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CHRISTIANS, JEWS, HINDUS AND MUSLIMS ON BEING LGBT+ Religious texts, from the Bible to the Quran, have often been used to argue that being LGBT+ is a sin. Now a new book explores the challenges faced by those who are trying to reconcile their faith with their sexuality. We hear some of their stories The last few years have seen changes in society regarding LGBT+ issues, ranging from equal marriage legislation to global Pride festivals. In the religious world such changes include the establishment of inclusive mosques, and the statement put out by British chief rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, about the well-being of LGBT + students in Jewish schools. The statement was written with Keshet, the group for LGBT+ Jews. This is a long way from the ban by the previous chief rabbi Jonathan Sacks on a Jewish lesbian and gay group taking part in a communal charity walk, or his predecessor, Lord Jakobovits, describing being lesbian or gay as akin to a disability. But elsewhere in the Jewish world LGBT+ issues are contested. The world’s first strike for LGBT+ rights for Jewish people took place in Israel in 2018, yet the Israeli Sephardi chief rabbi said earlier this year that gay people cannot be religious Jews and that homosexuality is a “wild lust that needs to be overcome”. In the UK, the rabbinic responses to Rabbi Dweck of the Spanish and Portuguese community, who argued for acceptance of gay people, showed that the relationship between parts of the Jewish populace and its LGBT+ members is fraught. There are prominent LGBT+ Jews, such as Matt Lucas, Antony Sher and Miriam Margolyes, but the faith of LGBT+ members is rarely addressed. This is the case with other religious groups, too. What does it mean to be queer and religious in Britain today? Unorthodox: LGBT+ Identity and Faith tells the stories of 12 queer people of faith. Edited by Séan Richardson, a Catholic turned Quaker, the book explores how LGBT+ Christians, Hindus, Jews, Muslims and Sikhs navigate their faith. It moves beyond the idea that LGBT+ people must choose between their faith and their sexuality and will resonate with many people – believers or not. ROSS BRADSHAW AND MYRA WOOLFSON n Unorthodox: LGBT+ Identity and Faith by Séan Richardson, Five Leaves, 2019, £7.99. RABBI MARK SOLOMON Rabbi Mark Solomon is minister of the Edinburgh and Leicester Liberal Jewish communities, senior lecturer in rabbinic literature at Leo Baeck College and Interfaith Consultant for Liberal Judaism. He was born in Sydney, studied at two yeshivas and was ordained as an Orthodox rabbi at Jews’ College, London in 1991. After coming out – the first Orthodox rabbi to do so in Britain – he joined Liberal Judaism. “During the summer of 1989, I turned 26 and was aware of the disturbing sexual feelings inside me when a film called Torch Song Trilogy was released. I saw it at a tiny cinema in Piccadilly Circus and was blown away. I was aware of homosexual feelings but they were associated with momentary aberrations. Judaism and homosexuality had been in hermetically sealed compartments. The central character of Torch Song Trilogy, a Jewish New York drag queen, broke that barrier down. It was the catalyst that breached the iron wall separating faith and sexuality. I started gingerly exploring gay life, going to a Jewish gay and lesbian group and seeing a few gay-related films. My relationship with God became one of massive guilt. Praying during that period was painful. I had heard of Rabbi Lionel Blue. He had come out publicly in the summer of 1988. I read his book, A Backdoor to Heaven. It was such a beautiful book that I had to make contact. I’ll never forget the first time I went to see him: I walked into his living room and he said, ‘Hello Ducky!’ Lionel became a great source of strength. In December 1991 I read The Color Purple by Alice Walker and a work of Jewish feminist theology called Standing Again at Sinai by Judith Plaskow. The effect of these books was to shatter the patriarchal, judgemental image of God I had been labouring under for a long time. It showed me a better way of thinking about God – more loving, nurturing and affirming.” 10 JEWISHRENAISSANCE.ORG.UK JANUARY 2020
