war;
• forbade him to journey outside Rome without the consent of the cardinals;
• limited the number of cardinals to a maximum of twenty-four,
• all creations of new cardinals were to be made only with the consent of the College of Cardinals.
• Upon taking office, Paul II was to convene an ecumenical council within three years.

Alas, for the best laid plans of mice and men......

Paul II simply ignored these requirements, declaring  that election "capitulations", which cardinals had long been in the habit of affirming as rules of conduct for future popes, could affect a new pope only as counsels, not as binding obligations. He then created a whole slew of new cardinals from his own loyalists.

Now, a half a millenium and more later, why does all this sound so familiar?

(Among his "achievements", he was friendly to Christian scholars; he restored many ancient monuments; made a magnificent collection of antiquities and works of art; built the Palazzo di St. Marco, now the Palazzo di Venezia; and probably first introduced printing into Rome. Paul embellished the costume of the cardinals, and collected jewels for his own adornment.)

Pope Julius III

In his early career in the Church Julius established a reputation as an effective and trustworthy diplomat, and was elected to the Papacy as a compromise candidate when the Papal Conclave found itself deadlocked between the rival French and German factions. As Pope he lost, or failed to show, any of the qualities which had distinguished his previous career, devoting himself instead to a life of personal pleasure and indolence.  His lasting fame, or notoriety, rests rather on his relationship with the 17 year old boy whom he raised to the position of Cardinal-Nephew, and, it was said at the time, with whom he shared his bed

At the start of his reign Julius had desired seriously to bring about a reform of the Catholic Church and to reconvene the Council of Trent, but very little was actually achieved during his five years in office; apologists ascribe the inactivity of his last three years to severe gout.

In 1551, at the request of the Emperor Charles V, he consented to the reopening of the council of Trent and entered into a league against the duke of Parma and Henry II of France (1547–59), but soon afterwards made terms with his enemies and suspended the meetings of the council (1553). (For the history of papal conflicts with councils, see conciliar movement).

The Innocenzo scandal

Julius's particular failures were around his nepotism and favouritism. One notable scandal surrounded his adoptive nephew, Innocenzo Ciocchi Del Monte, a 13 or 14-year old beggar-boy whom the future Pope had picked up on the streets of Parma some years earlier and with whom he had allegedly fallen in love.On being elected to the Papacy Julius raised the now 17-year old but still uncouth and quasi-illiterate Innocenzo to the cardinalate, appointed him cardinal-nephew, and showering the boy with benefices

Artistic legacy

Julius spent the bulk of his time, and a great deal of Papal money, on entertainments at the Villa Giulia, created for him by Vignola. Julius extended his patronage to the great Renaissance composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, whom he brought to Rome as his maestro di cappella, Giorgio Vasari, who supervised the design of the Villa Giulia, and to Michelangelo, who worked there.

Gays in the Military: Japan

Now that DADT is finally under serious review, it is once again appropriate to consider how other military regimens deal or have dealt with with their queer members – or aspirant members.

As I have noted before, across the EU this is simply not a question at issue.  Gay men and lesbians serve routinely, just as any other servicemen and women. Here in the UK, every July some members routinely join the annual “London Pride” through the streets of London, either in uniform, in military squads, or as individuals in other groups of specific (non- military) interest. In South Africa, the constitution’s non-discrimination clause guarantees that sexual minorities should be able to serve on the same basis as anyone else. Last month, I was intrigued by this report from Peter Toscano, telling of a South African soldier who faced a gender identity issue by transitioning – and the military authorities provided a female officer as mentor and support to help her through the process.

In European history, gay soldiers were prominent in the Greek armies: notably in the Sacred Band of Thebes and its pairs of lovers (where only gay lovers were admitted), but also in other Greek fighting forces, where they were often crucial in creating or defending democracy.

Today, I want to discuss another renowned military culture with a strong homoerotic tradition – the Japanese shoguns and samurai.

[

Samurai and Shoguns
For centuries, love and sex between men have been recorded and celebrated at the highest levels of Japanese society, including several emperors, and have especially associated with the military establishment and with the monasteries.
Back in the 12th century, the Japanese Emperor Go- Shirakawa (1156 – 1158), who was a devout Buddhist, fell in love with Fujiwara Nobuori. Then, in 1192,a later emperor Go-Shu named Minamoto Yoritomo as his military commander – i.e. “shogun”, who came to act in the name of the emperor. Yoritomo took as a lover a young officer, Yoshino.
Many succeeding shoguns followed this example, taking as lovers apprentice warriors known as “wakashu”, giving rise to the name for this type of relationship: “wakashudo”. The name given to the younger warrior lovers in these relationships were known as “gomotsu”:

“most of those who storm the battlefield, warding off the enemy and accompanying their lords to the end, are the lords’ male sex-partners.” (p 421)

“As in ancient Greece, Japanese culture idealised shudo as a source of morality and military courage.”

“In our empire of Japan, this way flourished from the time of the great Master Kobo particularly. And in the abbeys of Kyoto and Kamakura, and in the world of the nobles and the warriors, lovers would swear perfect and eternal love …..whether their partners were noble or common, rich or poor, was absolutely of no importance.

During the Ashikaga shogunate, (1338 – 2573), 6 shoguns out of 15 are known to have had wakashu lovers. Add in the succeeding Tokugawa shoguns (1573 - 1837), “at least half” of all shoguns had male love affairs.
eg. Yoshimochi, the fourth Ashikaga shogun (1395 -1428) loved a young samurai Akamatsu Mochisada, to whom he granted three provinces, simply for homosexual favour.
Yoshinori (1429 –1441 ) was a Buddhist monk from age 10 until he became shogun at 35. He invited temple entertainers to share his bed, and planned to bestow three provinces on a young man who tad taken his fancy – but this led to his death.

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• Court Affirms: DADT Discrimination is Unconstitutional (queering-the-church.com)
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