Letters

Exchanging Vows
We applaud the courage of the Reverend Marilyn Meeker-Williams and the Reverend Bruce Felker ["Left Standing at the Church Door," by Margaret Downing, April 29] in taking a strong stand against their denomination's ban on the blessing of same-gender unions. We also congratulate the members of Bering Memorial United Methodist Church for supporting their pastors in this difficult decision.

Our denomination, Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches, is one of the only Christian denominations which blesses both same-gender unions and heterosexual marriages. It is also one of the few which does not make sexual orientation and/or celibacy a criterion for ordination. We rejoice at the stand for Christian justice and inclusivity taken by the Reverend Meeker-Williams and the Reverend Felker and pray that many other pastors will follow their example.

The Reverend Ralph LasherMetropolitan Community
Church of the Resurrection

Old Time Religion
It's not God's law that says gay (or biracial, interreligious, hearing-impaired, redheaded or whatever) couples can't be married.

It's an idiotic church law, and it should be ignored, even defied. Bering Church, with its long history of recognition and support of the gay community, is just the place for this to start. But if Pastor Meeker-Williams continues to not perform gay weddings, her silence is simply perpetuating the double standard she claims to find unacceptable.

You can't pick and choose and bend the rules to suit your whims. If Methodist rules say you can't be gay and be married, and you still want to be married, then you ain't a Methodist.

Meeker-Williams needs to decide: Is she a Methodist, or is she ready to break away and form a new, kinder, gentler sect?

I'm one of those "rare" nongay people who's actively sick and tired of the Religious Right stomping all over the rights of gays, women, racial minorities, public school children and anyone else who's different from them. I don't want their Jesus dictating law, and I don't want him decreeing who is fit to be married to whom.

I would like to see Pastor Meeker-Williams use her position of prominence at Bering to promote the rights of all people, not deny rights to everyone.

Julie A. Young
Houston

A Real Lady
Thank you for the great article on my son, his play and me ["Daddy Kathryn," by Brad Tyer, April 15]. It's always an honor to be in your paper.

Kathryn McGuire
Cliffside Park, New Jersey

And Horse Manure to Boot
While I may agree with you about the Houston sports franchises' ability to not only fill but feed from the public trough, you shouldn't lump the Houston Rodeo in with that bunch ["The Killer-est B," by Bob Burtman, May 6]. Ask these questions:

Which of the organizations you mentioned sponsor thousands of kids' college educations through millions of dollars in scholarships? Which one draws thousands of foreign visitors spending millions of dollars in Houston? Which one financed new facilities and donated them to the city and county?

Which organization's attendance more than doubled in the last ten years? Which organization never sought bond issue after bond issue?

It's not the Rockets, not the Astros, Comets, Aeros or the nonlamented Oilers, but the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

The rodeo provided the perfect reason for not funding McLane, et al., which is why a near majority voted to deny the HSA its current status. We should require from these sports franchises the kind of involvement and commitment that the Rodeo has shown to Houston. The economic hand that the Rodeo provides is truly a multiplier and not the smoke and mirrors provided by the NFL, NBA and National League.

Michael Craig
via Internet

Tube Puncher
Russell Contreras ["Roping In Ratings," April 29] misses some serious points about Spanish television in Houston.

Channel 45 seems to think Latin America ends somewhere in Panama or Colombia. Telemundo does a mediocre job by trying to cover so much in 30 minutes. Channel 45's ratings are so high because it is the only choice in Houston and because of the Hispanic tradition of staying glued to the TV set.

And in an industry where ratings are everything and equal money, Camacho's editorial is about ratings. I find it insulting. Does Camacho believe that the Hispanic people in Houston cannot move forward if we do not have scholarships specifically targeted to our community? Telemundo tries to do some form of bashing on Univision all the time.

I hope that I am not the only one who notices the terrible Spanish that is spoken in the local television news. By the time the news shows are over, I just want to put my fist through the TV set.

Radio Unica-AM 1320 is the only in-depth news source from Latin America that is worth mentioning.

Bernardo Pohl
via Internet

Oh No Tsu!
I was a trombonist for The Democratic Art, a free-improv group that played No tsu oH twice in the early days ["Unreal Estate," by Lauren Kern, May 6]. This "hip, bohemian" crowd was extremely insulting to a type of art they didn't understand. Mr. Pirtle himself (at least I assume it was Jim; he was acting like the boss) told us they liked to have music there that just added to the atmosphere, background-type music.