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Unitarian Universalism and LGBT people

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A rally at the Unitarian Church in Summit in New Jersey advocating marriage equality for same-sex couples in the state. The blue banner reads "Say 'I Do' to Marriage Equality".

Unitarian Universalism, as practiced by the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), and the Canadian Unitarian Council (CUC), is a non-Creedal and Liberal theological tradition and an LGBTQ affirming denomination.

The full participation of laypeople and the ordination of lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgender (LGBT) people who are open about their sexuality or gender identity; are sexually active if lesbian, gay, or bisexual; or are in same-sex relationships are permitted and welcomed by Unitarian Universalist organizations.

Theology

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The first of Unitarian Universalism's seven principles is the belief in "the inherent worth and dignity of every person", which is frequently cited as the faith's justification for their views of LGBTQ individuals.[1][2][3]

History

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Unitarianism and Universalism, two religious movements that merged in 1961 to form Unitarian Universalism, had a long history of reform of social institutions and were a home for many abolitionists, feminists, and other forward thinkers, including gay liberationists.[3] For example, two of the founders of the Mattachine Society—Bob Hull and Chuck Rowland—were Universalists, and a gay Universalist and Old Catholic minister, Rev. Wallace de Ortega Maxey, as pastor of the First Universalist Church of Los Angeles, hosted the organization’s first convention in 1953.[4]

The annual general assembly of the UUA has passed more than two dozen resolutions on LGBTQ issues, including same-sex marriage, LGB people in the military,[5] the Employment Nondiscrimination Act,[6] and transgender rights.[7]

In 1970, Unitarian Universalism was the first religion to officially condemn discrimination against homosexuals.[3] The resolution condemned biphobia as well as homophobia.[8]

In 1989, the UUA launched a Welcoming Congregation Program to support churches in intentionally becoming more inclusive of LGBTQ people.[9] After meeting requirements related to church policy, education, advocacy, and more, congregations are designated as Welcoming Congregations.[10] As of 2019, 75% of all U.S. Unitarian Universalist congregations and 99% of all Canadian Unitarian Universalist congregations had gone through the process of becoming Welcoming Congregations.[11][12]

Ordination of LGBTQ clergy

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In September 1969, Rev. James L. Stoll publicly came out as gay, making him the first ordained minister of a major religious group in the United States or Canada to do so.[3][13][14] The denomination ordained its first openly gay minister in 1979, and its first openly transgender minister was ordained in 1988.[6][8]

Education

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In 1971, the Unitarian Universalist Association published About Your Sexuality, an all-encompassing sex education program for teenagers in Unitarian Universalist churches that treated homosexuality as a valid and normal form of sexuality.[15] The program was revised several times over the next several decades and in 1999 was replaced with Our Whole Lives, a joint program with the United Church of Christ that continues to affirm LGBTQ identities in its curricula.[16]

Same-sex marriage

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The first documented same-sex weddings conducted by Unitarian Universalist ministers were performed by Rev. Ernest Pipes Jr., at the Community Church of Santa Monica, California, in 1957, and Rev. Harry Barron Scholefield, at the First Unitarian Church of San Francisco, in 1958.[17]

The UUA has officially supported Unitarian Universalist clergy performing services of union for same-sex couples since 1984.[6][18][19] Seven of the fourteen plaintiffs in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, the case that legalized same-sex marriage in Massachusetts, were Unitarian Universalists.[20] The denomination was very active in the fight for marriage equality in the United States through its advocacy campaign Side With Love (formerly Standing on the Side of Love).[8][14][21][22] The UUA submitted an amicus currie brief in support of same-sex marriage for Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court case which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.[23]

Transgender rights

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IN 2022 the UUA submitted an amicus brief decrying Alabama's SB 184 bill, which criminalized gender-affirming healthcare for transgender youth.[24]

