Jesus: Gay activist?

During my adolescence, as I was battling the triple whammy of acne, discovering my sexuality, and learning about body hair in new places, I remember coming across an op-ed that, while I wouldn't go so far as to say changed my life, certainly stuck in my craw over the years. It was about political movements that use Jesus, more or less, as a weapon to outcast others. The image that the author painted was Jesus, having a blast riding on a roller coaster with all sorts of individuals that "religious" people all too often label as sinners: GLBT folks, sex workers, drug dealers, prisoners, single mothers, welfare recipients, etc., etc.

The point? That Jesus, in his truest sense, won't necessarily be found in the stuffy churches, in the fancy suburbs, in the giant SUVs, in the million-dollar megachurches. Rather, Jesus is with society's "sinners," those that are marginalized either for who they are, or mistakes they may have made.

There's nothing particularly revolutionary about that image, but it always stuck with me. Maybe it's because I always assumed Jesus would prefer Merry-go-Rounds to roller coasters, or maybe it's because it was the first time I read anywhere that God is most present with the people and things you'd most likely not expect.

I was reminded of that article (now more than a decade ago in my memories) by another article, this one on South African Anglicans saying that Jesus would support gay rights. Reading that headline, I could almost picture James Dobson of Focus on the Family losing control of his bowels. Such a paradox! Such a heresy!

I'm deeply moved by this article coming out of South Africa, a country so steeped in violence and oppression toward the other over the course of the last century. Hard to imagine that less than 15 years ago, South Africa still existed under apartheid laws. But there's something about that history, that legacy of division, that lends an extra weight to what these folks are saying.

"Jesus is challenging churches," says Anglican priest Jo Mdhlela. "Jesus is saying if you said apartheid was unjust then you must say laws discriminating against homosexual people are unjust."

What a potent argument, especially as the debate over gay rights and gay marriage becomes a hot button in South Africa. A bill in the legislature right now could make South Africa the first African nation to recognize same-sex marriage.

So while the U.S. media feeds into the frenzy over New Jersey, and whether the NJ Supreme Court's decision last week on gay marriage mobilizes evangelicals to vote, I'm more moved than ever by what Anglican leaders are saying in South Africa. It's not that South Africa is some sort of utopia post-apartheid...it certainly isn't. But to think of where South Africa was just two decades ago, and where it is today, I can't help but think how, sometimes, the capacity of people to open their minds sometimes just can't be stopped - no matter how cocky the Karl Roves and the Family Research Councils of this world get.