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Mychal Judge, gay saint of 9/11 and chaplain to New York firefighters

September 11, 2015, 9:57 am
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“Mychal Judge” by Tobias Haller

“Holy Passion Bearer Mychal Judge and St. Francis of Assisi” by Father William Hart McNichols

Father Mychal Judge, chaplain to New York firefighters and unofficial “gay saint,” died helping others in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center 13 years ago today on Sept. 11, 2001. He was killed by flying debris while praying and administering sacraments at the World Trade Center. Father Mychal (1933-2001) was the first recorded victim of 9/11.

New memorials continue to be created in his honor, and two are posted today for the first time at the Jesus in Love Blog: a portrait by Tobias Haller and a plaque at the Legacy Walk in Chicago.

Father Mychal responded quickly when extremists flew hijacked planes into the twin towers. He rushed with firefighters into the north tower right after the first plane hit. Refusing to be evacuated, he prayed and gave sacraments as wreckage crashed outside. He saw dozens of bodies hit the plaza outside as people jumped to their deaths. His final prayer, repeated over and over, was “Jesus, please end this right now! God, please end this!”

While he was praying, Father Mychal was struck and killed in a storm of flying steel and concrete that exploded when the south tower collapsed. Father Mychal was designated as Victim 0001 because his was the first body recovered at the scene. More than 2,500 people from many nationalities and walks of life were killed. Thousands more escaped the buildings safely.

After Father Mychal’s death, some of his friends revealed that he considered himself a gay man. He had a homosexual orientation, but by all accounts he remained faithful to his vow of celibacy as a Roman Catholic priest of the Franciscan order.

The charismatic, elderly priest was a long-term member of Dignity, the oldest and largest national lay movement of LGBT Catholics and their allies. Father Mychal voiced disagreement with the Vatican’s condemnation of homosexuality, and found ways to welcome Dignity’s AIDS ministry despite a ban by church leaders. He defied a church boycott of the first gay-inclusive St. Patrick’s Day parade in Queens, showing up in his habit and granting news media interviews.

Many people, both inside and outside the LGBT community, call Father Mychal a saint. He has not been canonized yet by his own Roman Catholic Church, but some feel that he has already become a saint by popular acclamation, and the Orthodox-Catholic Church of America did declare officially declare him a saint. Here is a round-up of artwork, films and books about him.

A smiling Mychal Judge with a halo was sketched by Tobias Haller, an iconographer, author, composer, and vicar of Saint James Episcopal Church in the Bronx. He is the author of “Reasonable and Holy: Engaging Same-Sexuality.” Haller enjoys expanding the diversity of icons available by creating icons of LGBTQ people and other progressive holy figures as well as traditional saints. He and his spouse were united in a church wedding more than 30 years ago and a civil ceremony after same-sex marriage became legal in New York.

“Fr. Mychal Judge” at the Legacy Walk

In 2014 Father Mychal was inducted into the Legacy Walk in a Chicago. The outdoor public display celebrates LGBT history through a series of biographical bronze plaques with laser-etched photos located in a traditionally gay neighborhood along North Halsted Street.

In June 2015 a larger-than-life bronze statue was dedicated to him at St. Joseph’s Park in East Rutherford, New Jersey, across the street from St. Joseph’s church, where he worked for several years. It was sculpted by nationally known artist Brian Hanlon, who has sculpted more than 300 public art pieces of religious, civic and sports figures.

A dramatic icon of Father Mychal against a backdrop of the burning buildings was painted by Father William Hart McNichols. He shows Father Mychal with St. Francis of Assisi as the World Trade Center burns behind them. The text that accompanies the icon describes Father Mychal as a Passion Bearer who “takes on the oncoming violence rather than returning it… choosing solidarity with the unprotected.” McNichols is a Roman Catholic priest based in New Mexico. He has a deep connection to New York City because he worked at an AIDS hospice there in the 1980s.

“(Saint) Mychal Judge being Welcomed by the Franciscan Saints” by JR Leveroni

The priest's connection with others is emphasized in “(Saint) Mychal Judge being Welcomed by the Franciscan Saints” by JR Leveroni. Deliberately painted in the primitive style of folk art, it goes beyond the iconic news photo, sometimes called the “American Pieta,” that shows firefighters carrying Father Mychal’s limp corpse at Ground Zero. In Leveroni’s vision, saints replace the firefighters to carry Mychal onward to heaven. He holds his red firemen's helmet in his left hand. Leveroni has also painted gay martyrs Matthew Shepard and Saint Sebastian together. A variety of male nudes and religious paintings can be seen on Leveroni’s website (warning: male nudity).

Another icon of Father Mychal was done by Brother Robert Lentz, is a Franciscan friar known for his innovative and LGBT-positive icons. He is stationed at Holy Name College in Silver Spring, Maryland. Both McNichols and Lentz have faced controversy for painting gay-affirming icons. They are two of the 11 artists whose life and work are featured in “Art That Dares: Gay Jesus, Woman Christ, and More” by Kittredge Cherry.

“Father Mychal Judge” by Brother Robert Lentz, trinitystores.com

Stories from the life of Father Mychal are presented in the book, “Mychal's Prayer: Praying with Father Mychal Judge” by Salvatore Sapienza, a former monk who worked with Father Mychal to build St. Francis AIDS Ministry in New York City. The book mixes prayers with stories from the chaplain’s life. It begins with Father Mychal’s own words, a text that has come to be known simply as “Mychal’s Prayer”:

Lord, take me where You want me to go;
Let me meet who You want me to meet;
Tell me what You want me to say; and
Keep me out of your way.

For an excerpt from the book, see my previous post 10 years later: Mychal Judge, gay saint of 9/11. Sapienza is also the author of Seventy Times Seven: A Novel, a novel about a young Catholic brother torn between his sexuality and his spirituality as an out and proud gay man.

The film Saint of 9/11 - The True Story of Father Mychal Judge is a complete and uplifting documentary on Father Mychal’s life, including his gay orientation and his support for LGBT rights.  Its producers include Brendan Fay, who directed “Taking a Chance on God,” a biopic about gay priest John McNeill.

Another gay man who died heroically helping others in the Sept. 11 attack was rugby champion Mark Bingham, who lost his life while fighting hijackers on Flight 93. His story is told in my previous post at this link.

On the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, may these images and stories inspire people with renewed dedication to peace and service to humanity. An excellent interfaith selection of prayers for peace is available at WorldPrayers.org. It includes prayers by Father Mychal as well as Sister Joan Chittister, Dr. Maya Angelou, Rabbi Harold Kushner, Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Dr. Jane Goodall, Rumi, Lao-Tse, Mahatma Gandhi, Muhammad, Jesus and many more.

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Related link:

Saint Mychal Judge Blog

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Mychal Judge is the first recorded victim of 9/11 -- and also the first saint in the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. The series began on Sept. 11, 2009, and has grown to include many saints, martyrs, mystics, prophets, witnesses, heroes, holy people, humanitarians, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies. They are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts

The Mychal Judge icon is available on cards, plaques, T-shirts, mugs, candles, mugs, and more at TrinityStores.com


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Thank you, donors, for printer and web update!

September 13, 2015, 9:05 am
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Great news: Thanks to 10 donors from four countries, Jesus in Love has a new printer and the website update is underway. Thank you!

One of the first pages that I printed was a thank-you message for Jesus in Love supporters.

I was surprised that donations came from so many different countries. The LGBTQ movement is truly international now. And I was happy to welcome six first-time donors.

Many thanks to everyone who supported the fund drive with your comments, prayers and shares on social media.

Click the “GoFundMe” button below or visit my donate page to see donors’ names and comments such as, “For someone whose ministry has been so meaningful to so many.”


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Image credit: Kittredge Cherry prints a thank-you message from Jesus in Love on the new printer (Photo by Audrey)
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Gay tours of Vatican art reveal hidden history

July 2, 2015, 10:19 am
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Gay history hidden in Vatican religious art can now be seen firsthand through new LGBT-friendly tours never offered before.

In a sign of the Vatican’s increasing acceptance of queer people, Italian travel company Quiiky has begun leading two gay-oriented day tours based on the lives, loves and masterpieces of Renaissance artists Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci.

Same-sex kisses in the Sistine Chapel and Michelangelo’s love for a young male poet are the focus of Quiiky's queer tour of Rome. Moving north to Milan, the LGBT Da Vinci tour reveals how the artist’s own beloved male disciple Salai was probably the model for Christ’s apostle John in the Last Supper.

The most popular part of the tour comes in the Sistine Chapel when guides point to the top right corner of “Last Judgment,” just behind Saint Peter. Michelangelo painted three pairs of male figures kissing and embracing to celebrate their ascent to heaven.
Detail from “Last Judgement” by Michelangelo

“Our customers like the Sistine Chapel painting of a kiss between two men going to Paradise, not in Hell,” Quiiky CEO Alessio Virgili told the Jesus in Love Blog.

Using slang and simple language, Quiiky guides point out details that other guides ignore -- details related to the homosexuality of the artists. The tours were conceived especially, but not exclusively, for an LGBT audience.

“This gay tour gives finally the right importance homosexuality had in the Renaissance period and in the Italian art itself, a role that has been hidden until now because of the bigotry of certain environments,” the Quiiky.com website states.

Plans are underway to add two more gay excursions: a Caravaggio tour of Baroque Rome and a tour of Tivoli highlighting ancient Roman emperor Hadrian and his male lover Antinous.

“There is an untold history that some gays know, but I think it is time for everybody to find out,” Virgili said in an interview with Jesus in Love. “When I traveled abroad I always used to meet LGBT people who told me that they liked visiting Italy to look for history, especially places and art made by gay men and lesbians.” So he launched the gay tours.

The Quiiky Vatican Museum tour begins with ancient statues, such as Hadrian and his beloved Antinous, and concludes with a visit to the Gallery of Tapestries and St. Peter’s Basilica. But the highlight is the Sistine Chapel.

Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel paintings were controversial even in his own time because they include many sensous male nudes who are modeled on manual laborers. The models were probably men whom Michelangelo saw at gay bathhouses and brothels, according to historian Elena Lazzarini of Pisa University. Michelangelo's homoerotic interests are evident not only in his paintings, but also in the hundreds of love poems that he wrote during his lifetime.

"John the Baptist" by Da Vinci
The Da Vinci tour visits different sites in Milan linked to the artistic genius, including the Biblioteca Ambrosiana library where his work is preserved and the Sforza Castle where he painted on commission for a noble family.

The centerpiece of the tour is viewing “The Last Supper” in the convent refectory at Santa Maria delle Grazie. Next to Christ is his beloved disciple John, who resembles Da Vinci’s apprentice Gian Giacomo Caprotti. Nicknamed Salai (“little devil”), he was also Da Vinci’s frequent model and most likely lover.  Salai is also presumed to be the model for a painting of an almost coquettish John the Baptist by Da Vinci.

Historical documents show that Da Vinci was accused of sodomy as a young man. The charges were dismissed for lack of evidence, but speculation has continued for centuries as viewers perceived proof in his artwork.

Quiiky’s gay tours have been popular since their inception in November 2014. Every day about 15 people take the gay tours, which are designed for an intimate, small-group experience. About 70 percent of customers come from the United States, followed by England and Spain.

Vatican officials are aware of the gay tours, but have done nothing to stop them. “It is not a secret that Quiiky is a LGBT tour operator open to everybody, and we have access to Vatican Museum with official guides. This is, I think, because Vatican wants to open its doors to everybody, with no difference,” Virgili explained.

Pope Francis set a new tone in 2013 when he told reporters that his attitude about LGBT people is: “Who am I to judge?”

Virgili said that nonjudgmental attitude extends to the gay tours that he offers: “And so the Vatican doesn’t judge if you are looking for your personal identity and history in a place created to embrace the whole human being.”

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Related links:
Vatican Art in a Gay Light (New York Times)

“The Last Judgement” and the Homoerotic Spirituality of Michelangelo (Queer Spirituality)

Michelangelo's 'The Last Judgement' was 'inspired by visiting gay saunas' (Daily Mail)

The Secret Gay Vatican Tour (Pride Travel)

The Passions of Michelangelo by Rictor Norton

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Special thanks to Marco Wooster for the news tip.
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This post is part of the Artists series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. The series profiles artists who use lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) and queer spiritual and religious imagery. It also highlights great queer artists from history, with an emphasis on their spiritual lives.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts

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Hildegard of Bingen and Richardis: Medieval mystic and the woman she loved

September 17, 2015, 8:44 am
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“St. Hildegard of Bingen and Her Assistant Richardis” by Lewis Williams, TrinityStores.com

Hildegard of Bingen was a medieval German nun, mystic, poet, artist, composer, healer and scientist. She founded several monasteries, fought for women in the church and wrote with passion about the Virgin Mary. Some say she was a lesbian because of her strong emotional attachment to women, especially her personal assistant Richardis von Stade. Hildegard was declared a doctor of the church by Pope Benedict XVI in 2013. Her feast day is Sept. 17 (today).

The title “Doctor of the Church” is a rare honor, bestowed upon only a few saints whose writings have universal value to the church. Their “eminent learning” and “great sanctity” must be affirmed by the Pope. Currently the Roman Catholic Church has only 33 doctors, including three women.

The friendship -- or love story -- between Hildegard and Richardis is included in a 2009 film from German feminist director Margarethe von Trotta called Vision: From the Life of Hildegard von Bingen. Von Trotta is one of the world’s most important feminist filmmakers and a leader of independent German cinema. Von Trotta allows Hildegard to speak for herself by using a script based on Hildegard’s own writings and a soundtrack filled with Hildegard’s music. Watch a trailer at the end of this post.

Richardis von Stade (center, played by Hannah Herzsprung) and Hildegard (left, Barbara Sukowa) in the biopic “Vision” (from zeitgeistfilms.com)

Hildegard also inspired a play by lesbian feminist playwright Carolyn Gage. In the play “Artemisia and Hildegard,” Gage has two of history’s great women artists debate their contrasting survival strategies: Gentileschi battled to achieve in the male-dominated art world while Hildegard created women-only community to support her art by founding a nunnery.

Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179), the tenth child of a noble family, was offered to the church as a “tithe” when she was very young. She was raised from the age of 8 in the hermitage that later became her Benedictine abbey. She founded two other convents where women performed her music and developed their artistic, intellectual and spiritual gifts. She spent almost all of her life in the company of women.

“Hildegard: The Vision” by Tricia Danby

She had visions throughout her life, starting at age 3 when she says that she first saw “the Shade of the Living Light.” She hesitated to tell others about her visions, sharing them only with her teacher Jutta.

When she was 42, Hildegard had a vision in which God instructed her to record her spiritual experiences. Still hesitant, she became physically ill before she was persuaded to begin her first visionary work, the Scivias (Know the Ways of God).

