A Queer Pilgrim

Love being part of a church that blesses so much. We have house blessings; blessings of pets and other animals; blessings upon a new car; blessings for people in political office. And now, officially, there are blessings of same sex couples and our relationships by both the Church of England, and in the Roman Catholic Church, thanks to Pope Francis. Of course, that doesn’t change any of the theology, dogma, or doctrine, especially in the Catholic Church. For a refresher course: In the Catholic church, homosexual acts are considered acts of grave depravity and are intrinsically disordered. A blessing of a same sex couple--while wonderful, romantic, holy in context, stupendous, lovely, fantastic, and super-duper--is not the same thing as a marriage of a same sex couple. It just isn’t. There is nothing in the US that says I can pick up a “blessing certificate” as I can a marriage license, pay my $60 (Oregon), and be married. To be married is to have a signed contract, betwee...

On Nov. 27, 2023, I celebrated my 40th anniversary of my ordination as a Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA). I first celebrated this on Facebook, and now here. I’m smiling as I typed it in as text, especially as an out gay pastor, one of four in the state of New Mexico, which was the similar status as when I lived in Oregon. I was one of three out gay and lesbian Presbyterian pastors. We are still a novelty, but hopefully growing number. In 1983, I was a younger 28 year old pastor. I was a student at Harvard Divinity School (ThM), and called to serve First Presbyterian Church of East Boston, MA as an Assistant Pastor. I was married to a woman. No children yet. I had graduated from Princeton Seminary (M.Div), and my job at the church was to sit on many boards that were around the geographical area, serving the needs of the Laotian community who were far from home, and Italian Bostonians who had fled South Boston because of the rise of tourism. I was clea...