HubbleBooks

Dear Friends,

Earlier this year, Soulforce launched “Focus on the Facts”, an
ongoing campaign of nonviolent direct action with the goal of ending
religion-based oppression of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
Coloradoans. Since February, we have staged three sit-ins at James
Dobson’s and his associates’ ministry headquarters in Colorado
Springs. Profound and transformative experiences for participants and
observers alike, these ongoing actions are only the first phase
of “Focus on the Facts”.

On July 13th, we launch the next phase of our Satyagraha campaign in
Colorado.

For several years, the Pride Center of Colorado Springs, Rev. Elder
Nori Rost of Just Spirit, and Pikes Peak MCC have organized yearly
marriage equality actions at the County Clerk’s Office in Colorado
Springs to highlight the injustice of our state’s marriage laws.
Committed, same-gender couples visit the clerk’s office and request
marriage licenses. Naturally, they are denied.

This year, things will be different. Yes, we know that our friends
will again be denied when they attempt to apply for marriage
licenses. Instead of walking away empty-handed again, however, some
of them will refuse to leave until they have been served. By engaging
in this action of nonviolent civil disobedience, our friends will
dramatize the oppression intrinsic in marriage laws which deny full
equality to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

Laws that bar same-gender couples from equal protection and the full
exercise of their Liberty are demeaning examples of religion-based
oppression. Gandhi and King taught that we may acquiesce to these
laws or that we may use nonviolent principles to confront them. In
his famous essay “Civil Disobedience”, Thoreau suggested that it is
our obligation to protest unjust laws by “transgress[ing] them at
once”.

Legislative and political activism are important components of
achieving equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.
But advocacy efforts on behalf of marriage equality have thus far not
yet achieved their intended results. You and your friends can help
make a difference for our community by taking part in this
provocative escalation of “Focus on the Facts”.

Attend with your partner and apply for a marriage license, stand
outside in supportive vigil—or volunteer to plan an action in your
own community!

For more information or to register, contact in Colorado Springs:

>Nori Rost (nori@justspirit.org)
>Pride Center Director Ryan Acker (Ryan@YourPrideCenter.org)
>Frank Volz (fcvolz@yahoo.com)

In Denver, contact:

>Chris Hubble (cahubble05@yahoo.com)

We hope you’ll join us,

Chris

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CAFE CommUNITY Summit EVENT FLYER

Saturday, May 19, 2007, 8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Coloradoans and friends, families, and allies are invited to a…

CommUNITY Summit Presented by CAFE (Colorado Alliance for Family Equality) including… Speakers, workshops, and networking opportunities

KEYNOTE SPEAKER:

Rev. Benjamin L. Reynolds, MDiv., Program Director, Brothas4Ever

WORKSHOP TOPICS INCLUDE:

-Connecting our Diverse GLBT Community
-Working Together to Create Social Change
-Legislative Action, Legal Rights, and You
-Creating Healthy and Safe Environments for all Ages
-Bridging our Differences among Faith Communities
-Learning from our Past, Moving Forward in new GLBT Directions

LUNCH, COFFEE AND LIGHT SNACKS WILL BE PROVIDED

COST: FREE to participants, donated by several conference sponsors

LOCATION: St. Andrew United Methodist Church, 3350 White Bay Dr., Highlands Ranch, CO 80126 (3 miles south of C-470 on S. University Blvd.)

Please Register by May 11th: CAFESummit@aol.com

For more information or questions call: 303-482-1690

********************

CommUNITY Summit Launches New Effort of Cooperation in Local Gay and Lesbian Activism

Colorado Alliance for Family Equality (CAFÉ) Seeks to Refurbish Old Partnerships and Begin Building New Ones

******************************************
CAFÉ Media Advisory: April 15, 2007
For Immediate Release

Contact(s):
John Ferguson, Steering Committee Chair, ferguson@tde.com, (303) 698-0302
Karen Kellen, Summit Planning Committee Co-Chair, kark1022@msn.com, (303) 910-0541
Lewis Thompson, Summit Planning Committee Co-Chair, ljt236@aol.com, (303) 377-3102
******************************************

(Denver, CO) – The Colorado Alliance for Family Equality is organizing the inaugural CAFÉ CommUNITY Summit, a groundbreaking day-long conversation of speakers, workshops, and networking opportunities designed to restore, refocus, and revitalize Colorado’s GLBT activist community in order to propel our dreams of equality forward into reality.

