June 12thLoved by the Creator
The story of the Ethiopian Eunuch is ever-present in my mind when I write or preach about God's welcome of LGBTQ+ folks. The story astonishes me. The faith of the eunuch, a sexual minority at-variance with the gender norms of the day, who traveled thousands of kilometres to worship God despite being unwelcome in God's house according to the laws in Deuteronomy, is beautiful. That God would call an evangelist far away from a successful ministry, where he was bringing joy to entire cities, just to minister to one person who was rejected by God’s own laws doesn’t make sense.
I am not astonished, however, that the eunuch sought God despite the rejection he faced by church leaders.This is the story of nearly every Queer Christian I know. Many of us have received harsh words from fellow Christians in the name of Jesus. I, like so many more, have been told that who I am, at my core, is unacceptable to God. I have been told that I am not welcome, that I am not even allowed to call myself a Christian. I have been denied the ability to worship God with my whole self, just as I was created, and taught to be ashamed. It took dedication, determination, and many years to counter those lies, but I, like the Ethiopian Eunuch, didn't give up. Like most/all Queer people in our churches, the eunuch kept drawing close to God despite being told that he didn’t belong. Despite the laws that refused him entry into places of worship, the eunuch persisted and challenged Philip. “What is there to prevent me from being baptized?” The answer, because of Jesus, was, “Nothing!” Philip did not offer to “heal” the eunuch from what made him “Queer,” or sexually different. Instead, he was baptized by Philip right then, right there, just as he was.
Because he didn’t give up, the Ethiopian Eunuch was the first gentile to be baptized into the new family of God. Because we didn’t give up, we who are Queer are worshiping God with our whole selves, experiencing the joy and beauty of God’s encompassing love.
If we are to follow the example God set in this story, we are to go out of our way to minister to the marginalized, to those that are rejected by the church. If we are to follow the example set by the Ethiopian Eunuch, we who are Queer are to keep being faithful, and keep seeking God despite others telling us we don’t belong. We are called to challenge the systems and the rules that say that we are not welcome, and it is the job of the church to spread the good news of the full welcome that Jesus came to preach. We are called to share our story of the assurance that we have in Jesus, of the goodness of God’s love. Just like the eunuch, we can go on our way rejoicing, knowing we are loved by the Creator of all things.