My internet access was intermittent for the last two days, so my apologies for not posting on Sunday or Monday.

Did anyone notice the New Yorker’s drawing of Mr. and Mrs. Obama yesterday? Any thoughts on that? I’m still a bit surprised that the New Yorker would publish such a thing, even if they do have the right, since they are such strong supporters.

There is a Conservation Commission meeting here in Billerica tomorrow night to deal with the issue of the Power Plant, but since no one takes the time to update the Billerica Watchers website, I have no details for you, I apologize.

Lastly, does anyone have any thoughts on articles they’d like to see brought before town meeting this fall? I will take suggestions for warrant articles. I am thinking of submitting a right to farm bylaw.

Growing up, I would spend the weekend at my maternal grandparent’s house on the North Shore here in Massachusetts. My grandmother was what you’d call a traditional Jewish grandmother - and that meant she made some great food! Though she wasn’t religious, she occasionally liked the practice of Shabbat dinner and on a rare day she’d take me to a Reform Synagogue.

On Friday night when I got there she’d have me help her light the Shabbat candles and would have wine (yes, she would even let me have a sip to make kiddish!) and challah ready. We’d say the words for kiddish and drink some wine, we’d ritually wash our hands and then we’d break into the challah. I loved those rare moments when my grandmother taught me about what it meant to be Jewish.

I grew up with a mother who never talk about Judaism and a father who was decidedly Christian (from a protestant background). My grandmother died when I was 10 and I had all but forgotten most of what it meant to be Jewish, or even that I was, for a very long time. It took working on my family tree (and a close Jewish friend) to reconnect me with my heritage. And reconnect I did! I’m now what I call a nontraditionally observant Jew - and what I mean is that I believe whole heartily in Torah and in G-d, observe Shabbat, wear tzitzits and a kippah, and I pray three times daily. But I am also involved in Unitarian Universalism. I like to say I am a Chassidic Unitarian Universalist, if there can be such a thing.

My reason for telling you this story is to give you an idea of where I came from and who I am. My life has been an interesting ride so far and I hope and pray to G-d that my life continue to be blessed with wonderful friends and good times.

Until Sunday, when I write again, I hope that you all have a wonderful and restful Shabbat. Shabbat Shalom!

When I opened my computer’s news feed this morning, I read a very horrifying story. I am sure it is even more horrifying to the “Religious Right” than it is to me, though we probably have the same reason.

“Gay Man Sues Bible Publishers,” read the headline of the story. It reports that a gay man, named Bradley Fowler, is suing two publishers of the Bible - Nelson and Zondervan - for including verses that could be interpreted by some to condemn homosexuality. He claims that these verses have caused “anyone who is a homosexual to endure verbal abuse, discrimination, episodes of hate, and physical violence … including murder.” Mr. Fowler is suing the publishers for a total of $70 million in punitive damages.

This lawsuit scares me.

As a person of faith who is also gay, I have always read scripture with an open mind and in doing so come to conclusions that I feel work best for my relationship with G-d. Never do I force anyone else to hold my beliefs nor would I allow anyone else to force their beliefs on me. But this doesn’t seem to be the issue, for if it was, Mr. Fowler would just ignore what doesn’t work for him. In reality, this is an issue of free speech.

According to the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.” This means every individual is protected by the Supreme Law of the land to say and publish whatever opinions s/he would like to express. And as much as I don’t like reading or hearing things that upset me, it’s not my right to censor those things - because I would not want it done to me.

Mr. Fowler seems to believe that perhaps the information provided in the Zondervan and Nelson bibles have incited hate and anger toward gay people, and I won’t argue that point, but doesn’t he understand that the same government he is asking to censor these bibles could just as easily make gay themes books, magazines, and television shows illegal if such a precedent is set? What a blow to free speech!

It is my hope that Mr. Fowler decides to drop this frivolous lawsuit and instead invest his time and energy in helping show other people that every person has value and that every person deserves to be respected as a human being, regardless of what any book may say to the contrary.