Who: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Coloradoans and their friends, families and allies who want to take action to create social transformation.
What: CAFÉ CommUNITY Summit
When: Saturday, May 19, 2007 from 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. MST
Where: St. Andrew United Methodist Church, 3350 White Bay Dr., (9300 block of S University Blvd.), Highlands Ranch, Colorado 80126
Costs: Underwritten by organizing sponsors so that admissions for participants will be free.

The CAFÉ CommUNITY Summit will feature keynote speaker REVEREND BENJAMIN L. REYNOLDS, MDiv, a community leader who stewards a local ministry of “social conscience, peace and human transformation”. Rev. Reynolds describes his message as, “A word of hope for the lost, healing for the sick, comfort for the lowly, restoration for the wounded… Everyone must be welcome in God’s House… Our ministry is not about being straight or gay. It’s about being human.”

Rev. Reynolds’ address will be followed by numerous workshops and facilitated conversations exploring a variety of health and safety, spiritual, cultural, historical and other topics of concern for numerous communities of interest within the GLBT populations of Colorado. At the CAFÉ CommUNITY Summit, participants will discover new opportunities for empowerment by connecting with each other and with organizations that are confronting the spectrum of political, faith-based and social justice issues GLBT people encounter in their lives.

“Change comes in many ways. The work for equality of all people is a long slog. Lately, we in the GLBT communities have been focused on marriage equality legal changes because that is where the attack came from. Now is the time to renew our commitments and efforts to the whole spectrum of issues we are facing, including faith communities, schools, health, youth empowerment, workplace equality, and, yes, family equality too,” said CAFÉ Steering Committee Chairperson John Ferguson.

“This day will be a day for people to connect up their silos of individual action and focus their power by teaming up with each other. Together we can be much more effective to create the changes we all want. We need to work on laws, beliefs and cultural norms to fully realize a world of equality and freedom for everyone.”

Already, the Denver chapter of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG-Denver); PFLAG-Boulder County; Equal Rights Colorado; The Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center of Colorado; First Unitarian Society of Denver; Jefferson Unitarian Church; First Universalist Church of Denver; the Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado; Colorado Clergy for Equality in Marriage; GLBT Caucus of the Jefferson County Democratic Party; the ACLU of Colorado; and St. Andrew United Methodist Church have agreed to sponsor the CAFÉ CommUNITY Summit with generous donations which will help underwrite its substantial costs, so that admissions for conference participants will be free. Additional donations of all sizes will be warmly welcomed.

When asked why she agreed to serve as Planning Committee Co-Chair, Karen Kellen responded, “I got involved with CAFÉ and the Summit because I saw a need for the GLBT community to come together after our twin losses at the ballot in 2006. Our community is struggling for full equality in this society. We need to build a strong movement both within this very diverse community and with our allies, if we are to achieve this goal. The Summit is a chance to regroup and refocus our efforts—and maybe make a few new friends in the process.”

CAFÉ was founded in 2003 by a group of 20 local activists for the purpose of working towards the freedom of GLBT Americans to marry the person of their own choosing. An organization of organizations, CAFÉ now claims a membership of 40 businesses, religious, family-based and other groups. CAFÉ seeks to provide a structure through which our member organizations and their allies can integrate and coordinate their education and advocacy efforts on behalf of the GLBT community.

Summit Planning Committee Co-Chair Lewis Thompson said, “When CAFÉ was formed, Massachusetts was the only state that embraced marriage equality; that is still the case today. The pushback powered by the fascist—and I use that word with all due deliberation—rhetoric of the Christian fundamentalists has been relentless. Still, we refuse to lose heart. Freedom is not free nor does it come easily. This summit marks the beginning of the next, new wave of GLBT activism in Colorado—more mature, more sober, more resolute.”

CAFÉ member organizations believe that, because the freedom to marry is a basic human right and an individual choice, anything less than full access to civil marriage for committed, same-gender couples is unequal. In addition to achieving full marriage equality in Colorado and nationally through education and advocacy, CAFÉ members also support incremental efforts toward equality such as civil unions, domestic partner benefits, second-parent adoption rights and related family protections. All of Colorado’s families need and deserve equal access and protection under the law. The State’s laws should protect, not harm, GLBT couples and their families.
________________________________________
To learn more about CAFÉ or the CAFÉ CommUNITY Summit, please contact the event organizers (information included in header) or: CAFE, c/o The Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center of Colorado; 1050 Broadway, Denver, CO 80203-2708 — CAFE-CO-owner@yahoogroups.com, CAFESummit@aol.com, or 303-482-1690.

