missing the forest for the trees

I'm not one to hop on what's hot in the streets. I like to fancy myself counter-cultural, but every once and a while something will come along that I feel compelled to speak to. This Eddie Long situation is one of them. Now, my main concern is not whether or not he had sex with those boys (we have laws that handle such as situation if it was indeed coercion). My concern or topic of interest is the institution that created an atmosphere that would warrant such closeted (pun intended) affairs. The Black Church.

Now, I have heard several words thrown around these past few days. Hypocrites, liar, fake, phony, so on and so forth. Most of which have been aimed at Rev. Long and Christendom at large. The verity of the accusations aside, we have in our hands the most perfect time and opportunity to talk about homosexuality and the Black Church. If we could, for a moment, have a conversation where each side brings it's concerns and questions, I feel the resulting discourse would be a welcomed voice in both the religious and LBGT community. Mostly because, more often than not, the two are one in the same.

It is hard being a minister. It is. Really hard. People who know that we are ministers watch us all the time. They see which theater we walk into at the movies. They peek into our grocery carts at stores. They call us if they think they see our car someplace they feel it shouldn't be. They google earth our homes so that they can watch us without us knowing (real talk, not making that up). People feel that it is their responsibility and duty to watch us and make sure we are doing right and to be the first to gossip when they think they caught us doing wrong. People often assume a lot about us simply because R-E-V is the title we hold.

It is hard being LBGT. It is. Really hard. People who know we are LBGT watch us all the time, thinking if they are the same sex that we are then we automatically want them. Some wonder where our parents went wrong and what our parents did to make us 'this way.' There are some people who feel it is their life's calling to tell us we are perverted and God is not pleased with our chosen lifestyle. There are some of us whose family has turned their backs on us. There are some of us who have been physically threatened or harmed. The are people who think that because we have 'chosen' to live this way that we should accept whatever treatment we receive.

There are folks who feel the labels of LBGT and Christian are mutually exclusive, meaning if you are one then you can not possibly be the other. I think it is time that both parties admit that not only is this statement untrue, it is fundamentally and categorically discriminatory at best. At its core, it is merely a gilded curtain that is used as a means of preventing conversation. If we are honest, LGBT folk have just as many excuses to not sit down at the table with Christian folk. Yet, here we are. We have a pastor who has been accused of having some kind of sexual relationship with persons of the same sex.

Two worlds that have tried so desperately to remain apart have come colliding together. Don't get me wrong, these two worlds are not nearly as separate as they like to pretend they are nor is this the first time the two have met in such a public way. Yet, this time it seems different. It seems this time there is the opportunity, the room for an open, honest dialogue. It seems the atmosphere is different. I think both sides are finally ready for a discussion. We have been missing the forest for the trees. There is a larger issue than Rev. Long and the accusers.

IF, read if, Rev. Long is gay or bisexual, why then did he feel it necessary to hide his true self? How is it we have built an institution that should be loving and uplifting but has become degrading and hateful? If within Black Liberation Theology we truly believe that God is a liberator, how is it then we have forced our LBGT brothers and sisters to hide in their sanctified prayer closets? How is it we can preach that God wants us to have life and have it more abundantly, while at the same time do not allow our LBGT sisters and brothers to live wholly as children of God?

If we as LBGT people detest the perceived hypocrisy of the Black Church, how do we then justify our actions and attitudes toward Christians? How is it that we pride ourselves on being more open minded than most, yet the idea of a LBGT Christian (let alone minister) seems to be out of our realm of thinking? Does our being wronged give us the right, privilege, and duty to wrong others? Have we become a case study for the oppressed becoming the oppressor? Must we always be the ones to turn the other cheek?

I am not naive enough to think that this situation will be a catalyst for a conversation (regardless of how much it is needed) to take place. Even if a conversation were to happen, I am not naive enough to think that all would be transformed and at the end hold hands and sing. It is my hope that this situation, however it turns out, will cause church members to think critically about their faith. Think about why they believe what they say they believe. The Bible says, "Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding." (Proverbs 4:7)

Belief without wisdom and understanding truly

Makes. No. Sense.