Queer Theology

How can cis-straight parents be a better ally, offer more support, and be a better parent to kids who are coming out? We’ve received this question countless times, and so we talk more about that in today’s episode. Parents often come from the role of teacher, but this moment is an opportunity and invitation to learn more and respectfully enter your child’s queer life. Shay reminds us that ally is a verb, and as a parent, it is your job to do the hard work of making amends, educating yourself, and respecting boundaries. Brian calls on parents to get a little uncomfortable and go out and do the work of advocating among their cis-straight peers to create a safe space for queer and trans folks to thrive in our world. Your child’s queerness is special and a beautiful part of them, and being an effective ally is an important role for parents.   Articles:  It’s Not Possible to Have a “Healthy Relationship With Your Child” if You Don’t Affirm Them Kind Homophobia and Transphobia is Still Evil To LGBTQ Kids With Unaffirming Parents: You Deserve Better     If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology. If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com.   Photo by Christian Lue The post Affirming Parenting: When Your Kid Comes Out appeared first on Queer Theology.

We’re kicking off a new podcast series all about parents and parenting! While we may not be parents ourselves, we get lots of parenting questions about resources; how to be a better ally for queer kids, how to be a Christian and/or member of a church and still affirm your child, and just how to be a better parent all around when it comes to queerness, conversations, and kids. For our first episode in this series, we each share stories of our relationships with our parents. We pull out examples from these experiences where parents can find ways to show their support. Brian explains how important it is to recognize ingrained cis and straight expectations for kids. And Shay encourages parents to help their children explore faith and spiritual practices that work for them.     If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology. If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com.   Photo by Aiden Craver The post Affirming Parenting: Sharing Our Stories appeared first on Queer Theology.

As we end this series of folks who have been moved by their faith to action, we share our own stories of making Holy Mischief and invite y’all to create some yourself! We can all get into this by telling our truth, standing up and being visible, and really leaning in and getting a little uncomfortable. Being an Angelic Troublemaker doesn’t necessarily mean having to be on the front lines of activism. Often it’s in the little, supportive roles that when compounded, create impactful results. We hope to inspire you to show up- and keep showing up. That’s where the biggest impact will be made.    Article: LGBTQ Christian Advocacy When You’re Newly Out   If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology. If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com.   Photo by AJ Colores The post Angelic Troublemakers: Continuing The Work appeared first on Queer Theology.

For the second interview in our Angelic Troublemakers series, we had the pleasure of speaking with activist, author, and recent NYU graduate, Edafe Okporo. Edafe was born in Warri, Nigeria. He migrated to the United States in 2016 as an asylum seeker and is now a refugee of the United States. He is a global gay rights activist, the founder of Refuge America, and one of the country’s most visible voices on the issue of displacement. We spoke about the issues of detainment for immigrants in the US, especially difficult for trans people seeking asylum and LGBTQ people. Edafe’s story is inspiring and powerful, reminding us that our work for equality must include marginalized people in the immigrant community. Edafe is the author of the book ASYLUM: A Memoir and Manifesto. He brings a personal commitment to his refugee work and the premise of his book: that home is not where you feel safe and welcome only but also how you make others feel safe and welcome.    Learn more about Edafe: Web: https://www.edafeokporo.com/ Linktree: https://linktr.ee/edafeokporo IG: https://www.instagram.com/edafeokporo Order your copy of ASYLUM, A Memoir & manifesto: https://www.edafeokporo.com/book   To learn more about the immigration detention system in the U.S., click here: https://www.freedomforimmigrants.org/ https://www.refugeamerica.org/ If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology.   If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com. The post Angelic Troublemakers: Edafe Okporo appeared first on Queer Theology.

