August 1, 2019 / Citizens Climate Radio / Comments Off

Professional Athletes as Climate Action Figures

I continue to feel encouraged by the variety of people and niches of people that are seriously taking on climate change, talking about it, and pursuing solutions. In the latest episode of Citizens Climate Radio I chat with Lew Blaustein of Green Sports Blog.

He outlines a growing movement among professional athletes, teams, and leagues to not only green the sporting world but to speak out about climate change.

Lew puts the challenges we face into perspective. He says, “Mike Trout of the Anaheim Angels—best player in baseball—recently signed a 400 plus million dollar twelve year contract extension. Twelve years is also what the IPCC said is the time frame that humanity has to reduce our carbon footprint by 45%—basically Mike Trout’s contract.” Lew believes sports fans can become instrumental in taking on climate change. “We need to get the masses of people who follow sports…to engage on positive climate action.”

liz gonzalez with Chaco!

He believes professional sports is an essential arena to make this happen. “We’re athletes. We know how to solve problems and overcome obstacles.”

In the Art House meet poet, liz gonzalez, writing about a rapidly changing semi-natural world in Southern California. She reads poetry and prose about the Santa Ana winds.

All this plus the monthly puzzler–What color or sound do you associate with climate change?

Check out Ep 38 of Citizens Climate Radio

Featured image credit: Alexander Redl on Unsplash

July 30, 2019 / Bible, Queer Bible Series / Comments Off

LGBTQ+ Friendly Bible Stories — Theme Three : Transition/Transitioning

This is part three of a seven part series on

LGBTQ+ themes and the Bible.

The seven themes are:

Photo by Timon Studler on Unsplash

Today we will look at examples of Transition and Transition.

The example I gave at the Wild Goose Festival Workshop is about the long-term transition the young shepherd boy, David, makes to become King David.

Photo by Mark Fletcher-Brown on Unsplash

When looking for the next king of Israel, God sends the prophet Samuel to the house of Jesse, a man with many sons. Jesse parades his strapping, manly sons before Samuel, but the prophet’s “Kingdar” does not ding once. They then reluctantly bring out the boy shepherd, David. The bells go off as Samuel declares, “Man sees on the outside, but God sees the heart.” This David has the heart of a king. The rest of the book is the transition process from rural shepherd boy to royal leader. I Samuel

The participants who attended the LGBTQ+ Friendly Bible Hour provide more examples of Transition and Transitioning

Peter’s journey to include gentiles in the early church–Acts 10
Paul transitioning to Saul–Acts 9:1-31
Jesus’ transition to accept his death to the tomb to resurrection–Luke 22:43,44
Jacob to Israel–Genesis 35
Abram to Abraham/Sarai to Sarah–Genesis 17
Moses and the Israelites leaving Egypt and going to Promise Land–Exodus

Photo by Steinar Engeland on Unsplash

What about you? What stories from the Bible do you want to add to the list of Transition/Transitioning stories. Leave you thoughts in the comments below.

Many thanks to Wild Goose and the folks who attended the workshop!

IF you want to hear more alternative readings to the Bible, check out the monthly podcast I co-host with Liam Hooper: The Bible Bash Podcast! available wherever you listen to podcasts.

Featured image: Trans performer in Tablas Island, Philippines credit: P. Toscano

July 23, 2019 / Bible, Queer Bible Series / Comments Off

LGBTQ+ Friendly Bible Stories — Theme Two: Queer/Alternative Families

This is part two of a seven part series on LGBTQ+ themes and the Bible. The first theme we explored was The Closet/Coming Out.

The seven themes are:

Photo by Timon Studler on Unsplash

Today we will look at examples of Queer/Alternative Families.

Many LGBTQ+ people have found themselves in situations where their biological families are not accepting and affirming. This can happen at any stage in life, but it becomes all too common for LGBTQ+ youth and elders. It is a testimony to the resiliency of LGBTQ+ people that we model what it means to have chosen family. In this weird time of climate change when so many people are being displaced from their homes, LGBTQ+ people teach the rest of the world a lot about what it is like to live together with others who are not biologically related.

