FCC Service: Speaker Rev O Young (May 18)

SUNDAY SERVICE (ENGLISH)
18 May 2008 (Sun) - 10.30am
FCC Main Hall
56 Geylang Lor 23
Level 3, Century Technology Building
All are welcome!
------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- -----
Speaker
REV O YOUNG
God is Calling
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Worship Leader - PAUL WANG
Vocals - SHANE LOO, GORDON TAN
Keyboards - GARY CHAN
Guitars - KELVIN NG
Audio - QING LONG LUO
Video - FOO KEONG YAP
Prayer - MIAK SIEW
Communion - KENG HOCK PWEE
Service Pastor - JORG DIETZEL

Rev O Young in Singapore (May 4)

Dear Church and Friends of FCC

We are very privileged once again to have Rev O Young, of the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) in New York, www.mccny.org, visit us during the weekend of May 17 & 18. Below (and in the attached in chinese) are details of a talk in Mandarin he will give on Sat May 17, and I urge us to invite our Chinese-speaking friends, especially if they are Christians, to this event.

He will also be preaching from our pulpit on Sunday, May 18 (in English), so there's another opportunity to invite our friends.


Date: May 17 Saturday
Time: 7 - 9pm
Place: FCC, 56 Lor 23 Geylang, Century-Technology Bldg, 3fl.
Topic: Christians and the Bible (Chinese)


Date: May 18 Sunday Worship
Time: 10.30am
Place: FCC, 56 Lor 23 Geylang, Century-Technology Bldg, 3fl.
Sermon: God is Calling (English)
Scriptures: Revelation 7:9-17, John 10:27-30



For those of you new to our church, Rev O Young is a prolific chinese author and the first openly gay Malaysian pastor currently serving at MCC NY and doing his doctoral studies.

He says, "As a Christian, I believe in Jesus. I always believe that the central Christian metaphor is God is Love; and perhaps this is the only definition of God in the Bible. I see Jesus as the ultimate manifestation of God’s love, not because he died a horrible death for us but rather how he had lived his life.

From the gospels, I can easily see that Jesus is primarily compassionate and concerned with human beings’ well-being. Human well-being, according to Jesus, is understood primarily in terms of relationships and community. I believe we are the Church and the Church is for everyone, and God does not give higher status to one than another.

The Christian faith community is neither exclusive nor status-bound. I believe the Bible is inspired by God. However, all readings are interpretation and the interpretation of scripture is historically contextualized. That said, I believe we, as queer people should challenge forcefully the assumptions and intentions of heterosexists that have been overlooked so long by so many biblical interpreters and Christians, such as patriarchy, homophobic and xenophobic attitudes of the time in which the texts were written and the scriptures were read."

Christian Post Reporter: Malaysian Pastor Vows to Open First Gay-Friendly Church

Malaysian Pastor Vows to Open First Gay-Friendly Church
By
Ethan Cole

Christian Post Reporter
Fri, Aug. 24 2007 01:50 PM ET

The first and only openly gay pastor in Malaysia said Thursday he will move forward with plans to open the country’s first gay-friendly church despite government opposition.

The Rev. Ouyang Wen Feng, an ethic Chinese Malaysian ordained in the United States in May, has called on mainstream churches to not discriminate against homosexuals.

“We are going to set up a church just like any other one but the only difference is that we affirm and welcome those who openly declare themselves gays, lesbians or homosexuals,” Ouyang told Agence France-Presse.

“We will follow all the rules by applying all the proper licenses. We already have a church of such stature in Singapore and I do not see why we cannot set up one here,” he added.

On Aug. 12, the openly gay pastor led a Sunday service attended by nearly 80 congregants – mostly homosexuals – who hugged and sang hymns and lyrics such as, “With justice as our aim, a queer and righteous people united in Christ’s name,” according to AP.

Ouyang said he has received a flood of hate mails regarding his plans.

Furthermore, the pastor’s intention to open a homosexual-oriented church is opposed by not only Christians but also Muslims in a country where 60 percent are followers of Islam.

“It is the deviant sexual behavior we do not condone,” commented the Rev. Wong Kin Kong, secretary general of Malaysia’s National Evangelical Christian Fellowship, according to the Malaysia Star. “We cannot stop him wanting to set up such a kind of church, but the evangelical churches will inform followers of our stand and advise them not to follow this teaching.”

