A few days ago my wife received an email asking her to sign a petition to be sent to the Prime Minister of Israel, Ehud Olmert. The petition asked him to ban the gay pride parade scheduled for November 10 - which was two days ago.
Turns out the parade was cancelled. From Zenit.org:
Organizers backed down from today's scheduled event following the pleas of Jewish, Christian and Muslim religious leaders who called such a public display in the holy city offensive.
The Holy See sent an appeal to Israeli authorities to cancel the parade, explaining that "it constitutes a grave affront to the sentiments of millions of Jewish, Muslim and Christian believers, who recognize the particular sacred character of the city of Jerusalem and request that their conviction be respected."
Sounds good, doesn't it? From that part of the article, it sounds like the homosexual community has practiced what it preaches in terms of tolerance and sensitivity. But keep reading. The real reason they cancelled the parade was:
Authorities asked organizers to scale back the gathering amid reprisal threats after errant Israeli artillery shells killed 18 Palestinian civilians in Gaza on Wednesday.
So the parade wasn't cancelled to respect the religious convictions of the diverse faiths which hold Jerusalem in high esteem (Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Ba'hai). It was cancelled when local authorities reminded the parade organizers that they were about to show their colours in an area known for its random violence.
Were I one to put my own homosexual inclinations into practice & activism, I would be insulted by such a rationale.
As it stands, I am disappointed that the homosexual community had to be fed that line instead of expecting them to respect our sacred ground.
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