There are several stories in the Bible where queer/alternative families are formed. These non-traditional family units happen in times of great turmoil and change when people need to look after each other. .

Lilian Broca Queen Esther Mosaics

The example I gave at the Wild Goose Festival is about the queer/alternative family that appears in the Book of Esther. A young Jewish girl, Hadassah, is born in exile in Persia.

Now there was in the citadel of Susa a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin, named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, who had been carried into exile from Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, among those taken captive with Jehoiachin king of Judah. Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah, whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother. This young woman, who was also known as Esther, had a lovely figure and was beautiful. Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died. Esther 2:5-7

Lilian Broca Queen Esther Mosaics

Scholars speculate about this Mordecai. It is possible he was not related to Hadassah/Esther by blood. They also point out Mordecai has no wife or children. Later in the story we see Mordecai regularly hanging out with eunuchs in the place in the palace designated for them. It is possible Mordecai is a eunuch, and as such unable to have biological children.

Through Hegai, a eunuch in the Persian court, Hadassah comes to the palace, is renamed Esther, and goes into an intensive make-over program to prepare her to appear before the king. The king ultimately choses her as the next queen. Mordecai and Hegai serve as adoptive parents to Esther, someone who without their protection would likely experience many dangers and risks. They care for her, train her, prepare her for life. They form an unconventional alternative family.

The participants who attended the LGBTQ+ Friendly Bible Hour provide more examples of queer/alternative families

Ruth & Naomi (and their kinsman, Boaz)–Book of Ruth
John, the beloved disciple and Mother Mary–John 19:26,27
Mary, Joseph, Jesus–Matthew 1:18-25
Mary, Martha, Lazarus, and Jesus–John 11
Abraham, Sarah, Hagar, Ismael–Genesis 16 (This alternative family unit though fell apart under the strain caused by inheritance rights. Liam Hooper does a wonderful job talking about this story in the Bible Bash podcast episode about Ismael and Hagar.
Elijah and the widow–1 Kings 17:7-16
Paul, Silas, and young Timothy–Acts 16
David, Jonathan, Mephibosheth–2 Samuel 9

What about you? What stories from the Bible do you want to add to the list of Queer/Alternative family stories. Leave you thoughts in the comments below.

Many thanks to Wild Goose and the folks who attended the workshop!

IF you want to hear more alternative readings to the Bible, check out the monthly podcast I co-host with Liam Hooper: The Bible Bash Podcast! available wherever you listen to podcasts.

(featured Photo by Dimitar Belchev on Unsplash)

July 18, 2019 / Bible, Queer Bible Series / Comments Off

LGBTQ+ Friendly Bible Stories — Theme One: The Closet and Coming Out

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

At the Wild Goose Festival, I led a workshop, The LGBTQ+ Friendly Bible Hour. Instead of a traditional presentation that defended queer folks from clobber passages or the more uplifting approach to unearth queer Bible characters, I opted to highlight seven themes that are familiar to some LGBTQ+ people.

The seven themes are:

After listing these and providing an example for each, I then turned it over to the folks who showed up. Through a crowd-sourcing sharing session, people added Bible stories under queer theme categories. I promised the participants I would blog about the event and share their suggestions. There is a lot of info to share, so I will do so through a series of blog posts. Today’s post is:

The Closet/Coming Out

Photo by Nowshad Arefin on Unsplash

Not all LGBTQ+ have the experience of being “in the closet” or “coming out,” but it is fairly familiar to many of us. We stay in the closet for lots of reasons–fear of rejection, the possibility of losing or changing important relationships, and concerns for our careers, housing, and safety. When you are young and not on your own, it can be especially risky coming out in a community that is not prepared or willing to receive you.

The stories below feature individuals and groups who reveal something about their identity or their experience. It is a key to better understand who they are. In doing so they risk losing position, place, and people. In coming out though they often find liberation and new life.

Here is the example I gave:

Esther Comes Out Jewish — Esther 7

Photo by Cristina Gottardi on Unsplash

The Book of Esther is jammed packed with LGBTQ+ friendly themes. It also is downright creepy at times; the story sometimes toggles between the Handmaid’s Tale and Game of Thrones.

