Trying to Make It Right?

Working with the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, the El Paso Times ran a series of gay-supportive op-eds following its controversial decision to publish a virulently antigay advertisement for four days in August.

The antigay ad came from Michael Rodriguez, a local Catholic priest who used it to describe homosexuality as "putrid," "depraved," and "poison." The Catholic diocese of El Paso distanced itself from Rodriguez's ads, which were paid for by an unidentified Plano, Texas, couple.

After the advertisements ran, GLAAD took meetings with local religious leaders and the El Paso Times staff -- GLAAD informed the newspaper's publisher of the damage caused by the ads. As a response, "the publisher invited letters to the editor and opinion pieces; several of these ran, the most recent of which was yesterday -- a piece submitted by 11 LGBT-inclusive religious leaders in El Paso," GLAAD's blog reports.

Sunday's op-ed carried messages of support and was written by the Reverend Dr. Ed Roden Lucero, a pastor of San Juan Diego Roman Catholic Church. Rabbis and ministers in El Paso included their names at the bottom of Lucero's column.

"We believe that God continues to be revealed in human history and in the life of each individual," wrote Lucero and the other religious leaders. "We believe that God calls on all of us to extend that same unconditional love to one another. We believe this divine love manifests itself in our reaching out to our neighbor, whoever they may be, caring for them, listening to them and ministering to them without prejudice. ... Together, all people of faith, regardless of race, creed or orientation, will seek out God's will for all our lives -- for this is a purpose for every human life. In a plurality of faith traditions, we worship as one the God who made us and who loves us."