LGBTQIA+ Caucus: The Work Has Changed

As a first-time deputy to the General Convention, the months leading up to the event felt so overwhelming. There was too much to learn, too much to read – so I was grateful to have joined the LGBTQIA+ Caucus. It gave me the chance to dive deep into one specific issue facing convention, and allowed me to learn from folks who had been deputies before about organizing for change at the church-wide level.

This caucus organized officially at the last General Convention in 2022 in Baltimore, and so some of our work was to continue to discern what exactly was needed in this moment for LGBTQIA+ Episcopalians. I was able to learn from many long-time deputies who have been working for decades on LGBT+ inclusion in the church – those who stood up to testify and pass resolutions advocating for the full inclusion of all the baptized over many, many years. Many faced opposition and challenges over the years. Their work laid the foundation for the work the caucus did at this convention.

This convention, our work was still rooted in the same call to “work within the legislative structures of the church for the full inclusion of all the baptized in all the sacraments…and to dismantle oppression in all its forms.” And yet the work has changed – we are currently in a moment in the Episcopal Church where the majority of bishops and deputies support the full inclusion of LGBT+ folks in the life of the church. There is not a lot of outward opposition, although we still have a long way to go to be a church that affirms people of all orientations and identities.

For example, one function of the LGBTQIA+ caucus was to endorse candidates and resolutions. We had an interesting discussion when trying to decide which candidate to endorse for the President of the House of Deputies. The endorsement process was pretty straightforward: a committee sent out a list of questions to candidates for various elections, asking for their positions on certain issues related to LGBT+ inclusion and other social justice issues. However, all three of the candidates for President of the House of Deputies fully support the inclusion of LGBT+ persons in all aspects of church life and leadership and have worked to support our cause for many years. After a long debate, we voted not to endorse any one candidate. Gone are the years when one candidate for such a position of leadership was pro-LGBT+, and another was anti-LGBT+ inclusion. 

Instead, the work of the caucus was more nuanced. The group made sure to publicize when legislative committees were having hearings on various relevant resolutions and encouraged folks to sign up to give testimonies. I was able to attend one of these legislative sessions in Louisville before General Convention officially began: Legislative Committee #17 on Accessibility & Inclusion. Several members of the caucus had signed up to testify to resolution D066: Creating a Task Force for Truth-Telling, Reckoning and Reconciliation for LGBTQIA+. I was honored to hear the stories of both lay and clergy from around the church who have experienced discrimination based on their sexuality: priests who were removed from job searches because they were gay, lay members of churches who were made to feel less-than when they moved to a new church that wasn’t fully affirming. It was a powerful and emotional experience. It showed me the importance of the legislative process – it gave people an opportunity to be heard, for their stories to be respected and prayerfully considered. 

This continued each day of official legislation at General Convention. I was so proud to see countless LGBTQIA+ folks step up to speak about every issue, especially the folks who identified themselves with non-binary pronouns. I know that not very long ago, these faithful Christian leaders would not have been safe identifying themselves in front of the largest gathering of the Episcopal Church. We have come a long way, and yet we still have a long way to go to fully embrace the wisdom our queer and gender non-conforming siblings have to offer our church.

One of the most exciting resolutions was the decision to change our catechism: now when folks wonder how we define Holy Matrimony, they will read: “Holy Matrimony is Christian marriage, in which two people the woman and the man enter into a life-long union, make their vows before God and the Church, and receive the grace and blessing of God to help them fulfill their vows.”

Thanks be to God for the good work of the LGBTQIA+ caucus and the labor of so many queer elders who have gone before us. I was honored to be a small part of this holy work.