Wong told the Associated Press that his group does not recognize Ouyang’s ordination.

“We have nothing against gays but we don’t encourage any form of practice that contradicts the teachings of the Bible such as relationship among the same sex,” the evangelical minister said.

“It is clear that the Bible prohibits a sexual relationship between people of the same sex,” he noted, according to the Malaysia Star. “If a person condones same sex marriages, it is definitely violating Christian principles.”

Currently, Ouyang is pursuing his doctorate at Boston University and said he plans to return permanently to Malaysia in a few years. He lives with his partner Angel Ayala, an American, and said they hope to marry when same-sex “marriage” is legalized in New York. The Malaysian pastor was formerly in a heterosexual marriage and said his former wife gave him the strength to be his true self.

It was in 1998 that Ouyang went to study sociology and theology in the United States.

While in the United States, Ouyang had worked at the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) in New York, which seeks to serve homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals. The MCC founder, Bishop Troy D. Perry, is also a homosexual with a partner of over 22 years who is HIV-positive.

Ouyung said he hopes to set up an MCC branch in Malaysia by 2010.

Although homosexuality is not itself a crime under Malaysian law, it is covered by a law prohibiting sodomy, which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and whipping, according to AP.

Malaysia’s Tourism Minister Adnan Tengku Mansor has said the government will block the plan for the gay-friendly church because Malaysia wants the country to be seen as a “family-oriented” holiday spot, according to AFP.

Malaysia Star: Gay pastor leads service, his partner watches with pride

BY AUDREY EDWARDS

KUALA LUMPUR: Angel Ayala sat in the second row of people, watching with pride as his partner Rev Ou Yang Wen Feng calmly led the faithful through a two-hour Sunday service at a hotel here.

And through it all, Ou Yang, a self-confessed gay pastor knew he was not alone because of Ayala's presence.

“He has been very supportive and it was important to know that I was not alone,” Ou Yang said in an interview yesterday after the service attended by about 100 people.

He said it was important to show other gay people that it was possible to come out together, and to heterosexuals that gay relationships were not just about sex but about “spiritual and emotional love.”

Coming out: Rev Ou Yang (second from left) and Bishop Perry (third from left) with their respective partners Ayala (left) and De Blieck (right) after Sunday service.

The pair has been together for four-and-a-half years and hope to marry when same sex marriages are legalised in New York.

Ayala, a finance manager said he supported Ou Yang’s plan to set up a church in Malaysia.

Ou Yang, 37, is a Malaysian pastor who serves at the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) in New York. He is also currently pursuing his doctorate at Boston University.

He hopes to set up an MCC branch here in 2010, before which, friends would help him start a cell group that he said was open to all regardless of their sexual orientation.

Earlier during a press conference, Ou Yang, when asked about opposition from other churches in Malaysia, said as a Christian minister, he would pray for them.

The service also saw Metropolitan Community Churches founder Bishop Troy D. Perry giving a sermon. Also present was his partner of over 22 years, Phillip De Blieck.

Perry said he was thankful for having De Blieck as he was that “special someone” who was there for him through good and bad times.

They married under Canadian law at the MCC of Toronto in 2003 and hope to get the marriage recognised by the California State Supreme Court by this year.

Perry believed the church would be a blessing for the gay and lesbian communities in Malaysia.

He also spoke of his promise to his partner that he would stand by him, when De Blieck was diagnosed with HIV two decades ago.

When asked about his former heterosexual marriage and his two sons, Perry said he was in contact with one of his sons and is a grandfather of three.

De Blieck, 43, said his “greatest gift” to the world and the church was to always be supportive of Perry’s work.

“When I met Troy, I did not know who he was. And I think one reason Troy fell in love with me was because he knew I was interested in him as a person and not the title,” he said.

Malaysiakini: Gov't to block planned gay church

Gov't to block planned gay church
Aug 13, 07 7:58pm
The government will block a plan by the country's first and only openly gay pastor to establish a church embracing homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals, a minister said today.

Reverend Ouyang Wen Feng, an ethnic Chinese Malaysian ordained in the US, caused controversy after saying he wanted to set up the church by 2010.

The government would block the plan, Tourism Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor told AFP, adding the country had always sought to portray itself as a "family-oriented" holiday destination.

