“The same thing that was a sin 2,000 years ago is a sin today. The thing that was right 2,000 years ago is right today.”

Brown has made headlines with his fierce opposition to gay rights, righteously citing the Bible as the source of his views. As he wrote on the site of his organization Freedmen Nebraska: “We believe the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments to be the inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings.”

Interesting, since this means Brown supports slavery. The Bible says so, both in the Old and New Testaments. It seems like an odd stance for an African American to have, but Brown says we can’t argue with the Bible. As it says (among numerous passages):

You may purchase male or female slaves from among the foreigners who live among you. You may also purchase the children of such resident foreigners, including those who have been born in your land. You may treat them as your property, passing them on to your children as a permanent inheritance. You may treat your slaves like this, but the people of Israel, your relatives, must never be treated this way. (Leviticus 25:44-46).

Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, in singleness of heart, as you obey Christ. (Ephesians 6:5-9).

Brown has a historic soul mate in Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederate States of America during the Civil War, who was also fond of quoting the Bible to support his worldview:

“[Slavery] was established by decree of Almighty God…it is sanctioned in the Bible, in both Testaments, from Genesis to Revelation…it has existed in all ages, has been found among the people of the highest civilization, and in nations of the highest proficiency in the arts.”

The Bible — including Jesus – never condemns the practice and offers guidance on how slaves should be treated. In addition to slavery, the Old Testament also includes prohibitions on eating shellfish, working on the sabbath or having a tattoo, and supports stoning adulterers and killing children who curse their parents.

Brown must believe all those things, since he supports both the Old and New Testaments. I would not imagine he would ever cherry-pick what parts of the Bible to believe and what parts to discard as irrelevant to modern society. That would not be very Christian of him.

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Trey Hardee

Top medal hopefuls from the U.S. Olympic team were on hand in Dallas this weekend for a media meet-and-greet. US PRESSWIRE sent photographers to get some terrific portraits of some of the athletes.

The male Olympians there were swimmers Michael Phelps and Alex Meyer, sprinter Wallace Spearmon, taekwondo’s Steven Lopez, fencer Alexander Massiaias, archer Brady Ellison, judo’s Travis Stevens and decathlete Trey Hardee. The Games start in London with the Opening Ceremony on July 27.

The gallery:

Click on image for full-sized view

Credits:

Wallace Spearmon, Trey Hardee, Travis Stevens, Brady Ellison, Alexander Massiaias: Photos by Jim Cowsert-US PRESSWIRE

Steven Lopez, Alex Meyer: Photos by Kevin Jairaj-US PRESSWIRE

Michael Phelps: Photos by Ford McClave-US PRESSWIRE

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Since I came out as a lesbian my junior year at boarding school, I have never witnessed a premeditated hate crime. But that does not mean it has been easy. I am now a sophomore at Amherst College, an elite liberal arts school with what’s advertised as an open-minded student body. When I started at Amherst, I was confident and ready to be out in a new community.

However, upon my arrival, girls told me I was too pretty to be gay. Guys told me I was too hot to be a dyke, or that they would turn me straight. I discovered I was one of the only out varsity athletes at Amherst, and felt isolated. I was bullied by a teammate for my sexuality but did not feel I could speak out. Closeted athletes told me their secrets and then ignored me or talked behind my back. Although much of the homophobia I’ve witnessed at Amherst is often indirect, or even meant to be complimentary to me, it still stings with ignorance. I’ve often wondered: If it is this hard to be an LGBT athlete at Amherst College, what is it like at other campuses around the country?

Now she knows: It’s hit-and-miss. She said various students at Bryant apologized for the apparent homophobia at their school. But others felt so compelled against gay athletes that they would make Bryant the first school ever to have Sheng’s exhibit attacked.

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Jordan Eberle (Photo: Jean-Yves Ahern/US PRESSWIRE)

Brian Elliott of the St. Louis Blues and Jordan Eberle of the Edmonton Oilers are the latest in a series of National Hockey League players to endorse the You Can Play project to fight homophobia in sports.

“I support LGBT athletes everywhere,” says Elliott in the video. The project, started by Philadelphia Flyers scout Patrick Burke to honor his late brother Brendan, has been on a roll since starting two months ago. It just teamed up with Major League Soccer in a partnership.

Eberle is a finalist for the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, given to the NHL player who best exhibits sportsmanship. Elliott is the goalie for the Blues, the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference playoffs, who fell in the semifinals to the Los Angeles Kings.

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King was introduced to the crowd as “one of America’s greatest sports icons and social justice pioneers.” She didn’t throw from the mound, but still showed nice form:

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Augustus has been through a lot between her 2008 and 2012 gold-medal attempts on Team USA. After the last Olympic games, Augustus’s hopes for a WNBA title were cut short after she suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in June 2009. She was forced to sit out for the rest of the season, with plans for a comeback in 2010. Her hopes were dashed again, however, when she learned she had fibroids and needed surgery to have them removed. She said having two health problems in the same year required her to become conscious of her healing and avoiding re-injury.