________________________________________
THE REVEREND BENJAMIN L. REYNOLDS, MDiv
breynolds@souleman.org
303.623.3003

The Colorado Springs’ Gazette called him “The People’s Preacher’, but with over 31 years of preaching, Benjamin Reynolds, former pastor of the Emmanuel Missionary Baptist Church of Colorado Springs recalls the skinny and scared, fourteen year-old young man who stood before the congregation and delivered his first sermon. The young Benjamin Reynolds was no ordinary child. A licensed minister when he was hardly 14 he could often be found at the library while others boys were on the baseball diamond or the basketball court.

Reynolds had lived in Dallas, Texas where he worked in the Court Reporting industry, preaching and leading the Single’s Ministry at a local Baptist church. When the Rev. Moses E. Ford, pastor of Emmanuel Missionary Baptist Church died in 1991, Benjamin Reynolds returned to the church of his boyhood to become its new pastor.

A graduate of the University of Denver with a Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communication and Mass Communication, as well as a Master of Divinity from the Iliff School of Theology; during his tenure as pastor of Emmanuel, Reynolds was instrumental in leading the 1,200 member congregation to offer a myriad of ministries including prison outreach, HIV/AIDS ministry and a scholarship program for graduating senior high students. Reynolds himself, who served as president of the local branch of the NAACP during the period of 2003 to 2005, had become one of Colorado Springs’ most visible civil rights champions, while privately wrestling with making the public aware of his sexuality.

Actively involved in an national affairs his credits include: past State president of the Western States Baptist Convention of Colorado and Wyoming; one of the youngest State Presidents and member of the Board of Directors of the National Baptist Convention, U.S.A., Inc.; Regional Director of the NAACP Religious Affairs Committee; Member of The American Baptist Churches USA, The Hampton Minister’s Conference, The Urban League, The Board of The Black Coalition of Concerned Citizens of Colorado Springs and is an active member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, and serves as a member of the Religious Advisory Committee for the National Black Justice Coalition.

His pastoral care has extended beyond the walls of the church and has reached deeply into his local community. He is past President of the El Paso County Ministerial Union (Fellowship), former member of the Colorado Springs Diversity Task Force, the Norwest Bank Focus Group, the Board of the Pikes Peak Hospice, and The Martin Luther King, Jr., Holiday Committee. He is also past Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Zion United Credit Union of Denver, and a former Community Liaison for Black Student Union - University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. He has completed an internship with the Regional AIDS Interfaith Network (RAIN) of Colorado, and has served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Southern Colorado AIDS Project. Most recently the First Congregational Church of Colorado Springs honored him with the Micah 6 Award, as he proclaims justice, mercy, and humble communion as a life of faithfulness. He is the immediate past president of the Colorado Springs Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

He became an advocate for the rights of gays and lesbians, officially welcoming them into the life of the church. He taught a series called “The Black Church and Sexuality,” which among other things examined how black congregations often discriminate against gays. His position on homosexuality caused some congregants to leave the church. Reynolds said it was the congregation’s opposition to his advocacy for gays and lesbians – not his own sexual orientation - that convinced him it was time to leave. He knew in order to depart with integrity the congregation needed a face for same-gender love, and that such individuals could be faithful servants of God. The fallout was predictable: some congregants were fully supportive, some downright angry. Most felt his views on sexuality were simply incompatible with those of the church, and he was voted by the congregation to depart sooner than the date his resignation incited.

Reverend Reynolds is in transition preparing to begin a doctorate program, seeking ordination in the United Church of Christ and at the same time he brings a pastoral dimension to financial aid at the Iliff School of Theology; and is the Program Director for Brothas4Ever, a Denver based organization, which is a peer led program of It Takes A Village promoting the physical, emotional, and spiritual health of same-gender loving African American men by building community.

Reverend Reynolds’ long-term goals are to teach and facilitate social justice and preaching on the seminary level to students preparing to go into congregations as leaders. Eventually, he plans to return to the pastorate.

As for the spare time Benjamin Reynolds manages to find, he has a passion for cycling and travel. In reflecting on his over thirty years in ministry, he is struck with the realization that some things have changed very little from the days of his youth when the 14 year old took the pulpit. He still loves reading, Sunday services, singing along with the choir and his abundant excitement over the things of God.

