Soulfully Gay is a personal memoir of an intellectually rigorous gay man wrestling with fundamental issues of meaning and self-acceptance. Joe Perez finds himself on a quest to understand what it means to be gay at the intersection of conflicts between homosexuality and Christianity, faith and skepticism, mysticism and madness. His journey unfolds amid challenges to his health as a recovering addict, a survivor of a psychotic episode, and a man living with AIDS. Joe is able to integrate seemingly contradictory elements—his Roman Catholic upbringing versus his openly gay lifestyle, his authentic mystical experiences versus the delusions for which he was hospitalized. With a solid understanding of theology and an ability to see through the veils of political correctness, Joe brings a new level of intellect and understanding to the challenges of being a gay man.

A passionate argument for LGBTQ equality within religious communities—“a book for our times and a book for the ages” (EDGE) The myth that the Bible forbids homosexuality—the myth of “God versus Gay”—is behind some of the most divisive and painful conflicts of our day. In this provocative and game-changing book, scholar and activist Jay Michaelson shows that the Bible does not prohibit same-sex intimacy but does quite the opposite. In fact, the vast majority of the Bible’s teachings support the full equality and dignity of LGBTQ people, from the first flaw it finds in creation (“It is not good for a person to be alone”) to the way religious communities grow through reflection and conscience. Michaelson argues passionately for equality—not despite religion, but because of it. With close readings of the Hebrew Bible and New Testament, the latest data on the science of sexual orientation, and a sympathetic, accessible, and ecumenical approach to religious faith, Michaelson makes the case that sexual diversity is part of the beauty of nature. The recognition of same-sex families will strengthen, not threaten, the values religious people hold dear. Whatever your views on religion and sexual diversity, God vs. Gay is a plea for a more compassionate, informed conversation—and a first step toward creating one.

2013 Finalist for the Lambda Literary Awards, LGBT Studies category Barton argues that conventional Southern manners and religious institutions provide a foundation for homophobia in the Bible Belt In the Bible Belt, it’s common to see bumper stickers that claim One Man + One Woman = Marriage, church billboards that command one to “Get right with Jesus,” letters to the editor comparing gay marriage to marrying one’s dog, and nightly news about homophobic attacks from the Family Foundation. While some areas of the Unites States have made tremendous progress in securing rights for gay people, Bible Belt states lag behind. Not only do most Bible Belt gays lack domestic partner benefits, lesbians and gay men can still be fired from some places of employment in many regions of the Bible Belt for being a homosexual. In Pray the Gay Away, Bernadette Barton argues that conventions of small town life, rules which govern Southern manners, and the power wielded by Christian institutions serve as a foundation for both passive and active homophobia in the Bible Belt. She explores how conservative Christian ideology reproduces homophobic attitudes and shares how Bible Belt gays negotiate these attitudes in their daily lives. Drawing on the remarkable stories of Bible Belt gays, Barton brings to the fore their thoughts, experiences and hard-won insights to explore the front lines of our national culture war over marriage, family, hate crimes, and equal rights. Pray the Gay Away illuminates their lives as both foot soldiers and casualties in the battle for gay rights.

Joe Perez looks at the common issues facing gays in personal, cultural, social, and political dimensions within a "theory of everything" called STEAM. Building on the work of integral theorists including Ken Wilber, Don Beck, and Jim Marion, Perez shows how STEAM can build bridges across the divides. The topics include responding to religious conservatives; why liberals and conservatives alike miss the big picture; how to make HIV/AIDS prevention efforts more effective; how to renew faith, purpose, and dedication to truth.

In The Missing Myth, Gilles Herrada tackles the many questions about the role and meaning of homosexuality in the evolution of our species and the development of civilization: what evolutionary edge same-sex relationships have provided to the human species; what biological mechanisms generate the sexual diversity that we observe; why homosexual behavior ended up being prohibited worldwide; why homophobia has persisted throughout history; why the homosexual community resurfaced after World War II; and others. In this heartfelt, beautifully written, and painstakingly researched text, the author sculpts a vision of homosexuality that integrates its many dimensions. Stressing the connection between the social status of homosexuality and how same-sex love is depicted in the myths of a particular culture, The Missing Myth advocates the creation of a new mythos—not only informed by all the fields of knowledge, but also inclusive of the beauty, truth, and goodness of same-sex love.