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MR EKOW Rapper, poet and music producer Chris Ekow (who goes by his stage name Mr Ekow) defines himself as a British Ghanaian gay Christian. He grew up surrounded by church, music and people. His 2018 song No Man’s Land was about creating “empathy with gay Christians.” “I began to have feelings for guys when I was around 12. No one had told me not to be gay, but it must have filtered through the church and my family, who are from Ghana, where homosexuality is still unacceptable. I kept things a secret and hoped it was a phase. I remember having conversations with friends in the playground, asking what we would do if we found out our brother was gay. I was internally screaming but would say things like, ‘I would bang him in the face!’ At 15, I approached a member of my church. I was in tears as I explained. He asked me what I wanted to do and, with his guidance, we decided to pray about it. At the next youth retreat I attended I stood up to tell everyone that I had been gay but no longer was. After this, a few people in my church knew and I began to tell some friends, positioning my sexuality as if it were a thing of the past. From then on it was a constant struggle not to think about guys. Ironically, it helped me become closer to God. I felt that I couldn’t get through the situation by myself so my relationship to God became more intimate. I spent a lot of time praying, and reading the Bible. Looking back now I felt closer to God but it was coated with rejection. Eventually, I went to Oasis Church in London, which has a group for LGBTQ people. There I was referred to group therapy for gay Christian men run by a psychiatrist and a priest. My Christianity has changed. My faith is a lot simpler, but I am happy. I think that God loves gay people. I have a partner now and we often talk about religion. He wasn’t raised with faith and we educate each other.” ISABELLA SEGAL Practising Judaism and being trans are equally crucial parts of Isabella Segal’s identity. She is an accountant and began transitioning to a woman in May 2013. “I knew from age four that I should be a girl. From about the age of eight I crossdressed secretly… My transition within Judaism has not been straightforward. The issues I come back to are in Leviticus 18, which says homosexuality is an abomination, and that a man should not waste his seed. But it is sometimes also translated as talking about not wearing clothes of the opposite gender. When I first decided to transition, I was concerned I would lose my Jewish identity. I thought the United Synagogue might not accept me but I wanted to remain a member because we have our own cemeteries and my family is buried there. A year before I transitioned I went to Beit Klal Yisrael (BKY), a Liberal synagogue in London. Judith, the rabbi, was incredibly supportive. BKY made me realise I would not lose my Jewish identity. When my sister was dying from cancer in 2011 I knew that I had to go back to the United Synagogue. I went to see the rabbi there and we talked. He had no problem seeing me dress as a female. I told him about my sister and he said that I could come back, however, it might be difficult for people to accept me and perhaps I should consider joining another United synagogue. So I went to a synagogue where the rabbi is an ultra-orthodox Lubavitcher. The community was incredibly supportive. I felt very welcome. I didn’t realise at the time but there had been a meeting to discuss my joining. I have belonged to the United Synagogue for over 30 years and paid my fees. Why would you need a meeting? It was to approve that I could sit with the women and use their toilet. The rabbis even asked me: when you die, who is going to wash you? Usually it is someone of the same gender. My response was, ‘I don’t care. I will be dead.’” JAIVANT PATEL Jaivant Patel is a dancer and the artistic director of Jaivant Patel Dance. He is touring with YAATRA – Kathak (Indian classical dance) and contemporary dance that explores South Asian LGBTQ+ narratives. Jaivant is associate artist at Midlands Arts Centre and Arena Theatre. “Hinduism is part of Gujarati culture. Most of my upbringing was with my grandma. She told me about the gods of the Indian pantheon and mythology. I loved watching her dressing in beautiful saris. I did not understand what being gay meant but knew I was different. There were no Indian gay people who were out, let alone people from my faith… I won a place at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance and met people of different cultures. It was a shock. But then I really started living as a gay man.” JANUARY 2020 JEWISHRENAISSANCE.ORG.UK 11 MARYAM DIN Muslim activist and writer Maryam Din lives in Nottingham where she cofounded the QTIPOC (Queer, Trans and Intersex People of Colour) group. “As a child, I knew I was different… I thought you couldn’t be queer and Muslim, or of any faith. The realisation that you can be LGBTQ and practise religion was really important… Islam has a rich tapestry of sexual and gender diversity. Prophet Mohammed (Peace be upon him) protected those on the fringes of society. He welcomed trans and queer people into his home. Visibility is important. If there had been more people who looked like me when I was growing up, my journey might have been more comfortable.”

