A good, hearty laugh relieves physical tension and stress, leaving your muscles relaxed for up to 45 minutes after. Laughter boosts the immune system. Laughter decreases stress hormones and increases immune cells and infection-fighting antibodies, thus improving your resistance to disease.
Mental Illness is a harsh reality to some. Many people feel that because there are no lab test, x-ray or physical manifestation of mental illness means that it is not real. The whole truth is that it is real.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was the preeminent leader of the Indian nationalism in British-ruled India. Employing nonviolent civil disobedience, Gandhi led India to independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world.
Columnist Writes Scathing Editorial About Bishop Eddie Long
Cynthia Tucker, the former editorial page editor of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and now the paper’s national political columnist wrote a scathing article addressing Bishop Eddie Long’s rumored negotiation settlements.
An excerpt:
There has never been much to admire about the ministry of Eddie Long, who presides over the much-hyped New Birth Missionary Baptist mega-church in Lithonia, Ga. He is a homophobe, a narcissist and a con artist — a man much more devoted to his own wellbeing than that of his congregants or his larger community. He has misused his pulpit in ways large and small, including a self-aggrandizing abuse of the title “bishop,” a rank that doesn’t officially exist among Baptists.
Given Long’s extremely flexible ethics over the years, it’s no surprise that he chose to engage in hush-hush negotiations aimed at settling the sexual misconduct allegations brought against him by four young men. If the civil cases are settled — a settlement is reportedly close — they will likely require non-disclosure agreements by all parties. Long would then continue to insist that he did nothing wrong.
Bishop Eddie Long
Nixon also goes on to say that pastors who preach such homophobic messages are responsible for the high rates of HIV/AIDS in the black community.
There is now a well-established pattern of closeted gay ministers in conservative circles, men who turned their fears and unease about their sexuality outward, preaching fiery sermons that condemn homosexuality as an “abomination.” Those ministers have thrived for years in churches large and small before their deceits were uncovered. They have served congregations black, white and mixed.
But nowhere have those closeted gays — and their bigoted but straight brethren — done more harm than in the black church, where homophobia drives gays into the closet and fuels covert sexual activity. That, in turn, allows HIV/AIDS to thrive.
Whew! I encourage you all to read the article in FULL.
What do you think about the points that Nixon made? Are closeted preachers part of the problem.
