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Gay man sues Bible publishers
If you don’t like what the Bible has to say about a particular sin you’ve been committing, then sue the guys who publish Bibles. At least that’s the thinking of Bradley LaShawn Fowler, a gay man from Canton, Mich. Fowler seeks $60 million from Zondervan and $10 million from Thomas Nelson Publishing for 20 years of “emotional duress and mental instability” he claims to have suffered because of Bible verses that call homosexuality as a sin.
“The Court has some very genuine concerns about the nature and efficacy of these claims,” wrote a judge from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
HT: Samuel at Gilgal
Topic: Religion, WorldMagBlog
Keywords: Bible, homosexual issues
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back to top46 Comments to “Gay man sues Bible publishers”
Yikes!
Well…
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Zondervan, I’m sure, will respond short and sweet to avoid a default. Let’s just give this poor soul his due process and leave it at that.
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Hah! That’s hilarious. My only concern is that American courts are “like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re going to get.”
When something goes to court, the last thing we expect is justice or reason. I remember a few years ago someone sued God and lost. However, this guy just might win, because judges can say and do pretty much anything they want.
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This is almost as bad a the Tennessee guy who sued his church because he was so moved by the Spirit he fell down the stairs.
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I put this article up yesterday afternoon my time (about 24 hours ago) by Victoria 07.10.08 at 6:39 pm on “Road to nowhere” by Mindy Belz – MY Post number 5 –
My post and information about the subject tied in with the split in the Church which Mindy Belz was writing about, which obviously had a homosexual situation with ’same sex marriage’ etc.
This has happened a number of times before - I post a good story and a day or so later it becomes a ‘new thread’ – This doesn’t seem fair
__________________________________________
BELOW is my exact post number 5
NOTE: Today we see those who not only want to take sin out of the Church, but out of the Word of God as well.
Bible Publishers Sued for Anti-Gay References
Thursday, July 10, 2008 10:51 AM
By: Rick Pedraza
Below is another quote from article
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Rolled eyes. If he feels so convincted, maybe he can avoid reading it. If that isn’t enough (if he still feels convicted), maybe he should think about it.
Mickey, I really didn’t like seeing “gay” in the headline or the story, however, on a World site. I believe “homosexual” is the correct word you’re looking for, not the PC, “friendlier,” meaningless word.
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I agree, there is nothing GAY about homosexuality, its just the opposite!
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That this nonsense could even be seriously considered is a result of the Supreme Court’s misinterpretation of the First Amendment.
Rather than protecting citizens from the strong arm of government by guaranteeing free speech, it has come to mean just the opposite. Now it means using the strong arm of government to prevent people from hearing things they don’t want to hear.
For this reason, who knows what a court might say? They can rule anyway they want.
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Cheryl D.: I understand what you’re saying. I was using preferred AP style.
Victoria: Congratulations on being first. I guess I don’t understand what you’re calling unfair. I never even saw your comment from yesterday.
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I am totally offended by the Bible calling out my sloth, greed, and jealousy. Where’s my lawyer???
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Mickey I thought you were Managing Editor, since Lynn has been out ill? If you can’t see what I mean by ‘unfair’ I won’t bother to explain it to you.
Putting something up, as I did on Mindy Belz thread Road to nowhere lined up with taking sin out of the Church and then suing to take sin out of the Word of God. Mindy’s thread is excellent, I only wish more people had read what she wrote, and post on her thread. She is an excellent writer!
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XION: I remember a few years ago someone sued God and lost.
You must have a long memory, because the last person to sue God was Satan. The plaintiff lost, of course, but the case was somewhat of a miscarriage of justice in the sense that God put Job on trial instead of standing at the bar himself. Job passed the test with flying colors, but God definitely would have come off looking better if He’d have taken His own advice and settled out of court.
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Xion, if you’re thinking of a different case, how did the plaintiff obtain return of service?
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This Moth is probably the post which like no other, mirror’s your heart and soul.
The first thought is to hate you, but the LORD Jesus Christ says I must love you. That’s not easy to do. I have no respect for what you write, or your disrespect for the LORD, but I must love you anyway. That is the test of my faith in Jesus Christ as my Savior.
May you someday come to know the living LORD.
I may never post to you again, or read whatever it is you post, it is just to vile.
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The gambit goes both ways.
If a religious nut spouts something off the deep end, secular people get to roll their eyes.
If a secular nut spouts something off the deep end, religious people get to have an indignation party.
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That doesn’t sound very fair, Random. You say the secular people only “roll their eyes” yet the religious folk have an “indignation party”???
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#12 Scroop – Nebraska State Senator Ernie Chambers (D – Omaha) filed suit against God in Sept 2007, asking a court to order the Almighty and his followers to stop making terrorist threats.
Chambers accuses God of causing “fearsome floods, egregious earthquakes, horrendous hurricanes, terrifying tornadoes, pestilential plagues, ferocious famines, devastating droughts, genocidal wars, birth defects, and the like.”
The suit is Chambers v. God.
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I’m talking about the literary character, folks, not the Ground of All Being. Don’t they assign Archibald MacLeish’s JB in high school anymore? Don’t they read Northrop Frye and Harold Bloom?
Here’s Blake’s picture of Satan before the throne of God:
http://www.gailgastfield.com/job/jobc02.jpg
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XION, filing suit isn’t suing until there’s a “return of service.” I won’t get around to reading the complaint (I have my own complaints), but it certainly sounds like God dodged the bullet on a legal technicality.
