The following message was sent to Rev. Dr. Cindi Love, our executive director, after her talk with Joe Dallas at the National Religious Broadcasters’ Convention. We post it here with the author’s permission.

dear cindi

everything you said about love was just as it was written in scripture. dallas represents a group of believers who think we we still have a relationship to god through regulation as in deut 28. under the new covenant our relationship to god is directly to god, to the spirit that lives in each believer. it is his spirit in us that says not only what the law is, but also what it says. if dallas was as concerned with scripture as he said he was, he would know that according to romans, believers are led by the spirit of god. and that the law is now to make us believers “conscious” of not GODLOVING(love one another as i have loved you) as directed by the 2nd commandment (love neighbor), the love of the 2nd commandment not only being the summation of all new covenant law, but also the standard of the new covenant as well,…………….. and not the interpretation law as dallas attempts to make the case.

our lives show that our being gay not only does not come against this love, but it is thru our living gay that we live out this love, in the same way as heterosexuals believers do in their lives.

how can that which is apart from righteousness(christ’s love) determine what righteousness is. there are a million reasons for following the law and not one of them of love. that is why we receive no righteousness by following it.

dallas may say he is concerned about scripture, but his reasoning does not embrace the principles of the new covenant as expressed in scripture.

the truth is, that christendom would in any way say that being gay is a sin, shows that christendom is still struggling to fully embrace the new covenant of christ.

your brother in christ, john roberts

We believe in things unseen.

I don’t remember the first time I thought I might be gay. I don’t remember the first time I heard someone say homosexuality is a sickness and a sin. I don’t remember the first time I heard someone say transgender people are disgusting. My life–and the culture around me–was so fiercely anti-queer that it is hard to isolate individual events.

When I was in middle school and high school, gay marriage was not legal anywhere. I could hardly imagine what my life would look like. I was not sure I would ever tell a soul.

Many of my friends attended the same evangelical Presbyterian church as me. Whenever homosexuality came up in current events, my parents always affirmed the status quo: it was wrong, it was dangerous, it was weird. My youth pastor told us we didnt even need to discuss the issue because it was so clearly sinful. When I eventually could stand secrecy no longer and came out, a good friend sent me 26 Bible verses to read and consider. My parents asked that I see a counselor, he in turn asked if I would consider reparative therapy (I said absolutely not).

There was nothing around me I could look to and say “This is how I might do life.” I had never heard a pastor say it is ok to be gay.

I was first introduced to Soulforce through the Equality Ride. At that time, no major denominations outside of MCC and UCC were affirming. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was firmly in place. After the first Equality Ride, none of the of visited schools showed any sign of even the slightest institutional change.

And I saw something that changed my life.

Jake Reitan stood outside of Brigham Young University and proclaimed with a certainty unrivaled to this day, “We are here to tell any student who is lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender and who is suffering in silence: God loves you and affirms you just as your are, without reservation.” It was prophetic. Jake had the audacity to put twenty something 20-somethings on a bus to go to the most transphobic and homophobic institutions in the country and say, “This is not right. This must change.”

I remember my own experience on the Equality Ride, driving through the night, a speck in the plains of Montana and North Dakota. The group of us bound together by nothing more than a vision in our heads about the way things could be, but were not yet.

Today, seven years after I came out and four years after my Equality Ride experience, I am living in the present reality which used to only be a dream and a vision.

My parents are loving and accepting of me and my relationship. My friend with the 26 bible verses wrote me a heartfelt apology. I am a member of the oldest Protestant church in North America and one of our pastors is openly queer. My home state of Maryland recognizes gay marriages and is on the verge of allowing them to be performed in state. I am surrounded by more friends than I can count, all of whom affirm and support me.

In the wake of the Equality Ride, GSAs and QSAs have sprung up at Christian colleges across the country. Samford University changed their policy to treat queer students the same as straight students. Dont Ask, Dont Tell has been repealed by Congress.