________________________________________

CAFÉ Steering Committee Chair John Ferguson, Ph.D., is a consultant-trainer living in Denver, CO where he works in the community, and especially in the LGBT community, to create change in racism, heterosexism, sexism, and classism/elitism. He identifies as a white man who is gay, and lives with his partner of 20 years, Gary. He is the father of two adult children, and a grandfather. He worked for 19 years in a high-tech multi-national corporate environment as a leader and manager for corporate marketing functions, and as an advocate to create change around multicultural issues. He joined VISIONS, Inc. in 1999, and became a Multiculturalism Consultant in 2004. For the last five years he has been on the Board of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays of Denver, and for the last two years has served as the Chair of the CAFÉ Steering Committee.

Summit Planning Committee Co-Chair Karen Kellen is an attorney and mediator for the US Environmental Protection Agency, where she has co-chaired her LGBT employee group since its inception. She lives in Lakewood with her partner of 7 years and their 3 cats. Karen is active in her community, serving on Lakewood’s Diversity Commission and the board of her neighborhood association. She is politically active, co-chairing the Jefferson County Democrats LGBT caucus and working to support LGBT friendly candidates at the State and Federal level. Karen has decided to take her political activities up a notch by declaring her candidacy for the Ward 1 seat on Lakewood’s City Council. When not tracking down votes or attending community meetings, Karen enjoys making jewelry and gardening.

Summit Planning Committee Co-Chair Lewis Thompson is a retired quality and systems design engineer for Ford Motor Company. While at Ford, he was president of GLOBE, the diversity advocacy group for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered hourly and salaried employees, when Ford first granted the same-sex domestic partners of its employees many of the benefits afforded employees’ spouses. He is the father of a thirty-ish daughter and son and the husband of Laurin Foxworth, to whom he was legally married in London, Ontario, Canada in 2003. Lewis is 61 years old and is a native of Hutchinson, Kansas. He enjoys writing letters to the editor and will take advantage of any opportunity to make his somewhat unorthodox views known. Much of his time is taken up by his deep devotion to First Unitarian Society of Denver, where he serves on the Board.

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To Prospective Readers:

I am grateful to be able to share with you the following words of encouragement received several months ago from Rev. Elder Troy Perry.

*****

Dear Chris:

Troy

*****

Rev. Elder Perry is a noted human rights activist and founder of the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (UFMCC). MCC is a worldwide denomination that ministers to the needs of LGBT persons. Rev. Perry holds several honorary doctorates for his civil rights activism and currently sits as a Trustee of Chicago Theological Seminary. His words are reprinted here with his permission.

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Jonathan Loved David…and David exceeded [1 Samuel 20:41 KJV]

“We love with passion, and we love with great majesty. That is our beauty and our magnificence.” What an exhilarating thought!

The Biblical account of Jonathan and David, related in 1, 2 Samuel in the Old Testament, fires the imagination with drama and passion. It is a story of intrigue, of loyalty and betrayal, of emotion and love—a story of death and of loss. What stirs within the modern breast are those same qualities—human needs and human desires. That the story of Jonathan and David compels the human spirit in remarkable ways is attested to by a wealth and variety of commentary widely available. Christopher Hubble, in Lord Given Lovers, adds yet another plate onto the table.

Lord Given Lovers displays an “intimate Biblical relationship between two men that had a sexual component and that is also described as a covenant relationship involving the ‘binding’ of two souls.” Hubble observes, “Jonathan fell in love with David. David and Jonathan were…joined in a marriage covenant…holy union…same-sex coupling.” He uses the story as a vehicle to show that “same-sex love is normal and acceptable,” and to show “same-sex marriage as a spiritual, human, or civil right—and (to) justify that argument theologically.”

Hubble contrasts the “intrinsic divinity of homosexuality [the “H” word!]” with the widespread notion that “[the “H” word!] (1) violates the laws of God,” stating that the Bible specifically and affirmatively addresses same-sex love. He asserts, “A redefined cultural and societal understanding of [the “H” word!] derived from, and supported theologically by the Bible, will have a profound impact…” He further addresses, “The Bible is the primary weapon…to justify…continued intolerance, prejudice, and bigotry.”