PHOTO: Minnesota Lynx guard Seimone Augustus (33) drives the ball up court against the Atlanta Dream during the fourth quarter in game three of the WNBA Finals at Philips Arena. The Lynx defeated the Dream 73-67. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-US PRESSWIRE

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Pacquiao, bearing a conservative stance on the Reproductive Bill which is still pending in the Philippine Congress for approval even after contemptuous debates, believes the sweeping campaign of Obama favoring the gays and lesbians to legally marry is nothing more than a direct attack on the moral society and against the creative power and will of God.

Pacquiao continues: “God only expects man and woman to be together and to be legally married, only if they so are in love with each other.”

“It should not be of the same sex so as to adulterate the altar of matrimony, like in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah of Old.”

PHOTO: Manny Pacquiao at a press conference at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

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“We have enjoyed speaking with Patrick [Burke] and learning about You Can Play,” said JoAnn Neale, executive vice president for Major League Soccer. “MLS W.O.R.K.S. [the league’s charitable arm] is committed to working alongside groups that support LGBT causes and equality. We look forward to working with You Can Play in a variety of capacities.”

While we’ve seen trickles of NOH8 and It Gets Better videos from MLS players and teams, this new partnership opens the possibility to see a flood of support for gay athletes in Major League Soccer.

This is the first league-endorsed partnership of its kind for the You Can Play project. The National Hockey League has been prominent in the You Can Play project, but a formal relationship has not been announced. Other sports leagues have an off-and-on history of working with gay not-for-profit groups: Major League Baseball and the NBA have worked with GLAAD and GLSEN, while various individual baseball teams have created It Gets Better videos.

We’ve said the involvement of the leagues and commissioners is huge in opening their doors to openly gay athletes; The institutional support a partnership like this provides is invaluable to changing the culture of sport. This is another very positive step!

PHOTO: Chivas USA midfielder Michael Lahoud (11) scores a goal during the second half against the FC Dallas at the Home Depot Center. FC Dallas won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-US PRESSWIRE

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How do you think your hometown will stack up?

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9

We present our favorite photos of the past sports week.

This week’s offerings include Canada Cup diving, the NCAA men’s volleyball championships, world rowing, mixed martial arts, NFL minicamps and the funky hair of Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals.

Click image for larger, full-sized view (and that image for the largest view):

Photo 1: Jesper Tolvers and Christofer Erskilsson (Sweden) in the men’s 10m synchro diving event at the Canada Cup in Montreal. (Photo by Jean-Yves Ahern-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 2: Francois Imbeau-Dulac (Canada) during the men’s 3m final of the Canada Cup (Photo by Jean-Yves Ahern-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 3: Jose Guerra (Cuba) during one of his dives at the Canada Cup. (Photo by   Jean-Yves Ahern-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 4: Michael Hixon and David Bonuchi (USA) during one of their dives at the Canada Cup. (Photo by Jean-Yves Ahern-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 5: Alexandre Despatie (Canada) during the men’s 3m final of the Canada Cup. (Photo by Jean-Yves Ahern-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 6: Boston Red Sox third baseman Will Middlebrooks (64) is welcomed to home plate by designated hitter David Ortiz (34) after hitting a grand slam against the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park. (Photo by Greg M. Cooper-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 7: UC Irvine Anteaters opposite hitter Carson Clark (9) and middle blocker Kevin McDonnell (5) react during the 2012 NCAA volleyball championship against the Southern California Trojans at the Galen Center. UCI defeated USC 25-22, 34-32, 26-24. (Photo by Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PREsSSWIRE)

Photo 8: UC Irvine Anteaters middle blocker Scott Kevorken (11) and setter Chris Austin (3) react during the 2012 NCAA volleyball championship. (Photo by Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 9: Dennis Bermudez (top) fights Pablo Garza in a featherweight bout during UFC on Fox 3 at the Izod Center in Easy Rutherford, N.J. Dennis Bermudez won by unanimous decision in third round. (Photo by Joe Camporeale-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 10: USA; John Hathaway (right) fights Pascal Krauss in their welterweight bout against Pascal Krauss during UFC on Fox 3 at the Izod Center. John Hathaway won by unanimous decision in the third round. (Photo by Joe Camporeale-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 11: Stergios Papachristos, Ioannis Tsilis, Georgios Tziallas and Ioannis Christou of Greece in the Men’s four during Day 1 of the 2012 Samsung World Rowing Cup III  in Belgrade, Serbia. (Photo by Srdjan Stevanovic-Getty Images)

Photo 12: Mads Rasmussen and Rasmus Quist of Austria in the Lightweight men’s double Skulls during Day 1 of the 2012 Samsung World Rowing Cup III in Belgrade, Serbia. (Photo by Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images)

Photo 13: Are Strandli and Kristoffer Brun of Norway reacts in the Lightweight Men’s Double Sculls during Day 2 of the 2012 Samsung World Rowing Cup III  in Belgrade, Serbia. (Photo by Srdjan Stevanovic-Getty Images)

Photo 14: Washington Nationals left fielder Bryce Harper (34) in the dugout during the game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park. This is for Holly from Twitter after her special request. (Photo by Brad Mills-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 15: Indianapolis Colts tight ends Coby Fleener (80) and Dwayne Allen (83) run during minicamp. (Photo by Brian Spurlock-US PRESSWIRE)

Photo 16: Cincinnati Reds center fielder Drew Stubbs (6) slides into third base against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the first inning at PNC Park. (Photo by Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE)

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