Jeff Chu: "Does Jesus Really Love Me? A Gay Christian's Pilgrimage in Search of God in America"
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2013-03-21/jeff-chu-does-jesus-really-love-me-gay-christians-pilgrimage-search-god-america
Westboro Baptist Church member Rachel Phelps pickets in the Bronx, protesting the legalization of same-sex marriage in New York.
(Photo by Dana Halferty)
As the push for marriage equality makes strides across the U.S., Christian congregations reacted in different ways. In a new book, a gay Christian journalist tells of his yearlong pilgrimage exploring the intersection of faith and homosexuality. Traveling to 28 states, journalist Jeff Chu tries to understand a religion that preaches love for all but in his view sometimes practices intolerance. And he reveals his own personal journey to find community and acceptance.
Guests
Jeff Chu
journalist and editor at Fast Company magazine.
Slideshow: Westboro Baptist Church
Photos of Westboro Baptist Church members in Topeka, Kansas, and New York City taken during author Jeff Chu's visit in summer 2011. All photos credit Dana Halferty.
Read An Excerpt
From the book "Does Jesus Really Love Me?" by Jeff Chu. Copyright © 2013 by Jeff Chu. Reprinted courtesy of Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
Comments
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Chu's new book is great. I just finished it yesterday. I look forward to hearing him on the program.
Oh, in case you're interested, here's my review of his book:
http://lifewalkblog.wordpress.com/2013/03/19/does-jesus-really-love-me/
My view might be described as agnostic. The question I ask is if All Creation likes me: Am I in tune with what was meant to be? I'm trying my best. As an American blessed with more inheritance, more educational opportunity and more family support than 95% of my fellow citizens my reciprocal responsibilities overwhelm my abilities. Pancake has to take the steep road in almost every instance.
I have to scrape up money to help save the transmitter at WBAI. I have to consider in my heart all the evidence about 9/11 and allow for the possibility that our Owners staged a false-flagged attack. I have to condemn CEOs to their face. I have to try and save innumerable indigent households that are the victims of capitalist competition and corruption.
Being the best almost 39 year old Lesbian spouse possible has its rewards. Recently I got to travel with Mia to California where she was interviewing for a teaching position and we heard Hillary Mann and Flynt Leverett pre-debate Mansour Farhang on "Why the USA Must Come to Terms with the Truth on Iran." (Public event will be March 27th in Berkeley, CA) I thank KPFA for this event. Next week we will go join the PFLAG chapter in backward Gaston County thanks to courageous gay activist Robert Kellogg. And my experience tells me that women have ten times the capacity of sexual pleasure than men do so that emotional bonding is strongest between committed same-sex female couples. (The Pope can never comprehend this.) Because I am following my Creation destiny I find the greatest rewards in communicating peace, sharing and resistance to power to the brainwashed and intimidated majority. I am not ashamed to say I once had a colonized mind myself. My minority gender identity was a shortcut to reality. Thanks Creator. And thanks that I might see some resurgence of aware consciousness this Easter. I'll be up before sunrise looking for it.
Like it or not we have a secular government. Until the Christian Taliban takes over we keep religion out of our laws, and the 'church' out of governance.
To me, people who raise their children to hate are child abusers, and worse, they propagate their hate to the next generation. I have no problem with a person's private beliefs, but I draw the line at extending that belief into laws, rules or regulations that affect me.
It took sneaky politics to get "In God We Trust" on our money and "Under God" in our pledge of allegiance. Sneaky politics have been used to bar gay people from the same rights as everyone else. But then that is how Religion operates, and always has.
Fear and prejudice seem to go hand in hand with 'true believers". Intolerance of 'other' is an old disease, and most prevalent in the deeply religious and the profoundly ignorant. Often those two are combined in the same person.
What about your beliefs would compel you to still remain faithful to something you think is so flawed and deems you as an abomination? Have you considered atheism or not belonging to any religion?
Why do Fundamentalists think they are the only Christians? There are many Christian churches that embrace our GLBT brothers & sisters.
Jeff Chu, I am in awe of your heart and love after hearing your comments regarding your parents and your wedding. If more Christians would love, empathize and be an example to others instead of judging othets, then Christianity would not turn so many people off.
Congratulations on your wedding and new husband.
Did you ever consider joining another Christian denomination? Personally, I consider the Southern Baptists to be one of the cruelest of all of the evangelical Christian sects.
joann wrote:
Why do Fundamentalists think they are the only Christians?
Because they are fundamentalists. Fundamentalism doesn't simply extend to the borders of religion.... as you can see by the other arguments and debates that folks get themselves into on the DR board. Myself included.