Esther grew up in Persia as a Jewish exile. We do not know what happened to her parents, but a “kinsman” by the name of Mordecai takes her under his wing (thus creating a queer/alternative family.)

The young Esther, with the help of palace eunuchs, finds herself in the women’s quarters and in the running to become queen. She wins handily (again with help from the gender non-conforming eunuchs this time giving her inside information.) She is queen but does not have full freedom of mobility. Her position can easily be taken away (See what happened to her predecessor, Queen Vashti in Esther chapter one.)

Esther has a secret–she is Jewish–and only Mordecai knows. After an edict is passed that will kill all of the Jews, Esther (again with the help of eunuchs) confronts, Haman, the enemy of her people, and in front of the king reveals she is Jewish. She can lose everything by coming out, but she finds favor with the king who then lets her get her revenge on her enemies.

These are the people and stories workshop participants added to the closet/coming out stories.

The Exodus of the Jews out of Egypt: a collective coming out story — Genesis 12
The Transfiguration of Jesus: The Nazarene reveals his true divine colors — Matthew 17:1–8, Mark 9:2–8, Luke 9:28–36, 2 Peter 1:16–18
Photo by Suzanne D. Williams on Unsplash

Lazarus Come Out! The resurrection of Lazarus — John 11. He was out but not yet free. The disciples helped in his liberation by unwrapping the grave clothes and letting him go. I write about this story here.
The Secret Gospel of Mark: Sadly we did not have time to discuss all of these suggestions, but I am intrigued with the Secret Gospel of Mark being seen as a closet/coming out story. It does contain a story similar to the resurrection of Lazarus. While we do not have a complete version of this Gospel, it is referenced in a letter attributed to Clement of Alexandria.

“And they come into Bethany. And a certain woman whose brother had died was there. And, coming, she prostrated herself before Jesus and says to him, “son of David, have mercy on me”. But the disciples rebuked her. And Jesus, being angered , went off with her into the garden where the tomb was, and straightway, going in where the youth was, he stretched forth his hand and raised him, seizing his hand. But the youth, looking upon him, loved him and began to beseech him that he might be with him. And going out of the tomb they came into the house of the youth, for he was rich. And after six days Jesus told him what to do and in the evening the youth comes to him, wearing a linen cloth over his naked body. And he remained with him that night, for Jesus thaught him the mystery of the Kingdom of God. And thence, arising, he returned to the other side of the Jordan.”

Apostle Peter’s comes out as someone who includes Gentiles among believers — Acts 10
Mary reveals to Joseph she is pregnant with God’s son — Matthew 1:18-25
Jesus comes out of the Tomb — Luke 24 Three days dead and buried, Jesus’ resurrection resonates with many of us who lived in there shadows and ultimately experienced liberation.
Jesus comes out to the disciples on the road to Emmaus — Luke 24:13-35 (This story also fits under the category of Drag/Disguise.

What about you? What stories from the Bible do you want to add to the list of Closet/Coming Out stories. Leave you thoughts in the comments below.

Many thanks to Wild Goose and the folks who attended the workshop!

IF you want to hear more alternative readings to the Bible, check out the monthly podcast I co-host with Liam Hooper: The Bible Bash Podcast! available wherever you listen to podcasts.

(featured Photo by Ashim D’Silva on Unsplash)

July 3, 2019 / Bible Bash Podcast / Comments Off

Resisting Empire : The Book of Daniel, Star Wars and Lorca

In the latest episode of Bible Bash podcast Liam Hooper presents a story of empire and the various subversive ways Daniel survived and resisted the Babylonian Empire. Often oppressed people must caretake their oppressors. This is true for LGBTQ people and many others. This deep dive into Daniel chapter five raises many questions about how to resist oppressions.

I then present “an other text,” a bilingual reading of Federico Garcia Lorca’s poem, Madrigales.

In each episode of Bible Bash Podcast, Peterson and co-host, Liam Michael Hooper, a Trans Bible scholar, take turns presenting the text. They then discuss. In addition, each episode they present another text, a non-Biblical text of note–religious or secular–that may or may not correspond to the Bible text.