Instituted organizations

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UUA

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The UUA has dedicated staff to becoming more welcoming and inclusive of LGBTQ people since 1973 through an office now called LGBTQ Ministries, making it the first major National Religious organization to establish an office in support of civil rights and social acceptance of LGBTQ people.[8][25] The office of LGBTQ Ministries administers the Welcoming Congregation Program through which UU churches take action to increase their inclusion of LGBTQ people.[26]

United Nations Office

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Known as UUA-UNO for short, the UUA's United Nations Office has advocated for LGBT rights in countries outside of the United States.[27] They have also provided educational resources to some LGBT communities in Africa.[27]

Canadian

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The Canadian Unitarian Council similarly supports the Welcoming Congregation Program and recognizes Welcoming Congregations.[12] The first same-sex marriage performed by a church in Canada (after the 1972 civil same-sex marriage of Michel Girouard and Rejean Tremblay of Montreal) was that of Chris Vogel and Richard North, married by the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Winnipeg on February 11, 1974, officiated by Unitarian minister Rev. Norm Naylor.[28][29] Unitarian Universalists were responsible for the first same-sex marriages performed in Manitoba, Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, and Saskatchewan, mostly in the 1970s, although the provincial governments often refused to recognize the marriages at the time.

International Council of Unitarians and Universalists

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The International Council of Unitarians and Universalists has helped advocate for LGBT rights in Nigeria and Kenya.[27]

Interweave

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From 1993 until 2016, there was a fellowship of LGBT Unitarian Universalists and supporters called Interweave Continental. Interweave was a related organization of the UUA, actively working to end oppression based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Sometimes, an individual church's Welcoming Congregation Committee evolved into an Interweave Chapter. Each chapter requested financial and advocacy support from the fellowship with which it is connected.[30]

TRUUsT

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Founded in 2004, TRUUsT (Transgender Religious Professional Unitarian Universalists Together) is an organization of trans Unitarian Universalist ministers, religious educators, seminarians, and other leaders.[31]

Local activism

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Africa

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The Unitarian Universalist church in Kampala, led by Mark Kiyamba, has been working since 2009 to support LGBTQ individuals in Uganda.[27] Unitarian Universalist communities in Burundi and South Africa have also been vocally supportive of LGBTQ rights.[27]

United States

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The Unitarian Universalist Society of Iowa City hosted the city's Lesbian Alliance in the 1970s and same-sex marriage activists in 2009.[19]

In the 1980s All Souls Unitarian Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma, hosted the group that would become Oklahomans for Equality.[26]

Individual American churches have hosted and supported Pride events, including inclusive services[32][33][34][35] and LGBTQ proms.[36]