As we gather in Kansas City to insist that Lou Engle and his ministries cease the support of lawmakers who would have us executed, we believe in things unseen. We believe that Lou Engle will actively oppose this legislation in Uganda where he has influence. We believe that American evangelical churches will recognize the worth, dignity, and wholeness of LGBTQ people. But we do not believe foolishly. We believe because this is how it is always done.

We believe in things unseen and we gather together to call them into being, to assist as a beautiful new thing is birthed into being, to stand witness to the cost and casualty until that vision becomes a reality.

We believe in things unseen, we work to make them a reality, and we watch in awe as they become manifest before us. I am honored to be part of this sacred task and I invite you join me with your presence, your prayers (or your crossed fingers), and your financial support.

Continue to check back here and on our Flickr for updates from Kansas City. Follow us on Twitter to get breaking news from the front lines.

We believe in things unseen.

Photo by Maureen Didde

February 11, 2011

Pastor Lou Engle
International House of Prayer/The Call

Dear Mr. Engle,

We at Soulforce and the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) are saddened and distraught at the plight of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Ugandans. The social climate in Uganda has become so toxic that LGBT people are not safe in their homes or on the street. And, we believe that the untruths and misrepresentations that you and other U.S. based Christian evangelical leaders continue to proclaim regarding the goodness and wholeness of LGBT people is at the root of this climate of fear and violence. These misrepresentations and untruths must stop now.

The safety of LGBT people, as well as their friends and their families, has been put at risk because of the proposed “anti-homosexual bill.” You have claimed to oppose this bill, but you have not taken a clear and public position in Uganda where your opposition could make a difference.  Instead, after fueling the flames of anti-LGBT sentiments in Uganda, you have stood beside the bill’s supporters and referred to their work as righteous. You cannot preach that  “homosexuals have demons” or say to LGBT people, “let the Bible kill you?” and then ignore the results of speaking such words. Words have power.  And, your words create fear and hatred toward LGBT people.  This fear and hatred puts the lives of LGBT people at risk and perpetuates a climate of terror and violence.

The purpose of this letter is to introduce ourselves and let you know that it is our intention to continue to pursue dialog with you until you stop your vitriolic rhetoric against LGBT people.  We ask you to formally renounce the “anti-homosexuality bill” in Uganda. We ask you to call on MP David Bahati, MP James Nsaba Buturo and Pastor Julius Oyet to cease and desist their persecution of LGBT people. And, we ask you to call for a fair and impartial investigation into the murder of David Kato.   Informed by the principles of nonviolence as demonstrated by Mohandas Gandhi and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we at Soulforce and HRC will not give up on our call to end this outrage.

As a beginning point in this dialog, members of a Soulforce and HRC delegation will be traveling to Kansas City on Sunday, February 20^th to meet with you and to deliver a petition signed by over 36,000 Americans who are deeply saddened by the murder of human rights defender, David Kato, and horrified by the role U.S. religious leaders have played in perpetuating a climate of misunderstanding and violence against LGBT people.  Our intent is to work with you in an honest effort to find what Gandhi called “the third way,” a way that recognizes the dangers of continuing on the current path. As people of faith, we respect your profound commitment to prayer and to making the world a better place, yet we cannot stand by while your rhetoric wreaks havoc on an entire community of people.

Member of our delegation would welcome the opportunity to worship in your congregation on Sunday and we will be in respectful vigil outside the IHOP facilities on East Red Bridge Road on Sunday morning throughout services – ready, willing, and able to join you in this dialog toward truth. Please advise us whether you will welcome us into this dialog and where and when you would like to meet on Feb. 20th. You may direct your response to Rev. Dr. Cindi Love’s email (cindi@soulforce.org) or  by phone at 972 358 5907. We look forward to our time together.

Sincerely,

Rev. Dr. Cindi Love
Soulforce, Inc.
Executive Director
Human Rights Campaign Religion Council Member

Dr. Sharon Groves
Acting  Director,
Religion and Faith Program
Human Rights Campaign

Last week I had the amazing opportunity to attend the Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s annual conference: Creating Change. This conference is a series of workshops, day long institutes, and other educational events designed to empower Queer* activists by strengthening our core values while encouraging growth, gain, and unique networking opportunities. With an expanding emphasis on intersectional justice, comprehensive education on trans identities and even sexual empowerment, Creating Change is an incredible opportunity to be an even better activist.

This was my first Creating Change, and I spent much of my time at the Soulforce table, telling people about the next Equality Ride and the other great things we do. I spoke to hundreds of people throughout the week, handed out tons of flyers and even gave out a bunch of prizes. In addition to the general festivities, there were some activities that reminded me of how important the work is that we do here at Soulforce.

During the final full day of Creating Change, another conference was going on at the convention center next door and was a youth event hosted by a very fundamentalist group of “Christians”. Some of the youth had been instructed by their leaders to proselytize to folks at Creating Change and were encouraged to pray over us, invite us to “accept Christ”, and even suggested laying their hands on us! Here, a whole convention of youth are being told that our beautiful Queer identities are not wonderful, integral parts of our spirits which should be celebrated, but instead should be prayed for.

This kind of spiritual violence is exactly what we aim to dismantle in programs like the Equality Ride and in the other denominational actions Soulforce has participated in since our inception in 1999. Unfortunately, this kind of event is all too common and although I am an advocate for free speech and freedom of religion, I don’t believe in hate speech, homophobia, queerphobia, transphobia, and blatant spiritual violence as was exemplified by this group, and many of the other conservative “Christian” groups out there. This is the same language and intent that has kept me closeted for the first 24 years of my life and, more importantly, the force that encourages Queer people to take our own lives. This is not an issue of speech for me, but instead an issue of hate. When this kind of spiritual violence is perpetuated, people are killed, communities are ripped apart, and countless others are living in silence, fear, and shame.

When we first caught wind of this conservative Christian group and their plans to proselytize, I reached out to the Equality Riders, other Soulforce participants, and others who were attending Creating Change. Luckily, these individuals have been trained in the principles of non-violent resistance and I knew we would be able to not only protect the other Creating Change attendees but hopefully have transformative experiences as well. At the request of the program staff at Creating Change, we were able to assist in escorting folks from the conference to their cars and hotels, acting as buffers between members of the Queer communities and these misguided conference goers.

It is sad that such a buffer is still so needed in 2011, but I am grateful that Soulforce is training and empowering people in the principles of non-violence and truth. Many of the volunteers who helped us at Creating Change were former Equality Riders and it was in this interaction I was able to really feel the presence of their training and dedication.

As we gear up to launch our next Equality Ride in the spring of 2012, events like this one remind me how important programs like the Equality Ride truly are.

The success of the Equality Ride depends on you! We hope that you are willing to continue your generous support of this and the other programs that Soulforce offers. Please check out www.equalityride.com to find ways to get involved, and as always, we need and appreciate your financial support. Donate today! Thank you!

To support the Equality Ride, please make a contribution to the Equality Ride Fund. You can also signup to give monthly which will help ensure we can continue to pursue justice for queer people as long as necessary.

*In the context of this article and the viewpoints of the author, the term Queer is used to describe a broad and diverse set of identities. These identities can consist of, but are not limited to: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Pansexual, Intersex, Genderqueer, Gender Non Conforming, and Allied individuals.

Over the last couple of years, I’ve been researching off and on a right wing evangelical group that has very successfully kept its cover for the most part. When I first discovered them, even my friend Mel White, who is considered an expert of anti-gay groups wasn’t familiar with them. I recall sending him the information I’d uncovered and asked him if he were familiar with them and he said he wasn’t. The Group is known as “The Family.” Since then, there have been a number of articles written about them, but it always seemed to me that they were much more powerful than anyone suspected.

So when gay rights activist David Kato, was beaten to death in his own home in Uganda, it was “The Family,” that I blamed and wanted to focus my anger and outrage toward. As Soulforce staff started to research in depth, their position on the Uganda anti-gay law, it began to look like perhaps they weren’t the core people promoting this draconian law. Now here’s my “aha moment.”

I can’t begin to express my disappointment when it turned out that they had publicly opposed the law. First reaction – it’s a lie! When we dig deeper we’ll find out the truth. Several days passed, I stewed and stewed on my disappointment. I really wanted to believe they were the ones behind it. I just couldn’t quite let go of the feelings of disappointment. I needed to believe that they were the bad guys.

And then, perhaps for the first time, I comprehended how “they,” the fundies needed us to be the bad guys. Franciscan Fr. Richard Rohr for years has said that LGBTs became the focus of the fundamentalists as communism began to fall. They needed a new bad guy. But what I understood at that moment was, the role scapegoating plays for the vast majority of human beings. We need someone to blame. I suspect part of that need is that the “bad guys” can become our focus rather than working to change things. It fills a function for us.

Ultimately, as I began to process all these feelings, I realized how wise Gandhi was, when he said, “we must become the change we seek.” Because, it is only when we have such “ahah moments,” that we can feel compassion for our advesary, acknowledge them as human beings, and begin a real dialogue as opposed to a war with them.

I’ve often said that nonviolence isn’t for sissies. It’s really hard, hard work and it demands constant re-educating of ourselves, because we are daily given large doses of violence as the only workable answer. And this new “ahah moment,” is still giving me uneasiness as I process it. It’s so much easier to find a scapegoat to blame.

St. Paul’s Cathedral, San Diego

In October of last year, Bishop Christopher Senyonjo’s picture appeared on a Ugandan Tabloid called “Rolling Stone”. The tabloid printed names and addresses of leadingLGBT people and their allies. It called for the police to arrest them or the mob to take the existing anti-gay laws into their own hands and to “Hang them”. The second picture on the front cover was of David Kato who workedfor Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), part of the Civil Coalition that is allied with Bishop Christopher’s St. Paul’sReconciliation and Equality Centre in Kampala. All 34organizations opposed the Anti-Homosexuality Bill and David Kato worked tirelessly for its defeat. David wase ducated in Human Rights and International Law at York University in the United Kingdom and since 2004, has been one of the leading voices for Human Rights in Uganda until his life was taken from him last week.

There is still some confusion surrounding thecircumstances of his murder. The Ugandan government andpolice are claiming it was a result of a robbery while thehuman rights and international community are concernedit was a direct result of the rising tide of homophobiathat was manifested most clearly in the Rolling Stonecall to execution. It is also unclear as to the sources offunding for the Tabloid. There is concern that ChristianAmerican Fundamentalists have mounted a concertedeffort to increase the penalties against LGBT people and further divide the Ugandan community through lies andmisinformation as we see in this Tabloid. The Editor, GilesMuhame told the Ugandan Daily Monitor yesterday thatalthough he sympathized with the family of the bereaved,Kato was a victim of his own “evil” actions. “He broughtdeath upon himself. He hasn’t lived carefully. Kato was ashame to this country,” he said.

President Obama and leaders of many European countriesare calling for an investigation. Many of us believe thisinvestigation needs to be independent and to includean investigation into the funding of a wider anti-gaymovement. Initial research has exposed the role ofprominent Washington politicians and church leaders,particularly with connections to a secretive movement thathas come to be known as “the Family”.

As a result of this anti-gay campaign over the past 15 years,the deeper implications for the Obama Administration andthe State Department make a strong case to review the US’scontinued support of a government that continues to failto protect all its citizens and whose violations of humanrights is well documented. Half the Ugandan Government’sbudget is dependent on foreign aid. It is presently illegalto provide HIV prevention and health services to LGBTpeople. This is one example of inequality and persecutionthat is supported by US taxpayers. This institutionalinequality is the root cause of violence and hatred that wasthe likely motivation for David Kato’s murder. The onlylegacy that can truly honor David’s sacrifice is to help those people in Uganda who are calling us to partner withthem to bring about a state of equality.

The role of the church is also critical. On Thursday atDavid’s funeral, the Anglican Church of Uganda sent nopriest or no bishop to conduct his Funeral Rites. A localLay Reader used the occasion to present the Church’steaching on homosexuality. Bishop Christopher wasthere (dressed in his Anglican purple cassock) and wasignored by the Master of Ceremonies even though hehad asked for a moment to speak. The Bishop told mehe felt uncomfortable as the funeral was turned into apolitical rally and stirred up more persecution of the LGBT community, even at such a time of grief and anger atDavid’s demise. Finally, a young lesbian co-worker ofDavid’s took the mic and called for an end of this kindof judgementalism from the church. David’s friends andfamily then took the coffin and the Bishop walked behindit to the graveside where he gave comfort to the mourners,told them of the inclusive love of God and said the finalblessing over David’s battered remains.

There were two churches at that graveside on this historicday. It is important for us to realize the implications ofthese conflicting messages from both churches is part ofthe problem that is causing people to suffer. We share inthis “culture war” and what does that mean for us, here atSt. Paul’s Cathedral? What does it mean for the churcheswho meet in close proximity to us – even churches withinour own Episcopal Diocese, or communities like Skyline and “The Rock Church” here in San Diego. How do weshare deeply in a process that addresses the root causes offear and hatred of LGBT people? David Kato’s tragic endand the circumstances surrounding it force us to ask thesedifficult questions right here in our own home-towns allover the USA.

While we engage in serious dialogue with those who differfrom us, we have to support those inclusive voices likeChristopher’s where the Good News of God’s equality isproclaimed even in the most difficult of situations. Today,I will be colecting contact information from people whowould like to discuss these questions in more depth andhow we can move forward.I end with two messages of hope – one from Today’sSunday Monitor in Uganda and a prayer (the Collect fromour Book of Common Prayer commemorating the witnessof the Ugandan Martyrs).

“What we need is an honest national dialogue onhomosexuality in order to forge a consensus on the rightsof those Ugandans who choose to be gay and those whooppose homosexuality as a lifestyle.

Holding puritanical and extreme views on the matter,whether liberal or conservative, will divide us, rather thanhelp us find a mutually acceptable compromise. People like David Kato and others who might be gay are Ugandans and enjoy the same rights and protections ofthe law as heterosexuals. We cannot send them into exileneither, lock them away, or hang them.

We need to have an honest discussion about how to ensurethat their rights are upheld without violating the rights ofother Ugandans.

Peaceful and stable societies only emerge when we understand and try to accommodate those who are differentfrom us, or who disagree with us – not by ostracizing or killing them.”

I invite the congregation to stand:

Let us pray as we commend the life and witness of DavidKato his Creator.

O God, by your providence the blood of the martyrs isthe seed of the Church: Grant that we who rememberbefore you the blessed martyrs of Uganda, may, likethem, be steadfast in our faith in Jesus Christ, towhom they gave obedience, even unto death, and bytheir sacrifice brought forth a plentiful harvest; throughJesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns withyou and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.Amen.

Donations to assist the Bishop’s work for equality may be made through the St.Paul’s Foundation for International Reconciliation at http://stpaulsfoundation.com/Donate.html

The following is a transcript of a speech Haven Herrin gave at the women’s pre-conference during the 25th World Conference of the International Lesbian and Gay Association in December 2010.

My queer community can feel a lot like a linguistic playground. All the words and turns of phrase that we use to talk about ourselves are, in some sense, illusory, but they also point to the nuances of communities built out of ever-more complex and self-determined identities. It is a beautiful freedom to witness.

Today I want to talk about how language in part creates communities with its terroir. Certain words can locate one geographically, can’t they? I also want to address the tension between infinite possibilities for words and identities and the need for unity and collective struggle.

I will keep my comments to where I come from, the twin cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul in Minnesota in the United States. My sense of queer self and the words I use to convey that queer experience are borne out of this particular place. I can’t speak with much detail or honesty to other places and how they grapple with the evolution of language and to what ends people use it.
Some days I am a fag, some days trans, every now and then a high femme, never a woman, always female-bodied, a bit butch and nearly always genderqueer. I am a changeling but it is more an internal shifting than external changes for you to see. The Twin Cities is where I first began to really grow into my queer self. Specific places, ideas, languages, and communities of people have supported me there in becoming my whole self.