"We have no intention of being portrayed the same way like other cities such as Bangkok or those other cities in that league," Tengku Adnan said, apparently referring to the Thai capital's sex industry.

"We are here to be seen as a multicultural country with people who are good, excellent followers of their respective religions," Tengku Adnan added.

Homosexuality falls under a Malaysian law prohibiting sodomy, which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and whipping.

Underground mass

Ouyang's plan to start the church had stirred anxiety, Reverend Wong Kin Kong, the secretary general of Malaysia's National Evangelical Christian Fellowship, said last week.

This was "because Christians do not want others to assume they condone such a thing," he said.

But Ouyang remained unfazed and urged a congregation of about 80 people - including his male partner - to "reclaim faith and celebrate our sexuality" in an underground mass Sunday.

"For some of us, especially our gay brothers and sisters, we have experienced first hand that Christianity has been used to persecute minorities," Ouyang told the mass, according to press reports.

IHT: Malaysia's first openly gay pastor holds controversial church service

Malaysia's first openly gay pastor holds controversial church service

The Associated Press

Sunday, August 12, 2007

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: Malaysia's first openly gay Christian pastor conducted a controversial worship service Sunday, calling on mainstream churches not to discriminate against homosexuals.

Rev. Ouyang Wen Feng — an ethnic Chinese Malaysian who was ordained a minister in the United States in May — told a congregation of nearly 80 people, mainly homosexual men and women, to "reclaim our faith and celebrate our sexuality."

"For some of us, especially our gay brothers and sisters, we have experienced firsthand that Christianity has been used to persecute minorities," Ouyang said during the service in a Kuala Lumpur hotel.

Ouyang, 37, has sparked concerns among Malaysian Christian community leaders after he recently declared that he hopes to set up a church in this predominantly Muslim nation, which has large Christian, Buddhist and Hindu minorities.

A church that accepts homosexual relationships would face stiff opposition from both Muslim and Christian conservatives in Malaysia. Although homosexuality is not specifically a crime in this Southeast Asian country, it is covered under a law prohibiting sodomy, which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and whipping.

"For so long, we've been quiet," Ouyang said Sunday. "We've been brought up to believe that they were right and we were wrong. But today, we're making history. We're here to tell Malaysians that we're all children of God."

Ouyang has worked at the Metropolitan Community Church in New York, which tries to serve homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals. He has said he wants to return to Malaysia permanently within the next few years.

Rev. Wong Kin Kong, secretary general of Malaysia's National Evangelical Christian Fellowship, reportedly said last week that Ouyang's plans to preside over a Sunday service and start a church has stirred anxiety "because Christians do not want others to assume they condone such a thing."

Ouyang claimed he and the organizers of his Kuala Lumpur service — which is considered one of the first steps toward establishing a church — "received very nasty" phone text messages.

Worshippers at the service, including people from neighboring Singapore, hugged each other and sang hymns with lyrics such as, "With justice as our aim, a queer and righteous people united in Christ's name."

Ouyang went to the United States in 1998 and studied sociology and theology. He lives with his partner, an American.

MCC KL Services on 11 and 12 August 2007, KL

Please come to listen to theRev. O.Young, the Rev. Troy Perry (human rights activist and founder of Metropolitan Community Churches) and the Rev. Pat Bumgardner (senior pastor of MCC in New York)

All are welcome, regardless your gender and sexual orientation. We believe in love and social justice. We believe we live in an unfinished world and we have an unfinished calling. Until all people are free from oppression and free to love and to be loved, our work is not done.

(1) The Lord is My Shepherd
Date: Aug. 11, 2007 (Saturday) 2pm-5pm
Venue: Grand Olympic Hotel
Jalan Hang Jebat, Kuala Lumpur
Language: English

(2) Sunday Christian Worship Service
Date: Aug. 12, 2007 (Sunday) 2pm-3.30pm
Venue: Grand Olympic Hotel
Jalan Hang Jebat, Kuala Lumpur
Language: English.

The Star Online: Gay Pastor Sparks Uproar: Rev Oyoung Wenfeng (Aug 10)

Gay Pastor Sparks Uproar

By LOONG MENG YEE

KUALA LUMPUR: A controversy has erupted among the Christian community over what they claim is an attempt by a self-confessed gay pastor to set up a church here.

