Radical Love. Patrick S. Cheng
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which makes it ideal for self-study, for religious studies, theology, and queer studies classes, or for adult education in parishes and congregations.
Chapter one is an introduction to the word “queer” in the context of radical love. It explores why this book is about “queer” theology, as opposed to “gay and lesbian” theology. It explains three different uses of the word “queer,” and it also provides a brief introduction to the academic discipline of queer theory and its relationship to queer theology. The chapter also introduces the four sources of queer theology: scripture, tradition, reason, and experience.
Chapter two is a brief overview of the genealogy of queer theology over the last half century. This chapter sets out four nonmutually exclusive strands in the historical development of queer theology since the 1950s: apologetic, liberation, relational, and queer. It closes with some reflections on the future of queer theology, particularly with respect to postcolonial and jurisprudential concepts such as hybridity and intersectionality.
Chapters three through five consist of an overview of queer theology using the general framework of the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed. These creeds are divided into three main sections, each of which covers one of the three persons of the Trinity—God, Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit—and these chapters are organized in the same way.
Thus, chapter three is about the doctrine of God, or the sending forth of radical love. The subsections in this chapter consist of the doctrines of revelation (as God’s coming out as radical love), God (as radical love itself), Trinity (as an internal community of radical love), and creation (as God’s outpouring of radical love).
Chapter four is about the doctrine of Jesus Christ, or the recovery of radical love. The subsections in this chapter consist of the doctrines of sin (as the rejection of radical love), Jesus Christ (as the embodiment of radical love), Mary (as the bearer of radical love), and atonement (as the ending of scapegoating through radical love).
Chapter five is about the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, or the return to radical love. The subsections in this chapter consist of the doctrines of Holy Spirit (as pointing us toward radical love), church (as an external community of radical love), saints (as the breaking through of radical love), sacraments (as a foretaste of radical love), and last things (as the horizon of radical love).
Finally, one caveat is worth stating expressly in this introduction. This book is about Christian theology, and, as such, it is self-consciously written by a Christian theologian from “inside” the Christian tradition. This book is not meant to disrespect, discourage, or denigrate other faith traditions or beliefs.8 However, the expressly “Christian” nature of this book does serve a number of purposes. Not only is this book a response to those antigay Christians who insist that queerness has nothing to do with Christian theology, but, more importantly, it is written for other lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, questioning, and allied (“LGBT” or “queer”) Christians who have wrestled deeply with reconciling their queerness with their faith.
As a gay theologian, seminary professor, and ordained minister, I have been continuously amazed at the ways in which the radical love of the queer community has helped us to overcome the seemingly insurmountable religious, legal, political, societal, cultural, and other obstacles that prevent us from fully loving one another and being who God has created us to be. As Paul states beautifully in the eighth chapter of his Letter to the Romans:
For I am convinced that neither death,nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, northings present, nor things to come,nor powers, nor height, nor depth, noranything else in all creation, will beable to separate us from the love of Godin Jesus Christ our Lord. 9
As we look to the eschatological horizon in which all of our human identities—including but not limited to sexuality and gender identity—no longer are of primary (or of any?) importance, we can recognize the ultimate convergence of Christian theology, queer theory, and radical love.
1 1 John 4:8
2 Eph. 1:18
3 Rom. 5:20.
4 1 John 3:14 (“We know that we have passed from death to life because we love one another.”).
5 1 Cor. 13:4–5
6 See Lisa Isherwood and Mark D. Jordan, eds., Dancing Theology in Fetish Boots: Essays in Honour of Marcella Althaus-Reid (London: SCM Press, 2010); Margaret D. Kamitsuka, ed., The Embrace, of Eros: Bodies, Desires, and Sexuality in Christianity (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2010); Virginia Burrus, Mark D. Jordan, and Karmen MacKendrick, Seducing Augustine: Bodies, Desires, Confessions (New York: Fordham University Press, 2010); Marvin M . Ellison and Kelly Brown Douglas, eds., Sexuality and the Sacred: Sources for Theological Reflection, 2nd ed . (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010); and Marcella Althaus-Reid and Lisa Isherwood, eds., Trans/formations (London: SCM Press, 2009).
7 Elizabeth Stuart, along with others, wrote a helpful guide to Christianity for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in 1997—see Elizabeth Stuart, Andy Braunston, Malcolm Edwards, John McMahon, and Tim Morrison, Religion Is a Queer Thing: A Guide to the Christian Faith for Lesbian, Gay Bisexual and Transgendered People (Cleveland, OH: Pilgrim Press, 1997)—but it is now out of print . Stuart also published a chronological review of developments in LGBT theology in 2003—see Elizabeth Stuart, Gay and Lesbian Theologies: Repetitions with Critical Difference (Aldershot, UK: Ashgate, 2003)—but it is organized historically as opposed to by doctrinal topic.
8 There are a growing number of works about queer religious issues, including the transgender religious experience, that are written from the perspective of other faith traditions such as Judaism . See, e .g ., Rebecca Alpert, Like Bread on the Seder Plate: Jewish Lesbians and the Transformation of Tradition (New York: Columbia University Press, 1997), Christie Balka and Andy Rose, eds ,, Twice Blessed: On Being Lesbian or Gay and Jewish (Boston, MA: Beacon Press, 1989); Gregg Drinkwater, Joshua Lesser, and David Shneer, Torah Queeries: Weekly Commentaries on the Hebrew Bible (New York: New York University Press, 2009); Noach Dzmura, ed., Balancing on the Mechitza: Transgender in Jewish Community (Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic Books, 2010); Steven Greenberg, Wrestling with God and Men: Homosexuality in the Jewish Tradition (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 2004) , For helpful overviews of LGBT issues and world religions, see Christian de la Huerta, Coming Out Spiritually: The Next Step (New York: Jeremy T Tarcher/Putnam, 1999), 170–208; Jeffrey S , Siker, ed „ Homosexuality and Religion: An Encyclopedia (Westport, CT Greenwood Press, 2007); Arlene Swidler, ed,, Homosexuality and World Religions (Valley Forge, PA: Trinity Press nternational, 1993); Melissa M , Wilcox, “Innovation in Exile: Religion and Spirituality in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Communities,” in Sexuality and the World’s Religions, ed , David W, Machacek and Melissa M , Wilcox (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2003), 323–57,
9 Rom. 8:38–39
Chapter One
What is queer theology? For many people, “queer theology” is a troubling term. They may ask: What does theology have to do with “queerness”? Isn’t “queer theology” an oxymoron or an inherent contradiction in terms? Isn’t “queer” a derogatory word? For some, the word “queer” has painful connotations, especially if they were subjected to it as an epithet as a result of perceived or actual differences in sexuality or gender identity.
In recent years, however, the term “queer” has been used increasingly by scholars in a variety of theological and biblical contexts. One such example is the anthology Queer Theology: Rethinking the Western Body, which is a collection of provocative essays by theologians on the intersection between theology, sexuality, and gender identity.1 Another is the groundbreaking The Queer Bible Commentary, a commentary on each of the books of the Christian Bible—from Genesis to Revelation—written