It’s safer to sit on committee meetings and attend social events than to speak on unpopular issues. It’s easier to spend our time on building projects and staff management than offering daily Mass, praying a holy hour, or saying a rosary. American priests and bishops have become more like business managers than men of prayer or preachers of the Word. A priest is ordained for three tasks: to serve the world by confecting Sacraments as “priest,” delivering the Word of God as “prophet,” and governing the Church as “king.” We priests lament, and our parishioners complain, about how much time priests spend on “governing,” that is, administrative work. Both Peter and Paul, the acknowledged pillars of the Church, died in prophetic witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. A singular blessing of my priesthood is to have been ordained the same day as Joseph Ratzinger, and on the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. On Wednesday, a Denver federal appeals court ruled that gay couples in Utah have a constitutional right to marry.Today I am 28 years ordained, and Pope Benedict is 68 years ordained. The increasing visibility of tech firms at the parade comes as U.S. "Tech companies need to be at Pride simply to be in the game," she said. The HRC awarded Apple a perfect score on its corporate equality index, which rates American workplaces on LGBT equality.Įllen Leanse, a former Google and Apple senior employee, said the Pride festival is a "high-visibility place" for these tech firms to compete for talent.
"It's a dog whistle to their consumer base that these tech firms are cool, with it, and progressive," said Fred Sainz, vice president of communications and marketing at the Human Rights Campaign.
Hundreds of employees showed up at this year's parade. "Apple believes equality and diversity make us stronger, and we're proud to support our employees and their friends and families in this weekend’s celebration," Apple spokeswoman Michaela Wilkinson said.įellow tech firms Google and Facebook also spent several days planning their festival debuts. Company employees also handed out iTunes gift cards to bystanders. To help attendees navigate the packed event, the company set up a dedicated LGBT station on iTunes Radio and featured several apps on its App Store, including the Find My Friends app. In an unusual step for the sometimes secretive Apple, the company has spoken out about its support for the Pride festival.
The company recently came out against an Arizona bill that would permit businesses to refuse service on religious grounds, a measure that critics said could allow discrimination against gay people. The San Francisco event was one of many Gay Pride parades held across the United States on Sunday.Īpple Chief Executive Tim Cook made a surprise appearance at the San Francisco event to greet employees and their families early in the morning, but did not march in the parade himself.Īpple has a long history of supporting the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. This year's turnout was largest in the company's history, several Apple employees told Reuters. Thousands of Apple employees donned specially designed T-shirts at the festival and marched in unison.
Apple, Facebook and other prominent Silicon Valley technology companies flew the flag for gay rights at the San Francisco Pride Festival on Sunday as they sought to boost morale among employees and reflect a corporate culture of diversity.