"St. Hildegard of Bingen" by Plamen Petrov

Hildegard was nursed in her illness and encouraged in her writing by Richardis von Stade, a younger woman who was her personal assistant, soul mate and special favorite. Whether or not they were physically intimate, Hildegard’s actions suggest that she was a lesbian in the sense that her primary love interest was in women.

In 1151, Hildegard completed the Scivias and trouble arose between her and her beloved Richardis. An archbishop, the brother of Richardis, arranged for his sister to become abbess of a distant convent. Hildegard urged Richardis to stay, and even asked the Pope to stop the move. But Richardis left anyway, over Hildegard’s objections.

Hildegard wrote intense letters begging Richardis to return: “I loved the nobility of your conduct, your wisdom and your chastity, your soul and the whole of your life, so much that many said: What are you doing?”

Richardis died suddenly in October 1151, when she was only about 28 years old. On her deathbed, she tearfully expressed her longing for Hildegard and her intention to return.

“The Universe”
by Hildegard of Bingen

Wikimedia Commons
Hildegard’s grief apparently fueled further artistic creation. Many believe that Richardis was the inspiration for Ordo Virtutum (“Play of Virtues”}, a musical morality play about a soul who is tempted away by the devil and then repents. According to Wikipedia, “It is the earliest morality play by more than a century, and the only Medieval musical drama to survive with an attribution for both the text and the music.”

In an era when few women wrote, Hildegard went on to create two more major visionary works, a collection of songs, and several scientific treatises. She was especially interested in women’s health. Her medical writings even include what may be the first description of a female orgasm.

“Hildegard of Bingen: Vision of Music” by Tricia Danby

As a church leader, Hildegard had to support its policy against homosexual behavior. But she often wrote about the divine feminine and the dignity of women, presenting sexuality in a generally positive way. She wrote, “Creation looks on its Creator like the beloved looks on the lover.” Many readers today delight in her erotic descriptions of marriage as a metaphor for the union of a soul with God. Hildegard writes:

The soul is kissed by God in its innermost regions.
With interior yearning, grace and blessing are bestowed.
It is a yearning to take on God's gentle yoke,
It is a yearning to give one's self to God's Way.

In the Symphonia, a collection of liturgical songs to Mary, Hildegard writes with ecstatic passion of her love and devotion to the Virgin Mary. She extols Mary as “greenest twig” and sings the praises of her womb, which “illuminated all creatures.”

Her songs to Mary are available for listening in the following video and on the Sequentia recording, “Hildegard von Bingen: Canticles of Ecstasy.” Her music is still just as beautiful today.

Hildegard died on Sept. 17, 1179 at age 81. The sisters at her convent said they saw two streams of colorful lights cross in the sky above her room. She became a saint by popular acclamation.

The icon of Hildegard and Richardis at the top of this post was painted by Colorado artist Lewis Williams of the Secular Franciscan Order (SFO). He studied with master iconographer Robert Lentz and has made social justice a theme of his icons. This post also features images of Hildegard by artists Tricia Danby and Plamen Petrov.

Hildegard appears as a young woman in new portraits by Tricia Danby, a spiritual artist based in Germany and a cleric in the Old Catholic Apostolic Church. Her images reveal a sensuous side to Hildegard’s rapturous connection with God.

Stained-glass artist Plamen Petrov of Chicago is known for his window showing the male paired saints Sergius and Bacchus at St. Martha Church in Morton Grove, Illinois. His Hildegard window shows her illuminated with beautiful aquamarine colors.

“Hildegard von Bingen” by Tobias Haller

Hildegard was sketched in blue with intense blue eyes by Tobias Haller, an iconographer, author, composer, and vicar of Saint James Episcopal Church in the Bronx. He is the author of “Reasonable and Holy: Engaging Same-Sexuality.” Haller enjoys expanding the diversity of icons available by creating icons of LGBTQ people and other progressive holy figures as well as traditional saints. He and his spouse were united in a church wedding more than 30 years ago and a civil ceremony after same-sex marriage became legal in New York.

“Saint Hildegard of Bingen” by Robert Lentz

Robert Lentz, a Franciscan friar known for his innovative and LGBT-positive icons, portrays Hildegard with a wild rose. She used to dip a rose in the Rhine River and use it to sprinkle water on people as a blessing when she traveled between monasteries. Lentz is stationed at Holy Name College in Silver Spring, Maryland.

LGBT-affirming creation theologian Matthew Fox has written two books on the life and work of Hildegard. The newest is Hildegard of Bingen: A Saint for Our Times: Unleashing Her Power in the 21st Century, which presents her as an "eco-warrior" who meets such luminaries as Albert Einstein, Howard Thurman, Dorothee Soelle and Clarissa Pinkola Estes. Fox also wrote Illuminations of Hildegard of Bingen.

Hildegard was the subject of a major sermon by Episcopal Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori when the House of Bishops met in Taiwan on Sept. 17, 2014. “Hildegard speaks scientifically and theologically of divine creativity as viriditas, reflecting both greenness and truth… Hildegard’s vision motivates all healers of creation who understand the green web of connection that ties creation together in Wisdom’s body,” she said. Click here for the full text. (Thanks to Ann Fontaine at Episcopal Café for the news tip.)








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Related links:

Pope sets date to declare two new church doctors (Catholic News Agency)

Ritual to Honor Hildegard of Bingen by Diann L. Neu (WATER)

To read this post in Spanish / en español, go to Santos Queer:
Hildegarda de Bingen y Richardis: Una mística que amaba a otra mujer
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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints and holy people of special interest to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

The Hildegard icons are available on cards, plaques, T-shirts, mugs, candles, mugs, and more at TrinityStores.com





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Henri Nouwen: Priest and author who struggled with his homosexuality

September 21, 2015, 12:09 am
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“Henri Nouwen” by Br. Robert Lentz, trinitystores.com

Henri J. M. Nouwen was a Catholic priest and bestselling author who wrestled with his own homosexuality. He died on this date (Sept. 21) in 1996.

Nouwen (1932-1996) remains one of the most popular and influential modern spiritual writers. He wrote more than 40 books, including The Wounded Healer, The Return of the Prodigal Son, and The Inner Voice of Love.

Known as a “gay celibate, he probably would have had mixed feelings about being included in this series on LGBT Saints. Nouwen never directly discussed his gay sexual orientation in his published writings, but he confided his conflict over it in private journals and conversations. These are documented in his outstanding and honest 2002 biography Wounded Prophet by Michael Ford. Despite his loneliness and same-sex attractions, there is no evidence that Nouwen ever broke his vow of celibacy.

His personal struggle with his sexual orientation may have added depth to his writing. “The greatest trap in our life is not success, popularity or power, but self-rejection,” he said.

Although Nouwen is not an officially recognized saint, his “spirituality of the heart” has touched millions of readers. Nouwen’s books have sold more than 2 million copies in over 22 languages. He emphasized relationships and social justice with core values of solitude, community and compassion.

Nouwen was born in Holland on Jan. 24, 1932. He was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest in 1957 and went on to study psychology. He taught at several theological institutes in his homeland and in the United States, including the divinity schools at Harvard and Yale.

In 1985 he began service in Toronto, Canada, as the priest at the L’Arche Daybreak Community, where people with developmental disabilities live with assistants. It became Nouwen’s home until his sudden death in 1996 at age 64. He died from a heart attack while traveling to Russia to do a documentary.

The video below shows Nouwen speaking on "Being the Beloved" at the Crystal Cathedral in California in 1992. One of the  newest books about him is the 2012 biography “Genius Born of Anguish: The Life and Legacy of Henri Nouwen” by Michael Higgins, Nouwen’s official biographer.

The icon of Nouwen at the top of this post was painted by Brother Robert Lentz, a Franciscan friar known for his innovative and LGBT-positive icons. During his lifetime Nouwen commissioned Lentz to make an icon for him that symbolized the act of offering his own sexuality and affection to Christ.

Christ the Bridegroom
by Robert Lentz
trinitystores.com
Research and reflection led Lentz to paint “Christ the Bridegroom” (left) for Nouwen in 1983. It shows Christ being embraced by his beloved disciple, based on an icon from medieval Crete. “Henri used it to come to grips with his own homosexuality,” Lentz explained in my book “Art That Dares,” which includes this icon and the story behind it. “I was told he carried it with him everywhere and it was one of the most precious things in his life.”

Lentz’s icon / portrait the top of this post shows Nouwen in an open-handed pose. It calls to mind a prayer written by Nouwen in The Only Necessary Thing: Living a Prayerful Life:

Dear God,
I am so afraid to open my clenched fists!
Who will I be when I have nothing left to hold on to?
Who will I be when I stand before you with empty hands?
Please help me to gradually open my hands
and to discover that I am not what I own,
but what you want to give me.

Nouwen gave the gift of his spiritual vision to generations of readers. He encouraged each individual to find their own mission in life with words such as these:

“When the imitation of Christ does not mean to live a life like Christ, but to live your life as authentically as Christ lived his, then there are many ways and forms in which a man can be a Christian.” -- from "The Wounded Healer"

“My hope is that the description of God's love in my life will give you the freedom and the courage to discover . . . God's love in yours.” -- from “Here and Now: Living in the Spirit”


To watch the rest of the sermon, visit the following YouTube page with links to all 8 parts of Nouwen’s sermon on “Being the Beloved”:
http://www.youtube.com/user/belovedson12
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Related links:
Henri Nouwen Society

Chris Glaser on Henri Nouwen’s sexuality (Huffington Post)

Henri Nouwen, on Andrew Sullivan and the “Blessing” of Homosexuality (Queering the Church)
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Icons of Henri Nouwen, Christ the Bridegroom and many others are available on cards, plaques, T-shirts, mugs, candles, mugs, and more at TrinityStores.com



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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, prophets, witnesses, heroes, holy people, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts

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Tyler Clementi: Gay teen driven to suicide by bullies

September 22, 2015, 7:59 am
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“Tyler Clementi, JUMP!” by Louisa Bertman

Tyler Clementi (1992-2010) brought international attention to bullying-related suicide of LGBT youth by jumping to his death on this date (Sept. 22) in 2010.

Clementi’s highly publicized tragedy made him into a gay martyr whose untimely death put a public face on the problems of LGBT teenagers. His story sparked efforts to support LGBT youth, raise awareness of the harassment they face, and prevent suicide among queer young people. Another result is new legislation stiffening penalties for cyber harassment.

His parents once considered suing Rutgers over their son's death, but in February 2013 they announced that they were working with the university to form the Tyler Clementi Center at Rutgers. It sponsors conferences and academic research to help students make the transition to college. They also established the Tyler Clementi Foundation to promote acceptance of LGBT youth and  more inclusive society.

Clementi was an 18-year-old freshman at Rutgers University in New Jersey when he was driven to suicide by his room mate's anti-gay cyber-bullying.

A talented violinist, Clementi came out to his parents as gay before leaving home for college. Three days before the suicide, Clementi’s room mate used a webcam to secretly record Clementi kissing another man in their dorm room and streamed the video live over the Internet. In messages posted online before he took his own life, Clementi told how he complained to authorities about the cyber-bullying and asked for a new room assignment. Then he jumped off the George Washington Bridge. It took a week to find his body.

The room mate, Dharum Ravi, also 18 at the time, was convicted on 15 counts, including invasion of privacy and bias intimidation, in connection with Clementi’s suicide. Ravi was sentenced to 30 days in jail; 3 years of probation; 300 hours of community service; fined $10,000; and ordered to undergo counseling on cyberbullying and alternate lifestyles. His accomplice, Molly Wei, avoided jail time by agreeing to testify against Ravi.

Anti-LGBT statements by public figures are also partly responsible for Clementi’s death. They created the hostile environment that drove Clementi to suicide. Artist Louisa Bertman emphasizes this point in her powerful ink illustration, “Tyler Clementi, JUMP!” She makes visible the hateful voices that may have been in Clementi’s mind. In her drawing, his head overflows with people urging him to jump. They are politicians as well as the actual students who bullied him. Their names are listed in a stark statement at the bottom of the drawing:

“Message brought to you by Sally Kern, Kim Meltzer, Nathan Deal, Carl Paladino, Newt Gingrich, Sarah Palin, Tom Emmer, Jeremy Walters, Rick Perry, Bob Vander Plaats, Dharun Ravi, and Molly Wei.”

Bertman, an artist based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is known for her non-traditional portraits.

Clementi helped inspire the founding of the It Gets Better Project and Spirit Day. The It Get Better Project aims to stop suicide among LGBT teens with videos of adults assuring them that “it gets better.” Spirit Day, first observed on Oct. 20, 2010, is a day when people wear purple to show support for young LGBT victims of bullying.

Unfortunately Clementi’s experience is far from rare. Openly lesbian talk show host Ellen Degeneres spoke for many in a video message that put his suicide into context shortly after he died:

“I am devastated by the death of 18-year-old Tyler Clementi….Something must be done. This month alone, there has been a shocking number of news stories about teens who have been teased and bullied and then committed suicide; like 13-year-old Seth Walsh in Tehachapi, California, Asher Brown, 13, of Cypress, Texas and 15-year-old Billy Lucas in Greensberg, Indiana. This needs to be a wake-up call to everyone: teenage bullying and teasing is an epidemic in this country, and the death rate is climbing.”

Help is available right now from the Trevor Project, a 24-hour national help line for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and questioning teens. Contact them at 866 4U TREVOR or their website: thetrevorproject.org.

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Related links:

Tyler Clementi Foundation

Tyler Clementi Center at Rutgers

Day of Silence Prayer: Stop bullying God’s LGBTQ youth

A Brother's Pledge: Standing Up For Love by James Clementi (Believe Out Loud)

“Crisis: 40 Stories Revealing the Personal, Social, and Religious Pain and Trauma of Growing Up Gay in America” by Mitchell Gold and Mindy Drucker

“Queer: The Ultimate LGBT Guide for Teens” by Kathy Belge and Marke Bieschke

It Gets Better Project video by Kittredge Cherry

Image credit: Tyler Clementi’s webcam photo of himself (Wikimedia Commons)
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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, heroes, holy people, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts






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RIP John McNeill: Pioneering gay priest and patron saint of LGBT Catholics

September 24, 2015, 9:52 pm
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In memory of
Rev. John J. McNeill

Pioneering gay priest, psychotherapist, author, theologian
and patron saint of LGBT Catholics

Sept. 2, 1925 - Sept. 22, 2015


white candle Pictures, Images and Photos




I light a memorial candle for Father John J. McNeill, pioneering gay priest, psychotherapist, author, theologian and Jesuit scholar who inspired countless LGBTQ people of faith and their allies. He died Tuesday night, Sept. 22, in a hospice in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with his partner of 49 years, Charles Chiarelli, at his bedside. He was 90.

The National Catholic Reporter called him a “patron saint of LGBT Catholics” in the headline for his obituary.

McNeill began ministering to lesbian and gay Catholics in the 1970s, helped give birth to the LGBT Catholic organization Dignity in 1974, and wrote the groundbreaking 1976 book “The Church and the Homosexual.” He was silenced by the Vatican and expelled from the Jesuit order for coming out and promoting LBGT rights in church and society.

