Gay Pride
July 1, 1999
And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said to him, Here am I. And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flocks; and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.
And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh.
#And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours that was on him; And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it.
Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.
The problem with pride is it posits a separation between God and man — it is after all one of the "seven deadly sins". We knew we were playing with fire with this topic. It took one of our non-Gay members to point out however that what we wanted to see here — call it what you want — was an appropriate sense of self-worth, not arrogance and haughtiness, the standard synonyms for sinful pride. Other minorities and women have had to gather enough self-esteem to at least function in the world. Think of the struggles undertaken by African Americans, women and even Christian Scientists to make themselves and the world aware of their personhood.
One member started us off with readings from an article entitled "Comparison To Barmaids" (see the second reference to Miscellaneous Writings above). Mrs. Eddy shows here several aspects of pride. She certainly defends Christian Scientists and also women against the slanders perpetrated upon them in a newspaper article. As always she reflects deeply upon the things of Spirit — the true undergirding for any real self-esteem. She also makes some statements about barmaids which today must be regarded as insensitive and politically incorrect. One member pointed out that we might see this latter as "sin" today, but it was the way people thought back then.. As far as he was concerned, both barmaids and Christian Scientists are in the same business — i. e., trying to lessen pain!
The group was large and bursting with things to say — it was hard to get it all down — but here is a summary of the larger themes:
- In pride, the main thing to beware of is self deification. We operate from our personal egos most of the time and must try often during the day to reach out to and reflect the one Ego, thus lessening prideful separateness and fostering altruism.
- The aim of any attempt at self-esteem should be authenticity, being real and not phony.
- The Bible, which has been used to oppress African Americans, women and Gay people based on statements scattered through it, can be turned around completely and seen as an instrument of liberation. (This point was made by Irene Monroe, a student assistant to Peter Gomes of Harvard Divinity School on the latest "In The Life" program on PBS.) The same applies to our Leader's writings — we can stop looking for some pro or con statement about minorities — just human opinions anyway — and take the whole message as our sufficient guide to a proper assessment of our worth.
- So much Gay self-esteem seems to ride on whether being Gay is from genes, upbringing, choice, or even astrology. For the student of Christian Science all such "causes" are secondary, for they are one and all dualistic human beliefs, which need to be returned to the Father, — i. e., one Cause and effect. An MCC banner in the Gay Pride March in New York proclaimed "God made you queer". Exactly. God made us all eternal, infinite, unique and perfect. How queer that is to mortal mind.
- The so called family roles discerned by family therapists and other workers in the alcoholism field, for instance John Bradshaw, could be used to work with Gay people who have grown up in an abusive heterosexist family and society. These roles are the hero, overachiever, the lost child, one who hides out a lot, the mascot, a compulsive entertainer, and the scapegoat, one who goes out of his way to attract trouble. The point of these roles is to take the focus off the really painful problems caused by the sick family member — i. e., the alcoholic or hetersexist — and secure survival. Real healing requires ripping away the covering from this sham and working on the underlying problems. Christian Science is perfectly adequate to this task as long as the sufferer isn't kidding himself with some crazy family role.
- The role of Gay people in the salvation of the world was much discussed in the early days of the Movement, after Stonewall (1969) but went underground as hedonism and commercial interests predominated in the 70's and 80's. Some spirituality crept back in after the onset of AIDS but recently many workshops and books are coming to the fore looking at the role of Gay people in the advancement of the wider culture. This will unquestionably be a huge topic in coming years and our group will stay on top of it as it unfolds. Christian Scientists can do wonderful work here. One member for instance reported that in preparing to watch the Gay Pride March this year he took a hint from Margaet Laird in her book "The Fourth Dimension Of Spirit" and dislocated the March in matter and relocated it in Mind. He felt a much greater sense of harmony and beauty in this year's event as against the one last year which seemed "pain on parade".
- One member in a relationship has come to the conclusion that he has to keep — indeed wants to keep — God first. While he loves his friend, that bond is secondary to the joyous feeling of oneness he has with God.
- Another member described his practice as prayer and deep yearning for righteousness. He often runs an inventory of undesirable traits he asks God to remove. He has recently been participating in Gay men's spirituality groups on the East and West coasts. They are very much like Promise Keeper functions but with less hugging and crying and more drumming. He has prayed over the years to be located where God can best use him and recently found a reasonably priced apartment in Manhattan offered him out of the blue.
- Another member, in the midst of watching Dawson's Creek, an evening soap opera which includes the struggles of a Gay teenager to come out, became so distressed at the young man's plight and memories of his own teen years that he poured scalding water over his leg instead of into a tea pot. He knew instantly that the state of his thought was important and recalled Mrs. Eddy's wry statement in Science and Health, "You say, "I have burned my finger." This is an exact statement, more exact than you suppose; for mortal mind, and not matter, burns it," (pg. 161:3-5). The pain was intense but he stayed with the Truth and within a few minutes there was no evidence of the problem and his memories were also drained of their hurtful content.
- Another member was dismissed as unacceptably needy after exposing a deep level of loneliness to a friend. It hurt, of course, but afterwards our member reversed the verdict with Science, realizing man's total acceptability to God. The next day there were a number of unexpected occurrences of loving care and support.
- Another member tried to give some of his non-Christian Scientist business partners a boost with some absolute statements of Truth and found them laughably uncomprehending. They probably thought he was crazy. He decided to live an incoming pair of business deals at the I Genesis level while letting them alone, to live the deals at the II Genesis level. The latter is nothing more than a belief about the former, so there was no conflict. Things turned out wonderfully — relationships previously frayed were repaired, the paperwork progressed rapidly and everyone seemed happy. This is a most important demonstration to our member, because he has always felt he had to convince others of the Truth. He now sees this as mortals convincing mortals, a hopeless task. After this, he is much more inclined to retreat into the Shekinah, where real power pertains, and whence he can see the divinity of all.
Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren.
And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.
Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.
Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem.
Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.
Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.
Mortals will some day assert their freedom in the name of Almighty God.
The divine Mind that made man maintains His own image and likeness.
As there is in reality but one God, one Mind, wrong notions about God must have originated in a false supposition, not in immortal Truth, and they are fading out.
In divine Science, man is the true image of God. The divine nature was best expressed in Christ Jesus, who threw upon mortals the truer reflection of God and lifted their lives higher than their poor thought-models would allow,—thoughts which presented man as fallen, sick, sinning, and dying. The Christlike understanding of scientific being and divine healing includes a perfect Principle and idea,—perfect God and perfect man,—as the basis of thought and demonstration.
The manifestation of God through mortals is as light passing through the window-pane. The light and the glass never mingle, but as matter, the glass is less opaque than the walls. The mortal mind through which Truth appears most vividly is that one which has lost much materiality—much error—in order to become a better transparency for Truth. Then, like a cloud melting into thin vapor, it no longer hides the sun.
When we realize that Life is Spirit, never in nor of matter, this understanding will expand into self-completeness, finding all in God, good, and needing no other consciousness.
The calm, strong currents of true spirituality, the manifestations of which are health, purity, and self-immolation, must deepen human experience, until the beliefs of material existence are seen to be a bald imposition, and sin, disease, and death give everlasting place to the scientific demonstration of divine Spirit and to God's spiritual, perfect man.
As mortals awake from their dream of material sensation, this adorable, all-inclusive God, and all earth's hieroglyphics of Love, are understood; and infinite Mind is seen kindling the stars, rolling the worlds, reflecting all space and Life,—but not life in matter. Wisely governing, informing the universe, this Mind is Truth,—not laws of matter. Infinitely just, merciful, and wise, this Mind is Love,—but not fallible love.