One bread, One body: The Methodists and the LGBTQIA+ community in the South - Season 1 Episode 56
S1E6: One bread, One body: The Methodists and
the LGBTQIA+ community in the South
As we march toward the end of this first season of Church Historia, we’ll be covering some subjects that are often used as ways to debate and divide. Church history is filled with difficult subjects. We feel its important that we study them so we can be better prepared for the future.
Since its beginning the Church has struggled to define its boundaries: who is included, what are standards of conduct, who is fit to lead, etc. As it strives to be “one body in Christ”, it also has a long history of debate, divisiveness, and exclusion.
This week we will use the United Methodist’s debate over the inclusion and ordination of LGBTQIA+ people as a launching point to explore the religious experience of the queer community in the South.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Gaustad, Edwin S., and Mark A. Noll, eds. A Documentary History of Religion in America to 1877. Third Edition. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2003.
Gaustad, Edwin, and Leigh Schmidt. The Religious History of America The Heart of the American Story from Colonial Times to Today. Revised Edition. New York: HarperOne, 2002.
Griffith, Ruth Marie, ed. American Religions: A Documentary History. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.
Blue Ridge Pride. “Oral History Project.” Accessed September 4, 2020. https://www.blueridgepride.org/projects/oral-history/.
Chappell, Bill. “United Methodist Church Votes To Keep Bans On Same-Sex Weddings, LGBTQ Clergy.” NPR, February 26, 2019. https://www.npr.org/2019/02/26/698188343/united-methodist-church-votes-to-keep-bans-on-same-sex-weddings-lgbtq-clergy.
Commission on a Way Forward. “Commission on a Way Forward’s Report to the General Conference.” United Methodist Church, n.d. https://s3.amazonaws.com/Website_Properties/council-of-bishops/news_and_statements/documents/Way_Forward_Report_-_Final_-_ENGLISH.pdf.
Gilbert, Kathy L., Heather Hahn, and Joey Butler. “2019 General Conference Passes Traditional Plan.” UM News, February 26, 2019. https://www.umnews.org/en/news/2019-general-conference-passes-traditional-plan.
Miller, Susan. “Nearly 1 in 3 LGBTQ People Live in the South. Here’s How LGBTQ Activists of Color Are Transforming the Area.” USA TODAY, July 14, 2020. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/07/14/lgbtq-people-color-transforming-lives-south/5410501002/.
Movement Advancement Project, and Campaign for Southern Equality. “Telling a New Southern Story: LGBTQ Resilience, Resistance, and Leadership.” Movement Advancement Project, July 2020.
Robertson, Campbell, and Elizabeth Dias. “United Methodist Church Announces Plan to Split Over Same-Sex Marriage - The New York Times.” New York Times, January 3, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/03/us/methodist-split-gay-marriage.html.'
The United Methodist Church. “The Commission on a Way Forward Report: What You Should Know,” January 18, 2019. https://www.umc.org/en/content/the-commission-on-a-way-forward-report-what-you-should-know.
ABOUT CHURCH HISTORIA
Christianity is not an “or” religion.
The incarnation itself demands that we hold in tension that Jesus was both fully human and fully God.
Christianity is an “and” religion.
We think the variety within the Christian tradition is beautiful. We like to use the word tapestry to describe that diversity, the richness that helps us see and hold in tension and balance the “and” of Christianity. This tapestry, with its many shapes and colors across denominations, regions, and countries, helps us hold that tension in which we find ourselves.
Church Historia celebrates the tapestry of the Christian tradition through the lens of history. Hosted by church historian Stephanie Fulbright and church history enthusiast Leslie Eiler Thompson, this new podcast identifies people and places in the Christian tradition and uses their stories to discover new threads in the tapestry of Christianity.
For Christians and non-Christians alike, this journey through the past will help us see ourselves, our neighbors, and our present realities more vibrantly. Season 1, “Who Are Your People?” explores Southern Christian traditions and the history that frames them.
Sign up for the email list to get updates on Church Historia, and additional information when episodes release.
ABOUT THE HOSTS
STEPHANIE FULBRIGHT
HOST, IN-PODCAST HISTORIAN,
AND TEA MISTRESS
Stephanie had an interest in history from a young age and fell in love with Church History in college. In 2017, Stephanie completed her Master of Theological Studies, in Public History of Religion, at Vanderbilt University. Her thesis, Contentious Histories: Why They’re Important and How to Tell Them Well, encourages those in reconciliation and community justice work to think about how history connects with the work they do.
A lifelong passion of Stephanie’s is sharing history and tools of historical thought with others, so we can experience the world around us more deeply and become better neighbors. Stephanie frequently teaches church history and Sunday School programs.
Stephanie can often be found with a cup of tea, a good book, and her Great Dane puppy, Mouse.
LESLIE EILER THOMPSON
CO-HOST, PRODUCER,
AND IDITAROD EXPERT
With a math-teaching father and art-teaching mother, it’s no surprise that Leslie Eiler Thompson’s work often strikes a balance between craft and calculation. Highly creative, idiosyncratic, and multi-faceted, Leslie’s work finds itself taking shape in many forms - from storytelling and writing to podcast hosting (Someone Like Me Podcast) & producing (Tokens Podcast), to owning a creative marketing and publicity studio. There’s even some singing sprinkled into the mix.
Spending most of her childhood and adolescent years on a theatrical stage sparked an attitude of curiosity in Leslie, one which has developed into a call to humanize - to work with heart and to share with purpose and meaning.
Inspiration strikes Leslie in the English-Ivy covered hills just outside of Nashville, Tennessee. In 2020, Leslie got to experience the Iditarod dog sled race in Alaska, but that’s another story for another time.