This compiled and edited collection engages with a theme which is increasingly attracting scholarly attention, namely, religion and LGBTQ sexuality. Each section of the volume provides perspectives to understanding academic discourse and wide-ranging debates around LGBTQ sexualities and religion and spirituality. The collection also draws attention to aspects of religiosity that shape the lived experiences of LGBTQ people and shows how sexual orientation forges dimensions of faith and spirituality. Taken together the essays represent an exploration of contestations around sexual diversity in the major religions; the search of sexual minorities for spiritual ’safe spaces’ in both established and new forms of religiosity; and spiritual paths formed in reconciling and expressing faith and sexual orientation. This collection, which features contributions from a number of disciplines including sociology, anthropology, psychology, history, religious studies and theology, provides an indispensable teaching resource for educators and students in an era when LGBTQ topics are increasingly finding their way onto numerous undergraduate, post-graduate and profession orientated programmes.

Open the Bible, and disability is everywhere. Moses stutters and thinks himself unable to answer God's call. Isaac's blindness lets his wife trick him into bestowing his blessing on his younger son. Jesus heals the sick the blind, the paralyzed, and the possessed. For centuries, these stories have been told and retold by commentators who treat disability as misfortune, as a metaphor for spiritual incapacity, or as a challenge to be overcome. Loving Our Own Bones turns that perspective on its head. Drawing insights from the hard-won wisdom of disabled folks who've forged difference into fierce and luminous cultural dissent, Belser offers fresh and unexpected readings of familiar biblical stories, showing how disability wisdom can guide us all toward a powerful reckoning with the complexities of the flesh. She talks back to biblical commentators who traffic in disability stigma and shame, challenging interpretations that demean disabled people and diminish the vitality of disabled lives. And she shows how Sabbath rest can be a powerful counter to the relentless demand for productivity, an act of spiritual resistance in a culture that makes work the signal measure of our worth. With both a lyrical love of tradition and incisive political analysis, Belser braids spiritual perspectives together with keen activist insights-inviting readers to claim the power and promise of spiritual dissent, to nourish their own souls through the revolutionary art of radical self-love.

A critical study of diabetes in the popular imagination Over twenty-nine million people in the United States, more than nine percent of the population, have some form of diabetes. In Managing Diabetes, Jeffrey A. Bennett focuses on how the disease is imagined in public culture. Bennett argues that popular anecdotes, media representation, and communal myths are as meaningful as medical and scientific understandings of the disease. In focusing on the public character of the disease, Bennett looks at health campaigns and promotions as well as the debate over public figures like Sonia Sotomayor and her management of type 1 diabetes. Bennett examines the confusing and contradictory public depictions of diabetes to demonstrate how management of the disease is not only clinical but also cultural. Bennett also has type 1 diabetes and speaks from personal experience about the many misunderstandings and myths that are alive in the popular imagination. Ultimately, Managing Diabetes offers a fresh take on how disease is understood in contemporary society and the ways that stigma, fatalism, and health can intersect to shape diabetes’s public character. This disease has dire health implications, and rates keep rising. Bennett argues that until it is better understood it cannot be better treated.

This work focuses on the implicit theological aspects of the #BlackLivesMatter movement. It examines, in conversation with theologians, the movement’s early published tenets in order to determine their implicit God claims. The study, conducted by a Pentecostal bishop, puts Black Liberation, Womanist, and Queer Liberation theologies in conversation with the praxis of the movement. An ecumenical group of Black pastors from across the United States met in an effort to determine the viability of the God claims of the movement in the life of the Black Church. As the research progressed, a new theological expression emerged as the real praxis of the movement; i.e., intersectional theology. This study project concludes with an exposition of the main points of this intersectional theology.

Advance praise for Breakdown "Breakdown takes the reader on a journey of growth and transformation through an often overlooked path--demonstrating how the shadow side of life can be a vehicle to enlightenment. Extremely honest and personal, it shines a poignant eye on the struggles of a high-powered job in New York's glitz and glamour scene and the darkness of addiction. Through it all, this illuminating adventure offers a fresh and hopeful point of view to the meaning of life in these troubled times." --Steve Kammon, Editor, Circuit Noize magazine Greg DiStefano has spent a decade on the fringes of the limelight, brushing up against the famous and the infamous in the shadowy underbelly of New York's nightclub scene. It all looks promising--until Greg's bizarre encounter with the prophetic Spiros forces him to reexamine his perception of reality. Propelled by a string of serendipitous events, Greg and Spiros wind their way across the Middle East and India, interacting with a series of seers, sages, and spiritual masters. Troubled by America's soulless culture, internal conflicts, and the meaninglessness of his star-studded dream job, Greg breaks down. Stripped of everything that defines his identity, only a terrifying leap into the unknown can save him. While chronicling dizzying celebrity heights and floor-crawling lows, Breakdown blends elements of religion, philosophy, metaphysics, and sexuality into popular language. A testimonial to the indomitable human spirit, this coming-of-age tale provides hope, deeper meaning, and an opportunity for transformation. Breakdown... find yourself Five Percent of the author's royalties will be donated to Hale House--America's best-known independent facility for addicted babies in Harlem.