A-LISTS spirituality by reverend randy besta
THIS SUMMER TRY A VACATION WITH GOD
s I write this I am taking care of loose ends so I can head off on my vacation, it is indeed that time of year. Now that summer is upon us, how quickly our focus shifts, turning our attention to activities long forgotten since last year. Living through the doom and gloom of the winter months and having to
fight the rain and chilled temperatures is enough to make anyone ready for a break. Summertime also coincides with Pride season, typically a time when we look back
at how far we have come in the past decades and share our visions of where we will go in the future. Pride celebrations generally focus on our gains, in terms of equality for matters of sexual orientation or gender identity. This year I suggest we take the time to also focus our pride celebrations on how far we have come as people of faith. Prior to the founding of Metropolitan Community Churches in 1968, LGBT Christians had to remain in the closet when it came time to practice their faith; hardly a way to celebrate who you are, let alone who you are in God. Thankfully today, many more options exist for that celebration, though far too many don’t enter these faith communities, due in part to mistreatment they have experienced in the past—I’d like us to change that. I am challenging each person reading this column to take a vacation with God this
year. Should you choose to go home to visit family and friends, take time to re-visit the God who walked with you every step of your journey, creating the person you are today. If your vacation plans don’t include a trip home, then celebrate your time off with your faith, wherever you are. Open yourself up to an experience of something far greater than a single moment.
Maybe when you lay on the beach and drink in the beauty of the nature all around you; perhaps it’s while walking one summer night on Balboa Peninsula, or in Balboa Park; it might even be just lounging around at home. Wherever it is and wherever you are, include that something extra in your plans, include the divine. No doubt by now you probably think me insane, after all what sane person would ask us to be proud of a faith-based past that included exclusion, condemnation and hatred? I promise you I am not insane, just incredibly proud of how the role my upbring-
ing in my own church community shaped who I am today. By their actions I learned to know what judgement and condemnation look like and can now act in ways that are non-judgemental and accepting. I can spot hypocrisy quicker than a blender filled with margaritas. My religious upbringing may have had its negative moments, but it moulded me into the God loving, spirit-filled Christian I am today. That is something I am truly proud of. Since I arrived in Santa Ana last spring and have talked to many people in the com-
munity, I have learned that few of you are proud of anything related to religion or spirituality. In fact organized religion has more often than not driven you away from God, making you embarrassed, not proud, to say that you are a Christian. How about taking a vacation from that type of thinking this summer as well? If faith has not been part of your life, this summer when you take your well-deserved
vacation, try to include it—even if for just one week. For those of you who are spiritual, yet distrust organized religion and don’t attend a community celebration anywhere, break from that distrust and walk through the doors of any Metropolitan Community Church. You will be welcomed as you are and filled with a message you should be able to trust. God loves you no matter who you are ... as the saying goes: God created you and God doesn’t make mistakes. Finally for those of you who are part of a faith community and celebrate regularly, why not take a vacation from what you know and celebrate someplace completely different? If you have to hide who you are, become part of a faith community where who you are is accepted without reservation. If you are in a faith community where you are accepted, take a risk and try a different one on for size. Vacation is about change, embrace that change with all your life. This summer be proud of who you are and proud of where you came from. Be proud not only of your sexual orientation and gender identity, but be proud of who you are today and celebrate the role God played in making that happen.
This summer, vacation with God, vacation with Pride.
“Open yourself up to an experience of something far greater than a single moment. Maybe when you lay on the beach and drink in the beauty of the nature all around you; perhaps it is while walking one summer night on Balboa Peninsula, or in Balboa Park; it might even be just lounging around at home. Wherever it is and wherever you are, include that something extra in your plans, include the divine.
30 RAGE monthly | JULY 2011 ”
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