Irenicast - A Progressive Christian Podcast

Rajeev and Bonnie interview their good friend in this episode, The Rev. Dr. Horace L. Griffin.  Rev. Dr. Horace L. Griffin is an Episcopal Priest and gay man serving St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Atlanta, Georgia as Associate for Pastoral Care and Outreach.  He is author of the award-winning book, Their Own Receive Them Not: African American Lesbians and Gays in Black Churches.  

The episode begins with Horace Griffin’s story of growing up in the Black Church in the Florida Panhandle where, at a young age, he was called into ministry by his community.  However, within the Black Church, the calling and Horace’s sexuality were in conflict. Horace traces his painful journey of leaving the Black Church and finding a home in the Episcopal Church (the irony is not lost on Horace). The conversation winds through a discussion of Liberation Theology, an update on the progress around inclusion of LGBTQ folks in the Black Church and what it takes to stay in institutional Christianity these days.  Stay tuned until the end to discover one of Horace’s pastimes. (Here’s a hint -- it has something to do with the White House.)

Street Team Announcement (00:11)

Conversation with The Rev. Dr. Horace L. Griffin (03:20)

STREET TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT

If you are interested in being a part of our Irenicast Street Team please email us at podcast@irenicast.com with the “Street Team” in the subject line.  We will be discussing more details on Sunday, September 22nd at 4pm PST via ZOOM.us.

RELEVANT LINKS

From Our Conversation With The Rev. Dr. Horace L. Griffin

• Rev. Dr. Horace L. Griffin
• Their Own Receive Them Not: African American Lesbians and Gays in Black Churches by Rev. Dr. Horace L. Griffin (Book - Amazon Affiliate Link)
• St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Atlanta, GA
• Chilling Study Sums Up Link Between Religion And Suicide For Queer Youth (Aritcle)
• The Rev. Paul Eknes-Tucker
• Troy Deroy Perry Jr (founder of the Metropolitan Community Church)
• Rev. Kimberly Jackson
• 2008 California Proposition 8 (anti-same sex marriage bill)
• Ebenezer Baptist Church
• I Have a Dream Program at St. Luke’s
• Liberation Theology
• Gustavo Gutiérrez (Peruvian philosopher, theologian, and Dominican priest regarded as one of the founders of liberation theology)
• Rosemary Radford Ruether (American feminist scholar and Catholic theologian)
• James H. Cone (American theologian)
• Dwight Hopkins (professor of theology at the University of Chicago and an ordained American Baptist minister)
• Katie Cannon (American Christian theologian and ethicist associated with womanist theology and black theology)
• Delores S. Williams (American theologian notable for her formative role in the development of womanist theology)
• Jacquelyn Grant (American theologian and Methodist minister best known as one of the founding developers of womanist theology)
• Luke 4:18-19 CEB
• Memoir of a Gay Pastor – Closets and Calling – 131 (Irenicast Episode)
• Barbara Clementine Harris (Retired American bishop of the Episcopal Church. She was the first woman ordained a bishop in the Anglican Communion.)
• Vashti Murphy McKenzie (bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, first female to be elected as bishop in the denomination's history.)
• Jeremiah Alvesta Wright Jr. (Pastor emeritus of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago)
• Pat Robertson (American media mogul, televangelist, political commentator, former Republican presidential candidate, and former Southern Baptist minister)
• Michael Bruce Curry MStJ (First African American to serve as presiding bishop in The Episcopal Church)
• Anna Eleanor Roosevelt (American political figure, diplomat, activist and first lady)
• Lorena Hickok (American journalist known for her close relationship with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt)
• No Ordinary Time: Franklin & Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II by Doris Kearns Goodwin (Book - Amazon Affiliate Link)
• Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama (American lawyer, university administrator and writer, who was the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017)
• Daughters of the American Revolution (Organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence)
• Marian Anderson (American singer, one of the most celebrated of the twentieth century)
• Nancy Davis Reagan (American film actress and the wife of Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States. She was the first lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989.)
• Ronald Wilson Reagan (American politician who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989)
• Mary Todd Lincoln (First Lady of the United States from 1861 to 1865)

THANK YOU

Thanks again to the Rev. Dr. Horace Griffin for joining us on this week’s episode of Irenicast.  Stay up to date on Horace and his work by following him on Facebook and hearing his sermons at St. Luke’s.

YOUR SUPPORT

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IRENCAST HOSTS

Rev. Allen O’Brien, MAT | co-founder & co-host | allen@irenicast.com

Allen is a venerator of emotionality. He thrives on education, peace, and interconnectedness— passions which permeate his work as pastor, writer, lover of all the things, and occasional vegan.

You can connect with Allen (@RevAllenOB) on Facebook,Twitter, Instagram, GoodReads, & LinkedIn.

Rev. Bonnie Rambob, MDiv | co-host | bonnie@irenicast.com

As a pastor, activist, educator, mom, and possibility artist, Bonnie invites people into newness. She loves climbing trees, knitting and hiking while conversing with friends about smashing the patriarchy.

You can connect with Bonnie on Facebook and at Parkside Community Church-UCC

Pastor Casey Tinnin, MTS | co-host | casey@irenicast.com

Preacher, protester, everybody’s pastor. Casey geeks out on comic books, talking theology, politics, and sex.  He’s most free when he is dancing, cooking with his partner Jose, or walking their dog Kole.

You can follow Casey on Twitter and Facebook, or you can check out his blog The Queerly Faithful Pastor or loomisucc.org

Jeff Manildi | co-founder, producer & co-host | jeff@irenicast.com

Chaser of tales and climax initiator, Jeff rises to the occasion, edging to a satisfying completion. Get your mind out of the gutter, we’re talking story, not sex. Jeff expresses his creativity by curating diverse ideas, energies and people. 

Follow Jeff (@JeffManildi) on facebook, instagram & twitter.  You can also listen to Jeff’s other podcast Divine Cinema.

Rev. Rajeev Rambob, MCL | co-host | rajeev@irenicast.com

Rajeev loves thoughtful and provocative conversation over food and drink, most often with his family. He’s a loyal, smart-ass friend who believes in the power of spiritual journeys. Feminist, Anti-colonial, Process Theology-nerd.  

You can follow Rajeev on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn

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CREDITS

Intro and Outro music created by Mike Golin.

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