I first met McNeill in 1987, soon after he ended his silence. He came to preach at Metropolitan Community Church of San Francisco, where I was serving on the clergy staff. He filled the church with a large and adoring crowd, and yet when I had the chance to greet him personally he seemed grounded and ready to focus his warmth on each individual interaction. I was impressed by his powerful-yet-gentle presence and the intellectual force behind his liberating theology.

McNeill became a colleague, inspiration and friend who supported virtually all my book projects over the next 28 years. He spent hours on the phone providing me with background material for my coming-out guide “Hide and Speak,” and eagerly wrote endorsements for my other books.

He went on to write more books on LGBT spirituality, including “Taking A Chance on God,” “Sex as God Intended,” “Freedom, Glorious Freedom” and “Both Feet Firmly Planted in Midair.”

Conflicts between McNeill and the Vatican spanned decades, including a 2011 trip to Rome where he delivered a letter addressed to Pope Benedict XVI asking the church to condemn violence against LGBT people.

So it seems like no coincidence that McNeill died on the same day that Pope Francis arrived on his first visit to the United States.

His life story is told in 2012 film “Taking A Chance on God.” A trailer is online at YouTube.



McNeill is survived by Chiarelli and nephew Timothy J. McNeill. Funeral arrangements are pending.

Memorial gifts can be made to the John J. McNeill Legacy Fund, established by his family to provide support for the preservation and dissemination of his writings, lectures, and teachings.

May Father John McNeill join Christ and all the saints in heaven who provide a continual source of inspiration and assistance for LGBTQ people of faith. Rest in power, Father John!
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Related links

The Rev. John J. McNeill, Jesuit priest who became famed LGBT activist, dies at 90 (Miami Herald)

John J. McNeill Memorial page on Facebook

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For more info, see previous posts at Jesus in Love:

Gay priest McNeill shakes up Rome with new moves and new movie

Update: Gay priest McNeill’s premiere succeeds despite rain in Rome at EuroPride

LGBT Christians to Pope: Stop homophobia! (plus photos of EuroPride & John McNeill)



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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, prophets, witnesses, heroes, holy people, humanitarians, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts

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Pope's visit: Mixed messages for LGBT people

September 27, 2015, 9:14 am
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Pope Francis’ well-publicized visit to America this week has mixed messages for LGBT people.

On the bright side, the Pope brought great personal warmth and a welcome focus on justice for the poor and protection of the environment. A native of Argentina, he spoke Spanish and obviously connected with many of America’s poor Latina/os. His speech to Congress was impressively intelligent, highlighting a diverse group of four Americans: Martin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln, and two Catholics who were once censured for their prophetic views: Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton. How refreshing to hear that after speaking to Congress, he turned down lunch invitations with politicians and instead dined with the homeless. A scripture reading during the Pope’s Mass at Madison Square Garden was done by openly gay comedian/journalist Mo Rocca. I also enjoyed the rare burst of positive religious coverage in the national news.

This is the same Pope who eased the Vatican’s anti-LGBT position when he took office three years ago by asking “Who am I to judge?” But the Papal visit did not always give LGBT Christians a reason to cheer.

The Pope’s most direct references to LGBT people came today in a speech to bishops gathered at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. Criticizing same-sex marriage, he urged them not to ignore “the unprecedented changes taking place in contemporary society, with their social, cultural -- and now juridical -- effects on family bonds…. Until recently, we lived in a social context where the similarities between the civil institution of marriage and the Christian sacrament were considerable and shared. The two were interrelated and mutually supportive. This is no longer the case.”

The Pope compared the changes in family life to consumerism and the switch from neighborhood stores to supermarkets. He urged the bishops not to respond with blame and condemnation, stating, “Gratitude and appreciation should prevail over concerns and complaints.”

The first sign of trouble came even before the Pope arrived, when news reports surfaced that the Pope’s advance team objected to having LGBT Christian leaders on the guest list for the White House Welcome Ceremony Sept. 23. They feared these unwanted guests would be photographed with the Pope, and the photos used as an endorsement of their activities. Dozens of LGBT church leaders were invited to the event, but the reports singled out Gene Robinson, the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church and Mateo Williamson, a transgender Catholic activist. They also targeted Sister Simone Campbell, founder of the “Nuns on the Bus” movement.

In the end the conservative effort to dis-invite LGBT church leaders failed, while the Vatican Press Office denied ever making such statements.

With all this fuss I imagined the Welcome Ceremony in a room where everyone could see each other, similar to prayer breakfasts that I have attended. Silly me. It was on the White House lawn with literally a cast of thousands -- 11,000 guests. As far as I can tell, none of the LGBT church leaders got anywhere near close enough for a photo with the Pope.

On the same day that the Pope arrived, pioneering gay priest John McNeill died. For me it was a reminder of how the Vatican silenced him and expelled him from the Jesuit order for coming out and promoting LBGT rights. The timing of his death spared McNeill the pain of seeing the US media glorify the Pope while he slighted the suffering and needs of LGBT people.

The Pope gave uplifting and well-crafted speeches on universal values of justice, the dignity of all human life, and responsibility for the earth. But his broad generalizations were open to multiple interpretations and included some conservative code words that could easily be missed.

LGBT Catholic leaders were upset when he condemned “unjust discrimination” during his remarks at the White House.  It sounds good at first, but the phrase comes from a key Catholic teaching against homosexuality and has been used by US Catholic bishops to argue that there are just forms of discrimination against LGBT people.

“It is a term that has dangerous ramifications for LGBT people,” Dignity Executive Director Marianne Duddy-Burke told Buzzfeed News. She sat in the VIP section at the White House during the Pope’s remarks. “To any well-tuned LGBT ear, or anyone listening, it is support for a position many U.S. Catholic bishops have taken — which is against same-sex marriage, the right to fire married gay employees or transgender employees, the right to exclude LGBT people from adoption, and to deny LGBT people foster-care services.”

The Pope spoke repeatedly of “religious freedom,” which is fine except that this is the justification used by to defend anti-LGBT actions such as county clerk Kim Davis’ recent decision to break the law and deny marriage licenses to same-sex couples. What about the religious freedom of LGBT people of faith?

Many saw implied criticism of LGBT rights in Pope’s Sept. 25 speech to the United Nations when he said that “promoting social progress” risks becoming “an ideological colonization by the imposition of anomalous models and lifestyles which are alien to people’s identity and, in the end, irresponsible.”

In his address to the US Catholic bishops on Sept. 23, Pope Francis emphasized the need for dialogue. Indeed it would be an improvement over the Catholic hierarchy's usual harsh, one-sided condemnations of LGBT people. As a veteran of several Protestant “dialogue committees” on religion and homosexuality at the US National Council of Churches, I have grown weary of dialogue. It is a frustrating process for both sides, with change occurring slowly if at all. But even I felt renewed by the eloquence of the Pope’s words:

‘And yet we are promoters of the culture of encounter. . .Dialogue is our method, not as a shrewd strategy but out of fidelity to the One who never wears of visiting the marketplace, even at the eleventh hour, to propose his offer of love (Mt 20:1-16)’. . .

‘The path ahead, then, is dialogue among yourselves, dialogue in your presbyterates, dialogue with lay persons, dialogue with families, dialogue with society. I cannot ever tire of encouraging you to dialogue fearlessly. . .'

In introductory remarks before the Pope’s arrived to speak at Independence Hall on Sept. 26, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter told the crowd of about 40,000: “In America, everyone has rights. Our lesbian, gay and bisexual citizens continue to fight for equality. Keep fighting for your rights. It’s a collective fight, and there are many others fighting with you.”

The Pope led Mass on Sept. 27 at the Catholic church’s huge World Meeting of Families, where the only session on LGBT families (led by celibate gay Ron Belgau and his mother, Beverley) was moved at the last minute without explanation from a room seating 10,000 to one seating only 1,000.

The Pope departed on Sept. 27 with much left unsaid. During the Interfaith Prayer Service at the 9/11 memorial, he never mentioned Father Mychal Judge, the Catholic priest and “gay saint” who died there while serving as chaplain to the New York City firefighters. He never spoke out explicitly against violence towards LGBTQ people, even though this is an international issue.

The New Ways Ministry Blog (called Bondings 2.0) is providing daily in-depth analysis of the Pope’s treatment of LGBT issues during his visit, which ends Sunday, Sept. 27.
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Search

Good (Gay?) King Wenceslas

September 28, 2015, 10:41 am
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St. Wenceslaus and Podiven
By Lewis Williams, SFO. © www.trinitystores.com

There’s good reason to believe that Good King Wenceslas was gay. Yes, the king in the Christmas carol.  His feast day is today (Sept. 28).

Saint Wenceslaus I (907–935) was duke of Bohemia (now the Czech Republic). The carol "Good King Wenceslas" is based on a legend about Wenceslaus and his loyal page Podiven. According to the story, it was a bitterly cold night when they went out to give alms to the poor on the Feast of St. Stephen, Dec. 26. Podiven could not walk any farther on his bare, frozen feet, so Wenceslas urged him to follow in his footsteps. His footprints in the snow stayed miraculously warm, allowing the pair to continue safely together.

Many details in the Christmas carol are pious fiction, but the king and his page are both grounded in historical truth. The following is based partly on research from Dennis O’Neill, author of “Passionate Holiness.”

The earliest accounts of Wenceslaus’ life mention his page -- but not the woman who supposedly gave birth to his son in more recent versions. An account written in the late 10th or early 11th century describes the young man who was a “worthy page” and “chamber valet” to Wenceslaus.

It says that Wenceslaus used to wake his page in the middle of the night to join him in doing charitable works. The page is described as “a youth from among his valets who, of all his servants, was the most trustworthy in secret matters. The saint himself truly loved him during his lifetime.”

Wenceslaus was murdered in a coup by his brother at the door of a church on Sept. 28 in the year 935. The records say that Podiven “was often overcome by grief, sorrowing for days on end.” The brother also had Podiven killed to stop him from spreading stories of the saintly Wenceslaus. Both Wenceslaus and his beloved Podiven are buried at St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague.

The icon above was painted by Colorado artist Lewis Williams of the Secular Franciscan Order (SFO). He studied with master iconographer Robert Lentz and has made social justice a theme of his icons. It is dedicated to the memory of Father Larry Craig, a Chicago priest known for service to the Latino community and prison ministry. Before his death in 2006, Father Craig used to stand outside the Cook County Jail at night, giving sandwiches and bus passes to surprised inmates who had just been released. He served as the model for Podiven’s face in this icon.

May these facts warm your heart whenever you hear or sing the Christmas carol “Good King Wenceslas.”



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To read this post in Spanish / en español, go to Santos Queer:
San Venceslao I de Bohemia y Podiven: Venceslao, el buen rey (gay?)

To read this post in French / en français, visit Pays de Zabulon Un blog qui parle d'amour:
Saint Wenceslas et son ami

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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, prophets, witnesses, heroes, holy people, humanitarians, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts

The Wenceslaus and Podiven icon and many others are available on cards, plaques, T-shirts, mugs, candles, mugs, and more at Trinity Stores


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FannyAnn Eddy: Lesbian martyr in Africa

September 29, 2015, 10:10 am
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FannyAnn Eddy was a major activist for LGBT rights in her native Sierra Leone and the rest of Africa. She was murdered 11 years ago today on Sept. 29, 2004. Nobody was ever convicted of the crime.

She founded the Sierra Leone Lesbian and Gay Association in 2002 and advocated for LGBT rights at the United Nations. Her organization documented harassment, beatings and arbitrary arrests of LGBT people in her country.

In her testimony at the U.N Commission on Human Rights in April 2004, she affirmed that there are LGBT throughout Africa, but they live in fear.

With tragically prophetic words, she told the U.N, “We live in fear within our communities, where we face constant harassment and violence from neighbors and others. Their homophobic attacks go unpunished by authorities, further encouraging their discriminatory and violent treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.”

Eddy was working alone at night in the Freetown offices of the Sierra Leone Lesbian and Gay Association when one or more attackers broke in and killed her. She was survived by her 10-year-old son and her girlfriend, Esther Chikalipa.

Eddy’s final words to the United Nations still resound today: “Silence creates vulnerability. You, members of the Commission on Human Rights, can break the silence. You can acknowledge that we exist, throughout Africa and on every continent, and that human rights violations based on sexual orientation or gender identity are committed every day. You can help us combat those violations and achieve our full rights and freedoms, in every society, including my beloved Sierra Leone.”

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Related links:

FannyAnn Eddy at the Legacy Project

Uganda Martyrs raise questions on homosexuality, religion and LGBT rights (Jesus in Love)

David Kato: Ugandan LGBT rights activist (1964-2011) (Jesus in Love)

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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, prophets, witnesses, heroes, holy people, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.


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Rumi: Poet and Sufi mystic inspired by same-sex love

September 30, 2015, 10:18 am
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Rumi and Shams together in a detail from “Dervish Whirl” by Shahriar Shahriari (RumiOnFire.com)

Rumi is a 13th-century Persian poet and Sufi mystic whose love for another man inspired some of the world’s best poems and led to the creation of a new religious order, the whirling dervishes. His birthday is today (Sept. 30).

With sensuous beauty and deep spiritual insight, Rumi writes about the sacred presence in ordinary experiences. His poetry is widely admired around the world and he is one of the most popular poets in America. One of his often-quoted poems begins:

If anyone asks you
how the perfect satisfaction
of all our sexual wanting
will look, lift your face
and say,
Like this.*

The homoeroticism of Rumi is hidden in plain sight. It is well known that his poems were inspired by his love for another man, but the queer implications are seldom discussed. There is no proof that Rumi and his beloved Shams of Tabriz had a sexual relationship, but the intensity of their same-sex love is undeniable.

“Rumi of Persia”
by Robert Lentz
Rumi was born Sept. 30, 1207 in Afghanistan, which was then part of the Persian Empire. His father, a Muslim scholar and mystic, moved the family to Roman Anatolia (present-day Turkey) to escape Mongol invaders when Rumi was a child. Rumi lived most of his life in this region and used it as the basis of his chosen name, which means “Roman.” His full name is Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi-Rumi.

His father died when Rumi was 25 and he inherited a position as teacher at a madrassa (Islamic school). He continued studying Shariah (Islamic law), eventually issuing his own fatwas (legal opinions) and giving sermons in the local mosques. Rumi also practiced the basics of Sufi mysticism in a community of dervishes, who are Muslim ascetics similar to mendicant friars in Christianity.

On Nov. 15, 1244 Rumi met the man who would change his life: a wandering dervish named Shams of Tabriz (Shams-e-Tabrizi or Shams al-Din Muhammad). He came from the city of Tabriz in present-day Iranian Azerbaijan. It is said that Shams had traveled throughout the Middle East asking Allah to help him find a friend who could “endure” his companionship. A voice in a vision sent him to the place where Rumi lived.

