An ironic tragedy: African-American rejection of gays and lesbians antithetical to black liberation theology

This article by Horace Griffin was posted on Episcopal News Service; thanks to Jim for mailing it.

The 21st Century world currently struggles with what may be the moral issue of this time -- homosexuality and the effort to affirm lesbian and gay people and their love relationships.

There may be no group with deeper passions about this discussion than people in the United States. And, like moral issues of the past -- slavery, segregation and women's equality -- the moral compass on homosexuality is being designed in houses of worship.

Those in the Christian church do not speak with a united voice. Gay and heterosexual alike, they stand with the same Bible proclaiming different gospels on homosexuality. Some claim that lesbians and gays are made in God's image and favor all loving sexual relationships. Others view gay relationships as abhorrent. Generally, African-American heterosexual Christians fall within the latter group.

Even with the presence of gay Christians in their families and churches and the strong and faithful witness of revered black gay Christians like George Washington Carver, James Cleveland and Barbara Jordan, African Americans continue to resist viewing homosexuality as anything but sin, a negative "lifestyle" and a white aberration. Although there is opportunistic tolerance of gays in black churches, black gays -- like other gays -- often are dismissed as irrelevant to moral black people.

As a gay African-American pastoral theologian in the liberation tradition, I find this black church practice to be an ironic tragedy, antithetical to a black liberation theology and gospel of Jesus that offers justice for all people. Historically, black church leaders opposed oppressive actions against humans and played an active role to end slavery, mobilize African Americans in the political process, organize educational institutions and provide places of worship, recreation and training for black people. Many black church leaders protested social and religious injustice toward African Americans. As a result of the African-American experience, black church leaders and members developed a theological perspective of justice and liberation taken from the Exodus story and the prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures.

Despite this historical perspective, most black ministers have failed in their application of this theology toward women and gay-identified men. Black heterosexual Christian men's objection to racial hierarchical practice, by and large, had to do with their resistance to being dominated by white men. In general, they did not object to, but rather supported, the domination of women and later gay men. Their use of Scripture to support this domination is similar to that of conservative white Christians who converted, enslaved and dominated black men.

There is a diversity of African-American religious views on some issues, such as women in ministry, social activism, evangelism and interpretation of Scripture. But in the area of sexuality, and homosexuality in particular, black congregants do not show much variance. A significant number of black church leaders have responded to this issue in reactionary ways by strongly opposing marriage equality without a measured discussion of the larger issue of homosexuality.

I challenge African Americans to critically engage the relationship between Christianity and homosexuality in the same faithful way that a critical engagement of Christianity and race is offered. In the inheritance of the black church as the center of black people's lives, black pastors, as heirs and keepers of this sacred canopy, can lead others in dismantling its sin of homophobia and heterosexual supremacy.

Many black heterosexuals have not heard the stories of pain and discrimination that their own fellow black lesbians and gays experience because of black homophobia in churches and families. If there is any possibility for change to occur, that change must begin with the voices of black gays and their heterosexual allies.

The black church has stood as a model of the gospel, opposing slavery and emphasizing black liberation. If Christians today in the black church ever plan to live into this historical witness as a Christian body committed to black people's liberation and the liberation of all oppressed people, they ultimately must stand with lesbians and gays as equal members in God's church and world. The gospel of our Lord calls us into community, to live in mutuality, to witness the beauty of our differences.

Homosexuality is part of human sexuality, just as African Americans are part of the human race. Thus there always will be African-American lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgendered persons within and outside of our faith communities. The question then becomes whether African-American heterosexuals are going to do justice toward their sons and daughters, sisters and brothers, mothers and fathers, and other relatives, friends, colleagues and fellow Christians who are lesbian and gay.

Our acceptance and celebration of lesbians and gays and their relationships, along with those of heterosexuals, will allow us to appreciate the beauty of God's diverse creation. In doing this, in affirming the erotic in all of us, we will proclaim a true black liberation theology. And in doing so, we will honor God.

-- The Rev. Horace L. Griffin, Ph.D., Episcopal priest and professor at General Theological Seminary in New York, is author of Their Own Receive Them Not: African American Lesbians and Gays in Black Churches (Pilgrim Press, 2006). To respond to this column, e-mail personally@episcopal-life.org. We welcome your own "Personally" columns.