Posts Tagged ‘Faith and Identity’
Leaving The Catholic Church & Finding My Way Home
In the spring of 2014, I found myself in the last place I’d ever expected—the dark, close-set box of an old confessional. The wood muffled all other sounds as the priest slid open a little screen before me. I knelt down and said I couldn’t remember the last time I was there, and I began…
Read MoreOpen Letter To Deniers Of Transgender Existence
So you believe that biological sex and gender identity are always inextricably linked. This, in spite of the fact that science is absolutely clear that they are not. This, in spite of the fact that the American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association, and the American Psychiatric Association are absolutely clear that they are not.…
Read MorePride Beyond Possibility
Living today in New York City, my hometown of Calhoun, Georgia, often feels far away. But when I go home for the holidays and spend time with my friends and family, I’m easily transported back to my childhood, revisiting the house and the town where I spent my most awkward teenaged years willfully ignoring my…
Read MoreA Presence Stronger than Absence for Pride 2015
The post coming-out talk that I had with my mom related to my sexuality was hard. It had to do with her and dad going to therapy. They’d found a therapist who’d went to Smith College; they sought counsel from her. It sounded hopeful, at first. I opened my heart up at least wider than…
Read MoreWhy I Advocate For LGBT People Of Color
Every Sunday, many African American gays worship in churches that preach hate and prejudice against them. We sit in silence in the pews even though we are tithing members of the congregation. After Antonia Pantoja, my partner and colleague for 30 years, died of cancer in 2002, I came to understand just how much the…
Read MoreWhat Will Life Be Like For My Interracial, Interfaith, Queer Family?
There’s a scene in the first season of the television show “The Fosters” in which Lena, one of the mothers in a lesbian relationship, helps Jude, her foster son, remove polish from his nails after some kids at school harass him over it. She sits with him and explains that there are times when she…
Read MoreReligious Voices At The Supreme Court’s Hearings On Marriage Equality
Faith leaders from Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Native, Wiccan and other traditions convened for a multi-faith prayer at 5pm Sunday, April 26, at the National Christian Church in Washington, D.C., on the theme “Where there is Love, All Things are Possible.” After that prayer service where we laid our hearts and prayers on a common table,…
Read MoreQueerly Becoming: Celebrating Our Evolving Identities
Two years ago, I sat at a trendy coffee shop in Austin, TX meeting with the manager of the It Gets Better Tour: a traveling anti-bullying stage show spun off from the popular LGBTQ video website. The manager had reached out to me a few days earlier and explained that at every stop on their…
Read MoreThe Role Of Faith In Caitlyn Jenner’s Transition
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to reflect Caitlyn Jenner’s name and pronouns (September 30, 2015) On April 24, 2015, ABC News broadcast a historic interview with Olympic champion and reality TV star, Caitlyn Jenner. Over two hours with Diane Sawyer, Jenner fills in details from her lifetime, revealing her decades of struggle to…
Read MoreA Holy Moment In A Political Calendar: Making Room For Multi Faith Services For Justice
“Dig deep,… carefully cast forth the loose matter and get down to the rock, the sure foundation, and there hearken to the Divine Voice which gives a clear and certain sound.” John Woolman (Quaker abolitionist), ca 1770. This past month I have found myself tumbling head first into the elaborate matrix known as “the liturgical committee”…
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