The Way We Were

"The way we were" is more than just the title of a hit movie and hit song.  It reflects the way things were, or at least the way we remember things were, during a specific period of time.  I have thought about that frequently during our discussions about the communique from the Primates.

I look back to “the way we were" 70, 60, 50 years ago.  I wasn’t around 70 years ago.  I was a child 60 years ago.  And I was a teenager 50 years ago.  One issue I remember about the way we were is that there were no discussions about human sexuality and certainly none about lesbian and gay issues.  I recall bisexuality being an “exotic” topic.  Christine Jorgenson introduced the world to transgender issues, even though the term itself would not come along for several more decades.

When we recite the creeds, we include phrases about believing in things seen and unseen.  Now that is usually in reference to our Creator, the Holy Spirit or one of the multitude of holy and mysterious things beyond human sight.  Yet I can also see it at work in earthly issues as well.  But, in some cases it works the opposite way: we don’t believe because we can’t or haven’t seen.  Such is the case with human sexuality issues and LGBTQ issues in particular.  Not seeing us is an excuse for thinking we do not exist.  Not seeing us provides justification for exercising bigotry and prejudice… even to the point of torture and execution.

I’ve recalled numerous ordained persons state with all seriousness that there were no "homosexuals" in their parish/diocese/province.  Such is an easy stance to take if that population is not visible, remains fully closeted, lives in fear of discovery or just cannot be public about their existence.  I have even had folks say that they did not know anyone who was "homosexual."  I have to admit that my thoughts, not my words, my thoughts were:  Doesn’t this dimwit know what is standing right in front of him (yes it is usually a male!)  Being able to "pass" has some advantages, especially having people reveal their true thoughts and feelings right in front of you!  Of course it then becomes an educational tool and opportunity as well.

The issue here is visibility. It is not, I repeat not, about whether an area of the world has "progressed" more or less than any other area.  It is not a measure of development as a country or region.  It is certainly not an issue of whether one group of God’s children is more "civilized" than another.  It is simply an issue of visibility.  Again, it is simply an issue of visibility.

So now, let’s turn to the situations that gave birth to the recent statement of the Primates of the Anglican Communion.  Aside from the expressed levels of disdain, judgment, and posturing, there is the issue of visibility, more accurately, the lack of visibility.

We know that there are LGBTQ members of every province in the Anglican Communion.  We also know that many live closeted lives….lives filled with the fear of being found out…..lives immersed in a marinade of hate, bigotry and prejudice.  Ignorance gives birth to hatred, bigotry and prejudice…and it creates an atmosphere of fear on all impacted by the situation.  These sisters and brothers in Christ are not even seen by the very people who denigrate them.

We know from the experiences of others around the globe, secular and faith based, that visibility will change the way our LGBTQ sisters and brothers are perceived and treated.  Right now, many Primates see issues of human sexuality as nothing but an issue.  When that issue gains a human face, the face of a child of God, the conversation begins to change.  It is easy for any of us to just dismiss an issue.  We have a much more difficult time, at least I hope we do, dismissing a human being.

What should we do to assist without being perceived as interfering or continuing to impose some type of colonial view upon those with whom we so vehemently disagree?  Among the first involves educating people, particularly some of the Primates, on the very existence of some of "us" among "them" and having been there for a long time.  We need to find a way to create relationships with those who are so different from us in their thinking and help them see the face of Christ even in a queer.  If they begin to see the face of Christ in us, we can further the process of helping them see the face of Christ among their own flocks.  This will neither be easy nor quick.

I hope and pray that the parishes and dioceses in The Episcopal Church will maintain ties and companion relationships with their counterparts around the communion who seek to walk apart from us. (Despite what some may hope, this issue is not going away.  It will only get more critical over time.)  Those ties and relationships provide an opportunity for us to witness to the presence of Christ in our lives as LGBTQ Christians. They allow us to help make it more safe for others by our own visibility.

I challenge us all, members of Integrity, lay and clergy leaders, all who claim The Episcopal Church as their part of the Body of Christ, to seek out ways locally, church-wide, worldwide to help those who would act out of hatred, cruelty and prejudice begin to see the face of Christ in all…..even those toward whom they would use vile and offensive labels.  Jesus Christ taught us to love and never provided any exceptions as to whom we were to love.  Let us not create what He did not.  Let us be the hands and feet, eyes and ears, heart and soul of the One who loved us and gave His life ransom for all.

Bruce Garner, President
Integrity USA

Gay voters could hold keys to White House

With conservative legislators being revealed in their closets Pink News is reporting that the "gay vote" could be a deciding factor in the Presidential race.

According to a CNN poll, almost 5% of the voters in the 2004 Presidential election identified themselves as gay.

That percentage was more than the Asian and Jewish populations and more than those who earned an income greater than $150,000 (£73,000) a year.

Although 5% may not seem like a huge number, those are just people who actually identified themselves as gay.

Of that figure, almost 85% voted Democrat.

In 2000, that percentage would have made the difference between Al Gore winning and you know who taking office, and the candidates this year know that.

For the first time, gay issues are being addressed ad nauseum by the Democratic candidates while Republican front runners have mostly remained silent on the issue, afraid to potentially upset the gay vote.

Read it all here

A prayer for Larry Craig

James McGreevy, former governor of New Jersey and currently a student at General Theological Seminary, writes with compassion and a prayer for Larry Craig,his family, and the tide of history.

My gut wrenched when I read of Sen. Larry Craig's bathroom arrest. I remembered my own late-night encounter with the law at a Garden State Parkway rest stop following a political dinner in north Jersey.
I pulled into the rest stop, parked my car, flashed my headlights, which was "the signal," and waited. Glancing in my rearview mirror, I saw a state trooper approaching. I desperately tried to convince the trooper of my innocence, showing him my former prosecutor's badge, a gift from the office when I left. The trooper radioed his office and returned. "I never want to see you here again," he said. I survived for another day

I was in my late 20s. It would be another 25 years before my parallel lives collided and I was coerced out of the "closet."

Why do grown men in their 20s, or their 60s, do such things? I can answer only for me.

McGreevy prays that Larry Craig and his loving family come to peace with his truth, whatever that may be.

Ultimately, like Sen. Craig, I resigned for the perceived good of my family, state and political party. And in so doing, I at long last accepted a fundamental truth, namely, that I am a gay American. In my soul, I found peace. In my heart, I found love. In my psyche, I disassembled the twisted separate strands of my life to create a healthy integrated person. And with my God, I found purpose.

I can only pray that Larry Craig and his loving family come to peace with his truth, whatever that may be. To those who judge him harshly, I ask that they fill their hearts with compassion and equanimity. The senator did not have a lover on the payroll, as I did; nor did he engage in sexual relations for money or use his office for unethical professional or personal gain.

Is it possible that we hold him to a different standard because a same-sex entanglement is involved? If being gay is, as I believe, a natural gift of the creator, what choice does a gay person have in being gay? If we condemn sin in an equal manner, so be it. But what if our condemnation tells to members of the next generation that they are to be shamed, repudiated and vilified inequitably for being gay?

I pray that the tide of American history continues to sweep toward the inevitable expansion of freedom that recognizes the worth and dignity of every individual -- and that mine is the last generation that is required to choose between affairs of the heart and elected office.

Read it all here