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Earlier this week, Gawker's John Cook wondered whether Mitt Romney's father-in-law had been converted to Mormonism -- posthumously. Wrote Cook:
Edward Davies, Ann Romney's Welsh father, was an engineer, inventor, and entrepreneur who worked on designs for the Gemini space program and helped outfit aircraft carriers. He eventually became the mayor of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He was also a resolute atheist who insisted that his family be raised without participating in an organized religion. "He would say: 'I'm a scientist, show me the proof'," a former co-worker told the Telegraph. Davies thought of religion as "drudgery and hogwash," according to Boston Globe, and his son Roderick told the paper that Davies "considered people who were religious to be weak in the knees."
So it must have broken his heart when, after his only daughter began dating Mormon scion Mitt Romney, she converted to his religion with the help of Mitt's father.
The conversions didn't stop there. Mitt and his father, George, convinced Anne's younger brother to join the church, and then dispatched missionaries to convert her elder brother, who was then attending school in England. The mission was successful. And after Edward died in 1992, his wife -- Anne Romney's mother -- decided she, too, would become a Latter-Day Saint.
And so Cook asked:
Mormons, of course, are known for their habit of posthumously converting dead souls. They also believe that families are reunited in eternity after death. So the incentive for Ann Romney to convert Edward Davies in death so that they may one day frolic together in the interplanetary afterlife was presumably fairly powerful. Did she posthumously baptize him, despite his belief while he lived that such a baptism and the beliefs that undergird it are pure "hogwash"?
Cook contacted the Romney campaign and the Latter-Day Saints for info. Neither organization would comment, so Cook requested that any Mormon Gawker readers who might have access to the church's baptismal records please contact him. As it turns out:
Edward Davies, Mitt Romney's militantly atheist father-in-law, was indeed posthumously converted to Mormonism by his family.
... Davies was baptized as a Mormon at a "special family meeting" 14 months after his death: "All ordinances except sealing to spouse performed in Salt Lake Temple on 19 Nov 1993 in special family meeting."
That's Mitt Romney. Republican on Earth, totalitarian in eternity.
Posted 1:51 PM EST by Brandonkthorp in 2012 Election, Michigan, Mitt Romney, Mormon, Religion | Permalink | Comments (14)
England's second most senior cleric, the Archbishop of York Dr. John Sentamu, has declared his opposition to same-sex marriage. No surprise there. What's surprising is the polite way in which Dr. Semantu expresses his concern. From the Beeb:
Dr Sentamu pointed out that bishops in the House of Lords did not seek to obstruct the introduction of civil partnerships between same-sex couples in 2004.
"We supported civil partnerships because we believe that friendships are good for everybody."
He said the Church also had no opposition to plans to allow civil partnership ceremonies to take place in places of worship, if agreed by the religious denomination in question.
... He said: "If you genuinely would like the registration of civil partnerships to happen in a more general way, most people will say they can see the drift. But if you begin to call those marriage, you're trying to change the English language.
"That does not mean you diminish, condemn, criticise, patronise any same-sex relationships because that is not what the debate is about," added Dr Sentamu.
So the opposition's about language. And religious freedom. Which isn't to say Dr. Sentamu doesn't feel passionate about it. According to the Telegraph, the Archbishop ...
... says the Government would face a rebellion on any changes in [marriage] legislation. His intervention may serve as a rallying cry for traditionalist Tories who oppose Mr Cameron’s plan.“The rebellion is going to come not only from the bishops,” he says. “You’re going to get it from across the benches and in the Commons."
... “Marriage is a relationship between a man and a woman,” says Dr Sentamu. “I don’t think it is the role of the state to define what marriage is. It is set in tradition and history and you can’t just [change it] overnight, no matter how powerful you are.
Unless, perhaps, you're King Henry VIII?
Posted 11:35 AM EST by Brandonkthorp in Anglican church, Gay Marriage, Great Britain, Religion | Permalink | Comments (19)
The White House is organizing a tour to reach out to LGBT Americans around the country. From the Obama administration's Office of Communications:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The White House Office of Public Engagement (OPE) will partner with key Departments and Agencies to host a series of conferences around the country specifically focused on LGBT Americans. From February to June 2012, OPE will convene these White House LGBT Conferences to provide grassroots leaders, community organizers, advocates, students, and interested citizens an opportunity to hear directly from the Administration on our efforts to ensure health, well-being, security, justice, and equality for LGBT Americans.
