For those concerned about religions that get "denigrated" and "dumped on"

[ivanm]

ASIA/PAKISTAN
A Christian married couple beaten by the police with false accusations

Abbottabad (Agenzia Fides) - Accused of a crime they did not commit, two Christian spouses were arrested and savagely beaten by the police for three days, for refusing to confess. It is yet another case of anti-Christian violence and discrimination, even in the institutions and state apparatuses, which local sources tell Fides.

Salma Emmanuel, who is pregnant, is now hospitalized in intensive care in critical condition, and her unborn child is under threat of abortion. Doctors at Benazir Shaheed Hospital in Abbottabad (in the north of Pakistan) are making all efforts to save her and the fetus. She had signs of serious violence on her body, but police denied torturing her. Even her husband, Rashid Emmanuel, shows evidence of beatings and injuries. After the intervention of some Christian leaders, Naeem Khan, the general deputy inspector, ordered an internal investigation.Mrs. Emmanuel is accused of stealing jewels in the house of a wealthy Muslim woman, Ghazala Riaz, where she worked as a maid. Mrs. Riaz reported a theft of goods worth 900,000 rupees (about 8 thousand euros) and accused the only Christian servants. The couple were arrested without evidence, and police also searched their home. After three days of detention and beatings, the two - who have three children between the ages of 12 and 5 - were released on bail, forced to resort to hospital. Rashid, who worked as a TV technician, and Salma have both lost their jobs and now live in a situation of great distress. "My thoughts go to all those who are unjustly accused", said Salma from a hospital bed. "Faith in God has never abandoned us in this test. We believe that divine justice will prevail".

http://www.news.va/en/news/asiapakistan-a-christian-married-couple-beaten-by-

Can the church help these people in some way? And to think that we give Pakistan all that aid each year.

[johnhp]

Can the church help these people in some way? And to think that we give Pakistan all that aid each year.

Pssssssssssssst.  Ivan, in case you did not know.......

And Ivan, if you can read this, I did say that the next person discussing another person's sexual orientation in a demeaning way would get a vacation.

So, we can see you in a week.

It might be good to take a break, frankly. For many of you for that matter. Lot of things happening in the world.

http://www.newsrake.org/index.php/topic,5690.msg101379.html#msg101379 [reply 34]

[Mornac]

Manny Pacquiao denounces anti-gay allegations
 
By GREG BEACHAM, AP Sports Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Manny Pacquiao says he loves and supports gays and lesbians, even though he does not approve of gay marriage.

The world champion boxer and Filipino congressman has been criticized ever since he gave an interview to the examiner.com website in which he opposed President Barack Obama's support for gay marriage.

Pacquiao said Wednesday in an interview with The Associated Press that he doesn't support gay marriage because of his Roman Catholic beliefs. But he said he has gay friends and relatives, and supports their rights.

"I'm not against the gay people," Pacquiao said. "I'm not condemning them. ... I have a cousin (who is) gay. I have relatives (who are) gay. I have a lot of friends (who are) gay, so I'm not condemning gays. What I said is I'm not in favor of same-sex marriage. That's the one thing I said to the guy.

"I told (the reporter) I'm against same-sex marriage," Pacquiao added. "He said, 'Why?' I said, 'It's the law of God.' That's all I said."

The examiner.com story contained a Bible passage calling for the death of "a man (who) lies with a man," and Pacquiao said many readers erroneously believed he had quoted that verse.

He said he had not.

"My favorite verse in the Bible is 'Love one another,' and 'Love your neighbor as you love yourself,'" Pacquiao said. "It's in the Bible: Do not judge. I'm not judging."

Pacquiao was banned from a popular Hollywood shopping mall after the article was publicized Tuesday, and an online petition encouraging sponsor Nike to drop Pacquiao received 4,868 signatures before it was suspended Wednesday morning. The petition site, change.org, posted a note saying that the author of the original article had clarified that Pacquiao didn't cite the Bible passage.

Pacquiao spoke to the AP next to his pool at his comfortable Los Angeles home, where the congressman lives while training for fights at Freddie Roach's Wild Card Gym in Hollywood. The champion had the day off from training, spending the morning in medical exams before a big lunch and some relaxation.

Although Pacquiao is experiencing a newfound passion for his religion and has socially conservative views in line with many Filipinos' beliefs, he was eager to clear his name after a 24-hour avalanche of criticism over the belief that the eight-division world champion boxer had denounced gay rights and even supported the killing of gay people.

The expansive Los Angeles mall knows as The Grove, where the syndicated entertainment-news show "Extra" films its episodes, wouldn't allow Pacquiao to film a segment on its premises. Host Mario Lopez said The Grove had lifted its ban Wednesday, shortly after change.org suspended the petition to Nike, but his crew still planned to film its interview with Pacquiao at the fighter's home instead.

Pacquiao chuckled at the knowledge that his words — even words he said he didn't say — carry more weight than those of an average athlete because of his political aspirations.

"With great power comes great responsibility, so that's my responsibility, to handle everything," Pacquiao said. "This has happened before. You have to explain and understand. It's a lot more fun to train (for a fight)."

Pacquiao is the Philippines' most famous person and one of the world's most popular athletes. The eight-division world champion is a movie star, singer, pitchman and congressman, representing the Sarangani province in the Philippines' House of Representatives since May 2010.

He has won 16 consecutive fights since March 2005, beating Oscar De La Hoya, Juan Manuel Marquez, Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley and Antonio Margarito. He will defend his WBO welterweight title against Timothy Bradley on June 9 in Las Vegas.