I admit I had to pluck from the cupboard a version or two of the O.T. and refresh my memory. The story of Jonathan and David reflects from childhood Sunday School lessons—one of those loving and lovely Bible stories, almost-told, not-quite-deciphered, that touched the harp strings of an innocent young boy, languishing on a path to distant gay horizons. Jonathan and David, a tender story of great passion that quickened the pulse of a late-teen’s awareness that men could love one another; Jonathan and David, is a banner story of strength and perseverance, that enlarged the vision of a young gay man moving beyond liberation into a ripening gay sense of self. Jonathan and David has it all—a story of our gay needs and strengths, our gay vision and creativity, our gay losses, our gay triumphs.

Jonathan loved David. What more can I ask? That simple statement sang to me in the sunny silence and wonder of childhood. Its lyric truth has remained in my breast through many seasons. It is infallible, a testament to God’s infinite love. “One who does not love does not know God’s love, for God is love.” [1 John 4:8] Hubble writes of “our most Godly instinct—the instinct to bond lovingly, and intimately with another human being.” He asserts, “God loves us unconditionally, immeasurably, and infinitely.”

To what larger purpose can be served by the assertion that Jonathan’s and David’s love is proof of same-sex holy marriage? In view of widespread evidence that most “marriages” today are anything but holy, I for one would not impose a modern failure on the O.T. lovers. Jonathan’s and David’s love encompassed loyalty and commitment—to one another! Jonathan displays selfless giving, a wholesale act of devotion leading to, in Hubble’s words, “collapse of boundaries and deflation of the ego.” He states, “The need to care for and nurture those individuals and communities that are important to us is one of the most intrinsic human needs.” The real meat is brought out and placed on the table: “Commitment is the bedrock that creates stability in relationships.”

“Our real dilemma is a spiritual one. Coming out…is a spiritual experience…we are reborn.” Hubble impresses on his reader that dignity and self-respect come from full acceptance of oneself. Living closeted is living a lie—in effect, a true sin. He points to our separation from true human community. This writer will append to that separation from the community of God’s loving embrace. We are a God question, not a political one—God has answered that question!

Lord Given Lovers is a short tract, designed for study sessions, although it can be read as a single piece. Inclusion of some discussion, relative to societal and cultural attitudes of the time with specific emphasis on same-sex relationships, could have broadened Hubble’s scope. The work gives pause for reflection. A reader is encouraged to approach the Bible with fresh eyes. Bringing to bear on Scripture our special sensitivity and awareness can only extend the Bible’s reach. Lord Given Lovers should find a place in study groups, especially among youth-oriented groups and organizations. Moreover, it should be required reading of all mainstream religious and church study programs.

There are yet untapped riches in the story of Jonathan’s and David’s love for one another. We as gay men and women with unique spirituality must explore ways to seize as our own the Bible, ways that will cast it from the hands of those who use it as a weapon against us. Surely, God must say to them, Not in My Name! Jonathan and David is one such gay resource. Hubble may continue to expand the story. I will anticipate future feasts at such banquets.

Readers may find of additional interest, among other reading:

> Jonathan and David by The Rev. Harry Scott Coverston,

> David and Jonathan Rainbow Alliance

********************

Larry Dean Hamilton
SigmaΣLogo™ Books

(1) The “H” word is of medical/clinical construct, used in the arsenal of homophobia. Historically, the word has been used to denigrate persons of same-sex affection/attraction. It insinuates a case history, an illness and a crime and has no redemptive value connoting pride, integrity and worth. In this writer’s estimation, the “H” word has no place in a queer-positive vocabulary.

——————————————————————————–

Larry Dean Hamilton holds a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from The University of Texas at Austin. Previously on the editorial staff of Time-Life Books, Larry was a key organizer and participant in Houston Gay Conference 1982. He led the way in establishing and organizing Matagorda County AIDS Awareness. Larry, a sometime poet, treks along a sandy shore, mindful of accumulated litter and debris—mindful of earlier footsteps. Larry’s other books, besides A Gathering of Angels, include three books of poetry Hotel Chelsea and the Sound, Late Autumn Debris, and Love is Orange.

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“The union of a man and a woman is the most enduring human institution, honored and encouraged in all cultures and by every religious faith … Marriage cannot be severed from its cultural, religious and natural roots without weakening the good influence of society,” President George W. Bush, February 24, 2004.

This president seems bent on revising history to suit his misguided political purposes. He would persuade us that heterosexual unions have been the monolithic norm for eons. This position could not be further from the truth. Since the president has so much difficulty conforming to truth, fact, or sound reason regarding the issue of civil marriage equality, let us conduct our own examination of certain pertinent facts.

