Coming Out Strong

Tuesday was quite the night. I found my way to Grant Park (coveted tickets for the official campaign event in hand) and joined the crowd of a hundred thousand gathered to scream, cry, hug, and jump our way into a new spirit of hopefulness that is solidifying around us.

Besides Obama?s victory, there was another vote that meant a lot to me on Tuesday, and left a lingering bittersweetness to the otherwise perfect night: Proposition 8 amended the California constitution to define legal marriage as exclusive to opposite-sex couples, overturning the decision of the Supreme Court and ending the right of California same-sex couples to the legal protections of marriage for the near future.

Initial reaction: rage. I found someone who expressed this very very well:

Ultimately, though, rage against injustice must energize something else, something life-affirming.

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Among the highlights of the BMC conference in San Francisco at the beginning of July were three wonderful presentations by Carol Wise, Jay Johnson, and Sheri Hostetler. These are now available at the BMC website. They are inspiring and challenging and it would be well worth your time to check them out. For a little context, the theme of the conference was For Just Such a Time: Living Out the Call and the scripture for the weekend was the book of Esther.

On Dignity and Queens: Esther 1

Carol Wise is the Executive Director of BMC and is also my boss. Carol spoke on Saturday. Carol graduated from Iliff School of Theology.

Beyond Apology and Tolerance: Queer Gifts in Our Own Backyard
The keynote address on Saturday evening was given by the Rev. Jay E. Johnson, Ph.D. Johnson is on the faculty at Pacific School of Religion, and the Acting Executive Director of the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry in Berkeley. He has published articles on the intersections of spirituality and Christian theology, as well as his 2005 book, Dancing with God: Anglican Christianity and the Practice of Hope. Jay is an Episcopal priest, and serves the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in Berkeley.

Becoming the Subject of Our Lives
Sheri Hostetler, pastor of First Mennonite Church of an Francisco, spoke during worship on Sunday. Sheri, a graduate of the Episcopal Divinity School, has been the pastor at First Mennonite Church for seven years. She has been a long-time advocate for LGBT inclusion in the church. Sheri is also a poet and a contributor to A Cappella: Mennonite Voices in Poetry.