Hello, my name is David

[dsdrane]

Greetings from South Florida -- Delray Beach, to be exact.

I was very happy to discover Soulforce last year, and I've been recently following the Pastor Brad story up in Atlanta...so I thought it high time I said hello.

My family's approach to religion could be read as decidedly non-committal. My father was born Catholic, but raised Lutheran (Missouri Synod). My mother attended Baptist Sunday School, married my father in a Methodist church, had me baptized by a Presbyterian pastor, and later had us attend Sunday School for a few years at a Congregationalist church.

Add to these muddy waters the fact that I came of age and came out during what I would call the conservative religious backlash of the 1980s and you get a young adult for whom religion had little meaning, and what meaning it did have was scary.

Well, then life happened. And things changed. I changed; the world changed, etc. I always thought of myself as a spiritual person, but felt I had to respond that I was agnostic when it came to questions of religion. I truly didn't have knowledge nor innate faith. I do now, and it's the result of a confluence of a whole bunch of things over time.

I worship now at a nearby Episcopal church, where one of the priests is not only gay but also in a relationship. It was my first stop on what was to be a period of "church shopping" (after I learned I was not particularly welcome as an open, unapologetically gay person at my late father's Missouri Synod Lutheran church), and all I can say is that God put in the the right place my first time out of the gate.

I'll be forever grateful for the amazing community I've found...and I look forward to being officially (and finally) confirmed this March when the Bishop visits.

I'm grateful to have found this community as well, and I look forward to taking part. Best wishes and peace to all of you!

David

[keltic63]

welcome to soulforce David!

That is quite a story. glad to have you here and look forward to reading more posts from you!

Steve

[TheOrigenalHeretic]

Welcome, David! We're glad you're here. I'm an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and United Church of Christ, but I'm a bit of an Episcopalian at heart. ;-) You'll find a warm welcome and a supportive community here.

Grace and Peace,

WES

[BenL]

Welcome, David.

I belong to a very welcoming Episcopal church in MA that embraces all sorts of diversity, including sexual orientation and gender identity/expression. I wish I could say that all Episcopal churches are this welcoming, but I'm glad to hear you've found one in what is generally a conservative part of the country for our denomination.

One of the things I like about Anglicanism in general is that it gives a person the space to grapple with his faith and to grow in the process. Some in the communion today would prefer a more cookie-cutter approach where people subscribe to a strict set of rules, but that's not historic Anglicanism, IMHO.

I've found that my work in the parish and the Soulforce community make a good combination. I hope you enjoy your stay ... and chime in on topics of interest.

BenL

[Zerbie]

David, hello and welcome to the forum.

I'm glad to hear that after all that journeying, you found a community. Perhaps now, two.

Hope to talk with you some more.

Welcome.

Zerbie

[BruceChris]

It's nice to have you on board. Nice Photo. I myself am a member of the United Church of Christ, but I must say, there are some very interesting things going on in the Episcopalian church, and the Anglican Communion. This is definitely a denomination where individual churches, and congregants are having to face up to dealing with the question of the humanity, Christianity, and acceptability to God of homosexual people. And that new lady bishop of yours may have some very interesting, but subtle ways of influencing things.

Peace and Love, Bruce Chris

[Daniel]

David- My own husband is a musician in an Episcopal church where the Rector serves along side his boyfriend. And after repeatedly being fired for being openly gay in other less welcoming places of worship, it has been a joy for him to find a safe harbor. I am glad you have found a new sense of faith and your own home, and believe you will find the same here. Welcome!

[Pablo Rafael]

David,

Having grown up in the Lutheran Church, I know what you are talking about. It is a very Biblically devout denomination but also one that is very rigid and can have a very narrow focus. I have to say, however, that the first gay pastor I met was a Lutheran.

I am now a Catholic and find it fits me much better. (I know what you're thinking, "Out of the frying pan; into the fire".) I also like the Episcopal church because of its formality and reverance. It is a church that has a lot of attraction to me. I am glad that you have the right place for you.

Anyhow, enough talking about me. This was supposed to be a welcome for you. (We teachers like to hear ourselves talk, an occupational hazard.) Please let us know what your thoughts are on issues.

Tu Amigo, Pablo

[dsdrane]

Thank you, Everyone, for the warm welcome.

Peace,

David