Caleb Martin

4/24/2017

UWRT 1102 Major Assignment #4: Research Paper

Mainstream Christian Institutions have had a monumental impact on the LGBT

communitys religious and spiritual identity in America. Many Americans see their identity as a

Christian to be at the core of their American Identity. This paper seeks to evaluate the effects that

the mainstream Christian institutions and more specifically the church, have had on the LGBT

Americans spiritual and religious identity (R/S). This paper will discuss the negative impacts of

the alienation of LGBT people from church and their cultural exclusion from the Christian

community in America.

According to a source, Spirituality refers to individualized, subjective experiences that

focus on the sacred and lacks institutional or denominational aspects (Wood, 1). Religion is

different in that it refers to communal, objective experiences that focus on the sacred and

includes institutional or denominational aspects. (Wood, 1). Some Americans see Religion and

Spirituality as a core part of their identity and other have absolutely no connection to them. My

argument is that because the Church has excluded and alienated LGBT people from their

communities, LGBT people in America are more likely to not associate with a religion.

When the church bullies people in the LGBT community and convinces them, they are

mistakes, LGBT individuals may feel that their deities have made mistakes regarding their

sexual identity or that their deities hate them because of their sexual identity (Wood, 1). Also, it

is found that negative experiences with religious leaders have more impact than negative

experiences with religious peers (Wood, 1). I can personally attest for this.

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 When I was growing up in the church I thought I was a mistake because I had a pastor

whom I respected telling me I was going to hell for being myself. I cared more about what the

religious leader (Pastor) had to say than the peers (Church members). LGBT people who are

raised in the church have a hard time accepting themselves and moving forward as a Christian

when they are made to believe they are sinning.

LGBT people approach this exclusion in different ways. Some end up rejecting religion

and living a happy life as a gay or transgender person, some end up redefining their religion or

spiritual identity to fit their needs and intertwine the two (sexual and R/S), while some abandon

or conceal their sexual identity (Wood, 1). I will discuss this later in the paper. There is a

method some church members pressure people into doing which is reparative therapy or better

known as conversion therapy. It is found that Reparative therapy is considered as harmful to

clients and has been challenged by organizations such as the American Counseling Association,

American Psychological Association, and American Medical Association as well as it can

exacerbate detrimental mental health issues for LGBT individuals who reject their sexual

identities (Wood, 1).

Concerning Millennials as a general demographic, are selecting no religious affiliation

on national surveys and seem to be leaving churches in droves (Reed, 1). I am discussing

Millennials because this generation is more accepting of the LGBT population and I want to talk

about the correlation between their acceptance and their religion. It seems because they are more

accepting and open minded, they are simultaneously leaving the church or at least loosening their

beliefs regarding gay marriage and other controversial topics in the church.

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 According to a source One-fifth of the U.S. public and a third of adults under thirty

are religiously unaffiliated today, the highest percentages ever in Pew Research Center polling

(Reed, 1). This research was published by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public life in 2012.

Pew goes on to note that while this may be the case, the religiously unaffiliated are not

irreligious. They in fact still engage certain religious beliefs and practices such as the belief in

God, a sense of being spiritual, and even daily prayer (Reed, 1) This research goes back to

what I stated earlier that some LGBT Americans redefine their R/S identity and find a way to live

with a modified lifestyle that involves being happy and out while also having some sort of R/S

practice. I personally am someone who has done exactly that.

For millennials, the Bible seems to contradict what they know to be right or wrong and

thus is problematic. (Reed, 1) The issue of Homosexuality seems to be one of the main

contradictions that are problematic. In a study discussed the source by Reed, there is a study he

refers to that I cited. In this study, it was found that vast majorities of both secular (95 percent)

and spiritual (85 percent) endorse gay marriage. It was also found that even those students who

self-identify as religious are evenly divided with 50 percent endorsing it. Another finding was

that the issue of homosexuals being allowed to adopt children with 97 percent of secular

millennials, 88 percent who are spiritual and 65 percent who are religious. (Kosmin, Keysar)

This research is very important to my argument because it isnt just the LGBT people

who are being affected by the churches lack of acceptance, but it is a whole generation of

Americans who are changing their views and are distancing themselves from a traditional

religious practice.

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 Even though many people are choosing to not be religious or go to a church every week,

some are simply deterred from becoming a member of the church. It is no secret that Gay,

lesbian, bisexual, and transgender identifiers have been deterred from congregations of

Christianity for the sole reason of their sexuality. (McAuliffe, 1). Most Christians justify their

lack of acceptance by pointing to the Bible saying Im only following what the Bible says, dont

get angry at me.

There are many issues that I could dive deeper into concerning the problems with

Christians argument against gay people using the Bible, but thats another topic for another

essay. Overall however, Christianity is becoming more tolerant toward lesbian, gay, bisexual,

and transgender (LGBT)-identifying people (McAuliffe, 1). I would argue that this is a very

slow process that may never fully be changed, but it is certainly more accepted than it was 50

years ago.

Going back to American Identity, there are U.S. politicians and civic leaders often

proclaiming the country as a Christian nation. (McAuliffe, 1). Another fact that I want to

recognize is that The United States of America is supposedly a land of freedom and equality.