Bible Bash Podcast is a project of Ministries Beyond Welcome.

Our theme song is Playbill by The Jellyrox. It is available on iTunes, Spotify, or through Rock Candy Recordings

Other music by Raúl Díaz Palomar from Musica Para Poder Contra Verdad

To share your questions, comments, requests for passages to be discussed, or suggestions for guests who can talk about texts, email Liam and Peterson: ministriesbeyondwelcome@gmail.com

Bible Bash Podcast is part of the Rock Candy Network

Bible Bash logo was designed by Diana Coe at Crone Communications

Featured Photo by Ashly Araya on Unsplash

July 2, 2019 / podcast / Comments Off

Sexy Sex — Episode Four of Bubble and Squeak

Last month I launched a new podcast, Bubble&Squeak. (You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, TuneIn, Stitcher, PodBean, and Google Play.) The show is weird and wonderful, a delightful mix of storytelling, comedy, radio drama, and commentary.

Each episode is short, only 15 minutes, and in addition to hearing from me (as himself and playing multiple characters) I have also featured writer Elizabeth Rush and now actor Danny Glover.

The latest episode is now available. It is entitled Sexy Sex.

Part one: Havana Cuba: Two Black Americans speak about race relations in the USA and in the Americas. You will hear actor Danny Glover and folklorist Dr. James Early talk about Standing Rock, prison populations, and anti-racism. “I don’t want to be an anti-racist; I want to be a protagonist.” Dr. Jame Early
Part two: A prank call to the future in which I call a sex advice expert. (see more below)
: a Sound slice from Sunbury, PA. In my study I type up my to-do list on a Royal desktop typewriter circa 1930.

In this episode I include a short radio play, a prank call to the future. I dial into a sex advice call-in line with the dilemma, “My boyfriend and I are not having enough sex.” No this is not because of internalized homophobia, rather they are temporary residents in an emergency shelter after a storm. Dr. Judith Housemeyer is adamant about finding a solution to the problem.

You can read the script below or better yet hear it in all its glory.

A prank call to the future: Dr. Judith Housemeyer Sexy Sex in a Time of Climate Change.
by Peterson Toscano for Bubble&Squeak

Dr. Judith: This is Dr. Judith Housemeyer. Yes, caller, this is Sexy Sex in a time of climate change. What is the problem here? Don’t be shy!

Photo by Radek Pestka on Unsplash

Peterson Toscano : Yes, Dr. Judith, I’m calling because, well, my boyfriend and I are just not having enough sex.

DJ. Oooo, the problem with the butt sex. We have heard of this. What exactly is wrong with this? Is he resistant? Are you uncomfortable with it? What is this? It is very normal!

PT No, no, no we love it. We love it, It’s just that are in an emergency shelter right now because of a storm and there is no privacy

DJ: I have heard, this is becoming a growing problem, yes for everyone, for the straights, for the bis, for the pans, everyone is having this problem. Right, ok, well, have you been been able to perhaps try something, like go outside at night time.

PT Well, that’s hard because once it gets dark they lock the doors and that’s that. We can’t go in and out

DJ: Yes, I have heard this. For security reasons. I understand. What about in the toilets? They have toilets there, ya, stalls? You could do a quickie there in the stall. Its not the first time, ya?

Photo by Honey Fangs on Unsplash

PT Well, yeah, but their disgusting. Oh my gosh they are so overcrowded and overflowing and its just…

DJ Oh, it’s a whole lot of backup of waste. I understand, ya ya, no no. Are there any other places that are private there?

PT Yes, there is one other place. There is attached to this is a pet, an emergency pet shelter

DJ Oh that is good, but there must be lots of people as well there taking care of the pets

PT Actually no, they’re really low on volunteers right now; they could use some help, so it’s pretty quiet

DJ Well if you don’t mind the animals watching, which is very normal for them just don’t get them involved, this is not Berlin in the 1930s hahahaha

Photo by Justin Chrn on Unsplash

PT No of course not, we could do that oh except my boyfriend he has some pet allergies.

