Theology, Identity, & Me (Three Part Video Series & Discussion Guides)

Description

This course consists of three videos that serve to introduce important human sexuality and gender terms and concepts pertinent to the LGBTQ+ community. As a participant or a group leader, you will be invited to consider each presenter’s unique context and theologies while you evaluate your own identities and relationship to this important material. 

Developed in league with LGBTQ+ and affirming theologians and pastors, “Theology, Identity, and Me: An Affirming Study of Gender, Sex, and Human Sexuality” (TIM) is a deep exploration of Christian thought, natural sciences, and Church history. The video series’ dynamic narrators provide thoughtful and unbiased guidance through important topics that may be otherwise complex to navigate with church audiences. 

TIM is a helpful resource for all but especially for new Reconciling Ministries and ministries in discernment about becoming Reconciling, including churches, small groups, and Sunday school classes. The video series can also be utilized by individuals seeking a deeper understanding of gender, sex, and human sexuality.

At RMN, we believe that people of faith have the opportunity to move from a starting point of curiosity to a trajectory of affirmation and celebration of LGBTQ+ people. When we seek to understand each person’s sacred worth, we can better honor the beauty of God’s creation and our kin. 

Authors and presenters:

Liam M. Hooper, M.Div., (He/Him) is an author, gender theorist, theological activist, trans activist-advocate, educator, podcaster, public speaker, and freelance content writer. He is available—and works widely—as a speaker, workshop/seminar facilitator, and participant co-creator of learning communities, small and large. Liam is a Fellow of the William C. Friday Fellowship for Human Relations, 2020-22 cohort.

Rev. Quest Hunter (They/Them) is a native Brooklynite from the great state of New York who has lived, worked and organized throughout the United States. They’re a graduate of Emory University’s Candler School of Theology. Quest is a believer within the Christian lens. Also, knowing and believing in the universal truths of love presented many faiths of love and justice. She/They seeks and teaches through ministry that demands justice through liberating theologies and strategies. Their goal is to activate minds to deconstruct limiting theories so that we all can move towards our personal and social healing. 

Rev. H.N. Gibson (They/Them/Theirs) is an ordained elder out of the North Alabama conference who identifies as pansexual and genderqueer. They felt a call to ministry at age fourteen, which led them to study Religion at Birmingham-Southern College where they received their Bachelors. Rev. Gibson went on to study at Boston University School of Theology with a focus on Pastoral Ministry and Religion and Conflict Transformation. 

They have served in a variety of church contexts from small town to downtown and currently serve as an associate to several churches in the area around Birmingham, Alabama. Their hope for the future of the Church is to see more spaces become, not only welcoming, but affirming of all queer folk, especially youth and children. In their own words, “We are all learning to love, most especially ourselves. Let’s not do it alone.” 

Ophelia Hu Kinney (She/Her) is a sister, a wife, and a child of Chinese immigrants. She serves as the Director of Communications at Reconciling Ministries Network, and she is a writer occupied with the delightful task of curating spiritual imagination about the divine.

At HopeGateWay in Portland, Maine, Ophelia serves as the Worship Coordinator, helping to make the pulpit open to all.

Rev. Anjie Peek Woodworth (She/Her) is currently one of the co-pastors of Neighborhood Church, a new (ish) church in the Candler Park neighborhood of Atlanta. Anjie and her co-pastor and co-parent, Rev. Andi Woodworth are the planting pastors who helped create and grow Neighborhood Church starting in 2016. Originally from Decatur, GA, Anjie is an ordained elder in The United Methodist Church and served churches in various roles in northern Virginia, Decatur, Atlanta, Villa Rica, and Rome, GA. Anjie loves to craft and create, loves a spontaneous kitchen dance party with her kids, and she loves to hear and share stories of how God shows up in the middle of real, messy life.