(Pride flag. Image source: Shutterstock)

Stories about LGBTQ people and religion are not simple. Many, unfortunately, are about trauma, or about how rightwing politicians galvanized conservative religious communities to oppose LGBTQ equality. But those are not the only stories about LGBTQ people and religion. For decades, LGBTQ people have refused to cede authority to those who deny their legitimacy and have transformed religious communities and traditions in the process.

What follows is a sample of some of what The Revealer has published in the past few years about LGBTQ people and religion. Several are inspiring. Most are complicated. Many show queer possibilities and queer potential. We hope they serve as a useful and powerful resource this Pride month.

1) Special Issue: “Trans Lives and Religion”
Eight Contributing Authors
Our 2022 special issue, “Trans Lives and Religion” contains articles on transgender and nonbinary Muslims, transgender Buddhist teachers, nonbinary and trans Sikhs, Two-Spirit Indigenous Americans, gender diversity in the Talmud, how Christians can support transgender adolescents, and how today’s anti-trans legislation mirrors earlier anti-queer and anti-reproductive choice efforts.

2) Meet Father Bryan Massingale: A Black, Gay, Priest Fighting for an Inclusive Catholic Church
Olga Segura
A profile of a progressive leader in the Catholic Church working for racial and LGBTQ justice

3) AIDS and the Blessings of Staying: The Ministry of Reverend Jim Mitulski
Lynne Gerber
How the minister of a predominantly gay congregation responded to the AIDS epidemic

4) Queer Nuns and Digital Dragtavism in the Age of Covid-19
Lauren Pond
The Sisters of Perpetual Joy are spreading happiness and pushing boundaries during the pandemic

5) Evangelical Women Leaders as LGBTQ Allies
Mihee Kim-Kort
The ramifications of evangelical women leaders publicly supporting LGBTQ Christians

6) Ramy Season Two: Let’s Talk about Sex, Habibi
Mehammed Amadeus Mack
A review of the show’s portrayal of American Muslims and queer identities

7) Seeing Through Stained Glass: Gay, Catholic, and Conflicted
Mark Jason Williams
His father’s funeral forced him to confront the Catholic community that once condemned him

8) Dying to Be Normal: Gay Martyrs and the Transformation of American Sexual Politics
Kali Handelman and Brett Krutzsch
A conversation between Kali Handelman and Brett Krutzsch about Krutzsch’s book and the place of religion and the media within LGBTQ politics

Happy Pride!