Meeting of Rumi and Shams
16th-17th century folio
(Wikimedia Commons)
Rumi, a respected scholar in his thirties, was riding a donkey home from work when an elderly stranger in ragged clothes approached. It was Shams. He grasped the reins and started a theological debate. Some say that Rumi was so overwhelmed that he fainted and fell off the donkey.

Rumi and Shams soon became inseparable. They spent months together, lost in a kind of ecstatic mystical communion known as “sobhet” -- conversing and gazing at each other until a deeper conversation occurred without words. They forgot about human needs and ignored Rumi’s students, who became jealous. When conflict arose in the community, Shams disappeared as unexpectedly as he had arrived.

Rumi’s loneliness at their separation led him to begin the activities for which he is still remembered. He poured out his soul in poetry and mystical whirling dances of the spirit.

Eventually Rumi found out that Shams had gone to Damascus. He wrote letters begging Shams to return. Legends tell of a dramatic reunion. The two sages fell at each other’s feet. In the past they were like a disciple and teacher, but now they loved each other as equals. One account says, “No one knew who was lover and who the beloved.” Both men were married to women, but they resumed their intense relationship with each other, merged in mystic communion. Jealousies arose again and some men began plotting to get rid of Shams.

One winter night, when he was with Rumi, Shams answered a knock at the back door. He disappeared and was never seen again. Many believe that he was murdered.

Rumi grieved deeply. He searched in vain for his friend and lost himself in whirling dances of mourning. One of his poems hints at the his emotions:

Dance, when you’re broken open.
Dance, if you’ve torn the bandage off.
Dance in the middle of the fighting.
Dance in your blood.
Dance, when you’re perfectly free.

Rumi danced, mourned and wrote poems until the pressure forged a new consciousness. “The wound is the place where the Light enters you,” he once wrote. His soul fused with his beloved. They became One: Rumi, Shams and God. He wrote:

Why should I seek? I am the same as he.
His essence speaks through me.
I have been looking for myself.

After this breakthrough, waves of profound poetry flowed out of Rumi. He attributed more and more of his writings to Shams. His literary classic is a vast collection of poems called “The Works of Shams of Tabriz.” The Turkish government refused to help with translation of the last volume, which was finally published in 2006 as The Forbidden Rumi: The Suppressed Poems of Rumi on Love, Heresy, and Intoxication. It was forbidden both because of its homoerotic content and because it promotes the “blasphemy” that one must go beyond religion in order to experience God.

Rumi went on to live and love again, dedicating poems to other beloved men. His second great love was the goldsmith Saladin Zarkub. After the goldsmith’s death, Rumi’s scribe Husan Chelebi became Rumi’s beloved companion for the rest of his life. Rumi died at age 66 after an illness on Dec. 17, 1273. Soon his followers founded the Mevlevi Order, known as the whirling dervishes because of the dances they do in devotion to God.

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Related links:
Rumi and Shams: A Love of Another Kind (Wild Reed)

Ramesh Bjonnes on Rumi and Shams as Gay Lovers (Wild Reed)

Another Male's Love Inspired Persia's Mystic Muse (GayToday.com)

Love Poems of Rumi at Rumi.org

Rumi quotes at Goodreads.com

5 Queer Couples in Islamic History (islamandhomosexuality.com)

*“Like This” is quoted from The Essential Rumi, which has translations by Coleman Barks with John Moyne. For the whole poem, visit Rumi.org.

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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, heroes, holy people, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

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New LGBTQ Christian books: Oct. 2015

October 2, 2015, 8:11 am
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Queer theology and a former ex-gay leader’s story are new LGBT Christian books this month: “The Courage to Be Queer” by Jeff Hood and “My Exodus” by Alan Chambers.

Theology


“The Courage to be Queer” by Jeff Hood.

A theology of God the Queer who speaks to everyone through the queerness of each individual context is revealed by a queer pastor/theologian/activist. He shakes the demons out of the Bible and leaves only love, making advanced queer theological concepts accessible with sound Biblical references. Ordained in the Southern Baptist Convention, he recently concluded a doctorate in queer theology at Texas Christian University. Published by Wipf & Stock with 39 endorsements!



Memoir and biography


“My Exodus: From Fear to Grace” by Alan Chambers.

Author Alan Chambers, the final president of huge ex-gay group Exodus International, shocked the world when he repudiated its mission and closed the organization with a public apology to the LGBT community in 2013. Still a committed believer in Christ, he now seeks to create welcoming communities. Here he tells his powerful personal life story and faith journey of same-sex attraction and deepening understanding of God.

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Related links:

New LGBTQ Christian books: Sept 2015

New LGBTQ Christian books: Aug 2015

New LGBTQ Christian books: July 2015

New LGBTQ Christian books: June 2015

New LGBTQ Christian books: May 2015

New LGBTQ Christian books: March 2015

New LGBTQ Christian books: Feb 2015

Top 25 LGBTQ Christian books of 2014 named (Jesus in Love)

Top 20 Gay Jesus books (from Jesus in Love)

Queer Theology book list (from Patrick Cheng)

Queering the Church book list

Jesus in Love Bookstore (includes LGBT Christian classics)


Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts

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Francis of Assisi’s queer side revealed

October 4, 2015, 9:39 am
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Francis of Assisi and the man he loved in “They Shelter in a Cave” by José Benlliure y Gil, 1926 (Wikimedia Commons)

Historical records reveal a queer side to Saint Francis of Assisi, one of the most beloved religious figures of all time. The 13th-century friar is celebrated for loving animals, hugging lepers, and praying for peace, but few know about his love for another man and his gender nonconformity. His feast day is today (Oct. 4).

Francis is “a uniquely gender-bending historic figure” according to Franciscan scholar Kevin Elphick He has spent years researching the queer side of Saint Francis, including travel to to the Italian town of Assisi. There he photographed artwork depicting the man he believes may have been the saint’s beloved soulmate: Brother Elias of Cortona.

Brother Elias (center) at the Baptismal font where St. Francis was christened in the Cathedral of San Rufino in Assisi, Italy. (Photo by Kevin Elphick)

When Francis (1181-1226) was a young man, he had an unnamed male companion whom he dearly loved -- and who was written out of history after the first biography. Other Franciscan friars referred to Francis as “Mother” during his lifetime. He encouraged his friars to be mothers to each other when in hermitage together, and used other gender-bending metaphors to describe the spiritual life. He experienced a vision of an all-female Trinity, who in turn saluted him as “Lady Poverty,” a title that he welcomed.

The earliest companion of Francis, a man whom Francis “loved more than any other because he was the same age” and because of “the great familiarity of their mutual affection” remains nameless. Elphick's research suggests that the unnamed soulmate of Saint Francis was Brother Elias of Cortona. Francis called Elias “Mother” and gave him a special blessing. Elias expressed much concern about Francis’ body and his health. Francis and Elias each describe the other in affectionate terms. However, very quickly after Francis died, Elias is written out of history and discredited. Elphick presents the scholarly evidence about their relationship in the detailed article at the Jesus in Love Blog: “Brother Elias: Soulmate to Saint Francis of Assisi?”

Lady Jacoba
also known as
Brother Jacoba
(See full image below)
Francis allowed a widow to enter the male-only cloister, naming her “Brother Jacoba.” (Details about Jacoba are at the end of this article.) His partner in ministry was a woman, Clare of Assisi, and he cut her hair in a man’s tonsured style when she joined his male-only religious order.

Early evidence of these and other ways that Francis crossed gender boundaries are gathered in the ground-breaking unpublished master’s thesis “Gender Liminality in the Franciscan Sources” by Elphick, who is both a Franciscan scholar and a supervisor on a suicide prevention hotline in New York. He wrote the thesis for a master’s degree in Franciscan studies from St. Bonaventure University in New York.

Francis’ love for another man is described in his earliest biography, The First Life of St Francis of Assisi by Thomas of Celano, a follower of Francis who knew him personally. The biography was completed by 1230, just four years after Francis died. Celano says that when Francis was in his 20s, before embracing a life of poverty, he dearly loved a special male friend:

“Now there was a man in the city of Assisi whom Francis loved more than any other, and since they were of the same age and their constant association and ties of affection emboldened Francis to share his secret with him, he would often take this friend off to secluded spots where they could discuss private matters and tell him that he had chanced upon a great and precious treasure. His friend was delighted and, intrigued by what he had heard, he gladly accompanied Francis wherever he asked. There was a cave near Assisi where the two friends often went to talk about this treasure.”

In his thesis, Elphick points out, “Because homosexuality and ‘gay’ identities are modern constructs, it is impossible and inaccurate to attempt to read these modern categories into the personalities of historical figures.” Instead he uses the word “homoaffectional” to describe the relationship of Francis and his beloved companion.

“The relationship is inescapably homoaffectional, describing a shared intimacy between two Medieval men. That this first companion disappears from the later tradition is cause for suspicion and further inquiry.... The tone in Celano’s earliest account captures the flavor and intimacy of this relationship, perhaps too much so for an increasingly homophobic church and society.”

Francis and his beloved friend are seldom depicted by artists, but they are shown together in the rare and hard-to-find image above: “They shelter in a cave” (Se cobijan en una cueva) by Spanish painter José Benlliure y Gil. It is the 8th in his series of 74 images from the life of Saint Francis. The series was published by Franciscans in Valencia, Spain, in 1926 in a book to mark the 700th anniversary of the saint’s death. A commentary in Spanish about the picture is available online.

Elphick finds many more examples of what he calls “gender liminality” in historical documents on Francis. He defines liminality as “crossing the threshold of gender, either symbolically, or by actions within a person’s life that breach the social boundaries of gender.”

Francis was born to a wealthy Italian family in 1181 or 1182. As a young man he renounced his wealth, even stripping off his clothes, and devoted himself to a life of poverty in the service of Christ. He connected with nature, calling all animals “brother” and “sister” and celebrating them in his famous Canticle of the Sun.

“St. Francis ‘Neath the Bitter Tree”
By William Hart McNichols © fatherbill.org
He saw the face of Christ in lepers, the most reviled outcasts of his time, and nursed them with compassion.  William Hart McNichols puts Francis’ ministry into a contemporary context by showing him embracing a gay Jesus with AIDS in “St. Francis ‘Neath the Bitter Tree,” pictured here. Words on the cross proclaim that Christ is an “AIDS leper” as well as a “drug user” and “homosexual,” outcast groups at high risk for getting AIDS. The two men gaze intently at each other with unspeakable love as Francis hugs the wounded Christ. It was commissioned in 1991 by a New Jersey doctor who worked with AIDS patients, and is discussed in the book Art That Dares: Gay Jesus, Woman Christ, and More by Kittredge Cherry.

McNichols created the icon in his own style based on a 1668 painting by Spanish painter Bartolome Esteban Murillo, which was surely inspired by the more passionate 1620 version of fellow Spaniard Francisco Ribalta. In Ribalta’s work (pictured below), Christ responds to St. Francis’ ecstatic kiss by giving the saint his crown of thorns, the symbol of suffering that leads to divine union.

“Saint Francis Embracing Christ” by Francisco Ribalta (Wikimedia Commons)

“St. Francis and the Sultan”
by Brother Robert Lentz, trinitstores.com
A famous peace prayer is attributed to St. Francis. It begins, “God, make me an instrument of your peace.” Late in his life Francis embodied this message through man-to-man Christian-Muslim dialogue in the Mideast, a region where people are still at war.

In 1219 Francis went to Damietta, Egypt, with the European armies during the Fifth Crusade. He hoped to discuss religion peacefully with the Muslims. He tried to prevent Crusaders from attacking Muslims at the Battle of Damietta, but he failed. Francis was captured and taken to the sultan Malek al-Kamil. At first they tried to convert each other, but each man soon recognized that the other already knew and loved God. They remained together, discussing spirituality, for about three weeks between Sept. 1 and Sept. 26. Robert Lentz celebrates their meeting as a model of interfaith dialogue in the icon “St. Francis and the Sultan,” pictured here.

“St Francis of Assisi Receiving the Stigmata”
by Kevin Raye Larson © 1991
In 1224, when Francis was in his 40s, he received the stigmata -- marks like the crucifixion wounds of Christ in his hands, feet and side. California artist Kevin Raye Larson emphasizes the sensuality of the ecstatic moment in “St Francis of Assisi Receiving the Stigmata,” pictured here. The painting has appeared on the cover of the spirituality issue of “Frontiers,” the Los Angeles gay lifestyle magazine.

Along with the stigmata came other health problems. When Francis sensed death approaching, he called for Jacoba de Settesoli, a Roman noblewoman devoted to him and his teachings. Francis stayed in her house when in Rome.  Celano’s 13th-century account in the “Treatise on the Miracles of Blessed Francis” reports that Francis greeted the news of her arrival at the male-only cloister with a decidedly queer statement that breaks gender rules::

“Blessed be God, who has guided the Lady Jacoba, our brother, to us. Open the door and bring her in, for our Brother Jacoba does not have to observe the decree against women.”

The widow called “Brother Jacoba” by Francis kneels near the dying Francis of Assisi in “48. Jacoba of Settesoli is associated with the mourning” (Jacoba de Settesoli se asocia al duelo) by José Benlliure y Gil, 1926 (Wikimedia Commons)

Francis died a few days later on Oct. 3, 1226. Two years after Francis’ death, Pope Gregory IX declared him a saint and commissioned Celano’s biography, the one that includes the love between Francis and his male companion.

Elphick adds an intriguing footnote about how the queer side of Francis has manifested outside official Christianity. Francis is venerated in the Yoruba religion of Africa as Orunmila, the orisha of wisdom, patron of animals and a transgendered deity who engages in same-sex eroticism.

At the end of his thesis, Elphick concludes that breaking gender rules is an extraordinary God-given power or “charism” that Franciscans offer to the church and the world.

“What are the lives of figures like Mother Francis, Brother Jacoba and Mother Juana de la Cruz revealing to us in our own day? I think that the Franciscan charism of gender liminality has much to teach our Church and fellow community of humans in our day. In a church divided over issues of ordination of women, inclusive language, and sexual orientation, I believe that the Franciscan tradition has important figures to hold up and from whom to learn. For issues which we have not even yet begun to explore theologically in authentic ways, issues such as hermaphroditism, transsexuality, genderedness and sexual orientation, I believe the Franciscan voice can be prophetic.”

“Saint Francis in Ecstasy” by Caravaggio (Wikimedia Commons)
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Related links:
"The Message of St. Francis" by Kevin C. A. Elphick (The Empty Closet)

To read this post in Spanish / en español, go to Santos Queer:
San Francisco de Asís: La evidencia histórica revela su lado gay

Animal blessing events are happening all over the world this month for the Feast of St. Francis, the patron saint of animals. Click here for animal blessing prayer by Kittredge Cherry.

