(note to Mods - this is not a religion post per se, despite the title)
I attended a Pride Week Interfaith service on Sunday. Not being much of a believer in the LGBT "community," I have attended very few related events over the years, and even then as a brief onlooker. Trans-anything has rarely had much of a presence, unless you count drag queens in that ... and I don't.
There was a medium-sized congretation, perhaps a hundred and fifty people or so. I would guess that almost all were gay or allies, but I did notice a few trans people as well. The service itself was straightforward. A few readings - delivered by a trans woman, no less, opening/closing prayers, a candle lighting ceremony with one colored candle for each color in the rainbow flag, and a sermon. There was a choir that was quite good. And there was dancing in the pews, waving arms, shouted amens, clapping, and that sort of thing - all very foreign to me.
The sermon is what stood out in that not only were trans people mentioned, but received a great deal of emphasis. More so than any other sub-group, I would say. It was doubly gratifying to me that it was delivered by a lesbian pastor, as certain segments of the lesbian community are notably anti-trans. There was the usual "transgender" language, which I thought over-broad, but she actually mentioned transsexuals specifically several times, even referencing transition and surgery. Frankly, I'm still amazed.
I thanked her at the door when leaving, and then took the opportunity to write her a fairly long note on why I thought her sermon significant - not just for me, but for the rest of the congregation. I just may drop into her church some Sunday to see if this was a one-off or was indicative of a fundamental inclusiveness.
The experience took off a little of the edginess over moving to the Bible Belt. I wonder if the LGB contingent heard the same thing I did, and whether they took it as a caution to them, as I think intended.
Interesting experience.