Same-sex, same-gender unions have been celebrated throughout history. They were, for example, quite common in ancient Greece and Rome. In 514 B.C., the Athenian lovers Aristogiton and Harmodius assassinated Hipparchus, the younger brother of the tyrant Hippias – and, after their deaths, were later honored by the Athenians for the part they played in helping establish Athenian democracy. Saints Serge and Bacchus were another ancient couple. These Roman, Christian soldiers were martyred in either the late third or early fourth century for refusing to worship the idols of their emperor – and the early medieval church honored their martyrdom. According to the late scholar John Boswell, they were the “preeminent ‘couple’ invoked in [ceremonies] of same-sex unions,” (Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe, p.p. 153-154). The church, therefore, celebrated same-sex couplings long before heterosexual marriages became a sacrament in 1215! The subsequent rise of homophobia put an unfortunate end to such unions in Western Europe. Eastern Europeans, however, continued to celebrate same-sex, same-gender offices as late as the 1600’s and possibly later.

“A just law is a man-made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law … Any law that degrades human personality is unjust,” Martin Luther King, Jr., Letter from the Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963.

I do not believe that we can discuss justice as it relates to civil marriage equality without addressing its moral dimensions – and we cannot sever that discussion from its Judeo-Christian context. Even the most recent polls indicate that religious views regarding sexual orientation and sexual minorities continue to have an impact on public policy. This is all the more ironic considering that the Bible has very little negative to say (some argue nothing) about sexual orientation and quite a bit to say in a positive vein about same-sex, same-gender relationships.

Antigay religious bigotry derives its moral justification from supposed biblical condemnation. Yet for nearly three decades credible scholars and theologians have systematically and repeatedly debunked and refuted the antigay interpretations of the “Terror Texts” found in Genesis, Leviticus, Romans, 1 Corinthians, and 1 Timothy. In fact, in 1983, two decades ago, when it commissioned a study of the issue, the National Council of Churches could find no credible Biblical scholars willing to argue that the Bible condemns sexual minorities. When one objectively and rationally considers the historical, linguistic, and cultural contexts of these five sets of verses, one discovers an inescapable and irrefutable conclusion: the Bible simply does not condemn sexual minorities.

It is also ironic that the radical religious right can resurrect from the Bible NO EXAMPLE of the archetypal “traditional marriage” they so fervently propagandize. The first child of Abraham – cultural progenitor of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam – was borne by his wife’s handmaiden, Hagar (Genesis 16). And didn’t King Solomon reportedly have a thousand wives and concubines (1 Kings 11:1-3)? There is no consistent, comprehensive Biblical model of heterosexual marriage – it simply doesn’t exist.

The greatest irony is that the Bible hosts several same-sex, same-gender intimate relationships and holy unions. The story of David and Jonathan is one of several Queer-friendly stories in the Bible. Ruth and Naomi is another. The encounter with Jesus of the Roman centurion whose “pais” (G3816: boy-servant) lay sick at home in the centurion’s bed is yet another (Matthew 8:5-13). Some of these relationships more closely resemble “traditional” marriage than do many biblical or even contemporary heterosexual couplings.

The holy union of David and Jonathan contained several identifiable components: the bonding of two souls in love, the familial aspect of their relationship, a mutual exchange of covenant obligations and oaths… and it DID have a sexual component. The most compelling evidence of their story is Saul’s rebuke of his son: “Then Saul’s anger burned against Jonathan and he said to him, ‘You son of a perverse, rebellious woman! Do I not know that you are choosing the son of Jesse to your own confusion and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness,” (1 Samuel 20:30)?

David and Jonathan conducted their relationship openly and lived in a culture that accepted it without a second thought. Their story played a prominent part in the narrative of 1 and 2 Samuel. This prominence is further evidence regarding social and cultural acceptance at the time the story was told and written. The biblical validation of their holy union is that David “was prospering [acting wisely] in all his ways for the Lord was with him,” (1 Samuel 18:14) and that their covenant was made, “before the Lord,” (1 Samuel 23:15-18). If God viewed their relationship poorly, these pieces of textual evidence simply would not exist. Through their story and others, God sanctifies same-sex, same-gender holy unions.

Thousands of years ago, David and Jonathan joined with each other in a holy union that was affirmed and validated by God. The time has now come for our state and federal governments to follow God’s lead and legally recognize the validity and sanctity of our relationships.

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