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God’s boilerplate countersuit is already prepared. It’s called the Holy Bible. Bart D. Ehrman has a new book out, God’s Problem, that weighs the adequacy of the Bible’s various, mutually incompatible, defenses. The conclusion: God has a fool for a client. All’s not lost, however. Ehrman’s critique doesn’t stop the minds at Worldmagblog from tapping into the realm of the intellectually possible and thinking up a better defense. Ehrman’s book only suggests that, without hotshot lawyers, God does have a problem.
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Xion – The suit against God was dismissed for lack of service of process.
I would hope that the publishers file a motion for sanctions, and get an award of their attorney’s fees from the nitwit.
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KRM – Without service of process within a certain amount of time, the plaintiff’s complaint expires without the need for an order of dismisssal or any other action of the court — I think.
The plaintiff could have petitioned the court for the appointment of a trustee who would represent the absent Omnipresence and allow the suit to proceed to default and judgment. But without an ability to attach the defendant, the plaintiff would have no means of recovery of damages, and would waste his or her effort.
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I would hope that the publishers file a motion for sanctions, and get an award of their attorney’s fees from the nitwit.
Actual damages aren’t likely to be significant. My guess is, the plaintiff has brought joy to Zondervan and its lawyers.
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Scroop – how failed service is handled varies by jurisdiction. Actual damages to the publishers will be nil. Attorney’s fees could be another matter.
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That doesn’t sound very fair, Random. You say the secular people only “roll their eyes” yet the religious folk have an “indignation party”???
I’m sorry. The secular people fall on the floor, their eyes roll back in their heads, spittle forms on their lips, and they thrash uncontrollably in their straight jackets.
Actually, let me spurnish that a bit. (Opposite of polish or burnish.) They thrash uncontrollably in their…what?…gay jackets? That doesn’t work either. Bi-polar jackets?
Needs work.
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How about have a hissy fit. I’ve seen a lot of secular people have hissy fits.
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#22 “absent Omnipresence”
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That’s much better, my dear Random. Thanks.
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So does this mean that I can sue Scott Foresman-Addison Wesley Publishing for years of stress and anxiety over my math homework?
This is ridiculous that the courts are even entertaining this. They should be laughing it out the door. I don’t like a lot of things people write but that doesn’t give any grounds to sue them.
Freedom of speech appears to be dyeing. Or at least morphing into freedom of [politically correct, none offensive, doesn't critique anyone or effect anyone in any way shape or form because it may cause someone a slight discomfort] speech.
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I hope everyone is suitably impressed with my self-control in staying away from posting here for six months.
My next exercise in self-control will be to refrain from making jokes about “straight men” for my comedy routines for six months.
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I would like to sue them for calling me an ape in their biology textbooks.
– BTW Is anyone else having problems with this website’s pages being too wide for their browser window?
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Only $70,000,000.00?
“…for 20 years of “emotional duress and mental instability.”
That this guy is mentally unstable is obvious. But from which verse in the Bible did he get his greed?
“The Court has some very genuine concerns…”
The most mentally unstable person in this story is clearly the judge.
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#32 AWStar, the page width is due to #31 Random Name’s hissy fit. It went about twice as long as it should have (for page width purposes) without a breath.
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Joel Mark – If I saw that judge’s little comment in any of my cases, I would be taking it as a very clear warning (to the extent possible given the judge’s judicial code of conduct restraints) that the judge thought the case was bogus and the other side might well have a good claim for sanctions (such as getting it’s attorney’s fess aid by the plaintiff).
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Mickey, not that you’re likely to be checking in here, but I can see that being AP style…but I’d assume that World has a style manual that trumps AP style on religious and moral issues (such as ways to speak about abortion, biblical terms, etc.), right? That was always the case in book publishing, anyway, that house style trumped Chicago.
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Evidently one of the powers (of this world) that be removed my hss (sound of air leaking out of a balloon).
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#15
“Hagee removes YouTube videos”
That was fast. Thank you.
Makes me gay to see such a quick response.
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Victoria,
It seems that you are just ahead of all the blog thread posters.
Seriously though, take it as a compliment that the information that you posted was seen important enough to make it into it’s own thread.
Or is it that you feel the need to see your name on the post?
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Fuzzyface – 38
I send many things in, most of the time I DO NOT want my name as the one who thought it would be a good TITLE. Hope this helps to clear things up.
If I post a link with a story, it’s because I bellieve it pertinent to the Title at hand and what is being discussed.
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Victoria,
I guess I was just confused when you said ‘This doesn’t seem fair’.
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Fuzzyface,
I can see where I didn’t make myself plain, I should have explained what I meant.
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Troops, let’s remember to pray for that guy.
I’m waiting for the Government to sue Bible publishers to remove verses like Lev 18:22 (”You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.”) because they’re construed as a “hate crime.”
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Random Name: Have you seen some of the indignation parties the environmentalists have?
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indignation parties…environmentalists [opinionated teen]
Sure. I have been involved in some of them. Sometimes on one side; sometimes on another side.
My wife and I years ago became involved in a fairl substantial environmental group. After several years of participation, we discovered that the leader was involved in questionable activities. Eventually we sued–fairly big affair–three week trial–we won.
“Environmentalism” (like most big political and social issues) involves many different issues and points of view. Sound bite slogans and stereotypes does not do it justice.
Hey, there are many different Christians, Christian points of view, and behaviors by different people who call themselves “Christians.”
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Your example is not an idignation party. That is a genuine concern for the well-being of your group, and I would have done the same thing. I was talking about the rants about the rainforest, the whales, and slaughterhouses.
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Cheryl D.: I’m always lurking about.
WORLD does have a separate style manual that trump AP on some matters, but not on this one. We’ll use both terms in stories and will often use the shorter word for headlines.
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