This is part 2 of a serious of articles I am writing about my deep commitment to my LGBTQ+ children’s well-being, my growing commitment to the LGBTQ+ community, and my spirituality of faith which leans in a traditional direction towards Eastern Rite Catholicism, not a conservative direction. If you look at my Facebook page, you will find Democratic Socialist politics and a commitment to marginalized communities. And I proudly support the separation of Church and State, the bodily autonomy of... Read more

I admit it; I’m a complete and total Church nerd and also a lover of family life, traditions, and celebrations. Even moreso, I’m a sucker for ancient Church liturgies, hymns, and traditions, and particularly Eastern rites. I even attended a year of Catholic lay seminary. Appreciation for all religious traditions who are striving for love, justice, mercy, and equality is also part of my spiritual life. I do not appreciate religion when it causes harm and excludes people which religion... Read more

About a year ago, my faith in God was tinkering on the edge of agnosticism. For someone who has spent all of my life in the church attending regularly, all of my life praising and thanking God, and spending a year in seminary, it’s difficult to believe that my faith in God/Jesus struggled that much. A few major factors contributed. One was the betrayal of white American Church aligning with Trump and MAGA starting in 2015. I have spoken in... Read more

I want to talk about John McCain for a minute. Looking back and understanding that I was a partially-closeted Democrat when John McCain ran for president in 2008, I observed the reactions from various people towards him. I cannot think of anyone who served our country more honorably in our armed forces than John McCain. This man was an American politician and naval officer who represented Arizona in the United States Congress for over 35 years, first as a U.S.... Read more

I’m having a very very difficult time accepting the truth of this meme. Maybe some of you in the majority feel the same way I do. Before Trump, I genuinely thought nearly all people were good people. As Tim Walz says, most Republicans and most Democrats are good people. I still believe he is correct, but the people in the 30 to 40% in the meme are not the people I want to admit. The percentage may be closer to... Read more

I want to elaborate on this meme shared from an old high school classmate. I grew up in Austin and raised my family in San Antonio. Until the last 6 years, I realized that my cultural, faith, and political lens were definitely in line with the Hispanic Catholic community. The Hispanic Catholic community is quite progressive in the areas of poverty, healthcare, racial equality, and immigration. However, they are more conservative when it comes to anything related to a patriarchal... Read more

I was born in 1971, so I am 54 years old. When the presidential debates of Reagan and Bush were occurring in 1980, this is who they were. Reagan and Bush would have been booted out of today’s Republican party. I was born into a very conservative Republican family in Texas. It takes a while for a person like me to grow and see the full scope of issues. Now that I understand the dangers of trickle-down economics starting in... Read more

I’m a former lifelong Republican who left the GOP and became a Democrat when Trump came along, and I am a lifelong Christian who is still a Person of Faith but a much more progressive one who shifted further left politically during the Trump era. I have personally met many religious people who have done the same because the MAGA regime goes against the core teaching to love our neighbor as ourselves which every major world religion teaches. At this... Read more

I’m sure many of you have been experiencing similar feelings and emotions that I’ve been feeling through during these dark times of Trumpism and MAGA. The most difficult feelings for me are ones of betrayal, not as much towards myself as an individual but against fellow neighbors, communities, and humanity itself. People who I once thought were decent people or at least semi-decent people have either changed, or they were always this hateful and bigoted. I never thought they would... Read more

If someone were to tell me that I would travel from a conservative corner of Christianity starting ten years ago to a trans-affirming mainstream Methodist church ten years later, I would not have believed it. It is one thing for a church to officiate gay weddings. It’s a totally different matter for a church to fully embrace and affirm transgender people. It is a unique finding for many communities in Texas, particularly religious communities. The trans-affirming church is an oasis... Read more