Review: Timothy Kurek, The Cross in the Closet, 2012.

I was privileged to get to know this remarkable young man recently, when we were co-speakers at a conference in Sydney. Like Andrew Marin [1] he has creatively built a bridge between  ¢â‚¬Ëœstraights ¢â‚¬â„¢ and  ¢â‚¬Ëœgays ¢â‚¬â„¢, with some remarkable results. Andrew  ¢â‚¬Ëœstayed straight ¢â‚¬â„¢ during his immersion into the LGBTI world; Tim followed the  ¢â‚¬ËœBlack Like Me ¢â‚¬â„¢ precedent [2] and told everyone he was gay  ¢â‚¬“ but he isn ¢â‚¬â„¢t   – so that he could experience what it was like to be victimized (my word) by Christians and others… (How do we know he ¢â‚¬â„¢s straight? Well, he got distracted in Sydney by girls ¢â‚¬â„¢ short skirts… And in the book he graphically describes how an unwanted advance by a gay man  ¢â‚¬Ëœcreeps me out ¢â‚¬â„¢!).

Tim ¢â‚¬â„¢s book has a special endorsement by the well-known  ¢â‚¬Ëœprogressive Evangelical ¢â‚¬â„¢ Brian McLaren, with which I wholeheartedly agree:  ¢â‚¬ËœA one-of-a-kind book with unforgettable moral impact ¢â‚¬â„¢. [3]

Now why would someone deliberately deceive  ¢â‚¬“ and, in most cases alienate – his family and friends and his Bible-belt church – by inhabiting another world so that he could better identify with gay and lesbian people ¢â‚¬â„¢s pain and exclusion and marginalization?   There ¢â‚¬â„¢s a simple answer to that: for the same reason God sent his Son to live among us and share our pain and marginalization. The little conversations Tim has with his alter ego  ¢â‚¬ËœThe Inner Pharisee ¢â‚¬â„¢ point up the dramatic contrast between the way Jesus related to  ¢â‚¬Ëœpublicans and sinners ¢â‚¬â„¢ versus the approach of the  ¢â‚¬Ëœholy people ¢â‚¬â„¢ of his day. For Jesus, acceptance precedes repentance; with Pharisees it was the other way around. [4] (I ¢â‚¬â„¢m waiting to hear a conservative Christian preacher get excited by the idea that  ¢â‚¬Ëœcorrupt publicans and prostitutes ¢â‚¬â„¢ are getting into God ¢â‚¬â„¢s kingdom ahead of the [Bible/holiness] people (Matthew 21:31. One of my favourite/shocking prayers:  ¢â‚¬ËœThank you Lord that you love us before we change, as we change, after we change, and whether we change or not! ¢â‚¬â„¢).

Another reason for Tim ¢â‚¬â„¢s adventure relates to the wisdom of Epictetus:  ¢â‚¬ËœIf you want to improve, be content to be thought foolish and stupid ¢â‚¬â„¢.

The book is an easy-read: Tim ¢â‚¬â„¢s a very good writer for a college drop-out. I love the  ¢â‚¬Ëœstream of consciousness ¢â‚¬â„¢ method of revealing his inner world to us… He ¢â‚¬â„¢s honest – brutally honest  ¢â‚¬“ even about his own addictions (alcohol, and smoking clove cigarettes  ¢â‚¬“ why have I never heard of them?). And he ¢â‚¬â„¢s especially scathing about the various branches of Jesus ¢â‚¬â„¢ church opposing gay rights. (Why would an AIDs walk to raise money for research not be endorsed by churches?) [5]

Some  ¢â‚¬Ëœgotcha ¢â‚¬â„¢ quotes from his book, and his talk in Sydney:

+  ¢â‚¬ËœWhen a girl  ¢â‚¬Å“came out ¢â‚¬  as a lesbian, why can ¢â‚¬â„¢t her Christian parents explain to her that she ¢â‚¬â„¢s an  ¢â‚¬Å“abomination ¢â‚¬  without her feeling like she ¢â‚¬â„¢s an abomination? ¢â‚¬â„¢

+ Ubuntu:  ¢â‚¬ËœI am because of who we all are… ¢â‚¬â„¢ (Archbishop Desmond Tutu ¢â‚¬â„¢s explanation:  ¢â‚¬ËœA person with Ubuntu is open and available to others, affirming of others, does not feel threatened that others are able and good, based from a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or she belongs in a greater whole and is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, when others are tortured or oppressed. ¢â‚¬â„¢) [6]

+  ¢â‚¬ËœNobody ever changed their beliefs because they lost a debate ¢â‚¬â„¢

+ Message to Pastor Phelps and the Westboro people:  ¢â‚¬ËœYou can safely say you ¢â‚¬â„¢re a follower of Jesus if you hate the people God hates ¢â‚¬â„¢

+ We see others not as they are but as we are.  ¢â‚¬ËœOnce you label me you negate me ¢â‚¬â„¢ (Kierkegaard)

+  ¢â‚¬ËœWhy are both conservative religion and pop culture hyper-obsessed with gay sex? I too have bought into their lies. The vast majority of gay men and lesbian women desire nothing more than love, commitment and a normal life ¢â‚¬â„¢.

Another (straight) speaker at our conference asked  ¢â‚¬ËœWhy did God create gay people? To reflect more of who God is. ¢â‚¬â„¢

Now… Google The Book Depository and order a copy. (You probably won ¢â‚¬â„¢t find it in your conservative Christian bookshop).

A review by my friend Murray Hogg -  http://www.ea.org.au/Crucible/Issues/Review-Kurek-The-Cross-in-the-Closet.aspx

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[1] Love is an Orientation   (http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/27277.htm )

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Like_Me

[3] See Brian ¢â‚¬â„¢s excellent unpacking of LGBTI issues in, for example,  ¢â‚¬ËœThe Sex Question ¢â‚¬â„¢: chapter 7 of his brilliant little book A New Kind of Christiantity.

[4] Pharisees Ancient and Modern: http://jmm.org.au/articles/13113.htm

[5] And see also:   http://secular-europe-campaign.org/2011/04/vatican-opposing-gay-rights-at-the-un-claiming-the-church-is-the-victim/

[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubuntu

More (and you can chase the links at the bottom):   http://jmm.org.au/articles/22914.htm

~~

Rowland Croucher     February 2013   jmm.org.au