The Rev. Jack B. Rogers is a lifelong evangelical and former leader of the Presbyterian Church (USA). In March 2006, he published a book, Jesus, the Bible and Homosexuality: Explode the Myths, Heal the Church, describing how he has changed his position from opposing gay ordination to supporting it.

Thomas Ogletree is a United Methodist minister and the Frederick Marquand professor emeritus of theological ethics at Yale Divinity School. He has said he believes the debate over homosexuality indicates the church will eventually change its position.

Richard J. Mouw is a well-known writer and commentator on evangelical Christianity and the president of the Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif., a leading evangelical institution. Contact Mouw through Fred Messick, Fuller’s associate vice president for public affairs.

The Very Rev. Ian Markham is the dean and president of Virginia Theological Seminary. He is an expert on mainline Christianity, and he wrote a book, with the Rev. Martyn Percy of Oxford, called Why Liberal Churches Are Growing. Markham is also the author of Against Atheism: Why Dawkins, Hitchens and Harris Are Fundamentally Wrong.

Frederick J. Gaiser is professor emeritus of Old Testament at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn. He wrote a May 2, 2006, article, “At Ground Zero: Homosexuality and the message of Isaiah,” in The Christian Century (subscription necessary).

The Rt. Rev. Steven Charleston is a visiting professor of Native American ministries at St. Paul School of Theology in Oklahoma City, Okla. He has said he believes that sexual orientation should not be a deterrent to ordination.

Soulforce is a national activist group working on behalf of LGBTQ Christians. Soulforce was founded by the Rev. Mel White, a former speechwriter for conservative television evangelist Pat Robertson, and White’s partner, Gary Nixon. The group is based in Abilene, Texas.

The Institute on Religion & Democracy is a prominent lobby uniting conservatives across the mainline Protestant denominations to push for more traditional policies in American churches and for more conservative policies in American politics. The IRD is considered a major player in the battles over gay rights in churches.

March 5, 2006, NPR interview with Kevin Appleby, director of migration and refugee policy for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, in which he describes immigration policy as a humanitarian and moral issue and said, “In the face of the stranger we see the face of Christ.”