Individual ministers and congregants have shown support for LGBTQ rights and transgender rights at protests.[2][37]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "The Seven Principles | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  2. ^ a b "Advocates gather at State House to express support for LGBTQ youth". www.boston.com. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  3. ^ a b c d Oppenheimer, Mark (1996). ""The Inherent Worth and Dignity": Gay Unitarians and the Birth of Sexual Tolerance in Liberal Religion". Journal of the History of Sexuality. 7 (1): 73–101. ISSN 1043-4070. JSTOR 3840443.
  4. ^ "Wallace de Ortega Maxey". LGBTQ Religious Archives Network. Retrieved 2021-09-17.
  5. ^ "Acceptance of Openly Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Persons in the United States Military | Resolution of Immediate Witness | Social Witness Statements | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  6. ^ a b c "Stances on LGBTQ Issues: Unitarian Universalist Association". Human Rights Campaign. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  7. ^ "Social Witness Statement Chronological Listing: 1961 to Present | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  8. ^ a b c d "Unitarian Universalist LGBTQ History & Facts | UUA.org". 2016-03-04. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  9. ^ "Welcoming Congregations Program | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  10. ^ "How to Apply for Official Recognition as a Welcoming Congregation | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Retrieved 2021-09-17.
  11. ^ "Congregation Search Results | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  12. ^ a b "Welcoming Congregations". Canadian Unitarian Council Conseil unitarien du Canada. 13 February 2018. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  13. ^ "My Greatly Human Hometown Minister--James Lewis Stoll, 1936-1994"
  14. ^ a b "David Usher: Grass Valley Church unveils 'Black Lives Matter' banner". The Union. 2 November 2015. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  15. ^ "Collection: Unitarian Universalist Association. Department of Education and Social Concerns, About Your Sexuality. Records, 1970-1983. | HOLLIS for". hollisarchives.lib.harvard.edu. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  16. ^ "Forty years of UU sexuality education". UU World Magazine. 2012-01-02. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  17. ^ Morrison-Reed, Mark D. (2018-06-03). Revisiting the Empowerment Controversy: Black Power and Unitarian Universalism. Skinner House Books.
  18. ^ Masci, David; Lipka, Michael. "Where Christian churches, other religions stand on gay marriage". Pew Research Center. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  19. ^ a b McClatchey, Emma (2020-08-06). "Iowa City's first LGBTQ safe space". Little Village. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  20. ^ DeLaet, Debra L.; Caufield, Rachel Paine (2008). "Gay Marriage as a Religious Right: Reframing the Legal Debate over Gay Marriage in the United States". Polity. 40 (3): 298–299. doi:10.1057/palgrave.polity.2300103. ISSN 0032-3497. JSTOR 40213478 – via JSTOR.
  21. ^ "Unitarians Endorse Homosexual Marriages", UPI, New York Times, 29 June 1984, retrieved on 21 June 2007.
  22. ^ "UUA launches 'Standing on the Side of Love' campaign". UU World Magazine. 2009-09-07. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  23. ^ Sands, Kathleen M (2019). America's Religious Wars: The Embattled Heart of Our Public Life. Yale University Press. p. 228. doi:10.2307/j.ctvhrcz8q.10. ISBN 978-0-300-21386-7. JSTOR j.ctvhrcz8q.
  24. ^ "Unitarian Universalists file brief in support of trans youth seeking gender-affirming care". Alabama Political Reporter. 2022-11-18. Retrieved 2023-02-02.
  25. ^ Robinson, B.A. (2017-01-22). "Unitarian Universalist Association, a Liberal Faith Group in the U.S., and the LGBT community". Retrieved 2019-03-17.
  26. ^ a b "Inclusiveness Is an Asset to Major LGBT-Affirming Churches and Synagogues". www.advocate.com. 2018-05-07. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  27. ^ a b c d e Schmidt, Christian (1 December 2014). "Unitarian Universalists work for LGBT rights in Africa". UU World Magazine. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  28. ^ Frum, Barbara (February 21, 1974). "Gay Winnipeg Couple Marries". CBC Digital Archives. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  29. ^ "Beacon Unitarian Church: Sermons". www.beaconunitarian.org. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  30. ^ "Interweave - About". Interweave Continental. Archived from the original on 2014-12-25. Retrieved 2019-03-17. "Interweave". Unitarian Universalist Association. Retrieved 2019-03-17.
  31. ^ "About". TRUUsT. 2010-05-03. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  32. ^ "Town of Hamburg to host pride celebration". WGRZ. 27 May 2022. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  33. ^ Popovska, Viktoria (12 June 2022). "At first-ever Montclair Pride Festival, 'my inner child is so proud and beaming'". Montclair Local News. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  34. ^ Hamer, Cristal (2022-06-04). "Pride events taking over downtown Santa Cruz". KSBW. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  35. ^ Colurso, Mary (2022-06-01). "Pride Month 2022: Your guide to 41 events in Alabama". al. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  36. ^ "Rhode Island church hosts tenth annual LGBTQ prom for youth | UU World Magazine". www.uuworld.org. 27 May 2019. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  37. ^ McArdle, Elaine (21 June 2018). "Kansas City activist arrested in confrontation with anti-LGBT protesters | UU World Magazine". UU World. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
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