By Christopher Cappiello

Report Says Vatican Will Not Ban Gay Priests

A widely rumored new Vatican document addressing sexuality and the priesthood will fall short of a full ban on gay men entering the seminary, according to the prominent Italian newspaper Corriere della Serra. The new document will allow men to enter the seminary if they have lived a chaste life for at least three years prior to admission, according to an ABC News report of the Italian newspaper's findings. The article is written by the newspaper's chief Vatican correspondent, Luigi Accattoli, who cites sources from the Vatican's Congregation for Catholic Education, the agency responsible for writing the new seminary admissions document.

The document will also call for denying admission to prospective seminarians who are part of the "gay culture" (attending Pride events, for example), or whose homosexuality is sufficiently "strong, permanent and univocal," that the all-male environment would pose too great a risk, according to the National Catholic Reporter (NCR).

"Anyone who knows Catholic teaching should not be surprised by what the document says," a senior Vatican official told the Associated Press. But the church's history on admitting gay men to the priesthood is somewhat contradictory. The 1961 document, "Instructions on the Careful Selection and Training of Candidates for the States of Perfection and Sacred Orders" clearly states that men with "homosexual tendencies," should not be admitted to the priesthood. Yet it is widely known that there are thousands of gay priests currently serving, with estimates in the American press ranging from 10 to 60 percent. In an open admission of this reality, the Vatican is launching a widely publicized, yearlong examination of American seminaries to determine the extent of what some call the "lavender seminaries."

In an ironic twist, this new, seemingly restrictive order "will be the first time that the church will have formally said that gay men have been and can be accepted by seminaries," an anonymous gay priest told the AP. The reported new contents of this upcoming document are "not too far from present policy," Catholic University sociologist Dean Hoge told the AP. "An outright ban is not possible. There is no way of enforcing it."

"The pope wants to sound an alarm bell," a high level Vatican official told NCR's John L. Allen Jr., "in part because of perceptions that some American seminaries are predominantly gay." Allen also reports that the document, which doesn't address the issue of gay men already ordained, is expected to be released in early November.

Elton John Supports Nepal's LGBT Group

Openly gay pop music icon Elton John has donated $40,000 to Nepal's most prominent gay rights organization, the BBC reported on Oct. 5. John's gift comes at a critical time in the Blue Diamond Society's efforts to bring international attention to the challenges facing Nepal's sexual minorities. "We have established a hospice in Kathmandu [the nation's capital] for AIDS patients who have reached an advanced stage and have been abandoned by their families," Blue Diamond founder Sunil Plant told the BBC. He said the money will also be used to raise awareness about HIV prevention. A 2002 World Health Organization report estimated that 60,000 people were HIV-positive in the Himalayan country of approximately 27 million people.

Recent months have seen several incidents of police harassment and even abuse of gay men and transgender people in Nepal. Homosexuality is not illegal in the country, but the Nepalese Civil Code prohibits "unnatural sexual acts," a provision that is used to justify abuse and persecution. Although the country's Buddhist traditions dictate tolerance, the Blue Diamond Society cites a strain of fundamentalist Hinduism that intimidates many gays and transgendered people to lead double lives.

The organization's name has symbolic meaning in South Asia. Blue is the "gay color" in Belarus, and diamonds are a Buddhist symbol of compassion.

Singapore Says No to Pride Parades

Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong recently said that the tiny Southeast Asian city-state will not allow any gay parades, Reuters reports. Homosexuality is illegal in the former British colony and the government for many years has claimed that the conservative nature of the country's 4.4 million people does not allow for public recognition of homosexuality or gay rights organizations.

"I don't think we're homophobic," Reuters reports Loong as saying at a Foreign Correspondents luncheon. "I agree ... that homosexuals are people like you and me. But there's some segment of Singaporeans who vehemently disagree with that and we have to be aware of that ... Gay pride Ñ well, you can do that in Sydney, in London, in San Francisco. But I'm not sure if I want to do that in Singapore."

Tensions between the government and gay rights groups were heightened this summer when police banned the annual gay beach celebration, The Nation, forcing its relocation to Thailand's Phuket. At the time, Agence France-Presse also reported a crackdown on a local gay magazine. The government seems to be ending a period of several years of looking the other way when it comes to gay events, entertainment, tourism and visibility.

Rainbow World Fund Helps Quake Victims

Following the devastating magnitude 7.6 earthquake that hit Pakistan and parts of India and Afghanistan on Oct. 8, the Rainbow World Fund set up a special fund to assist in the relief efforts. Rainbow World Fund is the only international relief organization that focuses on publicly distributing LGBT dollars for worldwide efforts to deliver food, shelter and safe drinking water to disaster and poverty-stricken regions.

As of Oct. 13, The New York Times reported 23,000 confirmed dead, with many more expected to be discovered. Close to 5 million people are believed to be hurt or left homeless by the South Asian quake. The center of the quake was 60 miles north-northeast of Islamabad, the Pakistani capital, and the hardest hit regions are in Kashmir, the Pakistani-controlled area that has long been under dispute between India and Pakistan.

The Rainbow World Fund is partnering with CARE to deliver resources to the devastated areas. To find out how to donate identifiably gay dollars to this massive, worldwide relief effort, visit rainbowfund.org.

Canadian Gay Rights Pioneer Dies at 78

George Hislop, who sparked a 19-year debate in Canada on pension benefits for same-sex partners left widowed by government workers, died in a Toronto hospital on Oct. 9 at the age of 78, according to the Canadian Press. Ironically, Hislop received his first pension check from the government in August, after many years of battling for his right to the benefits of his partner, Ron Shearer, who died in 1986.

Following his partner's death, Hislop claimed that he was financially dependent on Shearer, and should be eligible for the same pension benefits as a married spouse. Although his initial claim was turned down, subsequent court battles paved the way for a nationwide discussion of equal rights. "With his unique combination of charm and courage, George transformed our city, our nation and our world. His death is a great loss to all of us," Hislop's lawyer, George Elliott, told the Canadian Press.

Surviving partners of government workers who died after January 1998 were declared eligible for pension benefits through a 2000 Canadian law. Hislop and his legal team deemed this an arbitrary line, and insisted that the eligibility date go back to 1985, the year of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. While a provincial appeals court agreed with Hislop in 2004, the government is still waiting to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Hislop served as grand marshal to Toronto's 2004 Gay Pride Parade. At the end of a long day in a red convertible, the septuagenarian activist told the Canadian Press, "I remember when I was a kid, there was a sign above the blackboard at school and it said, 'The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.' So never turn your back on anybody. Keep your eyes and ears open."

Gay Nuptials for Canadian Cabinet Minister

Scott Brison, Canada's minister of public works and government services, and the first openly-gay cabinet minister in the country's history, told The Globe and Mail newspaper Oct. 10 that he and his boyfriend will marry under Canada's new legislation recognizing same-sex marriages. After ending a long-term relationship last winter, the 38-year-old MP, a former investment banker from Nova Scotia, has been in a relationship with Ottawa government employee Maxime St. Pierre for about six months.

Brison's possible gay nuptials are particularly interesting considering his political past. A Liberal Party MP, Brison began his political career as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party, who saw their last major hold on power in the late 1980s under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. Brison came out publicly in 2002, but when the Progressive Conservatives merged with the more right-wing Canadian Alliance in 2003, he defected to the Liberal Party.

On June 28, 2005, Canada's House of Commons passed legislation legalizing same-sex marriage across the country. When the bill became law a month later, Canada became the fourth country to recognize such unions, following the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain.