This past Wednesday was my twenty-sixth wedding anniversary. Three years ago, we were celebrating our twenty-third and our in-laws’ fiftieth in Hawaii when I woke up to something decidedly less celebratory. Ever since the Pulse shooting in Orlando in 2016, our marriage has joined hands with a gruesome tragedy. Each year, as we’re getting dressed up for a nice dinner, …
One Spirit, One Body
I am a Baptist, but I went to a Methodist seminary, so I have many professors and colleagues, people I count as friends, in the thick of things this week. Church in the Cliff is an affirming congregation; we definitely have feelings about the relationship between the Church and queer folx. So, while I’m not in the thick of things, …
David Loved Jonathon
This past Sunday was rough. I am pleased to see so much happening in the wake of the events in Charleston. Seeing Confederate flags removed in Alabama and initiatives to do the same throughout the South is encouraging. However, there is so much more to do than change the racist décor. While we endeavor to keep the quest for racial …
SS. Sergius and Bacchus/AWAB Sunday
It has been wonderful the last few weeks watching court decisions roll in, toppling the state dominoes of bigotry. Marriage equality is now the law of the land in 30 states, which accounts for 60% of the population of the U.S. It’s a beautiful time for all who care about justice. Even more for those who long for equality and …
Coming Out
Thursday was National Coming Out Day. I’m reading through Facebook comments of friends from high school to whose pain I was oblivious. I regret that I was not then the person I am sometimes able to be today, an advocate and ally. I am certain that through my frequent silence, constant blindness, and occasional word and deed, I hurt people. …
Undone by Love: The Other (Program and Sermon)
Program Jann’s Opening Both my parents were preachers, but only one was ordained. I grew up in a small town in Louisiana in the 1950s and 60s. It was in a time in the South when water fountains were labeled “colored” and “white,” and we didn’t know gays and lesbians existed. My father almost lost his job as pastor of …