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This profile is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, prophets, witnesses, heroes, holy people, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts

Innovative icons of St. Francis and many others are available on cards, plaques, T-shirts, mugs, candles, mugs, and more at Trinity Stores



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MCC 47th anniversary! Photos show LGBT church history

October 6, 2015, 9:18 am
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Kittredge Cherry celebrated communion in 1993 at Metropolitan Community Churches General Conference in Phoenix, Arizona.

Happy birthday to Metropolitan Community Churches! And thanks for 47 years ministering in the LGBT community. MCC was founded 47 years ago today on Oct. 6, 1968.

Rev. Kittredge Cherry, 1988
Photos from MCC history are posted today for the first time in honor of the occasion, and as a tribute to all queer people of faith who dare to believe that God loves us just as we are.

The photos here show highlights from my own ministry in MCC during the 1990s. I had the privilege of working closely with Rev. Troy Perry, the openly gay man who founded MCC. He was incredibly brave and visionary to create a church for queer people back in 1968, when homosexuality was still considered a sin, a sickness and a crime. He describes the founding and early years of MCC in the book Don't Be Afraid Anymore: The Story of Reverend Troy Perry and the Metropolitan Community Churches by Troy D. Perry and Thomas Swicegood.

I joined MCC in 1985 and became an ordained minister. I served as program director at MCC San Francisco. Then I joined the denominational headquarters in Los Angeles, where I handled ecumenical and public relations, working with Troy and Rev. Nancy Wilson, who currently heads MCC as moderator. She chronicles the history of MCC in her book “Outing the Church: 40 Years in the Queer Christian Movement.”

I try to post some of my historic MCC photos every year on MCC’s anniversary. This year I am sharing many of Nancy and me doing ecumenical ministry together. The photos capture just a few moments from those memorable times.

Details about the photo at the top of this post: Pictured are, from left, unknown, Jay Neely, Sandy Williams (?), Kittredge Cherry, Rev. Elder Jean White, Rev. Elder Hong Tan, unknown, and Ravi Verma. This worship service was co-sponsored by the Department of Ecumenical Witness and Ministry and the Department of People of Color. I was ecumenical field director at the time.

My old IBM computer was HUGE and already outdated, but I was using it in 1994 when this photo was taken in my office at MCC headquarters in Los Angeles.


Women clergy having fun together in 1991. From left: Betty Pederson, Kittredge Cherry, Audrey, Jane Spahr and Coni Staff. Betty, Coni and I were all MCC clergy at the time. We were at my farewell party as I prepared to leave San Francisco to minister in Los Angeles. Janie has been an activist for since the 1970s as a Presbyterian minister, facing church trials for breaking church law to marry committed same-gender couples.


MCC San Francisco's 1986 All-Church Retreat, October 1986. Those were the days! Retreats were the highlight of the year at MCC-SF in the late 1980s.


Small groups for discussion and prayer were the heart of every MCC-SF retreat in the late 1980s. My small group at the 1986 retreat included,from left, Kittredge Cherry, George Voigt, Patrick Horay, Karen Miller, Charles West and Gordon Gross.


MCC San Francisco Retreat, October 1987. It was the height of the AIDS pandemic and we had a wonderful, spirit-filled time together. Some of those pictured have passed on to new life.


My small group at the 1987 MCC-SF retreat included, from left, Bob Crocker, Dennis Edelman, Sylvia Perez, unknown, Kittedge Cherry, Paul (Holton?) and Lynn Jordan.


My life partner Audrey and I at the 1987 MCC-SF retreat.

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See more of my MCC photos at these links:

Motorcycle blessing at 1980s gay leather bar remembered


Mel White stands for LGBTQ religious justice then and now


Happy birthday, MCC and Desmond Tutu!

See LGBT history in photos

Happy 40th birthday, MCC!



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Saints Sergius and Bacchus: Male couple martyred in ancient Rome

October 7, 2015, 8:47 am
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“Sergius and Bacchus” by Alessio Ciani

Saints Sergius and Bacchus. 7th Century icon from St. Catherine's Monastery on Mt. Sinai in Israel. Now in an art museum in Kiev, Ukraine. (Wikimedia Commons)

Saints Sergius and Bacchus were third-century Roman soldiers, Christian martyrs and men who loved each other. Their story is told here in words and pictures for their feast day today (Oct. 7).

The close bond between Sergius and Bacchus has been emphasized since the earliest accounts, and recent scholarship has revealed their homosexuality. The oldest record of their martyrdom describes them as erastai (Greek for “lovers”). Scholars believe that they may have been united in the rite of adelphopoiesis (brother-making), a kind of early Christian same-sex marriage.

New creative interpretations of Sergius and Bacchus include an icon by Italian artist Alessio Ciani, and the historical romance novel “The Passion of Sergius and Bacchus” by Los Angeles author David Reddish, and a sketch by Massachusetts artist Brandon Buehring.

A classic example of paired saints, Sergius and Bacchus were high-ranking young officers. Sergius was primicerius (commander) and Bacchus was secundarius (subaltern officer). They were tortured to death around 303 in present-day Syria after they refused to attend sacrifices to Zeus, thus revealing their secret Christianity.

The men were arrested and paraded through the streets in women’s clothing in an unsuccessful effort to humiliate them. Early accounts say that they responded by chanting that they were dressed as brides of Christ. They told their captors that women’s dress never stopped women from worshiping Christ, so it wouldn’t stop them, either. Then Sergius and Bacchus were separated and beaten so severely that Bacchus died.

According to the early manuscripts, Bacchus appeared to Sergius that night with a face as radiant as an angel’s, dressed once again as a soldier. He urged Sergius not to give up because they would be reunited in heaven as lovers. His statement is unique in the history of martyrs. Usually the promised reward is union with God, not with a lover. Over the next days Sergius was tortured and eventually beheaded.

Their same-sex love story is set amid dramatic events of the Roman Empire events in the 2014 novel “The Passion of Sergius and Bacchus” by David Reddish. The explosive same-sex love story of the soldier-saints unfolds during the Roman Empire in the 2014 novel “The Passion of Sergius and Bacchus” by David Reddish. Sergius and Bacchus meet, fall in love, have a commitment ceremony, and face deadly threats in a novel based on historical and archeological discoveries. It dramatizes the final gasp of paganism, the politics of newborn Christianity, and the re-discovered rites of same-sex unions performed by the early church. From the forests of Gaul to the streets of Constantinople, from the secret Christian hideaways of the deaconess Macrina to the palace of the emperor, the novel provides adventure and romance while examining questions of sexuality, faith, sacrifice, patriotism and the nature of God. It was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award in the gay romance category.

A screenwriter as well as a novelist, Reddish has won awards for his political activism as well as pop culture acclaim for his fashion design work. He graduated with a degree in film from the University of Central Florida and resides in Los Angeles.

Sergius’ tomb became a famous shrine, and for nearly 1,000 years the couple was revered as the official patrons of the Byzantine army. Many early churches were named after Sergius, sometimes with Bacchus. They have been recognized as martyrs by the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches. The pair was venerated through the Mediterranean, the Middle East, Latin America and among the Slavs.

Yale history professor John Boswell names Sergius and Bacchus as one of the three primary pairs of same-sex lovers in the early church in his book “Same Sex Unions in Pre-Modern Europe”. (The others are Polyeuct and Nearchus and Felicity and Perpetua.)

The Roman Catholic Church stripped Sergius and Bacchus from its liturgical calendar in 1969 -- the same year that New York’s Stonewall riots launched the modern gay liberation movement. Supposedly they were “de-canonized” due to lack of historical evidence, but some see it as an anti-gay action since they clearly had churches dedicated to them long before medieval times. Sergius and Bacchus continue to be popular saints with Christian Arabs and now among LGBT Christians and their allies.

From ancient times until today these “gay saints” have inspired some of the most beautiful art depicting the holiness of same-sex couples, sometimes in a homoerotic way. One of the newest is the 2013 icon at the top of this post, painted by Alessio Ciani of Italy. He has done a wide variety of LGBT illustrations and gay homoerotic art. His work has been exhibited in Milan and Perugia.

“Baccus and Sergius” by Brandon Buehring

Artist Brandon Buehring included Sergius and Bacchus in his “Legendary Love: A Queer History Project.” He uses pencil sketches and essays “to remind queer people and our allies of our sacred birthright as healers, educators, truth-tellers, spiritual leaders, warriors and artists.” The project features 20 sketches of queer historical and mythological figures from many cultures around the world. He has a M.Ed. degree in counseling with an LGBT emphasis from North Carolina State University in Raleigh. He works in higher education administration as well as being a freelance illustrator based in Northampton, Massachusetts.

The painting below is by California gay artist Rick Herold. “I over the years as a painter have been interested in the idea of the spirit and the flesh as one -- began by Tantric art influences and then using my Catholic background,” he told the Jesus in Love Blog. He paints with enamel on the reverse side of clear plexiglas.

“Saints Sergius and Bacchus” by Rick Herold (details below)

Herold has a bachelor of arts degree in art and theology from the Benedictine Monastic University of St. John in Minnesota and a master of fine arts degree from Otis Institute of Art in Los Angeles. His religious artwork included a Stations of the Cross commissioned by Bob Hope for a church in Ohio before a conflict over modern art with the Los Angeles cardinal led to disillusionment with the church. Herold came out as gay and turned to painting male nudes and homoerotica, which can be seen at RickHerold's website. (Warning: his home page has male nudity.)

“Sts. Sergius and Bacchus” by Plamen Petrov, St. Martha Church, Morton Grove, IL

One of the newest images of 3rd-century gay saints Sergius and Bacchus is a stained glass window donated in 2011 to an Illinois church by its LGBT parishioners. The new Sergius and Bacchus window (above) was dedicated in September 2011 at St. Martha’s Church in Morton Grove, Illinois, as a gift from its LGBT members. Rev. Dennis O’Neill, pastor, believes it is the first window dedicated to Sergius and Bacchus in any church in the United States. O’Neill is the author of Passionate Holiness: Marginalized Christian Devotions for Distinctive People. The book includes a chapter retelling the love story of Sergius and Bacchus with historical detail.

The Sergius and Bacchus window is part of a project in which members of St. Martha’s diverse congregation were selecting and paying for a set of 20 windows of saints from their various homelands. LGBT members contributed the “friendship window” depicting Sergius and Bacchus. It is a companion to the “marriage window” which shows St. Elizabeth of Hungary and her husband, Blessed Ludwig of Thuringia.

Artist Plamen Petrov worked with Daprato Rigali Studios to design and create the stained glass windows. He was born in Sevlievo, Bulgaria in 1966 and currently lives in Chicago. He graduated from University St. Cyril and St Methodius University of Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria’s Faculty of Fine Art in 1995, with an M.F.A. in graphic art - printmaking and pedagogy of figurative arts. For more than a dozen years he specialized mostly in stained glass, but his creativity takes many forms, since he also works in mosaics, murals, oil, acrylic, photography and graphic design. His artwork may be seen across Chicago and Illinois, and in many countries all over the world.

“St. Bacchus and St. Sergius: Patrons of Same-Sex Couples by Maria Cristina

A banner saying “patrons of same sex couples” hangs above Bacchus and Sergius in a colorful icon by Maria Cristina, an artist based in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

“Saints Sergius and Bacchus” by Ray Avito

On the day that California artist Ray Avito first heard the story of Sergius and Bacchus, he sketched a  delightfully unpretentious portrait of the pair (pictured above).  He said it was based on “the suspicion that they may have been more than just comrades in arms.”

“Marriage of Saint Sergius and Saint Bacchus” (2013) by Tony de Carlo

“Saint Sergius and Saint Bacchus” by Tony de Carlo

Sergius and Bacchus are among the many saints painted by Georgia artist Tony de Carlo. Raised Catholic, he started painting saints to counteract the church’s demonization of LGBT people. For more info, see my article Tony De Carlo: Artist affirms gay love with saints, Adam and Steve, and marriage equality paintings.


“Saints Sergius and Bacchus” by Ryan Grant Long

Historical men who loved men, including Sergius and Bacchus, are painted by American artist Ryan Grant Long in his “Fairy Tales” series. Sergius and Bacchus are usually portrayed as static icons, side by side staring straight at the viewer. But Long catches them gazing into each other’s eyes during a private moment in their prison cell. For more info, see my article Artist paints history’s gay couples: Interview with Ryan Grant Long.

“Bacchus” and “Sergius” from the series “Five Saints” (2008) by Anthony Gayton. © Anthony Gayton / www.anthonygayton.com

Noted British photographer Anthony Gayton does stylized homoerotic photos based on the history of gay culture. He shows Sergius and Bacchus stripped and bound as prisoners in two separate photos. The images are intended to be shown together, but by design they can also be separated.

Appropriate Bible quotes are on banners above them. For Bacchus: “But I will not take my love from him, nor will I ever betray my faithfulness.” (Psalm 89:33). For Sergius: “All thy commandments are faithful, they persecute me wrongly; help thou me.” (Psalm 119: 86)

His Sergius and Bacchus photos belong to the series “Five Saints.” In addition to exploring saints, Gayton’s work uses historical themes inspired by such diverse sources as mythology, Renaissance and Baroque painting and early photography. Gayton's work is published in his book Sinners and Saints.


Saints Sergius and Bacchus
By Brother Robert Lentz OFM, trinitystores.com

The Living Circle, an interfaith LGBT spirituality center founded by Dennis O’Neill, commissioned the above icon of the loving same-sex pair. It was painted by Brother Robert Lentz, a Franciscan friar and world-class iconographer known for his innovative icons. “Saints Sergius and Bacchus” is one of 10 Lentz icons that sparked a major controversy in 2005. Critics accused Lentz of glorifying sin and creating propaganda for a progressive sociopolitical agenda. They caused such a stir that in order to keep the peace between his Franciscan province and the Archbishop of Santa Fe, New Mexico, Lentz temporarily gave away the copyright for the 10 controversial images to his distributor, Trinity Stores. Lentz’ own moving spiritual journey and some of his icons are included in the book Art That Dares: Gay Jesus, Woman Christ, and More by Kittredge Cherry.

20th-century icon of Saints Sergius and Bacchus from the courtyard of the Monastery of Mar Sarkis and Bakhos in Maaloula, Syria (Wikimedia Commons)
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Related links:

Sergius and Bacchus art by Alfredo Müller of Bolivia (Warning: male nudity)

Many icons, statues, and churches dedicated to Sergius and Bacchus can be viewed at:
http://andrejkoymasky.com/liv/mar/mar01.html

Sergius and Bacchus at Queer Saints and Martyrs (and Others)

Honoring (and Learning from) the Passion of Saints Sergius and Bacchus -- at The Wild Reed

St. Sergius and St. Bacchus at the Legacy Project

Santos Sergio y Baco: Una pareja masculina martirizada en la antigua Roma (Santos Queer)
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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, prophets, witnesses, heroes, holy people, humanitarians, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts

Icons of Sergius and Bacchus and many other saints are available on cards, plaques, T-shirts, mugs, candles, mugs, and more at Trinity Stores





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Vida Dutton Scudder: Lesbian saint, reformer and teacher

October 10, 2015, 7:54 am
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Vida Dutton Scudder, c. 1890 (Wikipedia)

Vida Dutton Scudder is an American social reformer, professor, prominent lesbian author -- and an officially recognized saint in the Episcopal Church. Her feast day is today (Oct. 10.)