In this episode, we get the pleasure of talking with a remarkable and influential Angelic Troublemaker of our time: Rev. Dr. Robert E. Shore Goss. And oh my goodness, y’all. This interview is amazing. Rev. Dr. Shore Goss has been on the frontlines for decades as an activist, teacher, priest, and author. From finding spirituality in sexuality, to activism as a form of prayer, to the Holy Spirit in nature and the imminent need for eco-justice, Rev. Dr. Shore Goss gives us an inspiring interview. He encourages us to offer grace and inclusivity to all, just as Christ would do, and to be moved to action as an expression of prayer. Rev. Dr. Shore Goss was ordained a Catholic Jesuit priest in 1976. He fell in love with another Jesuit, Frank Ring, and resigned from the Society of Jesus. He is an unlaicized Catholic priest (excommunicated) and served from 2004 to 2017 as Senior Pastor/Theologian of MCC United Church of Christ in the Valley. Tune in to hear about his lifetime of experiences, love, and faith.  Grab a copy of Robert’s books: https://amzn.to/3xfisf2 Other book recommendations: The Erotic Contemplative by Michael Bernard Kelly – https://amzn.to/3x9Davg The Erotic Contemplative on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6whUXSbW2v22D_WxPZpCPQ “Come Out My People!” by Wes Howard-Brook – https://amzn.to/3Me7s5B   If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology.   If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com. The post Angelic Troublemakers: Rev. Dr. Robert E. Shore Goss appeared first on Queer Theology.

“Power concedes nothing without demand” Frederick Douglass Happy Pride!! This month our series will focus on Angelic Troublemakers- folks who have been moved by their faith to action. We look at advocacy, activism, and prophecy in the Bible and how even small actions can lead to a big impact. This isn’t just something relevant in the Bible, it is timely and important that we engage in activism today. We will interview two inspiring leaders as part of this series and we’ll end with a reflection on how you can look to examples of people in your life who are engaging in activism and how you might be called to become an Angelic Troublemaker yourself.   Felix Gonzalez-Torres Foundation: https://www.felixgonzalez-torresfoundation.org/works/c/portraits   If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology. If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com.   Photo by Ehimetalor Akhere Unuabona The post Angelic Troublemakers: A Pride Series appeared first on Queer Theology.

To close out our Jewish Leaders series, we have an inspiring interview with Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg. We cover a wide range of things; from her roots growing up secular in goth punk culture, finding her calling and faith, spiritual practices, and how queer folks harmed by religion can claim their faith again. As a Scholar in Residence at the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW), her work is grounded in activism and we talk about how important it is today to continue to keep people safe and work towards a more just tomorrow. She is also an author with a substack called Life is a Sacred Text, and a new book coming out, On Repentance And Repair: Making Amends in an Unapologetic World. Listen in for Rabbi Ruttenberg’s thoughts on the nature of the Divine and how you can tap into that through spiritual practice.    Learn more about Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg Web: https://danyaruttenberg.net/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRaDR Get on her Life is a Sacred Text https://lifeisasacredtext.substack.com/ National Council of Jewish Women https://www.ncjw.org/   Pre-order her book On Repentance And Repair here   Book recommendations: Be Still and Get Going by Alan Lew This is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared by Alan Lew   If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology. If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com. Podcast Transcript There is a technical issue with our transcript embed. We are working on resolving the issues as quickly as possible. The post Growing up Suburban Jewish & Finding Your Faith With Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg appeared first on Queer Theology.

For our third episode of our Jewish Leaders series, we are excited to talk with Millie, more well known as Milli Not So Vanilli on social media. She is a 34-year-old Jewish mother and “accidental” TikTok creator. We learn how her grandmother has inspired her to speak out and how she is her greatest source of inspiration; her grandmother had been a Holocaust survivor and her grandfather was a victim of McCarthyism. We discuss how important it is for Christians to learn about their own history, to learn about Jewish history, and why this will help end prevalent misconceptions about Judaism and Jews. She also explains how anti-Semitism is accepted and widespread throughout Christian belief teachings and what Christians can do to unlearn and reframe these damaging beliefs in order to be a good ally for Jews. Millie reminds us how important and relevant this work is today and what you can do now to be a Christian without spreading anti-Semitic rhetoric.    Millie celebrates Jewish diversity and advocates for a more inclusive and accepting Jewish community. She believes in Jewish empowerment through knowledge and awareness of Jewish history and believes a better understanding of Jewish history and who Jews are as a people is the best way to fight antisemitism.   Learn more about Millie at: IG: https://www.instagram.com/milli_not_so_vanilli/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@milli_not_so_vanilli https://linktr.ee/milli_not_so_vanilli   Links from the episode: https://www.myjewishlearning.com/  https://www.rabbisandralawson.com/   If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology. If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com. Podcast Transcript There is a technical issue with our transcript embed. We are working on resolving the issues as quickly as possible. The post Celebrating Jewish Empowerment & Teaching The Masses via TikTok with @milli_not_so_vanilli appeared first on Queer Theology.

