Heavy Burdens
Seven Ways LGBTQ Christians Experience Harm in the Church
Heavy Burdens
***Foreword INDIES 2021 Finalist for Religion***
Religious faith reduces the risk of suicide for virtually every American demographic except one: LGBTQ people. It’s past time that Christians confronted the ongoing and devastating effects of this legacy.
Rivera calls to mind Jesus’s woe to religious leaders: “They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them” (Matt. 23:4). Heavy Burdens provides an honest account of seven ways LGBTQ people experience discrimination in the church, helping Christians grapple with hard realities and empowering churches across the theological spectrum to navigate better paths forward.
Breaking down the issues both historically and socially, Heavy Burdens (Brazos Press, 2021) provides an honest account of the ways in which LGBTQ people experience discrimination in the church, helping Christians grapple with hard realities and empowering churches to navigate a better path forward.
Every Christian bears the weight of the yoke of Christ. But to feel the weight of that burden is to feel the weight of God’s mercy and love and grace. It is to know that we belong in the family of God.
– Bridget Eileen Rivera, Heavy Burdens
Featured Article
What Christians Don’t Want to Admit About Celibacy and Homosexuality
There’s an elephant in the room when it comes to LGBT+ issues, and many Christians will never admit it. It’s like there’s this collective fear that if we let the secret slip, then all the hordes of gay people who were going to live a celibate lifestyle won’t buy it anymore. News flash — most of them don’t buy it already.
So I’m just gonna say it: The social landscape of modern America is making celibacy practically impossible.
There. I said it. Celibacy is next-to-impossible. It’s not like gay people don’t know it already. It’s not like everyone doesn’t know it already. And it’s time we came to terms with it. We’ve got to admit the truth before we can change it….
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Orthodox Theology for the Liberated Christian
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