DJ: mmmm, this does not have to be a bad problem, this could be fun, ya, ya,you get surgical masks, you could play doctor, uh, you could get the skimask, you can play muggings, this could be fun. Have fun with it! In this time of climate change we have to become creative and adapt, adapt to it and have fun. Ok? thank you caller

This is Dr. Judith Housemeyer, with more Sexy Sex in a Time of Climate Change coming up. Call me with all your problems; I want to know I want to know.

END

(Featured Photo by Romi Yusardi on Unsplash)

June 22, 2019 / Citizens Climate Radio / Comments Off

Pitching and Juggling and Climate Change

My favorite part of podcasting is that I get to meet cool people doing things well outside of my normal experience. That is very true with the latest episode of Citizens Climate Radio. Brent Suter is a professional baseball player, a pitcher with the Milwaukee Brewers. Eliana Dunlap is a circus artist who specializes in the German Wheel, (which I had never heard of before.)

Brent Suter

Brent Suter received a scholarship to play baseball at Harvard University, where he studied environmental science. He learned about the effects of climate change and what how we need to drastically reduce our pollution. At first that meant making individual lifestyle choices to lower his own personal carbon footprint, but he has been expanding his efforts. Through his Strike Out Waste initiative, he got professional baseball players to use reusable water bottles during spring training.

In a recent interview for the Green Sport Blog he said, “At this point in time, a carbon pricing program and higher incentives for clean energy are absolutely imperative towards the goal of stabilizing our climate and ensuring a healthy and viable future for our planet. The Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act would not only help achieve these goals, but would give the funds raised back to the people, save countless lives, and create millions of jobs! A Green Revolution needs to happen fast, and this law, if passed, would play a vital role in helping solve the most important problem of our lives.”

The Art House

Eliana Dunlap

Eliana Dunlap was not born into a circus family; instead she learned circus arts at a circus school in Quebec. Her circus skill set is impressive and includes acrobatics, juggling, dance, and her speciality, the German Wheel. She has been performing circus arts in non-traditional spaces. She is also someone who is creatively responding to climate change. Through her podcast, Changing the World and Other Circus Related Things, she is connecting with other concerned circus artists. She is also one of the founding members of the Circus Action Network.

Eliana likens the high stakes world of circus arts to the challenges we face with climate change. She also sees examples from the circus world about how we can get people from various backgrounds to work together. This summer she and a friend will do street performances of a new circus art show called, High Stakes–What’s the Plan(t)? In addition to lots of juggling and acrobatics, the show features a live plant as part of the action.

In this fascinating interview, Eliana opens up about the world of circus and how she and other concerned artists are creating avenues for a deeper conversation about climate change.

You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher Radio, SoundCloud, Podbean, Northern Spirit Radio, Google Play, PlayerFM, and TuneIn Radio. Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.

If you listen on Apple Podcasts, please consider rating and reviewing us!

June 17, 2019 / LGBTQ / Comments Off

When did the word homosexual appear in the Bible? What is the significance?

An article about a mistranslation of the Bible has been making the rounds. Ed Oxford compares the words in the “clobber passages” from old versions of German Bibles with modern versions that did not start using the word Homosexual until the mid-20th Century and later. Compelling stuff for sure. Since I have received multiple messages asking me what I think about the findings and conclusions, here are my thoughts.

Empathy for LGBTQ people from Bible-believing backgrounds

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

I recognize there are LGBTQ people from some Christian backgrounds who have family that outright reject them for being LGBTQ. Some families do not allow LGBTQ people or their partners to family functions. They deny LGBTQ relatives and partners the opportunity to get to know grandchildren, nieces, nephews, others, etc. This is incredibly painful. I know many LGBTQ people who have made peace with religion and the Bible, yet they are looking for the silver bullet piece of theology that will once and for all get their family to see the light and end the harm and rejection.

Whenever a piece comes out like this one comes out, I see the hope rekindled—Maybe this is the one. Maybe, but likely not. The hard fact is that many of these traditional Bible-based Christians are able to see some stories within their cultural context or as a spiritual metaphor, but when it comes to LGBTQ people and texts that may have something (even remotely) to do with us, they insist on a strict literal interpretation. That they can do it some places and not others speaks to me less about their inability to navigate ancient texts in a modern world and more about the transphobia and homophobia they refuse to acknowledge and renounce. They tell themselves and their LGBTQ family the reason behind rejecting LGBTQ people, our partners, and our rights is because they are just being faithful to the Bible. I do not believe that is entirely true.

