Spoiler: Your average affirming church might be resting on its laurels With every passing moment, it becomes increasingly less revolutionary for a progressive Christian congregation to label itself as some combination of open, affirming or welcoming. Denominational schisms notwithstanding, more and more Christians are saying
We’re far from powerless against the anti-trans wave Part of my daily routine is to post a thought piece and a scripture reading on Facebook, then on Twitter and Post I say “Black Lives Matter” and “Trans Lives Matter.” It’s a routine I’ve observed for
Lent is supposed to be a time when Christians engage in reflection, remembrance, and repentance — a practice I wholeheartedly embrace. But just one week into it, I’m already finding it hard to maintain focus amid the now-daily headlines chronicling the mounting societal backlash against
As a longtime transgender ally, this time of year hits a bit differently for me than it does for a lot of people. Due to the timing of Transgender Day of Remembrance — always shortly before Thanksgiving, and therefore also Advent — I inevitably go
Some years ago I served on a panel of LGBTQ+ community leaders for a local community college. I was there as a representative of the queer spiritual community; among the panelists were a couple of businesspeople, a hardcore activist and the college’s police chief, a
As we enter the final stretch of arguably the most-anticipated U.S. election in modern memory, we find ourselves bathed in headlines suggesting that Russia is hacking into our elections infrastructure, that Iran is blasting the inboxes of Democratic voters with misinformation, and that the giants
My calendar this morning reminded me that we’re almost halfway through June 2020, perhaps the strangest Pride Month in LGBTQ+ history. Am I the only one for whom the last three months of sheltering in place feels as if it’s both the longest and shortest
For those who are or will be impacted by the coronavirus — either physically or economically, directly or indirectly — mine and the Whosoever staff’s prayers go out to you. This is a difficult, challenging and frightening time for all. Support from our friends and
Reading about the pending schism of the United Methodist Church, the denomination I grew up in, was a cold but oddly hopeful reminder to me of just how truly glacial the pace of change in the institutional church will be for LGBTQ+ people. Here we
God is not a Christian, God is not a Jew, or a Muslim, or a Hindu, or a Buddhist. All of those are human systems which human beings have created to try to help us walk into the mystery of God. I honor my tradition,