In this sense fundamentalism means that you are blind to the fact that you are wrong.... not only are you wrong, you must convince everyone else that you are right. I'm pretty sure that the "book" religions all warn against this kind of thing, but just like any doctrine, the adherents often mistake the text for something it isn't.
We might be better to write our own book.
I feel that it is not good for the mind and for general mental well-being to let oneself constantly battle over a belief in a superior being or a God that punishes "worldly pleasures" and a love for one's own gender (aka a worldly pleasure). Punishing yourself for a natural feeling because of a belief that another life exists after death, a life no one knows is actually real, or to please a being that no one knows is actually real is foolish.
People need to focus more on what is real now. If love is something that is real and can be found in life today, it should be cherished over a lonely and lost life in religion.
Tom read a listener comment that claimed the Catholic Church teaches the only purpose of sex is procreation -- and then Tom responded as if this was a fact. It is not a fact; it is not the teaching of the Catholic Church. For example see the Catechism of the Catholic Church #2337: "Sexuality, in which man's belonging to the bodily and biological world is expressed, becomes personal and truly human when it is integrated into the relationship of one person to another, in the complete and lifelong mutual gift of a man and a woman."
I disagree with part of this teaching -- I'm pro-gay -- but it remains a fact that procreation is not the only purpose of sex for the Catholic Church.
How does Jeff feel about the law regulating what was for years referred to as a "Holy Estate"?
Why is the morality argument frequently presented in the form "if everyone did it, it would be bad?"
If everyone worked as a tailor, no one would make food and we'd all die. Therefore, working as a tailor is immoral. Makes perfect sense, right?
In response to the recent comment on the Catholic Church's emphasis on procreation - I would advise that listener to read the Theology of the Body by John Paul II. Sex, the reciprocal gifting of self, has everything to do with love and affirmation as well as procreation.
had to turn off the radio. I experience the discussion itself as homophobia.
it's not the intent at all, I understand, but this is how it feels to me.
To answer John's question (what a married couple of man and woman would do after they have raised their children?): it takes a village and generations of productivity to produce and to nurture in a sustainable manner.
There is little sadder than a god delusional gay, especially since Jesus hasn't had a lucid thought in two thousand years.
There is a lot of misinformation about the what the Catholic Church says about sex in a marriage. I am catholic and nowhere have I heard that you cant enjoy sex as a couple, nor that if your kids leave home you stop having sex.
Thank you for speaking about this topic in a way that is so respectful of Christians of both sides. My brother is gay, and I am (for lack of a better term) an evangelical Christian. I love him dearly, and it breaks my heart that he feels rejected by God and the church. I think that transparency, love, and mutual respect are what all sincere believers must espouse to move foreward on this issue. In the words of John Wesley: " In essentials unity; in non-essentials liberty; and in all things love"
Thanks for this discussion. I went through much of what Chu has but decades ago. It has gotten easier as I have grown older. I was lucky to have a Southern Baptist minister who advised Baptist students when I was in grad school. He quickly helped me clear away a lot of baggage. Yet I waited years before giving up on the Southern Baptist Convention. When I did split it was more about the SBC's antiquated role for women. Now there is the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship which is more open and liberal, thank
God.
So here's the problem I have with all this: what do you do with the parts of the Bible that speak against homosexuality? Do you omit them? Do you explain them away? What is the Bible? Is it the "inspired word of God?" If you do in fact believe the Bible to be God's Word, how do you deal with those parts of the Bible that contradict what you now believe? I'm not talking about denominational teachings. I'm talking about your belief. If you do not believe the Bible is God’s Word, how then do you identify yourself as a Baptist or a Christian? I am casting no stones. I just see a clear “mismatch.” If you believe the Bible is God’s Word, how then can you abide in something that it speaks against? No one among us can meet all the expectations of the Bible but we are called to strive towards that goal. If we resign to something we become content with where we are and then we just try to be a “good person.” What about a man (or women) who resigns to his promiscuity and says, “this is who I am,” and then lives in it calling it normal?
I appreciated the conversation very much. I have to disagree with Chu that we have many different Jesuses, and I hope he stops using that terminology. As Christians, we believe that in the end there is one truth, one God, and one Jesus. We may have different opinions of what that truth is, but that doesn't make them all equally valid. The most valid is that which is closest to the truth, and we are called to search for that truth. I appreciate his search, and he'll be in my prayers.
Jeff Chu wrote in his book about the LONELINESS of a celibate gay priest. Maybe its not LONELINESS but LONESOMENESS. The priest may be ALONE BUT NOT LONELY ... Christianity is filling up his every moment? no?