For the past week, protest e-mail and SMSes have been sent to Rev Ou Yang Wen Feng, a Malaysian pastor who serves at the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) in New York. He has been back here for about a week.

According to the MCC homepage, the church is part of an international movement of Christian churches reaching out to all, including homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals.

Ou Yang, 37, has drawn much flak from Christians for his plan to hold a Sunday service at a hotel this week.

He came out of the closet about his homosexuality last year and is said to be the first pastor in Malaysia to do so.

Ou Yang states that his proposed church would serve all people, not just homosexuals.

A columnist in Sin Chew Daily, Ou Yang went to further his studies in the United States on the daily’s scholarship in the 90s.

When contacted yesterday, Ou Yang said he was merely trying to set up a church “where everybody felt safe and welcomed”.

It is unfair to label it a gay church, he said, adding that the hate-mail had hurt him.

“This church is not limited to gays but serves all people. This will be an active church. We have so many community-centred plans, such as assisting the poor, charity work and upholding justice,” he said.

Ou Yang noted that the New York church served food to 5,000 homeless people and hoped to launch similar programmes here. He plans to return to Malaysia for good in 2010.

He credits his former wife for giving him strength to be true to himself, acknowledging that she had endured much anguish during their seven-year, childless union.

Asked if his church would solemnise same sex marriages, he replied: “Same sex marriages are illegal in Malaysia, so how can I perform them? However, I will bless the union.”

Ou Yang said that his talk in Penang last week received much opposition from “faceless parties”. However, the talk saw a full house of about 200 people instead of the initial estimate of 60.

“Many are just curious about me. They ask me many things about homosexuality and my life. They just want to know more and not to be converted by me,” he said.

The National Evangelical Christian Fellowship Malaysia secretary-general Rev Wong Kin Kong, when contacted, acknowledged the proposed worship on Sunday had sowed anxiety among Christians.

“One of the reasons for the emotional reaction is because Christians do not want others to assume they condone such a thing,” said Wong.

He added that the churches could not accept Ou Yang’s version of the church because “it is clear that the Bible prohibits a sexual relationship between people of the same sex. If a person condones same sex marriages, it is definitely violating Christian principles.”

Wong said the churches had always welcomed all kinds of people, including homosexuals.

“It is the deviant sexual behaviour we do not condone. We cannot stop him wanting to set up such a kind of church, but the evangelical churches will inform followers of our stand and advise them not to follow this teaching,” he said.

Book Launch of OYoung Wenfeng - Tong Gen Sheng

Dear readers,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been registered for this event and we cordially invite you to attend this book launch and meet-the-readers session with Oyoung Wenfeng.

You may also bring along your friends and family to attend this event. Event poster: http://www.fridae.com/promo/oyoung/20070801.htm

Please note that the event will now be held in Mox Cafe (same address: 21 Tanjong Pagar Road #04-01, accessible by the lift next to Ya Kun Kaya Toast coffee shop) at 7 pm. You may enter the cafe from 6.30 pm if you wish to chat with the writer before the event.

Books by Oyoung will be sold at the event.

We look forward to meeting you!

Pelangi Pride Centre and Fridae

(to read the chinese text in this email, please switch text encoding to UTF.)

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Pelangi Pride Centre and Fridae presents

欧阳文风新书《同根生》推介会及

"走出来以后"同志与非同志心情分享会

Book Launch of

Oyoung Wenfeng's

Tong Gen Sheng

a book for those who are queer and those who are not

and "After Coming Out"

a meeting of hearts and minds with readers

conducted in Mandarin and English

8 August 2007, at Mox Cafe (21 Tanjong Pagar Road #04-01)

http://www.fridae.com/promo/oyoung/20070801.htm

Award-winning journalist and writer Oyoung Wenfeng will be launching his 15^th book in Chinese here in Singapore on 8 August at Bianco in Tanjong Pagar.

This event is by invitation only and interested readers are welcome to register (details below) and join us for a session to share your thoughts and feelings with the author.

Admission is free of charge and Oyoung's books can be purchased at the event.

In Oyoung's latest collection of writings, entitled Tong Gen Sheng (同根生), he explores a broad range of queer and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) issues concerning sexual minorities and their place in modern society.

It is a book written as much for those who are queer as for those who are not. In the author's eyes, the destinies of homosexuals are not just about themselves but part of a broader, common fate shared by the entire society.