What Do You Do When Family Loves You as Long as You Are Not LGBTQ??

The challenge then for the LGBTQ person in this situation is how to proceed. Sometimes the healthiest thing is to fully separate from the family that cannot fully embrace our humanity—LGBTQ and all. I know for me it felt like being in an abusive relationship when I had friends who insisted my sexuality and my relationship with Glen is sinful. That undermines my well-being and my marriage. I had to end those friendships. It can be much much harder when it comes to family. I feel a lot of empathy for people in these types of relationships, and I understand why they so desperately are looking for talking points that will dislodge their family from entrenched bigotry.

Beyond the Clobber Passages: A more effective approach

What I have ultimately found most effective is to move away from what are known as the clobber passages or the texts of terror and to instead point people to the many stories about gender non-binary people in the Bible and those who transgress and transcend the gender expectations of the time of the text. These stories give life and create a dilemma for the anti-LGBTQ Bible believer. It provides necessary cognitive dissonance that may lead to deeper critical thinking. Likely they will offer a strong defense whenever we pick apart the clobber passages, but when we talk about the Ethiopian eunuch or the other Ethiopian eunuch or Joseph in Genesis or the Water Bearer in the Gospels, this may open a path to a more fruitful conversation.

Some Thoughts on “Has Homosexual Always Been in the Bible?”

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

When a family member asked me about this article and its findings, I immediately thought about language and how in English Sodomy and Sodomite were used as catch alls for what we now think of as gay, which not too long ago was referred to as homosexual. In fact, it may have extended to anyone who we consider LGBTQ+ today.

In these texts, the interpreters were not necessarily referring to an identity, rather to a sex act, namely anal sex. Sodomy comes from the story of Sodom in Genesis, and it is a story of public humiliation and attempted rape. (and in context it actually has a lot more to say about immigration, reactions to terrorism, and misogyny.) Even today when people try to condemn LGBTQ people, they point to Sodom as if gang rape were a hallmark of the “gay lifestyle.” With anti-LGBTQ people now and in the past, there has rarely been any discernment about the actual details in these texts and how they differ from the lives of LGBTQ people. Sexual assault, abusing minors, beastiality are all lumped together with LGBTQ people.

King James was into Dudes; He Bible is NOT

Photo by Robert Bye on Unsplash

It was in the early 17th Century when King James, long suspected to be into guys himself, sanctioned what became known as the King James Version of the Bible. Seems he and the translators went out of the way to create an English version of the bible that condemned anything that was NOT heterosexual procreative sex.

The word, homosexual, is a modern term and only began to be used widely in the 20th Century, so it is no surprised it didn’t make it into a Bible translation until so late in the century There were other words in English and other languages that were used as umbrella terms for anything seen as “perverse” or non-traditional sexuality. Oscar Wilde was arrested for committing the “sin that dare not speak its name.” In the 1 Corinthians passage mentioned in the article, The King James version does not use boy molester. Instead it references “abusers of themselves with mankind.” I guess people of the time knew what that meant and who it targeted.

Without looking at other texts of the time, it is hard to know what these German phrases meant for the people at the time. In the 50’s someone in the USA might refer to a gay man as pervert or degenerate. Perverts shall not inherit the kingdom, which was a catch all for all the non-heteronormative and even non-gender normative people.

Questions I would like the researcher to consider

Photo by Edwin Andrade on Unsplash

I am curious to know if the German term, “boy abuser,” was used at the time specifically or more generally. It may just be the term of art at the time. Did these interpretations then lead to the legal prohibition of homosexuality in Germany and Switzerland? Like the English did the German speakers draw on the Bible to give them authority to create anti-sodomy laws? Were these laws specifically geared towards sexual abuse/assault of minors or were they more generally used to police sexual activity between men and between women? Did they also target gender non-binary and trans people?

