Product Description

In the past two decades or so the issue of homosexuality has taken center stage at national and regional denominational meetings and in local church communities. The response of the majority of churches ranges from condemnation to toleration of the gay and lesbian community, neither of which offers much hope for homosexual Christians. In Gifted by Otherness L. William Countryman and M. R. Ritley conclude that being gay or lesbian is not actually a problem at all; rather it is a vocation, and, in fact, a gift to today's church.

As "outsiders" gay men and lesbians challenge the church to be inclusive of all God's children-the central message of the gospel. "God has drawn us to this difficult place," they write, "in order to reveal God's grace to us and in us and through us." Basing their book on retreats they have presented to churches and seminaries, Countryman and Ritley explore what it means to affirm, not merely accept, being gay or lesbian, as well as Christian. Written primarily for the lesbigay community, they explore the ways in which the gay and lesbian community can appropriate and re-tell the biblical story, and find confidence in their unique spiritual journey and gifts. This pro-active and self-affirming book provides new hope for those who feel that it is impossible to be gay or lesbian, as well as Christian.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #106627 in Books
• Published on: 2001-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 176 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Without apology and with an honest chutzpah, Countryman, a New Testament professor, and Ritley, an Episcopal priest, explore the vocation and journey gay Christians have in the church. The writers see themselves as ministering to the church; they clarify that their task is not to justify the presence of gays there. That presence is simply a fact. But they also note that it is normal and healthy for the church to struggle with homosexuality, since the church is not a monolithic entity of likeminded people but a richly textured community of contradictory and diverse individuals. The authors declare that gay Christians have specific gifts to offer the church; they can serve the priesthood of believers as "icons," which the authors describe as windows that show a facet of God. In particular, gays who have experienced "wilderness times" in coming out and living as homosexual Christians can teach others about God's sustaining grace. And while the church is often afraid to face death, the AIDS epidemic has taught the gay community to deal with it as a part of life. On a lighter note, the authors say that the church needs the campiness of gay humor, since Christians forget too often that humor is a gift from God. Ritley and Countryman have written a thoughtful and provocative book for anyone who has struggled with what it means when gays are a part of the church.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About the Author
L. William Countryman is an Episcopal priest, professor of New Testament at the Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley, California, and author of Forgiven and Forgiving, The Good News of Jesus, Living on the Border of the Holy: Renewing the Priesthood of All, and other titles available from Morehouse Publishing and Trinity Press International.

M. R. Ritley is an Episcopal priest in San Francisco and has taught courses on gay spirituality at a variety of seminaries and churches.

Customer Reviews

If you only get one book on Gay Christianity, this is it
"Gifted by Otherness" is one of those books that can truly change your life. It certainly did for me! In fact, I'm so impressed with it that I've given at least five copies away to friends.

Countryman, a gay Episcopalian pastor, has also written two other excellent books: "Dirt, Greed and Sex: Sexual Ethics in the New Testament and their Implications for Today," and "Biblical Authority or Biblical Tyranny?" These three books will truly help gay people understand just what those six "killer verses" in the Bible REALLY mean. Don't let a fundamentalist Christian keep you from having a meaningful relationship with God. What you read in the English Bible isn't necessarily what was in the original Greek/Hebrew/Aramaic, etc. There's a fascinating progression of translations involved in today's Bible, and those "killer verses" need to be put in context with Jewish history at the time of their writing. This is an extremely complex subject, and Countryman does a superb job explaining it.

See also several of the books by John Shelby Spong, a retired Episcopalian Bishop, especially "Sins of Scripture", "Rescuing the Bible from Fundamenalism" and "Living in Sin? A Bishop Rethinks Human Sexuality."

If you're a straight fundamentalist Christian, don't bother reading any of these books. You probably won't change your mind anyway. But if you're gay and want to truly understand how there is absolutely no conflict between being gay and being Christian, ALL of these books are "must reads" for you. These books, especially "Gifted by Otherness," will take a huge burden off your shoulders. Take back your life from those people that want to demonize you, and get the facts.

So true!
As a gay Christian, I have experienced the phenomena Dr. Countryman and M.R. explore where much of the religious community is hesitant and skeptical of the LGBT community, if not outright condemning...and the LGBT Community in turn is skeptical of Christians and want nothing to do with us. Since the publication of this book, much has been done to bridge that gap, thanks to books like this one. Countryman and Ritley present a much needed glimpse of an inclusive faith!

Justin R. Cannon
Editor, Sanctified: An Anthology of Poetry by LGBT Christians
Author, The Bible, Christianity, & Homosexuality