Posts Tagged ‘LGBT-Affirming Religious Voices’
Here’s My Problem With Lent
I didn’t grow up in a tradition that observed Lent. Perhaps they found it too Catholic for their belief system. Now I minister in a church that observes Lent, Ash Wednesday and Maundy Thursday. To say that it was a steep learning curve for me is an understatement. It wasn’t that I couldn’t theoretically…
Read MoreThe Importance Of LGBTQ-Affirmation To A Grieving Family
At the time of my brother’s death in 2007, it was very important that our family be spared rejection by the church in a time of grief. Some people have said to me, “Well, you could’ve had Warren’s memorial service at our church.” But—their churches are not Open & Affirming. In the Christian Church (Disciples…
Read MoreStrength To Be Faithful
The sun is setting a little later in the evening, but it sure is cold out. It must be Lent. Given that, I think that we, as LGBTQ Christians, need to take some time to examine our theology of loss. Let me give you a thought exercise: You are thirty years old. You have been…
Read MoreWhy These South Dakota Pastors Are Standing Up For Trans Students
Help us TELL GOVERNOR DAUGAARD: Christians Stand With Trans Students On behalf of a carload of clergy, representing four different Christian traditions, who left Sioux Falls at 3:00am to testify against H.B. 1008 last week, and on behalf of about a dozen clergy colleagues who couldn’t make the trip, I am asking Governor Daugaard to…
Read MoreWhen Religion Puts Our Lives In Peril
Within my Christian upbringing, I attempt at being a spiritual person. I believe that our spirituality and faith is a source of strength and hope. Unfortunately, I have seen religion too oftentimes be a firmly held set of rituals beholden to a literal and legalistic interpretation. Historically and currently, religion is a source of spiritual…
Read MoreThe Four Words This Kentucky Pastor Didn’t Expect To Hear
I wasn’t going to call him back. I got the message off our church’s answering machine: “I want to ask you some questions,” the caller said, and he left his name and number. But I wasn’t going to call him back. Frankly, I was afraid. I was afraid the caller would be belligerent, combative, wanting…
Read MoreWhen Expanding Our Table Isn’t Enough
As people who believe that Christianity has room for the LGBTQ community, we can be zealous about our efforts to win people to our side. We want people to understand that God truly does love everyone, that the Bible isn’t just a queer bashing book, and that people don’t have to throw away their faith…
Read MoreIf Dr. King’s Dream Had Come True
When I was in the fourth grade, I saw a video of Martin Luther King, Jr. delivering his “I Have a Dream” speech for the first time. As I was nine and we were watching it on a blurry box TV, I didn’t pay much attention to it. That was unfortunate because, as an adult,…
Read MoreHow Breaking Bread With Queer Christians Helped Me Rediscover Radical Love
On Sunday I took communion for the first time in more than a year. I hadn’t been avoiding it deliberately, but I realized just how long it had been as I approached the line to receive bread and wine (juice). I’ve heard the phrases “The body of Christ broken for you;” “The blood of Christ shed…
Read MoreThe Man Who Buried Them Remembers
When he conducted the funerals, Tom Bonderenko tells me, he always wore his priestly garments and white stole. Even when no one showed up for the graveside service. “It was important to show dignity and respect,” Tom says. He taps the coffee cup in his lap nervously. “I’m sorry,” he says. He clears his throat…
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