Shhh… do you hear that? With all the noise, the busyness, the fear mongering, the hate speech, and the fundamentalist rants it’s a wonder we hear anything at all. And yet we do. God is calling and, despite what some would say, queer people are saying, “Here I am.”
It wasn’t until I was in seminary (back in 2011-2013) that I encountered a gay person in ministry for the first time. Of course, I knew they existed, but as Tyler Merritt wrote, “Distance breeds suspicion. But proximity breeds empathy.” I was still in the closet at the time and this was the first time that I had seen someone integrate their faith, calling, and queer identity together in this way. I saw God working in, through, and with them.
“How could this be?” I wondered, as if Holy Spirit would only bear fruit in the cis-het followers of Jesus. This was the first of many breakthroughs for me that have led me to where I am today. Perhaps that’s what fundamentalist Christians and politically conservative folks are afraid of!
Samuel was an odd character in the Bible. We hear of his mother praying to have a child though she has had a “closed womb” for so long. What worth was she in a patriarchal society where she was but one of two (at least) wives and could not fulfill the duty of bearing children? And, while she prayed, she was assumed to be drunk. But no! She defied her lot in life and, apparently without consulting her husband, sought God’s blessing in the form of a child who she could then give back to God to serve in the temple.
God fulfilled her petition, and she fulfilled her part as well. Blessing and fruitfulness show up in mysterious places. It was not the man’s prayer for an heir that was answered but a lowly woman’s dedication received God’s blessing. Even if we assume that God typically acts in a certain way—which we probably shouldn’t—we must always leave a little space for the unexpected.
I hope for a time when we are no longer burdened by the yoke of heterosexism and transphobia in our churches. Where we can, as Jesus said, look for the fruit in peoples’ lives. The Holy Spirit is working in, through, and with a great multitude of persons who don’t fit the “typical” mold of church leaders and volunteers. May our hearts and minds continued to be open to see the Spirit and our Lord in unexpected places!
