North Dallas Funeral Home

Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration in north Dallas sing during the evening service. Photo: Mary Frances Schjonberg/Episcopal News Service[Episcopal News Service – Dallas] The talk over the weekend in two Episcopal Diocese of Dallas parishes was of history being made, dreams coming true and miracles happening as 24 same-sex couples received what they had longed for: their home church’s recognition and blessing.“For a lot of years, you and I have been told that our relationships are not worthy of celebration, are not worthy of God’s love, not worthy of God’s blessing,” said retired Diocese of New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson in his sermon at the Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration in the first of the two services the weekend of Jan. 19-20 to bless couples who had to leave the diocese to get married, or be married in civil ceremonies, because the diocesan bishop opposes same-sex marriage.“Today we put that aside forever,” Robinson told the 15 Transfiguration couples. “We know it is not true, and our lives will show it. This day may feel like a miracle to you, and that’s because it is. Thanks be to God.”A miracle was happening in their midst, retired Diocese of New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson told the nine same-sex couples who were renewing their vows and having their marriages blessed Jan. 20 at the Episcopal Church of St. Thomas the Apostle in Dallas. Photo: Mary Frances Schjonberg/Episcopal News ServiceThe following day, Robinson reiterated that sense of the miraculous at the Episcopal Church of St. Thomas the Apostle, where nine couples participated in a similar service. He called those expressions of unworthiness “a perversion of God’s love.”Robinson, the Christian church’s first openly gay, partnered bishop, told the St. Thomas congregation that he was elected in 2003 just weeks before the United States Supreme Court struck down Texas’ anti-sodomy law. Lawrence v. Texas effectively meant states could no longer count same-sex sexual activity as a c...

COM) – A week after Texas launched a new statewide reporting system to collect more detailed birth and death records, funeral directors, doctors and medical examiners offices reported long delays obtaining death certificates from the state.The wait for the paperwork, stretching out weeks in some cases, was slowing insurance claims and mortuary services like cremations.Dallas County’s medical examiner office, anticipating possible problems, borrowed a trailer from the Department of Homeland Security meant for disasters, in the event it ran out of space to hold bodies.It hasn’t been used yet, but the office was full at one point early Monday.The Texas Department of State Health Services said Tuesday it wasn’t aware of any system-wide technical issues with the new service. It attributed most continuing delays to issues with users who weren’t familiar with how to use the new system.The state shut down its previous reporting system December 28, and launched the new web-based TxEVER system January 1, to handle all birth and death records.Funeral director Jon Thompson said he learned about the switch just a couple days before it happened. Because it occurred during what is traditionally one of the busiest seasons of the year, he went into his office in Fort Worth New Year’s Day to try to start processing certificates for families.“My tab I needed to start death certificates, was non-existent,” he said. “I tried to call the help desk they have available for us for the system, and it gave me a busy signal all of that day.”He also found he no longer had access to anything entered before the new year.Tuesday, he received the first reply to an email he sent to the system help desk on January 1.Without a death certificate, families are often unable to begin insurance claims, access bank accounts or complete cremation.“I have to wait to cremate them until the state figures out the system, the doctors figure out the system, and we’re all are on the same page,” Thompson said. “That’s ...