Christian Oriented GBLT People Find Themselves Far From Genuinely Welcome In U*U "Welcoming Congregations"
This letter to the editors of the U*U World propaganda organ eloquently state what I have said here before. U*Us make a big public show of being oh so tolerant and welcoming towards homosexuals, bisexuals and transexuals etc. etc. but Christian oriented GBLT people find that they are considerably less than welcome in so-called U*U "Welcoming Congregations". . .
Coming Out
Unitarian Universalism helped free me from Christian churches and theologies that persecuted me as a gay man. It helped teach me the value of my own experience. It also helped me discover the heart of a Christian journey that is so right for me.
When I "came out" as a Christian, many although not all Unitarian Universalists rejected me. The "we don't talk about God here" attitude pointed to by Rosemary Bray McNatt was normative for me in many UU contexts.
The abhorrence of all things Christian that I have witnessed among many Unitarian Universalists reveals a depth of misunderstanding not dissimilar to the fears that support the hatred of gay people in my Southern homeland. In a word, I call it prejudice. At best such prejudice is unbecoming of a Unitarian Universalist; at worst it is deadly. I believe that people — like my gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender sisters and brothers — are literally dying for want of the saving messages of Unitarian Universalism, and such prejudice closes doors that so desperately need to be opened.
Powell Bland
Denver, Colorado
Coming Out
Unitarian Universalism helped free me from Christian churches and theologies that persecuted me as a gay man. It helped teach me the value of my own experience. It also helped me discover the heart of a Christian journey that is so right for me.
When I "came out" as a Christian, many although not all Unitarian Universalists rejected me. The "we don't talk about God here" attitude pointed to by Rosemary Bray McNatt was normative for me in many UU contexts.
The abhorrence of all things Christian that I have witnessed among many Unitarian Universalists reveals a depth of misunderstanding not dissimilar to the fears that support the hatred of gay people in my Southern homeland. In a word, I call it prejudice. At best such prejudice is unbecoming of a Unitarian Universalist; at worst it is deadly. I believe that people — like my gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender sisters and brothers — are literally dying for want of the saving messages of Unitarian Universalism, and such prejudice closes doors that so desperately need to be opened.
Powell Bland
Denver, Colorado
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