Two things. One, I’d like to call your attention to a very enlightening post in Scientific American (Parental rejection of gay teens worsens health: Scientific American Blog) about the how parental rejection of gay teens can adversely affect their health (“eight times more likely to have attempted suicide than those whose families accepted them…. nearly six times as likely to report depression, three times as likely to use drugs and three times as likely to have unprotected sex.”) It’s a sobering reminder of just how important it is for our congregations to offer Our Whole Lives and provide a safe environment for youth who are dealing with questions about their sexual identity. Two, I’m trying out a new tool on WordPress that allows me to post a link to something interesting I’ve found on the web using a “Press This” bookmarklet on my Firefox tool bar. I like it better than some of the other options (using the “Quick Post” feature on my WordPress dashboard, or the “Daily Blog Posting” option on delicious). Now when I run across something that’s really worth sharing, I can both bookmark it on delicious and post a quick note about it here.
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December 30, 2008 at 1:35 pm
Steve Caldwell
As a local PFLAG activist, I find that the parental rejection of gay teens has a connection to the famous Bible story about a parent harming his child because he thought that God told him to sacrifice his child (Abraham and Issac).
Given the loudness of traditional religious voices speaking in our communities speaking on behalf of God, it’s no wonder that the voices of “angels” in our communities like PFLAG and GLSEN who are trying to stop this sacrifice are just not heard by some parents.
December 30, 2008 at 7:59 pm
psdlund
Absolutely, Steve. Parents, Families & Friends of Lesbians & Gays (PFLAG) and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) are incredibly helpful organizations. Thanks!