This is what I sent the Pulse on January 7, 2008.  They are preparing an article in response to the article on the front page of the Time-Free Press of December 28, 2008, which detailed the experience of a man who was “cured” of homosexuallity through religion.  Gary Poole is the reporter.

       Gary Poole wrote:

First of all, give us some background on yourself – how long have you been at UUC and how do you see your place in the community.

I will soon complete six years as the minister of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Chattanooga. (That is the correct spelling and the exact name–no hyphen.)  This church is undoubtedly the most liberal religious society in this area.  The people who come to this church are liberal in their approach to religion, liberal in the development of their culture and liberal (in most cases) in the practice of their politics.  That is the place of the church in the community. 

My place in the community?  I haven’t tried to draw attention to myself; I’m not a firebrand.  I will work for what I believe demands justice, but I’m not an agitator.  I am acutely aware that my beliefs about justice are not the prevailing beliefs in this area.  I am sure that most people around here would disagree with my theology or my beliefs.  I suppose my place in the community (a self-selected place) is to express an alternative perspective and to promote a diversity of opinion. 

The issue of whether or not homosexuality is something that can be “cured” through religion has been a hot debate for years.  As a minister, how do you feel about this issue?

I answer first as an amateur logician.  To argue that homosexuality can be cured through religion assumes several beliefs:

  • the belief that homosexuality is a disease
  • the belief that a cure exists
  • the belief that the cure is efficacious
  • the belief that the patient needs (or wants) to be cured
  • the belief that there is a patient
  • and the belief that a verifiable result can be observed.

And everyone must agree on these terms and conditions before any argument could commence.

In my opinion, to assume all interested parties accept those beliefs is to make a logical mistake.  Therefore, announcing that a “cure” is available through religion, which itself is a system of beliefs, is also bogus. 

Not to mention that everyone would have to accept all the doctrine of the “religious cure.”  More beliefs.

And finally, let us remember that belief is “knowledge without evidence.”  One can not–must not–assume that one’s beliefs are shared by others, because what we accept without evidence varies by our culture, language, spirituality and experience.

I now answer as a minister.  I believe my calling is to apply my talents in ways that make the world a better place.  I get to define “better.”  Not someone else.  I believe the world is not made a better place by using religion as a cudgel to control behavior.

Methodists and others will recall that we turn to four sources of wisdom when encountering something new.  We consult scripture, recall tradition, compare our experience and use our reason.  Most Unitarian Universalists (myself included) rely more on reason and experience to guide us in forming beliefs about things that don’t fit readily in to established categories.  And so my relations with gay men and women are based in my experience and in what is reasonable. 

I am not gay, yet I want to emphasize that being gay and trying to hide it can be the most excruciating type of self-denial.  I cannot imagine anyone “choosing” to be excluded from civic participation and the cultural life of one’s community.  It is my belief that we interact with more gay men and women than we know and our interactions will only increase in the future.

I have noticed that people with limited exposure to other cultures, people who are provincial or people who are fearful are often more afraid of the questions inherent in modern life.  Conversely, I notice that people who have traveled, people who are educated and familiar with the world are not so quick to condemn behavior in others.  These people I notice are also more hopeful than fearful.

The question of admitting to the life of the church people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered was answered more than 30 years ago in Unitarian Universalist churches.   For a time line of UU involvement in the progress of gay inclusion, please visit this web site:  <www.uua.org/members/justicediversity/bisexualgay/20962.shtml>.  

On a related note, Universalists were the first to ordain a woman (1853) and the Unitarians weren’t far behind.

Many fundamentalist Christians view homosexuality as a sin.  What is your personal opinion on this oft-heated debate?

It’s not for me to criticize another’s beliefs, or “views,” as you put it.  Nor should others presume to criticize mine.  Our church has no doctrine, no dogma.  We believe that everyone (of a certain maturity) can make the determination for himself or herself as to what is a sin.  It seems to me to be a personal matter. 

At the end of the day, I believe you can believe what makes sense to you.  But if you believe in an exclusive, domineering or hurtful philosophy, you probably won’t be happy in my church.  And I would intervene if you acted on those beliefs, either in the church or in the community.

This question leads me to say that religions are not engaged in a football game, nor any kind of combat or struggle.  We are not playing a video game in which we score points by converting anyone to our beliefs or conquering them so that they won’t believe what they used to believe.  I understand this attitude is not shared by some in the Christian community.

Many homosexuals say that they feel unwelcome and unwanted at many churches.  What would you say to these individuals?

It’s easy to say, “Come on over to my church.” 

But that flippant rejoinder misses the pastoral concern here.  People quite often come to church with open hearts and vulnerable feelings.  They are often wounded by their experience in churches and religious societies that are exclusive; that is, churches which practice a theology that puts some people in and others out.  In recent years, I have noticed that some churches are striving to practice an inclusive religious life, and that’s good, because I believe that we are all in and no one is out.  It’s like a big lifeboat, this world.  We’re all in this together.