@TommyTutone, Agreed.
@ Majuti: You have to make a distinction between the Old Testament teachings and the New Testament. Jesus was silent on the topic of homosexuality.
@Wabanzi, so at one point in time God said don't do it and then a point in time came where He said, "...wait for it, wait for it, okay, now you can do it." I think Jesus' message was to confess and be forgiven (for all of us). There are MANY things Jesus did not address so should I assume that if He didn’t address it, it’s okay? Again, if you believe the Bible to be the Word of God, you would also believe that the New Testament was not an afterthought but part of the original plan. Everything in the Old Testament leads to the New Testament. Look, I know I don’t have all the answers nor do I know the mind of God. I think there are logical problems that exist between homosexuality and the Bible.
Enjoyed the show. I have thought about these issues, and decided to look for what the bible says. Jesus clearly defines marriage in Mark. That is a tough definition for folks who are gay and want to live a life in Christ.
To me, there are some similarities to the guest and the rich young ruler who asked Jesus for guidance. The rich young ruler was hit pretty hard when Jesus told him what he needed to do. I think this gentleman knows, but is looking for something he can hang onto that can offset what Jesus says in the book of Mark about marriage.
Romans 3:23 for ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and ALL are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith.
The Old Covenant as told in the Old Testament has been fulfilled and replaced by the New Covenant, the New Testament of Jesus Christ. Man was found to be unable to follow the law, eat this, don't eat that etc... so the law was replaced with god's grace. Jesus was sent to atone for man's sin. To be accepted into grace what must you do?
Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
There are lots of sins, we have ALL committed them, to ostracize one person or group because of their particular sin would not be in keeping with god's command to love your neighbor as yourself. When you set yourself up to judge the sins of others, like saying "Love the sinner hate the sin" are you really doing god's work? Your job is to prepare yourself to enter the door and to be an example to others, not to hate.
“God loves the sinner but hates the sin,” is attributed to St. Augustine" but he really said "God loves mankind and hates sin." If you work on removing the beam from your own eye you shouldn't have time to look for the mote in your neighbors. And trust me where ever you are you have gay neighbors who are suffering for your sins.
Since part of my college work was done at a couple of religious-based universities, I was required to study derivations of various faiths and the ethics involved. Having surveyed both the Old Testament and New Testament I can attest to the fact that there is actually very little written about homosexuality. In fact, Jesus never mentioned it at all.
Leviticus has prohibitions against people laying down with members of their own gender (....although there is really no mention of female involvement in that) but Leviticus has prohibitions against eating pork and shellfish. I don't recall seeing anything that would suggest Red Lobster or Famous Dave's (pork) Barbecue going out of business on religious grounds.
Pharisees brought to Jesus a women caught in adultery and wanted His decision about "The Law" which required she be stoned to death; He responded by first nonchalantly drawing in the dirt and then saying, "The one who is without sin should cast the first stone." The accusers walked away, led by their own elders; Jesus demonstrated restraint in judging and punishment. He also said emphatically, "Judge not lest you be judged."
Thus far, no Pope has spoken Ex Cathedra re: homosexuals - which is reportedly the only venue which provides absolute definitions. And there is significant evidence to prove that homosexuality is as normal a DNA variation as many others.
Remembering a bumper sticker often seen "God Doesn't Make Trash", why would a rational Creator put Her creatures in a predicament in which acting out normally would be "an abomination"?? Surely such edicts represent misinterpretation of divine intent.
Why are human beings SO much more judgmental than the recipients of their worship?
Bigotry should never be encouraged or excused in churches designated as "Christian". The Master devoted a large portion in dealing with the prejudices of His own followers. Jesus NEVER sanctioned the persecution of gay persons. That OTHERS recorded in the Bible advocated such things is unfortunate, but completely understandable. Many beliefs were widespread in Jesus' time (including great bias against women) so it should not be surprising that many who followed Jesus embraced such tennants. We live in a modern age of information and enlightenment and MUCH, MUCH more is expected of us.
The time has come for those who embrace Christ to speak out forcefully in His name. Do not pander to those who indulge in the promotion of of hatred and persecution. These sins are bad enough by themselves and they approach the greatest of blasphemy when they are tied to Jesus.
Put the words of CHRIST first in your heart. Nowhere in Christ's words will you find sanction for the persecution of gays. Instead, the Master devoted a large portion of His ministry to dealing with the prejudices of His own followers. It is clear from His teachings that Jesus believed that prejudices faced by mankind ranked among the greatest challenges faced by the human soul in his or her journey to the Father.