No One Picture of HIV/AIDS
“There is no easy way to ever tell anyone this. We find the best way is to just tell people flat out. You have HIV.” That is a sentence that no one ever wants to hear, but sadly it is still spoken. I heard it
Category Archives: Journeys
Knowing God Like I Know My Mother
For me, knowing God means having a relationship with God. To wrap my mind around this, I sometimes think about what it means to know and be known by my mother. Not Having All the Facts Although my mother and I have known each other
A Farewell Message
Dear Saints: Today, by God’s grace, I complete my service as Moderator of Metropolitan Community Churches. I am writing these words to you today from my almost empty offices in the MCC World Centre in West Hollywood, California. The mementos of 37 years of ministry
Meeting God in the Grocery Store
I had an interesting experience recently at Shaws (a local grocery store). I was on the checkout line, and waiting behind me, a young girl stood holding her baby. Both of them were very young. He must have been much less than a year old
Limitless Glory
When I was a child, I had the misfortune – in many ways, although I loved my childhood and my home country – of growing up in a country where much of diversity did not exist. I’m from Somalia, where nearly all people are Somali,
Jumping the Broom
Uncertain of what might greet us when we walked through the doors of the Office of the Town Clerk in the Municipal Building of the Borough of Chatham, NJ, to register for Domestic Partnership, Barbara and I stopped, looked at each other for assurance, and
To My Family
Mom and I had an interesting conversation recently. We were discussing my penchant, from childhood, to be a contrarian. I told her that one of my favorite shirts as a kid was a sweatshirt with a big yellow arrow on it pointing off to one
From Sin to Blessing
I’ve spent the good part of my 30 years running and hiding from sin. From the day I first realized I was homosexual, I linked the two words together. I believed you couldn’t have homosexuality without sin. I was raised in a very small, rural
Wrestling with Sin: Taking Ownership of My Soul or, Reflections on Sin from a Revival Meeting
The concept of sin is something I have been strangely aware of for most of my life. Sin is not just something I have been conscience of, but it is something I have earnestly wrestled with all my life, especially as a gay man. What
Why I Lit a Peace Candle
I was on my way home from 7-eleven when a then-hit song was interrupted with news that America was bombing Iraq. A nervous reporter gave play-by-play commentary. Bombs and bullets exploded in the background. I had just turned fourteen and remember the sense of pride