tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2722447614945782871.post7745212804775775635..comments2023-09-12T11:31:20.729-05:00Comments on Straight-Friendly: Get Right, ChurchTimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01271248501086241494noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2722447614945782871.post-88889912781976614122011-01-10T20:27:40.383-06:002011-01-10T20:27:40.383-06:00Closeted Christians! It's so true--not just in...Closeted Christians! It's so true--not just in Canada, but around the world. <br /><br />There was this moment in gay history, after the big "We're here, we're queer, get over it!" splash in the Seventies, when LGBT people started finding one another in typically closeted places, like work and church, social get-togethers and so on. Coming out shifted from "Mom, Dad, there's something we need to talk about" to friends and neighbors saying things like, "Wow! You know it crossed my mind, but you hid it so well I couldn't be sure. I was so afraid of offending you, I decided not to bring it up."<br /><br />We had also embraced the slogan "We're everywhere"--with it's unspoken subtext: "You just don't know it." Then we realized how little <i>we knew</i> about dozens of gay folks quietly living around us. It was marvelous! So reassuring and energizing. It was, I think, the moment when our community matured and blossomed. <br /><br />Before that, most of us were content to let the "heroes" do the "living openly" thing. You'd hear comments like, "It's easy for activists and artists and drag queens and so on to do that. They travel in different circles. There's little at risk for them." After which would come, "But it's a lot harder for me, because I'm a teacher... lawyer... doctor... policewoman... fill in the blank." And we said these things in the seclusion of our enclaves, where we could be "out" once we crossed their thresholds. In wider settings, however, such things weren't discussed--even among friends who frequented gay spots together--for fear they'd offend or might be overheard and we'd be outed without our permission. <br /><br />Once people from less "gay-friendly" walks of life began stepping up, though, it blew the doors off of so many closets! We reclaimed an earlier moniker, "People like us," which we'd shortened to "PLU" as a flag-phrase for those we suspected might be gay. The inhibited discretion associated with "PLU" anonymity vanished and it became a badge of honor. We were becoming what soon was proudly known as The Rainbow Nation. <br /><br />Before this turning, coming out was either a matter of cultural defiance--vestiges of which we see in the jubilantly flamboyant (yet no longer stridently "political") dress and behavior at Pride parades--or, once AIDS swept our camp, impossibility to hide. The two dynamics, confrontation and consequence, merged into what we now have: confidence.<br /><br />And, Grant, as I reflect on your astute parallel, I'm astounded. The modern/post-modern Church does indeed appear to be traveling the same arc. We've let those lead who had less to lose by coming out--e.g., unschooled and working-class believers whose flamboyance drew widespread derision, particularly from closeted Christians who confined their faith identities to congregational enclaves. Next came those struggling with personal duress like addiction recovery, sickness, or emotional instability; when their issues reached a place where they overwhelmed their everyday lives, they confessed their faith openly because candor became critical to their survival. Again, within the enclave, we'd hear, "His drinking got so bad he couldn't hide. It makes sense that he'd tell everyone he's found Christ. But I'm a teacher, lawyer, doctor..."<br /><br />Thus the stage is set for closeted believers to shirk we're-everywhere-you-just-can't-see-us and start finding each other <i>outside</i> the enclaves--the walls we've been hiding inside, as you point out. We need to reclaim <i>our</i> PLU as a badge of honor. Then we will become The Righteous Nation God calls for!<br /><br />And here I've gone and nearly written a new post. But your comment was so clearly apt I couldn't help passing on what flashed before my eyes the instant I read it. Thank you for this!<br /><br />Have a most blessed, joyful New Year, Grant.<br /><br />Peace,<br />TimTimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01271248501086241494noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2722447614945782871.post-76295557077299125922011-01-10T10:55:58.479-06:002011-01-10T10:55:58.479-06:00Wow! Lately I've been reading Greg Boyd (Myth ...Wow! Lately I've been reading Greg Boyd (Myth of a Christian Nation / Religion), and Trocme and Wink regarding Jesus and non-violence. Also D. Bell (Just War As Christian Discipline)...<br /><br />No matter which way the problems need to be addressed, there is a common theme ...Church needs to step up and be the church.<br /><br />In my country (Canada), part of this "getting right" is to take a page from the gay community and come out of the closet. We've been hiding inside church walls (literally & figuratively) for too long.Grantnoreply@blogger.com