Her ideas on economic inequality are especially relevant amid the financial crises of our times. Born in India to missionary parents in 1861, Scudder studied at Oxford and became a professor at Wellesley College, where she taught English literature for 41 years. All her primary relationships were with women. For 35 years from 1919 until her death in 1954, Scudder lived with author Florence Converse in a lesbian relationship.

Scudder’s spirituality went hand in hand with her social conscience and love of learning. She was active in the Social Gospel movement, co-founding a Boston settlement house to reduce poverty, promoting Christian socialism and backing trade unions. Scudder wrote 16 books, including her autobiography “On Journey,” plus numerous articles on religious, political, and literary subjects.

Converse (1871-1967), a New Orelans native and Wellesley graduate, served on the editorial staff of the Atlantic Monthly and The Churchman magazine.  She wrote many novels with titles such as “The Story of Wellesley” and “The Holy Night.”

The couple'sr lesbian life is documented in the books “Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers, A History of Lesbian Life in Twentieth-Century America” by Lillian Faderman and “Passionate Commitments: The Lives of Anna Rochester and Grace Hutchins” by Julia M. Allen. Their long-term relationship lasted until Scudder died at age 91 on Oct. 9, 1954.

The two women are buried near each other at Newton Cemetery and Crematory in Newton, Massachusetts. The Internet makes it possible to visit to the graves of Scudder and Converse online.

The Episcopal Church added Scudder to its book of saints several years ago. She expressed her belief in the power of prayer when she wrote, “If prayer is the deep secret creative force that Jesus tells us it is, we should be very busy with it.” Here is the official prayer that the Episcopal Church offers in memory of this lesbian saint:

Most gracious God, you sent your beloved Son to preach peace to those who are far off and to those who are near: Raise up in your church witnesses who, after the example of your servant Vida Dutton Scudder, stand firm in proclaiming the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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Related links:

Vida Dutton Scudder, American Lesbian Saint for Our Times (Queering the Church)

Vida Dutton Scudder, Educator and Witness for Peace (Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music of the Episcopal Church)

Vida Dutton Scudder (Wikipedia)

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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, prophets, witnesses, heroes, holy people, humanitarians, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts




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Matthew Shepard: Modern gay martyr and hate-crime victim

October 11, 2015, 6:43 am
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“The Passion of Matthew Shepard” by William Hart McNichols ©
www.fatherbill.org

Matthew Shepard brought international attention to anti-gay hate crimes when he died on Oct. 12, 1998 (17 years ago tomorrow). He was a 21-year-old gay student at the University of Wyoming at the time.

Shepard (1976-1998) was brutally attacked near Laramie, Wyoming, on Oct. 6-7, 1998 by two men who later claimed that they were driven temporarily insane by “gay panic” due to Shepard’s alleged sexual advances. Shepard was beaten and left to die.

Now the Matthew Shepard Foundation seeks to replace hate with understanding, compassion and acceptance. U.S. President Obama signed "The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act" into law on Oct. 28, 2009. It broadens the federal hate-crimes law to cover violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

“Matthew Shepard” by Tobias Haller

Shepard has become a cultural icon, inspiring dozens and dozens of paintings, films, plays, songs and other artistic works -- with more still being created every year. Among the new images is a sweet portrait of him with a rainbow halo by Tobias Haller, an iconographer, author, composer, and vicar of Saint James Episcopal Church in the Bronx. He is the author of “Reasonable and Holy: Engaging Same-Sexuality.” Haller enjoys expanding the diversity of icons available by creating icons of LGBTQ people and other progressive holy figures as well as traditional saints. He and his spouse were united in a church wedding more than 30 years ago and a civil ceremony after same-sex marriage became legal in New York.

Shepard’s martyrdom gives him the aura of a Christ figure. His torturous death evokes the Good Shepherd who was crucified. The officer who found Shepard said that he was covered with blood -- except for the white streaks left by his tears. Father William Hart McNichols created a striking icon based on his report. McNichols dedicated his icon The Passion of Matthew Shepard to the 1,470 gay and lesbian youth of commit suicide in the U.S. each year, and to the countless others who are injured or murdered.

McNichols is a New Mexico artist and Catholic priest who has been rebuked by church leaders for making icons of saints not approved by the church, including one of Matthew Shepard. McNichols’ own moving spiritual journey and two of his icons are included in the book Art That Dares: Gay Jesus, Woman Christ, and More by Kittredge Cherry. His Matthew Shepard icon appears in his book “Christ All Merciful,” which he co-authored with Megan McKenna.

Another new project inspired by Shepard is “Matthew Shepard Meets Coyote,” a play that blends Christianity, queer experience and Native American folklore. In the final moments of Shepard’s life he encounters Coyote, the trickster god of the American West, who urges him to move beyond the cruel tricks that life has played on him. It was written by Harry Cronin, a priest of Holy Cross and professor in residence at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. In 2014 it was performed at the San Francisco Fringe Festival and at Bay Area churches as a way to spark dialogue. Cronin currently writes plays about redemption in alcoholic and queer experiences.



Several works were released in 2013 for the 15th anniversary of Shepard’s death.  They include the musical tribute “Beyond the Fence,” the film “Matt Shepard was a Friend of Mine” and the book “The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths About the Murder of Matthew Shepard.”

"Matthew Shepard: Beyond the Fence," a musical tribute celebrating a life that helped change the world, premiered in October 2013 in a production by the South Coast Singers, a LGBTQ performance troupe in Long Beach, California. Written by SCC creative director Steve Davison, it incorporates existing music by gay composers Levi Kreis, Ryan Amador and Randi Driscoll. Videos from “Beyond the Fence” are posted on YouTube, including the poignant song “Hello,” sung by Julian Comeau.

The documentary film “Matt Shepard was a Friend of Mine” is directed by Michele Josue, who indeed was a close friend of Shepard. She takes a personal approach, exploring his life and loss by visiting places that were important to him and interviewing his friends and family. View the trailer below or at this link.



Award-winning gay Journalist Stephen Jimenez does extensive research into the circumstances of the crime in “The Book of Matt.” He finds that Shepard was not killed for being gay, but for reasons far more complicated.

Other books about Shepard include “The Meaning of Matthew: My Son's Murder in Laramie” and “A World Transformed” by his mother (Judy Shepard) and “October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard” by Lesléa Newman, a novel in verse about the murder.

“Saint Sebastian and Matt Shepard Juxtaposed” by JR Leveroni

“Saint Sebastian and Matt Shepard Juxtaposed” by JR Leveroni is a painting that makes an important connection between a gay Christian martyr from history and the gay victims of hate crimes today. Leveroni is an emerging visual artist living in South Florida. Painting in a Cubist style, he matches Shepard’s death with the killing of another gay martyr, Saint Sebastian. The suffering is expressed in a subdued style with barely a trace of blood. A variety of male nudes and religious paintings can be seen on his website (warning: male nudity).

“The Murder of Matthew Shepard” by Matthew Wettlaufer

The grim scene of Matthew’s death is vividly portrayed in “The Murder of Matthew Shepard,” above, by gay artist-philosopher Matthew Wettlaufer. He lived in El Salvador and South Africa before returning to California. For an interview with Wettlaufer and more of his art, see my previous post “New paintings honor gay martyrs.”

“The Last of Laramie” by Stephen Mead
Above is a lyrical painting dedicated to Matthew Shepard: “The Last of Laramie” by gay artist Stephen Mead.of New York. It appears in his book “Our Book of Common Faith.” For more about Mead and his art, see my previous post “Gay Artist Links Body and Spirit.”

"The Candlelight Vigil for Matthew Shepard (NYC Oct. 19, 1998)” by Sandow Birk

California artist Sandow Birk painted a candlelight vigil for Shepard. With a drummer and a rainbow flag, it seems to echo “The Spirit of 76,” a famous patriotic painting of Revolutionary War figures by Archibald MacNeal Willard. But it is based on the 1889 painting (“The Conscripts” by Pascal Adolphe Jean Dagnan-Bouveret, a work that takes a hard look at the toll of war, especially the conscription of young people into the military during the Franco-Prussian War.

For more about Sandow Birk’s art, see my previous post Stonewall's LGBT history painted: Interview with Sandow Birk.

The play “The Laramie Project” by Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project has been performed all over the world since it premiered in 1998. Many American performances were picketed by Westboro Baptist Church members, who appear in the play picketing Shepard’s funeral as they did in real life. “The Laramie Project” draws on hundreds of interviews with residents of Laramie conducted by the theater company. A film version of The Laramie Project was released in 2002.

Matthew’s story has also been dramatized in biopic movies such as “The Matthew Shepard Story” with Sam Waterson and Stockard Channing as the grieving parents.

More than a 30 songs inspired by Matthew Shepard are listed in “Cultural Depictions of Matthew Shepard” at Wikipedia. They come from a variety of singers, including Melissa Etheridge, Janis Ian, and Elton John.

The Altar Cross of LGBTQ Martyrs from Metropolitan Community Church of San Francisco

The Altar Cross of LGBTQ Martyrs from Metropolitan Community Church of San Francisco features photos of Matthew Shepard, Harvey Milk, Gwen Araujo and others. In the center of the cross is the fence where Shepard was tortured and murdered in Laramie, Wyoming.

The tendency to acclaim Shepard as a martyr is analyzed in a scholarly paper that won the 2014-15 LGBT Religious History Award from the LGBT Religious Archives Network. “The Martyrdom of Matthew Shepard” was written by Brett Krutzsch, religion professor at the College of Wooster in Ohio. It is an excerpt from his Ph.D dissertation, “Martyrdom and American Gay History: Secular Advocacy, Christian Ideas, and Gay Assimilation,” which examines how religious rhetoric and gay martyr discourses facilitated American gay assimilation from the 1970s through 2014. He finds that secular gay advocates invoked Shepard as a gay martyr, using Christian ideas to present gay Americans as similar to the dominant culture. He questions the politics of martyrdom and analyzes why the deaths of a few white, middle-class, gay men have been mourned as national tragedies.

The award announcement explains: “The paper argues that Shepard’s appeal was connected to constructions of him as Christ-like and as an upstanding young, Christian man. His posthumous notoriety reveals a historical moment when Christian ideas significantly shaped arguments for American gay social integration. In turn, Matthew Shepard became an icon of the apparently ideal late twentieth-century gay citizen: a white, nonsexual, practicing Protestant.”

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Related links:
Cultural Depictions of Matthew Shepard (Wikipedia)

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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, heroes and holy people of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
http://www.jesusinlove.blogspot.com/
Jesus in Love Blog on LGBT spirituality and the arts

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Two-spirit Native Americans bridge genders on Columbus Day

October 12, 2015, 8:34 am
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“Unknown Mayan Couple” by Ryan Grant Long

“Dance to the Berdache” by George Catlin (Wikipedia)

Almost all Native American tribes traditionally recognized “two-spirit” people of mixed gender. Sometimes they played a spiritual role.  They appear as sacred figures in Native American rituals and myths. Two-spirit Native Americans are honored today for Columbus Day, when European explorer Christopher Columbus arrived in the Americas on Oct. 12, 1492.

Before Columbus arrived, most Native American societies valued people who mixed male and female roles or characteristics.  Their languages had words for third and sometimes even fourth genders. “Two spirit” is one of the many and varied Native American terms for alternative genders because one body housed both feminine and masculine spirits. Sometimes they served as spiritual guides who mediated between the realms of body and spirit, male and female. From a Western cultural viewpoint, the two-spirited people have been seen as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) or queer.

“Employments of the Hermaphrodites,” engraving based on a watercolor by Jacques Le Moyne de Morgues (State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory)

The earliest known European depictions of Native Americans include two-spirit people. The earliest known European depictions of Native Americans include two-spirit people. “Employments of the Hermaphrodites” is based on a watercolor made by Jacques Le Moyne de Morgues while exploring Florida in the 1560s. It illustrates his report that two-spirit people’s duties included caring for the sick and carrying the dead on stretchers.

Contemporary artists have tried to re-envision the freedom of two-spirit people before the Europeans arrived. Wisconsin artist Ryan Grant Long includes an unknown Mayan couple enjoying a playful moment together in his series “Fairy Tales” series of same-sex love throughout history. For more info, see my article Artist paints history’s gay couples: Interview with Ryan Grant Long.

Two-spirit people were not only accepted in many Native American societies, but also appear as sacred figures in Native American sacred rituals and mythology. For example the Zuni have a two-spirit god called Ko'lhamana, and Hopi and Acoma-Laguna myths tell about a whole tribe of two-spirit people called the Storoka.

“Warharmi and Madkwahomai” by Brandon Buehring

Artist Brandon Buehring included several two-spirit groupings in his “Legendary Love: A Queer History Project.” In one sketch he portrays Warharmi, a “half-man, half-woman” and twins named Madkwahomai from the creaton myth of the Tipai tribe of the Kumeyaay people in California’s Imperial Valley.

Buehring uses pencil sketches and essays “to remind queer people and our allies of our sacred birthright as healers, educators, truth-tellers, spiritual leaders, warriors and artists.” The project features 20 sketches of queer historical and mythological figures from many cultures around the world. He has a M.Ed. degree in counseling with an LGBT emphasis from North Carolina State University in Raleigh. He works in higher education administration as well as being a freelance illustrator based in Northampton, Massachusetts.

George Catlin, famous artist who specialized in portraits of Native Americans in the Old West, sketched the “Dance to the Berdache” in the 19th century while on the Great Plains with the Sac and Fox Nation. He depicted a ceremonial dance to celebrate the Berdache, a European term for two-spirit people. But Catlin refused to give two-spirit people a place in his paintings of “traditional” Indian life.

Executions for homosexuality were common in Europe for centuries, and Europeans soon imported homophobic violence to the Americas. For example, the Spanish explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa found homosexuality among the Native American chiefs in 1594 at Quarqua in Panama. He ordered 40 of these two-spirited people thrown to his war dogs to be torn apart and eaten alive to stop the “stinking abomination.”

Balboa executing two-spirit Native Americans for homosexuality in 1513 in Panama -- engraving by Théodore De Bry, 1594 (Wikimedia Commons).  

While Europeans were mostly hostile to two-spirit people among the Native Americans whom they converted to Christianity, a contemporary icon offers hope of reconciliation by showing holy same-sex love with both Christian and Native American imagery. For example, John Giuliani's “Jesus and the Beloved Disciple” shows Jesus and his male beloved in the native dress of the Aymara Indians, descendants of the Incas who still live in the Andean regions of Chile, Peru and Bolivia. Giuliani is an Italian-American artist and Catholic priest who is known for making Christian icons with Native American symbols. He studied icon painting under a master in the Russian Orthodox style, but chose to expand the concept of holiness to include Native Americans, the original inhabitants of the Americas.

