Being in the church as a member of the LGBTQ community is either a positive or negative for many people. My experience has not gone how I would have liked. I am in the Seventh-day Adventist denomination of Christianity and I identify as a lesbian. I know that most people are unfamiliar with the Seventh-day Adventists, so here is some information about us:
•Seventh-day Adventists are some of the strictest and most religious Christians when it comes to following the laws and convents of the Bible.
•We do not eat unclean animals such as pork, shrimp, lobster, etc.
•We go to church on Saturday and keep the Sabbath because the fourth commandment states to “remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8)
There are several things I could mention, but the main point is that Seventh-day Adventist are strict therefore being a homosexual or anything other than a heterosexual cis-gendered individual is simply not accepted. No one in my church knows about my sexuality nor do they need to, however, some of my family members know. I came out to my sister a few days after New Year’s Day in 2015 at one of the most ironic places—a Christian Youth Conference in Arizona. She was shocked when I told her, yet I just looked at her like…
I wear bowties all the time, never talk about cute guys unless someone asks for my opinion, and I’m not feminine. Now that is not an excuse to stereotype every lesbian, however, I just kind of fit into that box. Next in line to tell was my brother, who assumed I was gay and said, “I love you anyway and God made you the way you are.” I love my brother and I wished that everyone was as supportive as him or at least had one person in their life like him. Last came my mom a couple of days before Thanksgiving. She didn’t take the news so well but handled it better than I expected. She told me that I can’t be sure what I am because I am young, that it is a sin, and not natural because God created Adam and Eve. She still loves me, but she is still trying to make me see the light and change my ways. I still have yet to come out to my dad.
Due to my sexuality, I have not been baptized. At the time, I thought I needed to change myself before I come to the Lord and become a new person in Christ. Now, I see the error in my ways because I realized I don’t have to be perfect to come to the God and He loves us regardless of our sins. He is ecstatic when we come humbly before him to genuinely repent of our sins and become a true believer. I’m not sure when I will decide to get baptized because I haven’t found the right Adventist church and I need to reconnect with God.
My struggle with coming to terms with my sexuality and religious affiliation has put a strain on my relationship with God. I believe that homosexuality is a sin and will prevent me from reaching Heaven, but I still believe that God exists. I choose to follow the Bible to the best of my ability but I won’t be celibate for the rest of my life. I am also not going to put myself through a fake marriage to appease my family or God. I plan on having a wife and kids in the future despite what anyone tells me. However, I do the best that I can in following God’s will.
Maybe in the future the Adventist church will become more welcoming to the LGBTQIA+ community, but I think it’s a long shot. I know that anyone like me will have a hard time opening up to our fellow brethren because we don’t want to be judged or become an outcast in the church. I know there will be some ignorant people who will steer their kids away from me if I come out because they think that homosexuality is contagious. Regardless of this, if you are in the LGBTQIA+ community and religious you aren’t alone, I’m a testament and I know there is at least one Buzzfeed video about it. Stay hopeful and please don’t lose your faith either.