A queer man led the disciples to the Upper Room for the Last Supper with Jesus, according to LGBTQ-affirming Bible interpretations. Some progressive Bible scholars embrace the gender-variant water carrier as a transgender ancestor or “trans-cestor” because he was a man doing women’s work.  More info

“Prodigal Son and His Husband Receive a Blessing” by JR Leveroni of Evolved Art is a new painting that suggests LGBTQ-positive meanings in a well-known Bible story. Leveroni turns the welcome-home celebration into a same-sex wedding! Other LGBTQ-friendly resources on the Prodigal include books and articles. More info

Saints Perpetua and Felicity were brave North African woman friends who died for their faith in the 3rd century. They are often included in lists of LGBTQ saints because they show the power of love between two women. Perpetua's journal is the first known written document by a woman in Christian history.  More info

John Boswell (1947-1994) remains an unofficial saint to the many LGBTQ Christians who find life-giving value in his historical research. He was a Yale history professor who wrote about homosexuality in Christian history. He was born on March 20, 1947. His classics are "Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality" and "Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe."  More info 

Jesus praised a gay soldier as a role model of faith and healed his male lover in the gospels, according to many Bible experts. Both Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10 tell how a centurion asked Jesus to heal the young man referred to in Greek as his "pais." The word commonly meant the younger man in a same-sex relationship. More info

A rainbow sheep is rejected by the flock when Jesus tries to bring it home in the cartoon “Lost or Kicked Out?” by David Hayward, also known as nakedpastor. Jesus is stopped by the head sheep of a uniformly white flock who bleets: “He wasn’t lost. We kicked him out!” It illustrates how churches reject Christ when they exclude LGBTQ people. More info

Two new books are added this month to Q Spirit's summaries of 2019 LGBTQ Christian books:

“ One Coin Found: How God's Love Stretches to the Margins” by Emmy Kegler. (Fortress Press)

“ Unashamed: A Coming-Out Guide for LGBTQ Christians” by Amber Cantorna. (Westminster John Knox Press)

Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31) is celebrated at Q Spirit with transgender Christian art, books and other resources. They include “Trans Indian Jesus” by an artist from India and bestselling books such as “Transfaith,” “Transforming” and “Transfigured.” More info

Adrienne Rich was a lesbian feminist and one of the most influential poets of the 20th She praised “women and men who have refused the straightjackets of gender” and wrote, "I have to cast my lot with those who age after age, perversely, with no extraordinary power, reconstitute the world." More info  

Jesus appears as a gay man of today in a modern city with a blog series starting Palm Sunday (April 14). Posts will run daily through Holy Week and Easter at Qspirit.net. Reflections are based on "The Passion of Christ: A Gay Vision" with art by Doug Blanchard and text by Kittredge Cherry.

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Dear ,

These words come from a prayer for Transgender Day of Visibility by Mel Martinez, but they can speak to us today and everyday:

"Adonai, Ruler and Maker,

Great Artist of color, shape, and texture,

open us to our own complexities..."

Blessings,

Kittredge Cherry

Founder, publisher and editor

Q Spirit and Jesus in Love

Evolved Art

“Prodigal Son and His Husband Receive a Blessing”

by J.R. Leveroni

“ THEY: A Biblical Tale of Secret Genders ” by Janet Mason.

 

I am fascinated by Mason’s ability to weave together biblical historical stories with modern concepts of sexuality and gender. — Reader. Gender-fluid characters act on their passions. The story is lifesaving and liberating. Adelaide Books (New York/Lisbon).

Secret Matter

Toby Johnson’s sweet, funny, endearing sci-fi romance about aliens with a wonderful trait. Who’d have thought the Visitors would look like that…?

Plus a punch line that reimagines what might really have happened in the Garden of Eden with that contentious fruit.

Artist Trudie Barreras will do pet portraits in pastel, or watercolor sketches of your home or favorite scenes, for a $25 gift to Kitt for Jesus in Love.  Click here for further details about pet portraits. To see samples of Trudie's work, visit her website, schuylerart.com.

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The Passion of Christ:

A Gay Vision

By Kittredge Cherry

with art by Douglas Blanchard

Reflect on Jesus as a gay man in a modern city

"Accessible but profound"