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CHRISTIANS, JEWS, HINDUS AND MUSLIMS ON BEING LGBT+

Religious texts, from the Bible to the Quran, have often been used to argue that being LGBT+ is a sin. Now a new book explores the challenges faced by those who are trying to reconcile their faith with their sexuality. We hear some of their stories

The last few years have seen changes in society regarding LGBT+ issues, ranging from equal marriage legislation to global Pride festivals. In the religious world such changes include the establishment of inclusive mosques, and the statement put out by British chief rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, about the well-being of LGBT + students in Jewish schools. The statement was written with Keshet, the group for LGBT+ Jews.

This is a long way from the ban by the previous chief rabbi Jonathan Sacks on a Jewish lesbian and gay group taking part in a communal charity walk, or his predecessor, Lord Jakobovits, describing being lesbian or gay as akin to a disability.

But elsewhere in the Jewish world LGBT+ issues are contested. The world’s first strike for LGBT+ rights for Jewish people took place in Israel in 2018, yet the Israeli Sephardi chief rabbi said earlier this year that gay people cannot be religious Jews and that homosexuality is a “wild lust that needs to be overcome”. In the UK,

the rabbinic responses to Rabbi Dweck of the Spanish and Portuguese community, who argued for acceptance of gay people, showed that the relationship between parts of the Jewish populace and its LGBT+ members is fraught. There are prominent LGBT+ Jews, such as Matt Lucas, Antony Sher and Miriam Margolyes, but the faith of LGBT+ members is rarely addressed. This is the case with other religious groups, too. What does it mean to be queer and religious in Britain today?

Unorthodox: LGBT+ Identity and Faith tells the stories of 12 queer people of faith. Edited by Séan Richardson, a Catholic turned Quaker, the book explores how LGBT+ Christians, Hindus, Jews, Muslims and Sikhs navigate their faith. It moves beyond the idea that LGBT+ people must choose between their faith and their sexuality and will resonate with many people – believers or not. ROSS BRADSHAW AND MYRA WOOLFSON n

Unorthodox: LGBT+ Identity and Faith by Séan Richardson, Five Leaves, 2019, £7.99.

RABBI MARK SOLOMON

Rabbi Mark Solomon is minister of the Edinburgh and Leicester Liberal Jewish communities, senior lecturer in rabbinic literature at Leo Baeck College and Interfaith Consultant for Liberal Judaism. He was born in Sydney, studied at two yeshivas and was ordained as an Orthodox rabbi at Jews’ College, London in 1991. After coming out – the first Orthodox rabbi to do so in Britain – he joined Liberal Judaism.

“During the summer of 1989, I turned 26 and was aware of the disturbing sexual feelings inside me when a film called Torch Song Trilogy was released. I saw it at a tiny cinema in Piccadilly Circus and was blown away. I was aware of homosexual feelings but they were associated with momentary aberrations. Judaism and homosexuality had been in hermetically sealed compartments. The central character of Torch Song Trilogy, a Jewish New York drag queen, broke that barrier down. It was the catalyst that breached the iron wall separating faith and sexuality. I started gingerly exploring gay life, going to a Jewish gay and lesbian group and seeing a few gay-related films. My relationship with God became one of massive guilt. Praying during that period was painful. I had heard of Rabbi Lionel Blue. He had come out publicly in the summer of 1988. I read his book, A Backdoor to Heaven. It was such a beautiful book that I had to make contact. I’ll never forget the first time I went to see him: I walked into his living room and he said, ‘Hello Ducky!’ Lionel became a great source of strength. In December 1991 I read The Color Purple by Alice Walker and a work of Jewish feminist theology called Standing Again at Sinai by Judith Plaskow. The effect of these books was to shatter the patriarchal, judgemental image of God I had been labouring under for a long time. It showed me a better way of thinking about God – more loving, nurturing and affirming.”

10 JEWISHRENAISSANCE.ORG.UK JANUARY 2020

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