So -- agencies responsible for housing, health, whathaveyou will partner with the OPE, rent a hall, roll into town, and talk to you. The first engagement of the administration's charm offensive will take place in Philly on February 16th, and shall feature Health & Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. Venue TBA, and ditto with subsequent engagements -- though the press release promises sessions devoted to "Housing & Homelessness, Safe Schools & Communities, and HIV/AIDS Prevention."
By the way -- the press release went out over email. I tried and failed to find the original announcement at whitehouse.gov. If you should come across it, please do post the link.
Posted 10:42 AM EST by Brandonkthorp in 2012 Election, Barack Obama, Health, Kathleen Sebelius | Permalink | Comments (14)
Maybe "Purity Bear" is an answer to the execrable "pedobear" meme that sprang up on the web's various chans in 2010. Maybe it's an original idea, sprung whole and entire from the virginal minds behind the The Day of Purity. What's known is this: "Purity Bear" will go to really creepy lengths to stop pre-marital sex; his exploits has been viewed a quarter of a million times on YouTube; and he's garnered almost 1,500 "Dislikes" to less than 200 "Likes" ... and in the halls of Liberty Counsel, where unpopularity's taken as a given, that counts as a smash success:
A short video promoting sexual purity hit a quarter of a million views today. People from more than 175 different countries and regions have watched the student-produced video that was designed to spark interest and start conversations promoting sexual purity.
... Amber Haskew, International Director for the Day of Purity, said: “I’m thrilled that the message of waiting for marriage is reaching so many people! We are excited to spark a conversation about the physical, emotional, physiological and even financial benefits of waiting for marriage. I encourage each family and individual to make your own declaration of purity. Take a stand this year and encourage those around you to make healthy decisions.”
Watch Purity Bear in action AFTER THE JUMP ...
Continue reading ""Purity Bear" A Smash Success?"
Posted 9:35 AM EST by Brandonkthorp in Education, Religion | Permalink | Comments (22)
Glenn Close winning her first Oscar nomination since "Dangerous Liaisons" for "ALBERT NOBBS"
Albert Nobbs is story of a woman living as a man in Ireland in the early 20th century. Albert (Oscar nominated Glenn Close) serves as a waiter at a little upscale hotel. His world is so small that he barely leaves the hotel and hardly ever utters full sentences to anyone but himself. Those private conversations generally involve the counting of shillings. Nobbs' inner life isn't quite as small. The waiter dreams of saving up enough to buy a small tobacco shop and run his own little business. When he meets a painter by the name of Mr. Hubert Page (Oscar nominated Janet McTeer) whose situation is not dissimilar but whose emotional life is obviously richer, his eyes are suddenly opened to new possibilities, including romance... or at least cohabitation. But dreams aren't easy when a flea in your undergarments can give you away, when your career could be finished with one misstep around a wealthy patron, when a stroke of bad luck could put your employer out of business, or when the woman you set your sights on for companionship (Mia Wasikowska) might not have the purest of motives in returning your affection.
You know what's just as a hard as opening a tobacco shop when you're a woman living as a man in early 20th century Ireland? Getting your dream movie made when you're an actress of a certain age in the early 21st century.
Glenn Close first played the role of Albert Nobbs on stage in 1982, which was coincidentally her first year in the movies (The World According to Garp). It seems like she's been trying to bring this role to the screen ever since. It only took her thirty years to do it so she's a bit quicker than Albert.
MORE AFTER THE JUMP...
Continue reading "Movies: Glenn Close in 'Albert Nobbs' "
Posted 6:21 PM EST by Nathaniel_R in Film, Glenn Close, Nathaniel Rogers, Review | Permalink | Comments (17)
Thomas Roberts spoke with Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley and Washington Governor Chris Gregoire about the fight for marriage equality in their respective states. He also asked them about New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's call for a voter referendum on same-sex marriage.
Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...
Posted 6:20 PM EST by Andy Towle in Chris Gregoire, Gay Marriage, Maryland, News, Thomas Roberts, Washington | Permalink | Comments (9)
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