Gay Spirituality: On The Journey

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March112010

Gay Spirituality: On the Journey

What exactly do we mean when we talk about gay spirituality? Since many of us grew up in religious organizations that told us we were abominations and unworthy sinners there are plenty of people within the GLBT community that aren’t interested in religion. Others want some validation from the church and thus look for meaning in religion. If you take your spiritual journey, you’ll find that the process can definitely be satisfying.

Many of us began our own form of gay spirituality when we were young. Growing up in our churches we heard things, realized things, and felt like an outsider standing within the ring of fire.

It is not surprising that a great number of individuals chose to go from their churches directly into movements and social causes. Small groups have formed that help to deal with the whiplash many were left with.

If you want to look elsewhere, you don’t have to go digging around in a church to find your gay spirituality. Sometimes finding a church is the best thing. Other times finding the answer all on your own makes more sense. While there have been many figures reaching out to us in the past, there are now safe places for us to congregate and be accepted for our character.

It can be a painful road if you come from a religious background. You may have been subjected to prayer sessions that were supposed to “cure” you or religious studies that openly humiliated you. Thus, in today’s GLBT community there are many who find spirituality solely within themselves.

Sometimes your spiritual answers are all around you. You might find that the miracle of your partner or the miracle of having a family together is enough of an answer. You may be wandering the world and simply gathering bits of a spiritual journey. You don’t have to receive your gay spirituality badge from an actual religious figure if you don’t want to. Your journey is very much within your own control and you have many choices. You can change your options whenever you please as well, making your choices ever more abundant.

Gay spirituality isn’t just about acceptance. It is about a sense of self and in some cases a sense of dignity. There are plenty of cast outs that would love to come full circle, hear their childhood church admit fault for treatment of their gay membership, and feel righted after being mistreated. Yet we can only take that idea so far. It’s about understanding and then reconciling that the religious teachings that we experienced were created by people. The actual spiritual journeys are felt internally and can’t be taught. It is a noticeable and distinct feeling.

Of course, if joining an open and affirming church feels good to you, by all means they offer a great spiritual sanctuary. The biggest point of all is that along your journey of today, there are actually choices. You get to find your own gay spirit, church or no church, which is a step forward in and of itself. Since your journey never needs to actually end, you get to choose your direction all the time.

Proposals for gay travel penned by Howie Holben. Spirit Journeys provides a gay retreats to remember and a gay adventure experience of a lifetime.

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