Matt C. Abbott
Catholic priest praises embattled evangelical pastor
By Matt C. Abbott
From Catholic World News (Aug. 16):
Father Perozich's response:
Related link:
The Courage Apostolate
© Matt C. Abbott
August 17, 2013
From Catholic World News (Aug. 16):
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Citing the Alien Tort Statute, which became law in 1789, a U.S. district judge has ruled that a Ugandan umbrella LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex) organization may sue an American evangelical pastor in U.S. court for allegedly committing 'crimes against humanity.'
The Alien Tort Statute (ATS) permits foreign citizens to sue U.S. citizens in U.S. courts for actions 'committed in violation of the law of nations or a treaty of the United States.'
According to the court decision, Scott Lively, a Massachusetts pastor, reportedly traveled to Uganda, spoke out against homosexuality, linked homosexuality to pornography and pedophilia, and assisted government officials with the drafting of anti-homosexuality legislation....
Father Perozich's response:
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I personally have been in attendance where Dr. Scott Lively speaks on the issues of sexuality. He is courteous, biblical, and loving toward anyone who is not following chaste biblical living. He relates his many years of persecution by those who disagree with him. He tries to bring people to Christ for the salvation of their souls. He is once more a victim of an ideology which demands total submission to its agenda, this time in the form of the judiciary.
In ancient Rome, rather than kneel before the false gods of the Romans, Christians were stripped of their power, their possessions, their freedom, and finally their lives. In the United States of the year 2013, Christians like Dr. Lively once again refuse to bow down to the false gods of lust and homosexuality and refuse to offer them the ignoble sacrifices of 'equality,' 'rights,' 'justice' and 'fairness' that they demand.
In this 21st century of the end times, Dr. Lively shows fidelity to the Lordship of Jesus as the way to salvation, and he witnesses this through his martyrdom. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Christian faith.
God bless you, Dr. Lively. We Christians stand with you.
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The case [against Scott Lively] has some significant holes, Liberty Counsel contends.
'[Sexual Minorities Uganda] also does not tell the court that David Kato – the murdered Ugandan activist whom SMUG makes the centerpiece of this lawsuit – was killed not by an enraged homophobe incited by Mr. Lively's protected speech, but by a homosexual prostitute upset over a failed business transaction.
'Neither does SMUG tell the court that the confessed perpetrator of this horrible crime was tried and convicted in Ugandan courts, and is now serving a 30-year prison sentence.
'And, finally, SMUG does not tell the court that, far from inciting violence, Mr. Lively has consistently condemned acts of violence and calls to violence in the strongest possible terms, and has praised the Ugandan courts for imparting justice'.....
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Homosexuality refers to relations between men or between women who experience an exclusive or predominant sexual attraction toward persons of the same sex. It has taken a great variety of forms through the centuries and in different cultures. Its psychological genesis remains largely unexplained. Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tradition has always declared that 'homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered.' They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.
The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.
Homosexual persons are called to chastity. By the virtues of self-mastery that teach them inner freedom, at times by the support of disinterested friendship, by prayer and sacramental grace, they can and should gradually and resolutely approach Christian perfection.
Related link:
The Courage Apostolate
© Matt C. Abbott
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