“Jesus and the Beloved Disciple” by John Giuliani, 1996

Despite the violence, some two-spirit individuals are still remembered in history and contemporary art. They include We’wha of Zuni and the Woman Chief known as Pine Leaf. Their portraits and stories are posted for Columbus Day on the Jesus in Love Blog.

“We’wha of Zuni” by Br. Robert Lentz OFM, TrinityStores.com

We’wha of Zuni

We’wha was a two-spirit Native American Zuni who served as a cultural ambassador for her people, including a visit with a U.S. president in 1886. We’wha (pronounced WAY-wah) was the most famous “lhamana,” the Zuni term for a male-bodied person who lived in part as a woman. Lhamanas chose to specialize in crafts instead of becoming warriors or hunters.

We’wha (1849-1896) was a skilled weaver and potter who helped Anglo-American scholars studying Zuni society. In 1886 We’wha traveled from her home in New Mexico to Washington DC, where she met president Grover Cleveland. She was welcomed as a celebrity during her six months in Washington. Everyone assumed that the 6-foot-tall “Indian princess” was female.

The spiritual side of We’wha is emphasized in the above icon by Brother Robert Lentz, is a Franciscan friar known for his innovative and LGBT-positive icons. She is dressed for a religious ceremony as she prepares to put on the sacred mask of the man-woman spirit Kolhamana.

We’wha is the subject of the book “The Zuni Man-Woman” by gay anthropologist Will Roscoe. He also wrote “Changing Ones: Third and Fourth Genders in Native North America” and “Jesus and the Shamanic Tradition of Same-Sex Love.” Roscoe’s website willsworld.org offers resources in the Native American two-spirit tradition, third genders in the ancient world, and studies in early Christianity.

“We’wha” by Jim Ru

Jim Ru painted We’Wha with a dramatic blue background  His icon was included in his show “Transcendent Faith: Gay, Lesbian and Transgendered Saints” in Bisbee Arizona in the 1990s.  He discusses it in a video.




“Biawacheeitche or Woman Chief aka Barcheeampe or Pine Leaf” by Ria Brodell

Pine Leaf or Woman Chief

“Woman Chief” is one of the names for the two-spirit tomboy born around 1800 to the Gros Ventre tribe. She was captured by the Crow nation when she was 10 and was so adept at hunting and warfare that she rose to become their chief.

Historical accounts say that she wore women’s clothes but had “all the style of a man and chief,” with “her guns, bows, lances, war horses, and even two or three young women as wives.”

“Pine Leaf, Indian Heroine” from “The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth,” 1856 (Wikipedia)

She was killed in 1854 by the Gros Ventre tribe, but her story lived on in the popular memoirs of a freed slave and fur trader named James Beckwourth. He called her Pine Leaf because he refused his multiple marriage proposals by saying she would wed him “when the pine leaves turn yellow.” Later he figured out that pine leaves never turn yellow.

She is portrayed in the “Butch Heroes” series by genderqueer Boston artist Ria Brodell. For more on Brodell’s work, see my article “Artist paints history’s butch heroes.”
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Related links:

Two-Spirit (Qualia Encyclopedia of Gay Folklife)

Two Spirit People at the Legacy Walk

Kent Monkman (Canadian artist of Cree ancestry whose work has strong queer or gay male imagery dealing with sexuality and Christianity)

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This post is part of the GLBT Saints series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. Saints, martyrs, mystics, heroes, holy people, deities and religious figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and queer people and our allies are covered on appropriate dates throughout the year.

Icons of We’wha and many others are available on cards, plaques, T-shirts, mugs, candles, mugs, and more at Trinity Stores





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Sign up:: Free newsletter on LGBT spirituality and the arts

October 14, 2015, 11:08 am
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Readers call it inspiring, informative, empowering, courageous, “always informative” and “always fabulous.”

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The newsletter covers LGBT saints and the queer Christ, with an emphasis on visual art and books. Cutting-edge artists, authors and theologians are introduced.

Jesus in Love promotes artistic and religious freedom and teaches love for all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Editor Kittredge Cherry is passionately committed to the Jesus in Love Newsletter because it grew out of her own personal journey as a lesbian Christian author, historian and minister.

See for yourself. Use visit the newsletter archive or use the following list to view eight years of past newsletters online.

