Rev. George Miller
June 27, 2021
LGBTQIA
PRIDE
It is an honor to speak
today.
It is important that we start
By honoring 2 of our
ancestors
who made PRIDE possible.
On June 28, 1969
When the powers that be thought
they could raid a gay bar to bring shame
and humiliation upon the
people,
It was a black drag queen,
and a trans woman of color
Who had the courage and audacity
to say “Heck no!” and “I have my civil rights!”
Today, we give thanks and pay
respect to Marsha P. Johnson & Zazu Nova
who literally started a
revolution.
I also want to give thanks
to my father, Herbert Allen Miller.
My Dad was an alpha male. A
man’s man. An Eagle Scout, Vietnam Vet,
NYC Cop, and leader of Troop
100.
One day when I was 16, I
went to a party. Got drunk for the 1st time.
Came home. Told my parents
every deep dark secret.
“I’m not gay, I’m not gay,”
I told them, “Everyone thinks I’m gay but I’m not.”
The next day, my father came
into my room to discuss the night before.
He said “And about you being
gay. It doesn’t matter to me if you are
gay or straight. I love you no matter what.”
With that, my Dad, alpha
male NYC Cop, gave me a big hug and a kiss.
So, when I discovered, at 21
that I really was gay, I could tell my father without fear and live my life as
an openly gay man and church pastor.
It has not always been easy,
but I thank God for my father, who showed me what it means to be a man, and let
me know that I was OK.
Not everyone has that.
Not everyone has been told
by their Dad or their Mom or their Church or their Pastor that they are “OK.”
But I am here to tell you-
You are OK.
You are beautiful.
And you are beloved.
Before we start our March
there’s 2 things to empower us with. A
way to change the dialogue and use our words.
Because words are powerful.
One, I do not believe homosexuality
is a sin. In the Bible, “sin” means to “miss
the mark” or a “tragic mistake.”
Honey, we are nowhere near
being a tragic mistake.
When people think they’re
being nice and say “Well, I hate the sin, but love the sinner,” stop them right
there and say “Being LBGTQIA is not a sin.”
“Bigotry, hatred, injustice,
oppression- now those are sins.”
2nd- when people
say “I don’t care what you do in the bedroom,” stop them right there.
Our identity is not all
about what’s done in the bedroom.
It’s about community. It’s about attraction. It’s about love.
It’s about forming your own
family.
It’s about being your
authentic self, and it’s about being with someone who makes your authentic self’s
heart sing.
When people try to reduce our
identity to nothing more than a closed door activity, we should grieve for them.
If someone feels they have
to reduce the LGBTQIA community to a behavior that must be hidden…you got to
wonder “What are they hiding?”
And if that person can only
define us in terms of sexual activity, how do they define their own relationships?
Do they only see their
husband, their wife as someone they get to do things with behind closed doors
and that’s it?
If that’s true, then it is truly sad.
Friends, allies- as we prepare to March, let us remember the Spirit of today.
Today is not a protest.
Today is not a demonstration.
Today is a Celebration.
A Celebration that we are
Here.
And we are beautiful.
The lesbian and gay.
We are beautiful.
The bisexual and transexual.
We are beautiful.
The Queer, intersex, and
non-binary.
We are beautiful.
Our Allies. Our friends.
Our Mothers & Fathers
Our Aunts and Uncles.
Our Sisters and Brothers.
Our Elders.
Anyone, who at any time
spoke up
And spoke out.
We are beautiful.
And we are here.
We are your
Coffee barristers
Your teachers
Your care givers
We are your veterans
Your first responders
Your farmers
We are beautiful.
And we are here-
Your artists
Your musicians
Your preachers.
We are beautiful.
And we are here-
Your sister your brother
Your aunt your uncle
Your neighbor
Your coworker
We are beautiful.
And we are here.
We give thanks.
And we shout “Happy PRIDE!”
3 comments:
Hi. I have a stupid question. I know you are a Minister and was wondering if your denomination recognizes Jesus Christ as the son of God and the only way of salvation as he himself stated? My friend says he is a devout Christian but doesn't believe in the divinity of Jesus nor his resurrection. I find this really disingenuous. If I'm calling myself a follower of Islam, then I must believe that everyone who is not Muslim will not go to paradise. I've had in depth conversations with many Muslims (I lived in Jordan and Turkey for work). They are not ashamed of their religious texts and state openly that homosexuality is sin and LGBTQ go to hell. They also will not compromise in what they believe to be God's words as given through Muhammad. My friend told me that honestly, he believes the Quran and hadiths should be followed and practicing lgbtq should be killed. He lived in Turkey but now lives in Sebring.
If Muslims are devout and believe with faith that God has given them the truth, why are Christian's so eager to distance themselves from the book the claim to be their guide and the God/Man Jesus they claim to serve? I am a Christian but find myself being drawn to Islam because they don't make excuse for their beliefs. They dont change the Quran to fit their way of life like Christians change the bible so they can do what they want.
I guess I don't understand why Christians use Jesus as a tool to disobey what the bible says. I'm not against it, I just think it's hypocritical to say Gay is Ok according to God and then say 'The bible meant not being hospitable ia wrong', or 'The bible isn't accurate but my interpretation is accurate. It seems like Christians pick and choose what they want and ignore the hard stuff. I'm certain God loves everyone but he also talks about sin in specifics - not just 'missing the mark'. If in the same sentence God says murders, child abusers and homosexuals will not see the kingdom of God, does that mean murders and child rapists will also go to heaven since the bible is wrong about gay people. I'm just trying to understand if you believe Jesus is who is claimed and is the only way to get to heaven? If not, why do you make God in your image instead of being made into his. Sometimes Islam makes more sense because Muslims are wishy washy. They k ow what they believe God said and they live it.
Christian's seem weak and afraid. They want to live however they want and say 'Oh, God doesn't care. Do what you want'.
Sorry, meant to say that Muslims ARE NOT wishy washy like Christians are . THANKS!!
Thank you for taking the time to write.
Simply put-Jesus never said homosexuality was a sin.
Jesus does not condemn homosexuality.
Peace, Pastor George
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