Born in Malaysia and presently based in the US, Oyoung has been a celebrated columnist and journalist with the Sin Chew Daily in Malaysia since the 90s, winning amongst other accolades, the Malaysian Best Journalist of the Chinese Press Award in 1996.

Among his published works are 15 volumes of writings, including essays, commentaries, Sociology of Body, God Loves Gays, Gays Love God, A Transient New Yorker's Journal.

A year ago, he published the ground-breaking autobiography Is Present the Future? - An Asian Gay Man’s Coming Out Journey, (《现在是以后了吗？》), detailing his life and an emotional journey from childhood on to a long and tumultuous coming-out process as a gay man, and as a celebrity writer, a student, a husband, a son, a scholar, a traveller, an ethnic minority, a Christian and an Asian.

On May 27 this year, he became the first openly gay Malaysian pastor after being ordained at the Metropolitan Community Church in New York.

Currently a doctoral student in Theology at Boston University and he is also a PhD candidate for Sociology at the City University of New York. He holds a Masters degree in Sociology from Minnesota State University, as well as a Masters in Divinity degree from Saint Peter's University, New Jersey.

He has written extensively on LGBT issues and history, queer and gender studies, social and current affairs, post-colonialism, and the sociology of religions and faiths.

Oyoung's recent published works are available on Fridae Shop for international delivery: http://www.fridae.com/shop/

Details of Event

Date: 8 August 2007 (Wednesday)

Time: 7 pm

Venue: Mox Cafe

Address: 21 Tanjong Pagar Road #04-01

(take lift next to Ya Kun Kaya Toast to Level 4, above Mox Cafe)

Map:

http://www.pelangipridecentre.org/contact/contact.htm

Admission is free, but as the event is by invitation only, prior registration is required.

Oyoung's recent books can be purchased at the event.

The author will be glad to autograph for readers.

Participants may use Mandarin or English to communicate with the author.

Registration Details

Visit

http://www.fridae.com/sc/newsletters/oyoung.php

More Details at

http://www.fridae.com/promo/oyoung/20070801.htm

OYoung at Bianco on 8 Aug, 7pm

FRIDAE and PELANGI PRIDE CENTRE PRESENTS

		彩虹自豪中心与Fridae诚邀 欧阳文风新书 《同根生》推介会 及 "走出来以后" 同志与非同志心情分享会 >> 更多活动详情（中文） >> 观阅活动海报 View Poster >> 下载活动海报 Download Poster (250 KB) Book Launch of Oyoung Wenfeng's Tong Gen Sheng a book for those who are queer and those who are not and "After Coming Out..." a meeting of hearts and minds with readers conducted in Mandarin and English Date: 8 August 2007 (Wednesday) Time: 7 pm Venue: Bianco Address: 21 Tanjong Pagar Road #04-01 (take lift next to Ya Kun Kaya Toast to Level 4, above Mox Cafe) Map and directions: http://www.pelangipridecentre.org/contact/contact.htm >> 网上订购欧阳文风著作 Buy Oyoung' books online >> 欧阳文风专栏 Oyoung's column on Fridae >> Interview: oyoung wenfeng: i want to bring our people home >> 《星岛日报》报导：杨文凌任首位华裔同志牧师 >> 《现在是以后了吗》本周在吉隆坡和新加坡面市 >> famed malaysian columnist, oyoung wenfeng, comes out in new book >> 欧阳文风官方网站 Oyoung's Official Website
Registration of Interest
		Note:
		Admission is free, but as the event is by invitation only, prior registration is required. 入场免费，有意出席者请预先报名登记。
		You will be contacted by email and/or phone with the invitation to the event. 我们会通过电邮或电话发出邀请。
		Oyoung's recent books can be purchased at the event. 活动现场将售卖欧阳文风叫好叫座的近作。
		The author will be glad to autograph for readers.作者会为读者签名留念。
		Participants may use Mandarin or English to communicate with the author. 读者在现场可用中英文与作者交流。
		Fridae and Pelangi Pride Centre reserve the right to refuse entry to any person at our sole discretion.主办单位保留拒绝任何人士入场的权利。
		Enquiries 询问: Please send an email to chinese@fridae.com. or call +65 6297 7859+65 9797 9396 (other hours 其他时间) (office hours 办公时间) or