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  • JL News Sept 2015  (9/9/2015)
  • Divine love transforms presidents Obama and Putin into gay saints in art by Jim Lyngvild, gay saint of 9/11 Mychal Judge, black gay civil rights leader Bayard Rustin, Mary’s lesbian goddess roots with Artemis, Blessed John Henry Newman’s romantic friendship with priest Ambrose St. John, Black Madonna becomes lesbian defender: Erzuli Dantor and Our Lady of Czestochowa, the Jesus kiss of medieval friar John of La Verna, love between Saints Bernard of Clairvaux and Malachy, and Christ and Krishna.
  • JL News August 2015  (8/7/2015)
  • Erotic gay soul explored in new books "HomoEros" and "Internal Landscapes," Christa art show, queer 1776 preacher Jemima Wilkinson reborn as Public Universal Friend, holy fool Symeon of Emesa and John, sisters Mary and Martha as lesbian couple, bearded holy woman Wilgefortis, Russian saints Boris and George, Baroque artist Artemisia Gentileschi paints strong Biblical women.
  • JL News July 2015  (7/2/2015)
  • Gay Vatican art tours, seminary course on queer Christ in art, UpStairs Lounge fire and poem, Pauli Murray, motorcycle blessing at gay leather bar, Uganda martyrs
  • JL News June 2015  (6/4/2015)
  • “Queer Icons” show LGBTQ people of color today in art by Gabriel Garcia Roman, Joan of Arc, Harvey Milk, resurrection song, Rainbow Christ Prayer, saints of Stonewall, Julian of Norwich, Rosa Bonheur, new books
  • JL News May 2015-B  (5/5/2015)
  • New queer martyrdom book discussed by author Dominic Janes, Ethiopian eunuch, new queer Christ videos, Christina Rossetti, green LGBT theology on Earth Day, new LGBTQ Christian books, Day of Silence Prayer re anti-LGBT bullying, Madre Juana de la Cruz of Spain, Sor Juana de la Cruz of Mexico, Kuan Yin as a queer Buddhist Christ figure.
  • JL News Easter/April 2015  (4/5/2015)
  • Happy Easter with murals of Los Angeles, gay Passion of Christ series ends, blasphemy debate, Perpetua & Felicity, John Boswell, Esther & Vashti, gay Centurion, Adrienne Rich.
  • JL News Palm Sunday 2015  (3/29/2015)
  • JL News March 2015  (3/1/2015)
  • Sacred gay union with Christ evoked by music of New-Age “Passion of Mark” by Christopher Flores and Adrian Ravarour, gay Jesus painting by Christopher Olwage shown in New Zealand, pioneering gay priest Malcolm Boyd dies at 91, Queer Clergy Trading Cards feature Kittredge Cherry, queer martyrs rise from the ashes on Ash Wednesday, paired saints Polyeuct and Nearchus served as Roman soldiers, queer theologian Marcella Althaus-Reid, gay black Harvard minister Peter Gomes preached "scandalous gospel,” latest LGBTQ Christian books.
  • JL News Feb 2015  (2/8/2015)
  • Top LGBT spiritual arts stories of 2014, Queer Clergy Trading Cards, Je Suis Charlie. queer black Jesus icon by David Hayward, Saint Sebastian, Saint Brigid and Darlughdach, Holocaust Remembrance, Beloved Disciple John the Evangelist, David Kato, and David and Jonathan.
  • JL News Xmas 2014 / Jan 2015  (12/24/2014)
  • Merry Christmas with minimalist Nativity scene, queer holiday cheer, Lazarus, Ruth and Naomi, Bridge of Light ceremony honors LGBT culture on New Year's Eve, three kings or three queens on Epiphany.
  • JL News December 2014  (12/14/2014)
  • Top 25 LGBT Christian books of 2014, LGBTIQ scholars meet at American Academy of Religion, AIDS saints Vivaldo and Bartolo, queer art showing Our Lady of Guadalupe, John of the Cross, book video for "The Passion of Christ: A Gay Vision."
  • JL News November 2014  (11/20/2014)
  • Alan Turing pilgrimage by artist Tony O'Connell, Mexico's Dance of the 41 Queers, Facebook censors gay Passion of Christ book, why we need LGBT saints, St. Malachy of Armaugh, LGBTIQ guide to American Academy of Religion / Society of Biblical Literature annual meeting (AAR - SBL)
  • Passion Book Announcement  (10/16/2014)
  • JL News October 2014  (10/15/2014)
  • Gay Passion of Christ book published, modern gay martyr Matthew Shepard, paired saint Sergius and Bacchus, 19th-century lesbian saint Vida Dutton Scudder, Francis of Assisi’s queer side revealed, medieval nuns Hildegard of Bingen and Richardis, Henri Nouwen struggled with his homosexuality, Africa’s lesbian martyr FannyAnn Eddy, Good (Gay?) King Wenceslas,. 1000th newsletter subscriber.
  • JL News September 2014  (9/14/2014)
  • Radclyffe Hall's queer Christianity in her life and 1928 novel “The Well of Loneliness.” Gay saint of 9/11 Mychal Judge, Mel White stands for LGBT justice at National Council of Churches, black gay civil rights leader Bayard Rustin, Mary’s Feast of Assumption has lesbian goddess roots, Blessed John Henry Newman’s romantic friendship with priest Ambrose St. John, Black Madonna becomes lesbian defender: Erzuli Dantor and Our Lady of Czestochowa, love between Saints Bernard of Clairvaux and Malachy, Christ and Krishna.
  • JL News August 2014  (8/9/2014)
  • Blessed John of La Verna (medieval Italian friar kissed by Jesus), queer Jesus poem by Louie Clay (ne Louie Crew), "Art That Dares" on Advocate.com, Mary and Martha as lesbian couple, Jacob wrestling with angel symbolizes sexuality struggles, bearded holy woman Wilgefortis, Russian saints Boris and George, Baroque artist Artemisia Gentileschi paints strong Biblical women, artist David Wojnarowicz mixed gay and Christian imagery, Holy fool Symeon of Emesa and John
  • JL News July 2014  (7/9/2014)
  • Rainbow Crucifix and Rainbow Madonna by Richard Stott, Rainbow Christ Prayer goes nationwide, queer 1776 preacher Jemima Wilkinson reborn as Public Universal Friend, UpStairs Lounge fire martyrs recalled in new film etc, queer saint Pauli Murray
  • JL News June 2014  (6/3/2014)
  • Uganda Martyrs, LGBT Pride / saints of Stonewall, Joan of Arc, religious role of gay bars described in new book "Baby You Are My Religion" by Marie Cartier
  • JL News May 2014  (5/15/2014)
  • Homosexuality of Jesus explored by 18th-century philosopher Jeremy Bentham, Madre Juana de la Cruz as genderbending saint of 16th-century Spain, Sacred Heart icon of bearded drag queen Conchita Wurst, Julian of Norwich celebrates "Mother Jesus," Easter photo of MCC founder Troy Perry and Jesus in Love founder Kittredge Cherry
  • JL News, Easter 2014  (4/20/2014)
  • JL News April 2014  (4/13/2014)
  • Gay Passion of Christ series begins on Palm Sunday, mystical same-sex marriage affirmed in Renaissance art, black Jesus appears in liberating Way of the Cross, Jesus heals a centurion’s boyfriend, Kuan Yin as a queer Buddhist Christ figure, lesbian poet Adrienne Rich, LGBT Stations of the Cross by Mary Button
  • JL News March 2014  (3/12/2014)
  • Art museums explore queer Christian themes ("In His Own Likeness" in Florida and "Sinful Saints" in Los Angeles), remembering queer theologian Marcella Althaus-Reid, LGBT martyrs rise on Ash Wednesday, Brian Day poetry book explores "lust for the holy." Peter Gomes, Saints Polyeuct and Nearchus
  • JL News Feb 2014  (2/12/2014)
  • Top 10 stories of 2013, spiritual art supports Russian LGBT people during Olympics, 3 recent deaths (Robert Nugent, Otis Charles and Mark Shirilau), Saint Sebastian, Saint Brigid and Darlughdach, Holocaust Remembrance, Beloved Disciple John the Evangelist, David Kato, and David and Jonathan.
  • JL News Xmas 2013 / Jan 2014  (12/24/2013)
  • Christmas chant honors Christ the bridegroom: Cum ortus fuerit sol de Caelo; Some children see Him queer or gay: New rainbow version of Christmas carol "Some Children See Him," queer Nativity debate, Queer Lady of Guadalupe, Lazarus as Jesus' beloved disciple, Ruth and Naomi, John of the Cross
  • JL News Dec 2013  (12/8/2013)
  • Gay Israeli artist Adi Nes humanizes Bible stories, queer Advent, cartoon on how LGBT people know God loves us, mystical marriage of Bernardo de Hoyos, World AIDS Day, Harvey Milk, gay and lesbian Nativity cards, list of Christmas favorites
  • JL News Nov 2013  (11/7/2013)
  • Photos of same-sex kisses in church censored (Gonzalo Orquin), All Saints Day, Bible and homosexuality, lesbian saint and teacher Vida Dutton Scudder, same-sex soulmate St. Malachy of Armagh
  • JL News Oct 2013  (10/7/2013)
  • Sergius and Bacchus, queer creation, Francis of Assisi' queer side, Hildegard of Bingen and Richardis, Henri Nouwen's gay struggle, Rumi insipred by another man
  • JL News Sept 2013  (9/12/2013)
  • Gay artist Richard Stott paints "Intimacy with Christ," Saints Bernard of Clairvaux and Malachy, Proud Jesus blesses LGBT Pride parades, gay saint of 9/11 Mychal Judge, John Henry Newman and Ambrose St. John, lesbian goddess roots of Mary's Feast of the Assumption, civil rights champion Bayard Rustin, Christ and Krishna
  • JL News August 2013  (8/4/2013)
  • Black Madonna and lesbian defender Erzulie Dantor, gay Russian saints Boris and George, Wojnarowicz art and religion, LGBT resurrection by Mary Button, new translator at Santos Queer, bearded woman saint Wilgefortis
  • JL News July 2013  (7/6/2013)
  • Queer religious art list resource list: (Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Paganism), UpStairs Lounge fire 40 years later, Pauli Murray (queer saint and first black woman ordained as an Episcopal priest), Saint Symeon and John (holy fool and hermit who loved each other), Jemima Wilkinson (queer preacher reborn in 1776 as “Publick Universal Friend”)
  • JL News June 2013  (6/5/2013)
  • Will Roscoe on Jesus and the shamanic tradition of same-sex love, cross-dressing painter Rosa Bonheur honors "androgyne Christ," Hidden Perspectives interviews Kittredge Cherry on LGBT religion, Adam and Steve welcome marriage equality, Joan of Arc, Rainbow Christ Prayer, Julian of Norwich
  • JL News May 2013  (5/2/2013)
  • Photos of LGBT saints today by Tony O'Connell, LGBT vs Christian cartoon by Carlos Latuff for Day Against Homophobia, LGBT Litany, Christina Rossetti, Sor Juana de la Cruz, new books
  • JL News Easter / April 2013  (3/31/2013)
  • Happy Easter, gay Passion of Christ series ends when Jesus rises and appears to Mary, marriage equality vigil, queer Buddhist Christ figure Kuan Yin, lesbian poet Adrienne Rich
  • JL News: Palm Sunday 2013   (3/24/2013)
  • Gay Passion of Christ paintings by Douglas Blanchard with text by Kittredge Cherry, LGBT Stations of the Cross by Mary Button, right-wing rants against queer Christ
  • JL News Mar 2013  (3/2/2013)
  • Artist Ria Brodell paints history's butch heroes, queer martyrs rise on Ash Wednesday, Polyeuct and Nearchus, Queen Esther, new books
  • JL News Feb 2013  (2/9/2013)
  • Top 10 LGBT spiritual arts stories of 2012, LGBT clergy at Inauguration, Saint Sebastian, Lesbian Virgin Mary poster protested in Croatia, Beloved Disciple, Holocaust Remembrance with pink triangle art, Brigid and Darlughdach, David and Jonathan, Ugandan LGBT maryr David Kato
  • JL News Xmas 2012 / Jan 2013  (12/24/2012)
  • Queer baby Jesus, gay Nativity in Columbia, artist Eric Martin paints naked young man from Mark's gospel, John of the Cross, ad shows Pope blessing same-sex marriage, Bridge of Light holiday for New Year
  • JL News December 2012  (12/4/2012)
  • Divine lesbian art by Verlena Johnson, Advent, blasphemy charges for Greek gay Jesus play, Top 20 gay Jesus books, gay King Wenceslas, mystical same-sex marriage of Bernardo de Hoyos, queer Christmas gift ideas
  • JL News November 2012  (11/1/2012)
  • More LGBTQ saints added for All Saints Day, LGBTQ guide to American Academy of Religion - Society of Biblical Studies meeting, Cardinal John Henry Newman loved Ambrose St. John, Angela Yarber paints portrait of Kittredge Cherry, gay martyrs Sergius & Bacchus, We Wha of Zuni, Jesus in Love's 7th anniversary
  • JL News October 2012  (10/4/2012)
  • Queer Saint Francis of Assisi, Henri Nouwen struggles with his homosexuality, Dr. Hildegard of Bingen loved women, Jesus in rainbow shroud, Rumi inspired by same-sex love, Leviticus and religion-based violence
  • JL News September 2012  (9/3/2012)
  • Tony De Carlo's art (gay saints, Adam and Steve, marriage equality), gay Christ by Latuff, gay civil-rights saint Bayard Rustin, Mary's lesbian goddess roots
  • Kittredge Cherry Update, Sept 2012  (9/25/2012)
  • Sample issue of KC Update, a monthly e-newsletter with timely reflections on LGBT spirituality and art plus a report on her latest activities. KC Update is available only to paid subscribers for $25 per month.
  • JL News August 2012  (8/2/2012)
  • Queer grace with art by Felicia Follum, marriage of Jesus and Freddie Mercury by Mr. Fish, Pauli Murray voted into sainthood, blasphemy charge from Americans for Truth, queer saints Wilgefortis, Boris & George, Artemisia Gentileschi
  • July 2012  (7/1/2012)
  • Queer saint for Independence Day: Jemima Wilkinson was reborn in 1776 as “Publick Universal Friend,” Rainbow Christ Prayer by Kittredge Cherry and Patrick Cheng, cartoon shows Jesus walking on dangerous waters carrying LGBT kid, my first LGBT Pride march
  • June 2012  (6/6/2012)
  • Stonewall paintings by Sandow Birk, Sweden's first LGBT altar by Elisbeth Ohlson Wallin, resurrection images from Gay Passion of Christ with art by Doug Blanchard and text by Kittredge Cherry, 2 new gay Jesus books, Joan of Arc, LGBT Pride prayers
  • May 2012  (5/3/2012)
  • Ethiopian eunuch shows early church welcomed queers, gay teen wins right to wear "Jesus is not a homophobe" shirt on Day of Silence, lesbian poet Christina Rossetti, gay Jesus makes news in the Guardian, Sor Juana de la Cruz loved a countess
  • Easter 2012  (4/8/2012)
  • Happy Easter with Queer Resurrection by Andrew Craig Wiliams, Gay Passion of Christ series by Douglas Blanchard ends, Queer Christ article in Huffington Post by Kittredge Cherry -- and conservative attacks on it
  • April 2012  (4/1/2012)
  • Gay Passion of Christ series with art by Douglas Blanchard and new text by Kittredge Cherry, gay Jesus kiss behind the scenes at "Corpus Christi," Queens Esther and Vashti, gay centurion, new queer Christ book by Patrick Cheng
  • March 2012  (3/1/2012)
  • Angela Yarber paints holy lesbian icons and other women, "Most Fabulous Story Ever Told" protested, executions for sodomy, closeted Jesus in "Dark Knowledge," Polyeuct and Nearchus, St. Valentine: marriage-equality role model
  • February 2012  (2/3/2012)
  • Top 10 LGBT spiritual arts stories of 2011, police investigate attack on gay / lesbian Nativity scene at California church, Ugandan LGBT rights activist David Kato remembered one year later, St. Brigid and her female soulmate, Kittredge Cherry starts writing for Huffington Post
  • Christmas 2011 / New Years 2012  (12/24/2011)
  • Christmas greetings, LGBT Nativity contest, queer saints on Huffington Post, Clinton tells UN that gay rights are human rights, Bridge of Light LGBT New Year ceremony
  • December 2011  (12/7/2011)
  • History's gay couples by artist Ryan Grant Long, mystical same-sex marriage of Blessed Bernardo de Hoyos and Jesus, LGBT Nativity contest, LGBTQ guide to American Academy of Religion
  • November 2011  (11/1/2011)
  • All Saints Day reflection on why we need LGBT saints, new LGBT spirituality resource pages, All Saints / All Souls memorial, author Hartman on gay Jesus, We'wha of Zuni (two-spirit Native American)
  • October 2011  (10/7/2011)
  • Sergius and Bacchus in new art, Rumi inspired by same-sex love, Tyler Clementi and bullying of LGBT youth, Hildegard of Bingen, Francis of Assisi
  • September 2011  (9/10/2011)
  • Gay saint of 9/11 Mychal Judge, civil-rights hero Bayard Rustin, Mary's lesbian-goddess roots with Artemis, Cardinal John Henry Newman, innovative icons.
  • August 2011  (8/6/2011)
  • Gay angel weeping and other art by Wes Hempel, conservatives attack our lesbian/gay Nativity scenes, same-sex marriage saints Boris and George, Artemisia Gentileschi paints strong Biblical women, Jacob wrestling, Mary Magdalene
  • July 2011  (7/6/2011)
  • Sensuous gay saints by artist Ted Fusby, blasphemy charges against Our Lady by Alma Lopez, John McNeill and LGBTs vs. the Vatican, reimagining God the Father.
  • June 2011  (6/7/2011)
  • Lady Gaga's queer spirituality, gay priest John McNeill shakes up Rome, Joan of Arc, Hunky Jesus contest, Pentecost, saints of Stonewall, LGBT pride prayers and hymns
  • May 2011  (5/8/2011)
  • Julian of Norwich celebrates Mother Jesus, Holocaust remembrance, Gay Passion of Christ series climax.
  • Easter 2011  (4/24/2011)
  • Gay Passion of Christ series (art by Douglas Blanchard, text by Kittredge Cherry), Easter videos
  • April 2011  (4/8/2011)
  • Gay Passion of Christ series, female Christa, queer martyrs rise from ashes
  • March 2011  (3/4/2011)
  • Erotic Christ interview with Hunter Flournoy, Bible's "Unprotected Texts" on sex, LGBT affirming poetry contest, Saints Polyeuct and Nearchus
  • February 2011  (2/8/2011)
  • Top LGBT spiritual arts stories of 2010, Uganda's gay martyr David Kato, Queer Lady of Guadalupe, Smithsonian censorship, acrobats strip for Pope
  • Christmas 2010  (12/24/2010)
  • December 2010  (12/2/2010)
  • Rethinking Sin and Grace for LGBT People: Liberator Christ and Out Christ, LGBT Jerusalem photos, protests end queer Jesus exhibit in Spain, banned photo of gay Christ, gay King Wenceslas, Christmas video message brings hope
  • November 2010  (11/1/2010)
  • LGBT-friendly memorial for All Saints All Souls, It Gets Better video for LGBT youth, inclusive art built from anti-gay DVDs, LGBT church history photos, Sally Gearhart on fighting the right with love, Saints Sergius and Bacchus, blog birthday, gay and lesbian Nativity scene cards, holiday gift ideas
  • October 2010  (10/4/2010)
  • St. Francis with Islamic sultan and gay Jesus, church fires artist for transforming anti-gay DVD, John Henry Newman's queer path to sainthood, Dirk Vanden's gay Jesus vision, Hildegard of Bingen's love for women, pet portraits, memorial candles
  • September 2010  (9/2/2010)
  • Krishna and Christ, Queer disciples in the Bible, Pride photo with gay Jesus sign, women's spirituality art book by Janet McKenzie, gay saint of 9/11 Mychal Judge
  • August 2010  (8/5/2010)
  • Ex-gay movement as genocide, To Anne Rice: You can be pro-gay AND Christian, St. Wilgefortis (bearded woman), St. Boris and George, Mary and Martha: sisters or lesbian couple?
  • July 2010  (7/9/2010)
  • Queer spiritual art in Tikkun magazine, saints of Stonewall, If Jesus Were Gay poems, LGBT Pride songs and prayers, Hands around the God Box
  • June 2010  (6/4/2010)
  • How to unite sexuality and spirituality, Jesus has male lover in Marien Revelation, International Day Against Homophobia, transgressing gender in the Bible, spirit-centered male nudes by Peter Grahame
  • May, 2010  (5/1/2010)
  • Black lesbian prayers and art, gay Holocaust, Mexican nun who loved a countess (Sor Juana), Houston Chronicle gay Jesus interview, is this a sexy Jesus?
  • Easter 2010  (4/4/2010)
  • Happy Easter, Foreplay to Eternity prayer, Kuan Yin as androgynous spirit of compassion
  • April 2010  (4/1/2010)
  • GLBT Holy Week series, Sts. Perpetua and Felicity, AIDS crucifixion, Twitter
  • March 2010  (3/2/2010)
  • Paintings honor gay martyrs, lesbians infiltrate anti-gay church in documentary, homoerotic Jesus poems, Sts. Polyeuct & Nearchus, great sermon says "We ARE light"
  • February 2010  (2/1/2010)
  • Top GLBT spiritual art stories of 2009, St. Brigid & Darlughdach, blasphemy charge aids queer Jesus photo project, Epiphany, David & Jonathan, 2009 fundraising goal met
  • Christmas 2009  (12/24/2009)
  • Good (gay?) King Wenceslas, GLBT nativity video, Xmas excerpt from new trans Jesus play, Jesus tells Xmas story to animals, lesbian Madonna art
  • JL News, Dec 2009  (12/1/2009)
  • World AIDS Day, Advent, 300 protest transsexual Jesus play, Harvey Milk, Thanksgiving
  • JL News, Nov 2009  (11/4/2009)
  • Noah's gay wedding cruise, erotic encounter with the divine, Equality March video, transvestite Jesus, Saints Sergius and Bacchus, animal blessing, gay-friendly Jesus billboards
  • JL News, Sept 2009  (9/11/2009)
  • Gay saint of 9/11, National Equality March video, Jesus as lover, Mary's ecstasy, queer poem, cool new T-shirts, $185 needed, new books
  • JL News, Summer 2009  (7/1/2009)
  • Comic video jests about gay Jesus, Ruth and Naomi painting, "Jesus Never Married" poster, same-sex marriage not new, Eros & Christ series starts soon
  • JL News, April 2009  (4/5/2009)
  • Easter video with wildflowers, Gay Holy Week series, gay Passion photos by Recker, lesbian poet laureate, reflection on love and loss
  • JL News, Feb 2009  (2/10/2009)
  • Erotic angel art, video valentine on same-sex marriage, gay bishop prays at inauguration, Prayers for Bobby, Milk & coming out, Ted Haggard, gay Holy Week, new books & DVDs
  • Special alert: AltXmasArt, Dec 2008  (12/25/2008)
  • Alternative Christmas Art (all 12 images), top 5 stories of 2008.
  • JL News, Dec 2008  (12/1/2008)
  • Protests for same-sex marriage, AltXmasArt (alternative Christmas art), AIDS art, GLBT history, video faves based on Bible, donors honored, holiday gift idea
  • JL News, Oct 2008  (10/1/2008)
  • God politics art, GLBT Buddhists, lesbian folksinger, Jesus novels
  • JL News, Aug 2008  (8/12/2008)
  • Gay spirituality vs everybody spirituality, nursing Madonna, homoerotic Jesus T-shirt
  • JL News, July 2008  (7/9/2008)
  • Gay artist paints inspiring Jesus, Polish coming-out guide, gay pride march, video of 2 queer authors
  • JL News, June 2008  (6/5/2008)
  • Lammy Awards, funny gay Jesus music video, gay marriage stamp censored, video of Kitt Cherry on glbt Christian art, new glbt books
  • JL News, May 2008  (5/3/2008)
  • Austria censors gay Last Supper, Join Kitt at Lammy finalist reading 5/8, A lesbian Christian visits Israel, Art That Dares up for award, new glbt spirituality titles
  • JL News, April 2008  (4/8/2008)
  • Lammy finalists, Black Jesus & Obama, Kitt does reading May 8, Gay Easter bonnets, Holy Week blog, Top 5 glbt arts books
  • Special Alert: Holy Week readings  (3/16/2008)
  • A queer version of Christ’s Passion covers Palm Sunday, the Last Supper and the 1st Easter.
  • JL News, March 2008  (3/5/2008)
  • Gay Mohammad art, Queer Christian art in Tikkun, Video prayer by author, Holy Week blog, At the Cross on sale
  • JL News, Feb 2008  (2/4/2008)
  • "At the Cross" is published, Conservatives blast Christmas card, see video of progressive spiritual fest
  • JL News, Jan 2008  (1/12/2008)
  • 2007's top 5 stories, Happy new year video, Queering the Last Supper, Sex & spirit mix on German book cover
  • JL News, Dec 2007  (12/7/2007)
  • Gay Jesus art sparks violence in Sweden, See new videos on glbt rights, Give "Art That Dares" for Christmas, New vision statement

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