It took a little bit of work, but I found the following blogs: 

christianandqueer, churchofthequeer, queerly-christian, asexualchristian, bisexualchristian

Just so you know, I visited each one of them to make sure that they are actually safe spaces for queer people of faith. I’m actually glad you asked this; I think I’ll start a section on my blog roll for blogs of this nature. Not just for Christians, but for other faith- and spiritual-based blogs.

I hope this helps!

I do, actually. I was raised as a Missouri Synod Lutheran, but I found that a lot of the teachings were hurtful and, frankly, unpalatable. I fell away from faith for a long time, but I’ve come back to God on my own terms. I consider myself a rogue Christian. I don’t attend worship services, but I talk to God nearly every day, either in prayer or just conversationally. 

One of the big issues I had with a major tenet of Christianity, this Lord’s Prayer, is that there is no part of it that thanks God. It’s a very gimme gimme kind of prayer, and that always bugged me. So, I thank God for a lot of things, mostly little stuff like rainbows, sunsets, or moments of peace in a hectic day. I’m a theistic evolutionist, and that was what really helped me marry my understanding of the scientific world with my faith; ironically, I learned about theistic evolution in a youth Bible studies group that was condemning it. When I went through confirmation, I started down a path of obsessive evangelizing and rampant homophobia (and, consequently, internalized biphobia). I’ve lost friends because of the person that I was, and so I’ve dedicated myself to being an advocate and an activist for LGBT+ issues, to make up for the asshole that was past me.

God (in His numerous forms) and I are cool; I’m just not thrilled with his fan club.

As some of you may know, June kicks off the Pride season in most of the world (Vancouver pride is August 3), and this year I felt a little (very) jaded about the whole idea of Pride. The Pride I was used to was themed parties at local bars on Davie St, attending the annual Davie Street Party, drinking incessant amounts of alcohol and watching the parade in a hungover daze with a bit of the hair of the dog that bit you. All these things (minus the parade watching) are now forbidden for me as an amritdhari, and looking back i see the sheer lack of space there is for "alternative" queer people within the community. Pride seems like a giant billboard for companies to commercialize their products using two attractive late-20s gay white men as their cover boys. When the news of World Pride would come on local news channels, I would roll my eyes and change the channel, UNTIL I saw an interview on CBC that changed my perception.

Meet Reverend Brent Hawkes from Toronto Canada. He is an openly gay senior pastor at the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto. Rev Hawkes was sharing his experiences not only as a gay pastor, but as the officiator to the very first gay marriage to take place in our country just over a decade ago. Rev Hawkes had to wear a bulletproof vest the day of the wedding and he was even attacked in the church sanctum. Hearing Rev Hawkes' story sobered me up and opened my eyes.

Just a few years ago people in our LGBTQ community had to live in fear, safeguarding themselves in everyday life. Today, people can openly declare their love for their partner. That is something to be proud of. In the city that saw a violent same sex marriage a decade ago, a mass wedding took place this past week, in which 110 same sex couples came together from all over the world to solemnize their love for one another. That is something to proud of. I am sitting here right now in this room breathing, I survived my attempt at suicide. That is something to be proud of. We are all able to talk about who we really are to the world, a freedom we did not have a few years ago. That. Is. Something. To. Be. Proud. Of.

The Pride season goes beyond the half-naked men handing out wine samplings at the Davie Street Party. The Pride season is not defined by the glowing and flashing lights of corporate business putting their "inclusive" step forward. The Pride season transcends parties, alcohol, parades, et al. The Pride season is a state of mind, a state of celebration, a state of existence. We are here, and we are striving for the right to exist. Thus, while the Pride season may disenfranchise queer people of faith such as myself, I still feel an odd sense of connection, and I thank Guru Maharaaj for bringing us to a time when people can live in greater harmony, and I pray for more acceptance, within the queer community, and in the greater community of humanity. 

I was really thirsty. 

My pancakes - like my lower back - are pieces of art.