The important question the author raises is, was there some sort of anti-LGBTQ+ agenda that influenced the way the Bible was interpreted? Did this intensify in the past 40 years? Were American Evangelicals the force behind this intensification of anti-LGBTQ+ Bible bashing? Likely yes to all of these things, but then again, that is not news. We have been aware of this for a long time. As someone who studies eunuchs in the Bible, there are countless times you will find editorial boards erasing eunuch identities in stories in the Hebrew texts. Similarly in the 19th Century we had many reachers of animal behavior in the wild suppress homosexual coupling and child-raising they witnessed in the field. Their bias shaped their published research. If you don’t want LGBTQ+ people free to roam and thrive in the world, you don’t want them showing up in the Bible.

The author of this book might have something of note to share, but the way it is presented right now seems sloppy and needs deeper research.

Recommended Work (and your suggestions?)

I recommend the work of Matthew Vines, Austen Hartke, Transforming: The Bible and the Lives of Transgender Christians, Jennifer Grace Bird’s Permission Granted—Take the Bible Into Your Own Hands, and Peters J Gomes, The Good Book: Reading the Bible with Mind and Heart. I am sure others here have good recommendations too.

For folks who are interested in LGBTQ+ positive readings of Biblical texts, Liam Hooper, a trans man in Winston-Salem and I are now producing the monthly Bible Bash Podcast. You can get it wherever you listen to podcasts.

If you are looking for stories about gender non-conforming Bible characters, check out the Transfigurations movie.

Featured image: Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

June 6, 2019 / Climate Queer / Comments Off

Precious Brady-Davis and queer climate change action

HuffPost has a beautiful article featuring Precious Brady-Davis. It is written by Alexander C Kaufman.

Precious Brady-Davis Is Connecting The Dots: Climate change is affecting every social justice struggle. The environmental movement’s best-known trans woman of color wants to make that link clear.

Brady-Davis, 33, is perhaps the most visible transgender woman of color in the climate movement today. She’s part of a new generation of environmentalists unmoored from the Patagonia-clad treehugger archetype and radicalized by global warming’s exacerbation of society’s worst inequities. As once-disparate social movements are awakening to climate change’s ubiquity, Brady-Davis, a top press secretary for the Sierra Club, is drawing on her roots as a queer African American from a pious family in a deep-red, rural state to build bridges over troubled and rising waters.

This is essential reading for anyone interested in exploring the intersections of climate change with human rights, social justice, LGBTQ issues, and gender.

The connections between climate change and gender are becoming clearer as the frequency and intensity of warming-fueled natural disasters increase. Women made up 70% of the victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami since they were trapped in their homes while men were out in the open, according to the United Nations. Sexist hiring practices and work cultures make it more difficult for women to support themselves during droughts or after disasters. The U.N. estimates 80% of those displaced by climate change are women.

The article rightly goes on to highlight the risks to LGBTQ people but also the many ways we have had to be resilient in the past. These lessons are essential on a changing planet.

There’s a lot for the climate movement to borrow from the more militant early era of the fight for LGBTQ rights, said Sean Estelle, a gender-nonconforming climate activist in Chicago. The AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power, or ACT UP, emerged in the 1980s in response to the federal government’s inaction in the face of thousands of mostly gay men dying after contracting HIV. The movement pioneered die-in protests and amplified apocalyptic rhetoric to finally spur action from federal lawmakers who at times mocked AIDS victims and suggested the virus was a biblical punishment for the sin of same-sex attraction.

Whenever I talk to people about queer responses to climate change, I find the energy shifts and people really take notice. Read the entire article for yourself to learn more about Precious’ background and how she became someone concerned about climate with a queer lens.

Also to learn more about what you can do to engage in queer climate action, check out Save the Unicorn! LGBTQ Response to Climate Change.

Photos by Annie Flanagan

May 27, 2019 / Uncategorized / Comments Off

Behold The Bubble&Squeak Podcast: Audio Weirdness

Bubble&Squeak is a podcast with uncanny sounds, funny interludes, and stories—most weird, many true. Like most of my stage shows, this new show is difficult to explain. It is VERY different from Citizens Climate Radio. It is a little like an older show I did, Climate Stew, but Bubble&Squeak is not a climate-change themed show. I think it is a Peterson’s weird random thoughts-themed show. It is an audio version of the bubble and squeak dish.