Even keeping my comments to the Twin Cities, I will get dangerously close to generalizations that obscure more than they reveal. It is difficult enough to even talk about my individual experience, let alone another human’s. But I will try to travel with you from the very personal to thoughts about how we can work to create solidarity, community and mutually supported liberation.

Me. In addition to my queer identities, I am 28 years old. I am white. I am usually able-bodied. I have always had more than enough resources. My language, my passport, my education and my familiarity with Christian culture have generally met with acceptance in the mainstream culture of the United States. In short, I carry much privilege where I live.

My community has helped me see this and has also challenged me to articulate where my politics and my way of life do not fit the mainstream model. In fact, this is one of the defining characteristics of the Queer/Trans community in the Twin Cities, to think and talk about identity from many angles all at once, support self-determination and deep reflection, and examine how identities are working in concert or creating dissonance vis a vis mainstream culture.

For example, I get incredible support around my gender identity. It’s common in my community – this Queer/Trans community – to ask, “What is the gender pronoun you would like me to use for you?” There are a lot of options: he, she, ze, they, none at all and more. I use “they” and “them,” and it feels pretty amazing to have friends who will honor that, English grammar rules be damned. I use it because it reflects the multiplicity I feel in my gender expression.

My chosen community challenges and cares for me. We share a lot of dinners as we organize for social change…topics of dinner conversation almost always touch on race politics, poverty, capitalism, patriarchy, ableism and classism in some way. We call each other out when needed, and it always feels like there is space to change and grow ourselves. We see each other as people with multiple, evolving identities. We are not singly defined boy our gender or sexuality, rather we are bound by principles…and this is how I have learned what solidarity can look like.

We do not live within singular identities, and our community’s struggle is not single-issue. I am learning how to hold space in a conversation for the complex reality that white supremacy, capitalism, and patriarchy all have something to say about gender and sexuality – and vice versa. I am trying to juggle all of it while not privileging some forms of oppression over others.

There are many communities in the Twin Cities that contain LGBTQI-identified people of course. Not all people in the Queer/Trans community identify as queer or trans per se. Many would identify as gay, for example. I will share a story to characterize the difference between the Queer/Trans group and the other main sub-culture, the Gay and Lesbian community. The organization that hosts the Pride Festival that’s been taking place for 20 years invited people in the Twin Cities to give their feedback on the festival and its future. I decided to attend because the Pride Festival is actually not a place I enjoy. I don’t feel it reflects my priorities: it is expensive, it has a lot of vendors who seem to want the “gay dollar” more than our liberation, and it is overwhelmingly white and male.

Around the same time of this meeting, I had been doing some work with my [queer] friends to unionize a chain of sandwich shops. It would have been the first labor union in a fast food restaurant in the United States. Their demands included an end to racism, transphobia and homophobia in the workplace and better pay.

So I went to this meeting with the Pride organization, and for lunch we had the sandwiches from the same business I was helping to unionize. It was a rough meeting besides: no one asked my gender pronoun and they referred to me as “she” even after I told them I prefer “they.” That to me, right there, says that self-determination will likely not be respected in this space.

The leaders of the meeting asked us, essentially, why we think Pride tends to be very white and solidly middle class in what is a diverse city. I asked them how they determine what is and what is not a “queer issue.” Looking at my activism, you could determine that I see fighting racism and workers’ rights as queer issues. But there we were, eating the sandwiches that pay the people who perpetuate the unhealthy workplaces my [queer] friends go to 5 days a week.

