The Wild Reed

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Quote of the Day

I'm still trying to figure out what in the world [the Colorado Springs Diocese's 12-step program for homosexuals] is attempting to accomplish. If it's to help a person modify abusive exploitative sexuality, a twelve step program for that already exists – and it works with either gays or straights. I suspect this program at core is not about addictive abusive sexuality. It's about reinforcing 'correct Catholic thinking' about gay sexuality. I also suspect it's sort of aimed at seminary types who could probably get a seal of approval if they participate in this program.

There is also no compelling reason not to start a group for straight single men, and that might actually help accomplish a reduction in abortion and unwed motherhood. So I'm wondering why there is no group for straight single men. The amount of destruction left behind by irresponsible ego driven straight single men is legendary and it already gone through a number of scandals involving the rape of female cadets. Date rape is exploding on all our college campuses and that's not happening because of gay men. Virtually every college and university fraternity could support such a twelve step group. The Church could also start a group in the inner city where marriage before sex is about as likely as caviar with dinner.

I really want to know why straight single men are always left out of all the sexual discussions? Is it because the Church actually has no courage when it comes to dealing with straight men and the repercussions of irresponsible straight sex? That would be my guess. It doesn't take courage to focus on the supposed flaws of a sub group already thoroughly conditioned to accept such a focus. This is just more abusive marginalization dressed up as a pastoral initiative. It's also an abuse of the Twelve Step therapeutic approach which is targeted at addictive behavior, not romantic attachment. And maybe that's what's bugging me. The Church seems incapable of seeing homosexuality in terms of romantic attachment just as it's seemingly incapable of seeing aspects of single male heterosexual activity in terms of an exploitative and outright selfish "lifestyle."

– Colleen Kochivar-Baker
"About That Twelve Step Program For Gay Men
– Where's The Courage In That?"
Enlightened Catholicism
January 22, 2011

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Last Tuesday, January 11, I enjoyed an afternoon with my friends Raph and Iggy at Angourie, a small village renowned for its surf and "local surf industry icons." I was actually more interested in the rocks and trees!

Above and below: While at Angourie Ig went for a run along the beach . . .

. . . while Raph took a snooze!

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
An Afternoon at Flynns Beach
Photo of the Day – January 1, 2011
Town Beach
A Day Roving the Mid North Coast

Photography: Michael J. Bayly.

Sebastian: Saint, Martyr, Gay Icon

Notes Wikipedia:

Plausibly the earliest gay icon was Saint Sebastian, a Christian saint and martyr, whose strong and shirtless physique, symbolic arrow-pierced flesh, and rapturous look of pain combined have intrigued artists, both gay and straight, for centuries and began the first explicitly gay cult in the nineteenth century. Journalist Richard A. Kaye writes, "contemporary gay men have seen in Sebastian at once a stunning advertisement for homosexual desire (indeed, a homoerotic ideal), and a prototypical portrait of tortured closet case." Due to Saint Sebastian's status as gay icon, Tennessee Williams chose to use that name for the martyred character Sebastian in his play, Suddenly, Last Summer. The name was also used by Oscar Wilde – as Sebastian Melmoth – when in exile after his release from prison. Wilde, an Irish writer and poet, was about as "out of the closet" as was possible for the late nineteenth century, and is himself considered to be a gay icon.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Quote of the Day

[A recently released 1997 letter from the Vatican to the bishops of Ireland] undermines persistent Vatican claims, particularly when seeking to defend itself in U.S. lawsuits, that Rome never instructed local bishops to withhold evidence or suspicion of crimes from police. It instead emphasizes the church's right to handle all child-abuse allegations and determine punishments in house rather than give that power to civil authorities.

Signed by the late Archbishop Luciano Storero, Pope John Paul II's diplomat to Ireland, the letter instructs Irish bishops that their new policy of making the reporting of suspected crimes mandatory "gives rise to serious reservations of both a moral and canonical nature."