According to Wikipedia

Bubble and squeak is a traditional British breakfast made from boiled potatoes and cabbage. In modern times, it is a dish made with the shallow-fried leftover vegetables from a roast dinner. The main ingredients are potato and cabbage but carrots, peas, Brussels sprouts, or any other leftover vegetables may be added. The chopped vegetables (and cold chopped meat if used) are fried in a pan together with mashed potatoes or crushed roast potatoes until the mixture is well-cooked and brown on the sides. The dish is so named because the cabbage makes bubbling and squeaking sounds during the cooking process.

You throw into a pan whatever you have and fry it up, and hope it all works together. Usually it does. The logo design is by Christine Bakke. The theme song is Worthless by The Jellyrox (available on iTunes, Spotify.) The show is part of the new Rock Candy Network of podcasts. I do a podcast with Liam Hooper that is also on Rock Candy. It is called The Bible Bash Podcast and is a project of Ministries Beyond Welcome. You can find Bubble&Squeak on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Stitcher, TuneIn, and GooglePlay.

Each episode of Bubble&Squeak will have three parts.

Photo by Eric Muhr

The first episode is entitled Naked Mugging.

Part one: “Is that all you got?” The story about about a real life mugging, and here I thought it was going to be a hook up. It is an weird and important story (yes there is nudity) because it is when I realized I wanted to live.
Part two: Radio Drama: A prank call to the past (Hembach’s General Store in 1944.) I call this country store in 1944 and ask for tofu and kombucha.
Part three: A Sound Slice–a tricycle in Manila December 2018. Each show will include one of these. It is audio I recorded during one of my travels or even at home. I set the scene and play about 30 seconds to give you a soundscape.

As of today I have three episodes available for you. Each one is 15 minutes each. New episodes come out each month.

1. Naked Mugging

2. Hairless Gerbils
Part One: A previously unaired excerpt of an interview with writer Elizabeth Rush, where she talks about sexual harassment all too common with women writers.
Part Two: A Southern preacher, Elizabeth Jeremiah, from The Elizabeth Jeremiah Global Worldwide Ministries in Jesus, nearly wrestles with Donald Trump’s demons.
Part Three: A Sound Slice from Donard Bar in Newcastle, County Down, in Northern Ireland or the North of Ireland or just Ireland, depending on who you ask.

3. Jerk Demons
Part one: A true story entitled “Did you just masturbate?”
Part Two a reading from the Lost Gospel of Thaddeus
Part Three A Sound Slice from Viñales, Cuba.

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This is part three of a seven part series on

LGBTQ+ themes and the Bible.

Today we will look at examples of Transition and Transition.

What about you? What stories from the Bible do you want to add to the list of Transition/Transitioning stories. Leave you thoughts in the comments below.

Featured image: Trans performer in Tablas Island, Philippines credit: P. Toscano

What about you? What stories from the Bible do you want to add to the list of Queer/Alternative family stories. Leave you thoughts in the comments below.

The Closet/Coming Out

What about you? What stories from the Bible do you want to add to the list of Closet/Coming Out stories. Leave you thoughts in the comments below.

A prank call to the future: Dr. Judith Housemeyer Sexy Sex in a Time of Climate Change. by Peterson Toscano for Bubble&Squeak

The Art House

Empathy for LGBTQ people from Bible-believing backgrounds

What Do You Do When Family Loves You as Long as You Are Not LGBTQ??

Beyond the Clobber Passages: A more effective approach

Some Thoughts on “Has Homosexual Always Been in the Bible?”

King James was into Dudes; He Bible is NOT

Questions I would like the researcher to consider

Recommended Work (and your suggestions?)

Precious Brady-Davis Is Connecting The Dots: Climate change is affecting every social justice struggle. The environmental movement’s best-known trans woman of color wants to make that link clear.

Each episode of Bubble&Squeak will have three parts.

A prank call to the future: Dr. Judith Housemeyer Sexy Sex in a Time of Climate Change.
by Peterson Toscano for Bubble&Squeak