(Originally Published in Just Out Magazine, February 2013 – Final Print Issue)

In The Trenches: The Pariah Pool

Last year was a time of big sweeping change for me. I lost two pieces of my deepest love to the great beyond, grew closer to another human being than ever before, and let go of another round of “friends” to superficiality. There seemed to be a feeling layer of marginalization spread throughout the year. Even now, in the second month of 2013, it walks beside me, greeting me at every turn. The truth is, that particular feeling and I have been walking hand in hand for as long as I can remember.

Most recently, this marginalized feeling came from some members of the queer community as well as some in the right-wing evangelical Christian community not agreeing with my inter-community dialogue work between the Mars Hill Church and members of Portland’s LGBTQ community (as well as my very public comments and opinions about the vandalism and threats of violence which followed); it came from community “leaders” who didn’t appreciate me stirring up the status quo; from the Read the rest of this entry »

(Originally Published in the December 2012 Issue of Just Out Magazine)

I turned thirty-three this past October, and, on the eve of my new year on Earth, some strange magic occurred that has catapulted me into the most exquisite inner awakening I have ever experienced. At the risk of sounding totally certifiable, I have decided to share this journey with all of you. Some of you may relate, others may not, but I feel I may burst if I don’t give it back to the world.

When I was seven years old one of the students at the college my father worked for came to live with us for a year. This was not uncommon in the close-knit Christian education system we were immersed in at the time, and my parents knew this young man well … at least they thought they did. Over the months that followed his moving into our home it would become clear that he was not who he seemed to be, as is so often the case with these types of people.

During the year that this man lived with us Read the rest of this entry »