Storero wrote that canon law, which required abuse allegations and punishments to be handled within the church, "must be meticulously followed." Any bishops who tried to impose punishments outside the confines of canon law would face the "highly embarrassing" position of having their actions overturned on appeal in Rome, he wrote.

Catholic officials in Ireland and the Vatican declined AP requests to comment on the letter, which [Irish broadcasters] RTE said it received from an Irish bishop.

– Shawn Pogatchnik
"Vatican Warned Irish Bishops Not to Report Abuse"
The Associated Press
January 18, 2011

Related Off-Site Links:
Vatican Says 1997 Irish Abuse Letter Misunderstood – Nicole Winfield (Associated Press, January 19, 2011).
Essential Reading: Tom Doyle's Response to John Allen, Jr. – The Progressive Catholic Voice (December 27, 2011).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
Father Thomas Doyle: "There's Something Radically Wrong with the Institutional Catholic Church"
Quote of the Day – December 22, 2010
Quote of the Day – April 28, 2010
The Real Crisis
The Roman Catholic Pyramid is Crumbling
An Offering of Ashes

Sunday, January 16, 2011

In Maclean, an End to the "Siege"

5: 30 p.m. – As I mentioned in an earlier post, "under siege" has been an expression used a lot to describe many of the flooded-in communities throughout south east Queensland and northern New South Wales. It's a term that brings to mind epic adventures from the likes of The Lord of the Rings and Prince Valiant! In many ways these last few days have been adventurous – but also heart-breakingly sad and devastating for many.

Currently the news is filled with stories of people in Brisbane who are selflessly giving of their time and energy to lend a hand to those most hard hit by the recent flooding of the city. I find these stories to be quite inspiring. In most cases people are helping total strangers.

As Brisbane and other areas begin to clean-up, here in Maclean the flood waters have receded enough to be able to reach the Pacific Highway and travel south to Grafton. As a result, I'll be able to catch a bus tonight in Grafton for Port Macquarie.

The end to the "siege" here in Maclean has also allowed my friends, the newly-weds Jeremiah and Kristy, to drive from Tweed Heads to Maclean, where they plan to make their home. They arrived just as Jeremiah's mum Bernie and siblings Raph, Ig and Mim, and I returned from a delightful afternoon at Brooms Head.

Above: Mim and her dad Mike relaxing earlier this morning.

Above: Raph, getting ready to return to Queensland's Sunshine Coast.

At around lunch time today, Mike and I drove into Maclean to do some errands. On the way back I asked if we could stop so I could photograph a horse I'd notice a number of times over the past few days. I thought a shot of it with the flood waters in the background would make a good picture.

As it turned out, this particular horse was very friendly, and as soon as I began approaching the paddock it was in, it came right up to the fence and let me pat her! It was a nice moment.

Above: Mike and Ig put up the sign I made for the compound
that houses Jeremiah and Kristy's two dogs – Asher and Abby.

Above: Mim, Ig and Raph applying sunscreen to each other at Brooms Head. I later experienced a wonderful Gaytime in the shop behind them!

Right: I would love to have a home just like this one somewhere on the Australian coast! Mind you, I'd have a bit more of a garden around it.

Above and below: Views of the ocean at Brooms Head.

Above: Raph, looking very iconic!

Above: Aren't the colours something?

Above: Ig, Bernie and Raph on the beach at Brooms Head.

Above: Iggy!

Above: Relaxing back at home.

Above: Playing bocce with the boys!

Above: Raph, Bernie, Mim, Kristy and Jeremiah.

9:30 p.m. – The air in Grafton is quite fetid, which I guess is to be expected given the extent of flooding the town has experienced in the past few days.

Mike and his brother Bartley drove me here from Maclean earlier this evening after a pleasant last afternoon in Maclean with the McGowan family. The thing I remember most about the drive? The incredible number of bugs flying around in the car headlights. Again, a consequence of the recent flooding.

I'm looking forward to returning to my parents in Port Macquarie, but I'm also aware that it's been a very special time that I've shared with the McGowans "flooded-in" in Maclean. As Raph noted, it's a "bittersweet" parting for us all. Still, life goes on and there's much for me to do in these next few weeks before my return to the U.S. on February 8.

