More than anything, though, on this Day of Remembrance I hold in my thoughts and prayers the countless thousands of individuals, a significant number of whom have been transwomen of color, who have been brutally killed because they dared to live their lives as their true selves.

I yearn for a time when instead of memorializing transgender and genderqueer individuals who have been killed for living their lives authentically, we will take time to celebrate the gifts these individuals offer our communities. Until then I will attend the vigils, not only to remember the lives lost but also to offer to the transgender communities a supportive religious voice.

“As a Welcoming Congregation, the Pagosa Unitarian Universalist Fellowship invites everyone to share in our faith community. We cherish diversity and foster a safe environment for all.” - PUUF Statement of Inclusion

Unwarranted arrests of 70+ LGBTQ persons gathered at a meeting at the Vintage Hotel in Lagos, Nigeria have put those living with HIV/AIDS and the agencies committed to supporting them at risk.

Listening and paying attention are spiritual practices. They are also acts of justice. There was a time when I saw the number of queer people in our congregation on the rise. Now it’s on the decline. We think we’ve done that. “We’re welcoming.” “Sexual orientation doesn’t matter any more. We have marriage equality.” “Anyone can come here.” Yet, I wonder. Are we listening? Are we paying attention?

The UUA condemns the Nashville Statement in the strongest terms. It is spiritually damaging and culturally oppressive to all people.

When faced with unfair taxation after the death of her same-sex spouse, Edie Windsor stood for the right not to be overtaxed or undertaxed because of who you love and how you love. 

Tim Byrne discusses life transitions after difficult challenges.

As Black trans people, we are a community often the target of criminalization, homelessness, murder and joblessness. As #BlackTransMagick, we ask ourselves “how do we protect our spirits and those of our loved ones who face so much trauma?” 

Where do I go from here? I don’t know. Like Jake Gyllenhaal’s character in the tragic bisexual romance Brokeback Mountain, I feel a binding love for something that might be damaging to me and that I may never really be able to be happy with; I just don’t know how to quit the Catholic Church. There’s a kind of spiritual agony in this.