I share this story as a way of describing the dividing line between the Queer/Trans community and the Gay and Lesbian community. The titles themselves are not meaningful, for surely there are people who claim varying identities within any and all kinds of communities. Like the Pride Festival, the Gay and Lesbian community in the Twin Cities trends toward being more white and more middle and upper class. The agenda is more narrowly defined to rights and protections attached specifically and only to sexual orientation gender identity and gender expression, such as marriage equality, being able to serve in the military, and hate crimes laws. These are the priorities, often to the exclusion of the difficulties LGBTQI people experience as a complex product of one’s class and race alongside sexuality and gender. Examples of these more complex LGBTQI issues may include poverty, homelessness, worker’s rights, healthcare, and job access. And the healthcare issue as seen from the context of marriage equality work is very different than the view from a place of poverty, undocumented status, trans identity, or being very young or old.

These latter issues seem to get more care and attention in the Queer/Trans community. I think it comes out of that sense of solidarity among many issues, identities, and social justice movements. All issues are queer issues, more or less, because we are just about everywhere. So when we are willing to have complex conversations about white supremacy and heterosexism and capitalism and ask people, “Hey what pronouns do you use?” we can see people as the multidimensional beings that they are. It becomes harder to fight one kind of oppression without fighting the other. If I am working for the liberation of my community, then I am working against more than just homophobia, am I not?

So if I were to generalize the differences between these two communities, I might say that the Queer/Trans community allows a lot of space for self-determination and bringing the whole self to the work. The Gay and Lesbian communities focuses less on the nuances of identity and more on the agenda that is circumscribed by sexual orientation and, to a lesser extent, gender identity and expression. To be transparent, I am sure there is an unhealthy amount of judgment from both sides about which community is more desirable.

So why do I bring this up? It is not just to point out yet another division and not just to play word games. Living in Minneapolis, I have seen the value in allowing the space for an infinite number of ways to self-identify and having an infinite number of words available to explain our lived experiences in the Queer/Trans community. This encourages identities to come first, then agendas and priorities to flow from that. In the reverse, to set the agenda and then expect identities to get in line…well, what I see is the clear delineation of the center and then the margin when our lives our organized in that way. The people at the margin continue to be the very old, the very young, the differently-abled, the people of color, the trans, the gender non-conforming, and any folks so bold as to uncategorizable.

The Gay and Lesbian community in the Twin Cities seems to put the agenda first, narrowly defined and not based in complex and diverse lived experiences. So, despite its simplification of what the movement’s agenda, I find it fracturing and divisive in the ways it excludes people who don’t fit a mainstream mold or aren’t served by a mainstream agenda. In my own queer activism, I find myself working on housing foreclosure, sandwich shop unions, bathroom and school access and anti-police brutality measures. The other option is to really see the people in our midst first, and then define our direction and agenda by what we, as a collective, care about and why.

I have framed this essay in terms of language and its power, not just in creating it but allowing room for it to evolve and to be heard, because respecting, embracing, and exploring with enthusiasm the maze of words – tomboi, bearded femme, diesel dyke, two spirit, fag, genderqueer, and on and on – seems to be way to invite in everyone to the center, supporting not chaos and fragmentation but unity and diversity.

The National Religious Broadcaster’s Convention has asked me to participate in a dialogue/”soft” debate at their keynoter event on March 1, 2010 in Nashville. The topic is a favorite of ours “The Church and Its Response to Homosexuality.” A recent speaker was Ken Starr. Expected attendance is 5000. I plan to tell part of the story of our amazing friend and colleague, Bishop Paul Egertson.

With the sudden and unexpected death of Paul Egertson on Wednesday afternoon, January 5, 2011, Soulforce lost a powerful and prophetic ally and the LGBTQ Community lost a courageous and committed friend.

Paul was Bishop of the Southwest California Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) from 1995 to 2001. He was appointed a member of the Soulforce Board of Trustees in April 2004 and served on our Board for two terms from 2004 to 2010.

“We loved Bishop Paul,” says Dr. Cindi Love, the new Executive Director of Soulforce, “because unlike most church leaders, Protestant and Catholic alike, Paul was not content to talk endlessly about full inclusion for LGBTQ people. He was an activist who risked his career on our behalf.”