For this episode, we chat with Enzi Tanner (he/him/his), a trans, disabled, Black American, Jew living in Minneapolis. Enzi is a community organizer, a consultant, a licensed social worker, and an ICF-certified life coach. He explains what it means for him to be an atheist/agnostic Jew looking at racial justice through the lens of the Torah. As an abolitionist, he talks about what you can do to get started as an individual who wants to step into abolitionist work and the importance of this work. We touch on the undeniable connection between Euro-centric Christianity and our American institutions, especially how slavery and white supremacy have impacted policing and prisons. As a coach, Enzi supports his clients to achieve their goals by embracing their authentic selves. Learn more about Enzi Tanner at: https://www.enzitanner.com/   Book Recommendation: Color of Violence by INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence   Also check out: Movement For Black Lives: https://m4bl.org/   If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology.   If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com. The post Conversations that Change with Enzi Tanner appeared first on Queer Theology.

For the month of May, we are starting a new series in which we interview Jewish Leaders. To kick us off, we have the Mellon Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the American Council of Learned Societies grant awardee, Dr. Amy Jill Levine.  In this episode, Dr. Levine tells us about her concern with the Bible being used to tear people down instead of lifting each other up. We also talk about her advice for anyone who wants to convert to Judaism and the importance of understanding your own faith first before borrowing from others. What’s next for Dr. Levine, her favorite text, and what brings her joy lately? Tune in to find out!  All about Dr. Amy Jill Levine In Spring 2019 she was the first Jew to teach New Testament at Rome’s Pontifical Biblical Institute; in 2021, she was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She has held office in the Society of Biblical Literature, the Catholic Biblical Association, and the Association for Jewish Studies.  She served as Alexander Robertson Fellow (University of Glasgow), and the Catholic Biblical Association Scholar to the Philippines. She has given over 500 lectures on the Bible, Christian-Jewish relations, and Religion, Gender, and Sexuality across the globe. Her books include The Misunderstood Jew: The Church and the Scandal of the Jewish Jesus; Short Stories by Jesus: The Enigmatic Parables of a Controversial Rabbi;  The Meaning of the Bible: What the Jewish Scriptures and the Christian Old Testament Can Teach Us (with Douglas Knight; The New Testament, Methods and Meanings (with Warren Carter); and The Gospel of Luke (with Ben Witherington III; the first full-length biblical commentary co-authored by a Jew and an Evangelical). Her most recent book is The Bible With and Without Jesus, co-authored with Marc Z. Brettler. Her children’s books (with Sandy Sasso) include Who Counts? 100 Sheep, 10 Coins and 2 Sons;  The Marvelous Mustard Seed; Who Is My Neighbor?, A Very Big Problem, 100 Sheep: A Counting Parable, and The Good for Nothing Tree. With Marc Brettler, she co-edited The Jewish Annotated New Testament; she is also the editor of the 13-volume Feminist Companions to the New Testament and Early Christian Writings, and The Historical Jesus in Context. Presently she is editing several volumes in the Wisdom Commentary series, and she is the New Testament editor of the new Oxford Biblical Commentary Series. With Joseph Sievers, she co-edited The  Pharisees. Her adult education volumes and videos include the Teaching Company Great Lectures: “Introduction to the Old Testament,” “Great Figures of the Old Testament,” and “Great Figures of the New Testament”; Abingdon adult education: Short Stories by Jesus Study Guide;  Entering the Passion of Jesus: A Beginner’s Guide to Holy Week; Light of the World: A Beginner’s Guide to Advent; Sermon on the Mount: A Beginner’s Guide to the Kingdom of Heaven; The Kingdom of Heaven: 40 Devotionals; The Difficult Words of Jesus: A Beginner’s Guide to HIs Most Perplexing Sayings and Witness at the Cross: A Beginner’s Guide to Holy Friday.   If you want to reach out, contact Dr. Levine at amy-jill.levine@vanderbilt.edu Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063444055133   If you want to support the Patreon and help keep the podcast up and running, you can learn more and pledge your support at patreon.com/queertheology. If you’d like to be featured in future episodes, email your question or Bible passage suggestion to connect@queertheology.com. Podcast Transcript There is a technical issue with our transcript embed. We are working on resolving the issues as quickly as possible. The post A Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies Teaches Us About The New Testament with Dr. Amy Jill Levine appeared first on Queer Theology.