As Pride Month unfolds, the Southern Baptist Convention has once again made headlines by reaffirming its opposition to women serving as pastors. At nearly the same moment, recent Department of Defense actions affecting the recognition of several religious traditions raised…
From ‘feigele’ to free: What does it mean to be LGBTQ+ and Orthodox?
I can still hear my relative saying the derogatory phrase, used to refer to a gay man or boy, aiming his ugly remark at a young man at a bar mitzvah celebration.
Congregational responsibility to LGBTQ members during pastoral transitions
I was baptized on the final Sunday before my pastor left my church in 2016. As a queer person, I had found a church community willing to wrestle honestly with questions about LGBTQ inclusion. The congregation was engaged in discernment….
Gay couple in ministry launch ‘Inclusive Faith’ podcast
Their conversation began around the dinner table, a gay married couple in ministry pondering the mysteries of faith and life. Now their conversations have gone public in a podcast they hope will inspire United Methodists and other spiritual seekers to…
Why are we still calling ourselves ‘moderate’ Baptists?
A few weeks ago, I sat with a Baptist leader who described himself as a “moderate Baptist.” He meant it as a compliment, and most people in our circles would receive it that way. After all, “moderate” is one of…
MLB warns players about altering uniforms after Giants pitchers add Bible verses on Pride Night
Major League Baseball has warned players about writing on their uniforms after San Francisco starter Landen Roupp and two other pitchers added Bible verses to their Pride Night caps last week.
Who taught us to march?
Today, under a North Carolina sun pushing well past 90 degrees, hundreds gathered in downtown Chapel Hill for Pride. We assembled outside the town’s historic post office. Under tents, information about local LGBTQ organizations and resources was offered. Vendors handed…
What the church got wrong about queer people
The ACLU is tracking 530 anti-LGBTQ bills in state legislatures this year. Five hundred and thirty. In Kansas, a new law immediately invalidated the driver’s licenses of transgender people and authorized anyone, anyone, to sue someone they suspect of being transgender for using the…
The best way to change is to be put in community
Growing up in rural South Georgia, my only exposure to New Orleans was Greasing of the Poles on the national news, on Mardi Gras day. It was so scandalous, these revelers sliding their bodies and props on poles in the…
In conversation with Logan Morrison
Nearly three years ago, I interviewed Logan Morrison, who had made national headlines for being forced out of a soccer coaching job at an evangelical college for open communication related to sexual orientation. (That interview was reported with a previous…
Stephen Miller must be confused about gender identity
In case you haven’t already figured out what a despicable person Stephen Miller is, hear this: The adviser to President Donald Trump posted on X an attack on Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico that says, “The Democrats made history in…
Remembering Juniper Blessing
On May 10, a 19-year-old student at the University of Washington died in the laundry room of an off-campus apartment complex, Nordheim Court. This student did not die from natural causes, from drug use or cancer. Juniper Blessing died after…