Pacquiao has embraced Catholicism in recent months after marital trouble with his wife, Jinkee. Although he has always attended Mass before his fights, the boxer has taken up frequent Bible study, and he traveled from the Philippines to the U.S. in the company of a spiritual adviser and pastor, Jeric Soriano, now a regular presence in Pacquiao's life in Los Angeles and the Philippines.

"It's difficult sometimes, but God gave me a talent," Pacquiao said. "He gave me a wisdom and a knowledge."

Although Pacquiao has some conservative social views, he also has ties to progressive American politicians, including Nevada Sen. Harry Reid. The boxer campaigned for the Democratic majority leader during his tough re-election victory over Sharron Angle in 2010.

Pacquiao also visited Obama at the White House last year, discussing basketball and boxing. The fighter says he enjoyed meeting Obama, but didn't share his views on same-sex marriage.

Pacquiao is the fourth of six children born into poverty in the Philippines, and he has four children of his own with his wife. He has spoken out against birth control during his political career, affirming his Roman Catholic beliefs.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iK_T43YZQQ9D3BOm-YHc_kA2b_wg?docId=9b3ad317989a4e18a25b68a9ebab119b

[Pepsi]

the Filipinos are very religious people and it is heavily Catholic.   Definitely the most religious country I have ever seen (2nd: Poland) and I spent a couple months there in total.   And its not just that the people are religious; the Catholic church is very powerful in the Philippines.    You can't find condoms for sale and there is no legal abortion, which is a key reason that country suffers from overpopulation and rampant poverty.

[Mornac]

Yeah, but at least they're not banned from their local shopping malls.

[Mornac]

How the gay-marriage mob slimed Manny Pacquiao

by Michelle Malkin

05/18/2012

Boxing champion Manny Pacquiao is guilty -- of being true to his Catholic faith. The gay-marriage mob is guilty -- of the very ugly bigotry it claims to abhor. And left-wing media outlets are guilty -- of stoking false narratives that shamelessly demonize religion in the name of compassion.
   
The attempted crucifixion of Pacquiao this week was fueled by an online army of cultural shakedown artists, generously funded by billionaire George Soros and other so-called progressive philanthropists.
   
On Tuesday, a freelance writer for the Examiner.com published an interview with Pacquiao conducted at his Los Angeles residence. Journalist Granville Ampong asked the pugilist his views on gay marriage in light of President Obama's flip-flop-flip on the issue. "God's words first," Pacquiao said. "Obey God's law first before considering the laws of man."
   
After suggesting that Obama should consult the Bible as his "manual for life," Pacquiao added in earnest: "It should not be of the same sex so as to adulterate the altar of matrimony, like in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah of Old."
   
The interview then included a scriptural reference to Leviticus 20:13, which states: "If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads."
   
Publications including USA Today, LA Weekly and Village Voice all ran outraged pieces on Pacquiao's "homophobic" calls for violence. But it was the interviewer, not Pacquiao, who made the citation. Ampong demanded apologies on behalf of Pacquiao. Feckless professional journalists blamed Ampong for their own biased reading and then grudgingly "clarified" the truth in buried updates.
   
"I didn't say that, that's a lie," Pacquiao told anyone who would listen. "I didn't know that quote from Leviticus because I haven't read the Book of Leviticus yet." Too late. The politically correct bloodhounds were in full hunting mode.
   
The Courage Campaign, a community-organizing outfit that claims to have 750,000 members and is funded by the radical Tides Foundation, immediately called on Pacquiao-sponsor Nike to drop him over his "hate speech against gays." The group took to Twitter to demand that the athletic shoe company "Drop Manny," the "homophobic boxer." The call was amplified by Think Progress, an online character assassination squad backed by George Soros.
   
L.A. bigwig developer Rick Caruso, who has mayoral aspirations, squeezed himself into the Catholic-bashing clown car. He announced on Twitter that Pacquiao would be banned from his trendy shopping complex, The Grove. The mall, Caruso wrote, "is a gathering place for all Angelenos, not a place for intolerance."
   
Except for intolerance of completely mainstream views on gay marriage held by millions of practicing people of faith.
   
While L.A. media outlets reported that The Grove has retracted its ban, Caruso had failed as of late Thursday evening to apologize on Twitter or acknowledge the false smears against Pacquiao that prompted the Soros goon squad's boycott demands. Caruso also refused to answer questions about his own rancid double standards:
   
Did he ban President Obama from his retail developments for publicly opposing gay marriage before he supported it?
   
Would Caruso be banning devout anti-gay Muslims from The Grove?
   
What kind of similarly selective tolerance litmus tests would Caruso support if elected to public office?
   
And how does Caruso square his vehement condemnation of Catholic Pacquiao with his funding of the University of Southern California Caruso Catholic Center? As Breitbart.com editor Ben Shapiro noted, the center's director, Father Lawrence Seyer, opposes gay marriage and voted for California's Proposition 8 upholding the traditional definition of marriage.
   
The Courage Campaign was also mum on its hit job late Thursday and was instead touting its "online organizing" to "change (Pacquiao's native) Philippines and USA."
   
This bigoted anti-bigot brigade mimics a wave of similar campaigns against both social and fiscal heretics who refuse to conform to "progressive" values. Targets include Rush Limbaugh, the American Legislative Exchange Council, Mitt Romney donors, Wisconsin's union-reforming governor, lieutenant governor and GOP state legislators, Catholic health care providers, and now black church leaders and boxers who dare to state their religious views publicly.
   
Let this be a teachable moment on pernicious "community organizing" and brazen liberal hypocrisy. There is nothing more intolerant and chilling than the self-appointed, self-unaware tolerance police.

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=51584