Paul Egertson was the first active bishop in the 5.1 million member ELCA to participate in the ordination of a non-celibate gay or lesbian pastor. Paul believed that when dialogue about an unjust law becomes simply another tactic for delaying justice, it’s time to move on to direct action against that unjust law.

In 2001, Bishop Paul led the colorful and deeply moving parade of clergy participating in the ordination of Pastor Anita C. Hill of St.Paul Reformation Lutheran Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. His courageous and historical act of “ecclesial disobedience” was covered by news media around the world and moved the ELCA one more giant step towards full inclusion. It’s easy to understand why Soulforce adopted Paul as one of our own.

Rather than forcing a long, drawn out confrontation with ELCA leaders, Paul resigned as an ELCA bishop to become a full time volunteer-advocate for full inclusion of LGBTQ persons in the Christian church worldwide. For these last six years on the Soulforce board, Paul has provided wisdom and nurture as Soulforce advanced and enlarged its mission to “end religion based oppression.”

“We celebrate the fact that Paul lived to see all Lesbian and Gay clergy granted the rights of ordination at the ELCA Churchwide Assembly in 2009,” says Chuck Phelan, Chairperson of the Soulforce Board of Trustees, “He spent the last nine years of his life working with Soulforce, Lutherans Concerned and other activist organizations for the full inclusion of Gay and Lesbian people who still suffer discrimination at the hands of most other Christian communities, Protestant and Catholic alike. He will be deeply and sorely missed.”

Bishop Paul ended a keynote address advocating full inclusion for LGBTQ people at an ELCA Conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on April 17, 1999, with this prayer: “Almighty and everlasting God, create and make in the Church a new and contrite heart, that lamenting its discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender members and clergy, it may receive from the God of all mercy, perfect forgiveness and peace; through Jesus Christ. Amen.

The people of Soulforce extend our sincere condolences to Paul’s wife Shirley, his family and many friends, and join with countless LGBTQ people who would say, “Well done, good and faithful friend. We will miss you greatly.”

Update: The following post was issued as breaking news on our blog. We invite you to read Soulforce’s full response to the passing of Bishop Paul Egertson here.

From Lutherans Concerned North America:

[Former Soulforce board member] Paul Egertson died suddenly yesterday afternoon, January 5, 2011, in his home in Thousand Oaks, California. Egertson, staunch ally and advocate for full inclusion of LGBT people in the life of the church, had championed the ordination of LGBT candidates for ministry and an end to the policies and practices of the church that relegated LGBT people to a second-class.

While bishop of the ELCA Southwest California Synod, he participated in the 2001 ordination of Pastor Anita C. Hill of St. Paul-Reformation Lutheran Church, St. Paul, Minnesota. For this act, he subsequently resigned his position as bishop, and tirelessly advocated for the policy change that finally occurred as a result of the decisions of the 2009 Churchwide Assembly.

Egertson was awarded the Jim Siefkes Justice-Maker Award by Lutherans Concerned for his efforts on behalf of LGBT Lutherans.

Emily Eastwood, Executive Director, Lutherans Concerned, said, “Paul Egertson stood up for us and in opposition to the discrimination of the church against us when that was neither popular nor safe. His witness to Christ’s redemptive grace and his commitment to helping the church see the error of its position are a shining beacon of prophetic righteousness in the face of determined opposition – and he did it with grace and eloquence, as befits a follower of Christ. He was a friend and mentor — always available, with words of calming wisdom. He made a profound difference. He will be missed.”

Paul Egertson, born in 1935, is survived by his wife, Shirley, also a Siefkes award recipient, and their 6 sons. Funeral arrangements will be communicated as soon as they are known.

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“All of us at Soulforce grieve with Paul’s beloved family at his passing and we celebrate with them the memory of his world-changing prophetic witness to the worth and dignity of  all people and to the Spirit that animates us.  Paul was with us for our board meeting in the summer in Texas.  We will cherish his counsel and his great smile, his abiding faith and conviction in a God who is big enough to include everyone,” said Rev Dr. Cindi Love