By Rev. Elder Nancy Wilson

Reading the Bible with "New Eyes"
Most modern gay men and lesbians are either afraid of the Bible or unfamiliar with its content, thinking that the Bible has only bad news for them. While it is true that the Bible was written in the context of patriarchal, heterosexist cultures, the message and story of God's unconditional love in Christ can be the "power of salvation" for gays and lesbians as well as for heterosexuals.

By Rev. Mona West, Ph.D 

Lesbians and gay men face discrimination because of societal attitudes. Unfortunately, these attitudes are often taught by churches and, sadly, the Bible is frequently used as a weapon to “bash” lesbians and gays. It is important to remember that such hurtful things are not a reflection of Christ, or the way God wants the church to be, or even what the Bible really says.

Only a small number of passages in the entire Bible reference same-sex sexual activity (six out of sixty-six books of the entire Bible). 

By Rev. Mona West, Ph.D.

A sacrament is an act that mediates the grace and mystery of God.  Coming out is a sacrament for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender (GLBT) people of faith because it sets us on a lifelong path of manifesting God’s grace in our lives.  Coming out is crucial to our spiritual development because it starts us on a journey of integrating our GLBT identity into our whole life.  Or to say it another way: embracing our GLBT identity is an invitation to go deeper in our spiritual journey.

By Rev. Mona West, Ph. D.

In recent years there has been an increased interest in spirituality.  Today people have a variety of ways to address spiritual matters, some of which include: therapy, self-help books, workshops, retreat centers, twelve-step groups, meditation, exercise, and rituals.  As a result of these various practices specific spiritualities are being manifested by groups with common histories, cultures, experiences, and ethnicities.  Some of these have been named “Feminist Spirituality,” “Women’s Spirituality,” “Men’s Spirituality,” and “Native American Spirituality.”

Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender people have a unique history as spiritual people and our expressions of spirituality are being manifested in powerful and healing ways today.  Those expressions are known as “Queer Spirituality.”

By Rev. Mona West, Ph.D.

The Bible is a powerful book. What is more important to realize is that interpretations of the Bible are just as powerful. New Testament scholar, Mary Ann Tolbert, points out that every interpretation of a text in the Bible is a combination of the stories themselves and the interests, commitments, and beliefs of the person or groups reading the stories.