Recommended Off-site Links:
Mop-Up Army Defines Mateship – The Courier Mail (January 17, 2011).
Thousands Arrive to Lend a Hand – James Madden (The Australian, January 17, 2011).
A Video of the Flooding in Maclean

See also the related Wild Reed posts:
The Australian Floods
Rising Waters
"Flooded-In but Loving Life"

Photography: Michael Bayly.
Opening and closing images: The Lifting of the Siege of Camelot. (Panels from an early 1980s Prince Valiant strip. Art: John Cullen Murphy. Text: John Cullen).

Saturday, January 15, 2011

"Flooded-In but Loving Life"

That's how my good friend Bernie recently described our situation here in Maclean. She was responding to a friend who phoned inquiring about how she and the rest of the McGowan family were dealing with the extensive flooding that has taken place here in northern New South Wales and further north in south eastern Queensland. In many parts of these areas – including the Queensland capital of Brisbane – the floods have been quite devastating. To date 16 people have been reported killed, 53 reported missing, and tens of thousands evacuated from their homes.

Above right: My friends Bernie (front), Mim and Raphael.

Above: Looking toward Maclean across swathes of flood water
and a kangaroo-dotted paddock.

How did I get to be flood-bound in Maclean? Well, as I've noted previously, I'm here with members of the McGowan family – all of whom are dear friends and some of whom live just outside of Maclean. My plan was to spend a couple of days with them after attending the wedding of the eldest McGowan son in the coastal town of Kingscliff, 200 kilometres north of Maclean.

Above: The extended McGowan family. From left: Bernie, Tess, Maisy, Dominica,
Mim, Collette, Kristy, Jeremiah, Raphael, Iggy, Bartley, Victor and Mike
– Kingscliff, New South Wales, January 8, 2011.

On the day I was to return to my parents' home in Port Macquarie (January 11), the waters of the Clarence River rose and cut access from Maclean to the Pacific Highway, preventing the southbound bus service I was scheduled to travel on to Port Macquarie from reaching me. Since then the Pacific Highway itself has been cut at nearby Harwood.

Above left: With my friend Raph, waiting for the bus that would never arrive!

Raph and Mim were also prevented from returning to the Sunshine Coast where they live and work, while Mike's brother Bartley was prevented from returning to his home in Melbourne. Both Mike and Bernie are unable to travel to their workplaces in nearby Grafton. It's been this way for four days now. Hopefully things will clear up by the weekend.

Above (from left): Mim, Ig, Raph, Bernie, Mike and Bartley.

So, my friends – especially those of you in the U.S. who have been e-mailing me, concerned about my whereabouts and safety – I want to assure you that I'm quite safe, just stranded for a little while.

But I'm with friends and, while we're certainly keeping those who have been most impacted by these terrible floods in our thoughts and prayers, we also remain thankful for being alive, being together and being able to love life in the midst of the situation we currently find ourselves.

Following are some images of our life here in flooded-in Maclean.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Above: Iggy.

Above: Ig helps manage and staff the local gym.
In this picture he gives his sister Mim some tips on boxing.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Today was quite sunny and so we spent much of it working outside doing yard work.

Above and left: Mim and Raph take turns mowing the grass on a ride-on lawn mower.

Above: Taking the dogs for a walk.

Above: Relaxing after a hard day of yard work.

Friday, January 14, 2011

Above: Doesn't the yard look great?

Above: But there's still work to be done!

Above: Visiting the Maclean Lookout.

Above: Bernie and Mim.

Above: Raph, enjoying the sunny weather.

Above: With the winding contours of the Clarence River on the left, this image
clearly shows the extent of the flooding that has isolated the town of Maclean.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Some more jobs around the yard were completed today along with time spent relaxing in the hammock that was put up by Raph on Thursday. Then in the afternoon, Bernie, Raph, Mim and I traveled to the coastal spot known as Broom's Head. The road to this part of the coast has recently been reopened. Access to the Pacific Highway, however, remains blocked by flood waters.