However, some people wish to stop LGBT people from having the same freedoms and

fundamental rights shared by the rest of society. (McAuliffe, 1) It is hard to be an LGBT

American in the Bible belt of the United States, especially when it is supposedly okay to be

openly homophobic in the Federal Government in 2017.

Another common phrase used among churches and conservatives in the U.S. government

is protecting the sanctity of marriage. Whats hypocritical of this argument is that Divorce is a

much bigger issue destroying the sanctity of marriage and gay marriage in no way affects

heterosexual divorce (McAuliffe, 1). The Church would rather not talk about how divorce

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literally destroys a marriage, but talk about why Gay people shouldnt have the same legal rights

as them. This is a valid reason for the overall LGBT population to seek distance from the

mainstream Christian religious institutions in America.

There are churches that are allowing of same-sex marriage most of which include,

Presbyterian Church, Society of Friends, Unitarian Universalists, United Church of Christ, and

the Evangelical Lutheran Church. (McAuliffe, 1) This is great because it gives people a middle

ground or outlet to be a Christian and have a solid community amid all the hatred among other

denominations.

A portion of the people victimized by religious alienation seek clinical treatment and

typically come conflicted, overwhelmed, and/or in crisis (Ginicola, Smith, 1). When someone

is closeted and a member of a religious center, theyll see that the doctrine, scriptural passages,

and congregation consider homosexuality as taboo and immoral, which then complicates the

client's understanding of his or her sexual orientation (Ginicola, Smith, 1).

As I mentioned earlier in this essay, some LGBT people seek to modify traditional beliefs

in order to live happily. According to a source, LGBT people were already working on

constructive rather than defensive forms of religious commentary-works that explored ways

to claim or create religious traditions for LGBT people rather than defending LGBT people

against the homophobia of existing traditions (Wilcox, 79).

According to another source, developing a relationship with God or a higher power apart

from a religious institution, LGBT students are often able to experience a greater self-efficacy;

sense of spirituality, self, and strength; and, ultimately, identity integration. This argues that by

creating a modified religious practice or finding a way to accept themselves in the religion, it

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helps LGBT with their overall sexual identity. On the other hand, Students unable to reconcile

both aspects of their identity tend to live with the greatest sense of internalized conflict and may

either compartmentalize or suppress their sexual orientation (Rockenbach, 6)

In America, LGBT individuals face significantly higher levels of harassment and

discrimination and is even worse for people who claim gender identities outside of the

masculine/feminine binary (Rockenbach, 1). This should not be the case but it is sadly here in

the United States. Overall while some people find a way to integrate their sexual identity with

their religion to solidify their American Identity, others see the alienation as a deterrent and seek

no connection to religion. America has a lot of room for improvement, but has come a long way

in history.

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 Works Cited

News, CBS. Same Sex Marriage. Digital image. Wgnsradio.com. N.p., 26 June 2015. Web. 20

Apr. 2017. <http://www.wgnsradio.com/local-reaction-to-scotus-gay-marriage-ruling-

cms-27225>.

Wood, Andrew W, and Abigail H. Conley. "Loss of Religious or Spiritual Identities Among the

Lgbt Population." Counseling and Values. 59.1 (2014): 95-111. Print.

Reed, Randall. "A Book for None? Teaching Biblical Studies to Millennial Nones." Teaching

Theology & Religion. 19.2 (2016): 154-174. Print.

Liu, Joseph. "Nones on the Rise." Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project. N.p.,

08 Oct. 2012. Web. 20 April 2017. <http://www.pewforum.org/2012/10/09/nones-on-the-

rise/#>.

Kosmin, Barry A., and Ariela Keysar. "Religious, Spiritual and Secular: The emergence of three

distinct worldviews among American college students." AMERICAN RELIGIOUS

IDENTIFICATION SURVEY (2013): n. pag. Web.

McAuliffe, Christopher M. "The Future of Homosexuality in Christian Denominations." Journal

of Psychological Issues in Organizational Culture. 6.3 (2015): 70-76. Print.

Ginicola, Misty M, and Cheri Smith. "The Church, the Closet, and the Couch: the Counselor's

Role in Assisting Clients to Integrate Their Sexual Orientation and Religious

Identity." Journal of Lgbt Issues in Counseling. 5 (2011): 304-326. Print.

Wilcox, Melissa. "Outlaws or In-Laws? Queer Theory, Lgbt Studies, and Religious Studies."

Journal of Homosexuality. 52 (2006): 73-100. Print.

Works Cited Continued

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Zyglis, Adam. Hope and Change, Vatican Style. Digital image. ComicStripoftheDay.com. N.p.,

19 Oct. 2014. Web. 3 Apr. 2017.

<http://www.weeklystorybook.com/comic_strip_of_the_daycom/2014/10/hope-and-

change-vatican-style.html>.

Rockenbach, Alyssa N, Marc A. Lo, and Matthew J. Mayhew. "How Lgbt College Students

Perceive and Engage the Campus Religious and Spiritual Climate." Journal of

Homosexuality. 64.4 (2016): 488-508. Print.

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