Is Jesus Still “ACTing Up”?

Abstract

In this essay, I discuss the continuing relevance of Jesus ACTED UP in three dimensions: the pastoral, the academic, and the self-critical. Framing the essay with personal reflections, I first describe how the book continues to meet the pastoral needs of the LGBTIQ community, especially by channeling our rage in a constructive way. I then describe how the book continues to be relevant to the academic community by speaking truth to power. Finally, I describe how the book continues to speak to the LGBTIQ community by cautioning against a turning inwards of oneself (i.e. incurvatus in se). I conclude the essay with a personal note of gratitude to Bob Shore-Goss for the ways in which he personally embodies these three dimensions in his life and work.

KEYWORDS:

• Jesus ACTED UP
• Shore-Goss
• LGBTQ
• queer
• Foucault
• incurvatus in se

Notes

1 See Goss, Jesus ACTED UP.

2 See Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, “Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on the Care of Homosexual Persons” (October 31, 1986), no. 3.

3 Cf. The Book of Common Prayer (1979), 236 (Proper 28).

4 See Shore-Goss et al., Queering Christianity.

5 In 1994, AIDS became the leading cause of death for all Americans between ages 25 to 44. See the AIDS.gov timeline at https://www.aids.gov/hiv-aids-basics/hiv-aids-101/aids-timeline.

6 See Bowers v. Hardwick, 478 U.S. 186 (1986) (which upheld criminal sodomy laws as constitutional).

7 For more information about PrEP, see the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website at http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/prevention/research/prep.

8 See Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003) (striking down sodomy laws); United States v. Windsor, 133 S. Ct. 2675 (2013) (striking down the Defense of Marriage Act).

9 For the most current statistics on same-sex marriage, see the Freedom to Marry website at http://www.freedomtomarry.org/states.

10 See, e.g. Addington Hall, A Thorn in the Flesh.

11 See Press Conference of Pope Francis During the Return Flight, Apostolic Journey to Rio de Janeiro on the Occasion of the XXVIII World Youth Day (July 28, 2013).

12 See Cheng, “Contributions from Queer Theory,” 153–69.

13 See Goss, Jesus ACTED UP, 181–90.

14 See “2014 LGBTIQ Themed Sessions,” American Academy of Religion Website, https://www.aarweb.org/about/2014-lgbtiq-themed-sessions (hereinafter “2014 LGBTIQ Themed Sessions”).

15 For a psychological perspective on rage and the lives of gay men, see Downs, The Velvet Rage.

16 Goss, Jesus ACTED UP, 148.

17 See the MCC/UCC in the Valley website at http://www.mccinthevalley.com.

18 See “Rev. Dr. Robert E. Shore-Goss,” The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Religious Archives Network, http://www.lgbtran.org/Profile.aspx?ID=56.

19 See “Rev. Dr. Robert E. Shore-Goss,” http://www.lgbtran.org/Profile.aspx?ID=56.

20 See 2014 LGBTIQ Themed Sessions.

21 See, e.g. Jenson, The Gravity of Sin.

22 See Goss, Jesus ACTED UP, 173.

23 See, for example, Warner, The Trouble with Normal; Cheng, From Sin to Amazing Grace, 101–10 (where I discuss the Transgressive Christ).

24 See Lim, “Webs of Betrayal, Webs of Blessing,” 227–41.

25 See Tanis, Trans-Gendered.

26 Goss, Queering Christ, 233.

27 See Shore-Goss, “Grace Is Green: Green Incarnational Inclusivities,” 65–81.

28 See Halperin, Saint Foucault.

29 Ibid., 62.

30 Cheng, Radical Love, i.

31 Goss, Jesus ACTED UP, 180.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Patrick S. Cheng

Patrick S. Cheng is an Affiliated Associate Professor of Theology at Chicago Theological Seminary. An Episcopal priest, he is the author of three books, including Radical Love: An Introduction to Queer Theology, which was recently translated into Japanese and Chinese. He has served as chair of the American Academy of Religion's Committee on the Status of LGBTIQ Persons in the Profession.