On June 24, 1973, an arsonist attacked the Upstairs Lounge in New Orleans, Louisiana. The space was full of members of the local Metropolitan Community Church gathered to celebrate the last night of Pride Weekend. When the fire broke out, the bars on the windows kept most people from escaping. As onlookers made jokes, MCC Pastor Rev. Bill Larson burned to death hanging out of a small opening screaming, “Oh, God, no!” When the flames subsided, 32 people were... Read more
*Preached at Metropolitan Community Church of Greater Dallas on 6/21/15 Less than a week ago, a young man entered a bible study at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina. For over an hour, the group communed around the word of God. In that hour, the people of Mother Emanuel illustrated the love of God in their warm embrace of the stranger in their midst. When Dylann Roof opened fire, he declared, “I have to do this.” I... Read more
*Living Faith Covenant Church on 6/19/15 Many years ago, I received a phone call that no one would ever want to receive. My father informed me that my uncle had committed suicide. His next request was unfathomable. I need you to go and tell your grandparents before they find out from someone else. When I walked into the house, my grandparents knew that something was wrong. I managed to get out that my uncle had shot himself and... Read more
“Tragedy amplifies our desperate desire to hear a word from God. In the midst of suffocating times, sojourners gathered last night and placed their ears to the sky. As a testament to their love, the group welcomed a stranger. When the shots rang out, the nine souls of Mother Emanuel AME Church heard the beautiful comforting of words of God, ‘Let not your hearts be troubled…’ As we hear the echoes of last night, may we not forget that... Read more
Conversations around southern dinner tables are always colorful. One Sunday, I remember sitting with my family to talk about the sudden departure of one of the leaders of our Southern Baptist church. I didn’t understand what was being said at first. Throughout the course of dinner, I slowly began to realize that he got banished because he liked men. I had a feeling he wasn’t alone. I experienced attraction to men in high school. I thought about going to... Read more
The lifeless body hung by a rope. Tears streamed down my face. I couldn’t believe I was crying. I thought I was watching the execution of a murderous tyrant. I tuned in to celebrate. Why was I crying? Everything in my cultural context told me that I was supposed to be overjoyed at the execution of Saddam Hussein. I wasn’t. I couldn’t figure out what was going on. Something happened to me. After a few more moments of tears... Read more
Jesus was giving a talk at a local hotspot when a couple of pastors showed up. Unable to stomach the words they were hearing, the pastors demanded, “This all sounds like new age mumbo jumbo. What are you really saying? What is the core of your message?” Slowly moving toward the questioners, Jesus replied, “Those of you who think you are religious especially need to listen up. God is God. We are to love God with all that we are.... Read more
How far would you go? How far would you go for liberation? How far would you go to save lives? Followers of Jesus are called to go all the way. How could anyone go that far? Jesus shows the way. “I was hungry…” “I was thirsty…” “I was a stranger…” “I was in prison…” In naming a variety of oppressions, Jesus illustrates that responding to oppression is about becoming something. In the incarnation... Read more
*This is the fourth installment of my weekly theological conversations with my summer intern, Christian Parks. C: What is the purpose of the Holy Spirit? J: The magical Holy Spirit is the great queerer. Blurring our identities, the Holy Spirit guides us into deeper being. In deeper spaces of being, we learn to be exactly who and what God has created us to be. I believe that the Holy Spirit is working throughout the world to draw us... Read more
I don’t trust people or institutions to connect me to God. I believe that the journey to God is ours alone. There is only one force that can manifest generosity, love and justice in our lives…God. The soul alone is competent in matters of God or righteousness. I first learned about the doctrine of soul competency in the writings of Southern Baptist theologian Dr. E.Y. Mullins. Since encountering the doctrine at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, I have clung... Read more
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