The Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center this month will host a mini-series focusing on spirituality and spiritual violence.
The series will open a channel of communication about different experiences LGBT people face within faith communities.
“LGBT people [from] a variety of backgrounds have experienced both positive and negative experiences with religion and faith communities,” said Adrian Shanker, founder and executive director of the Center.
For people who have negative experiences, it can fall into the category of spiritual violence — being invalidated or excluded specifically on claims of religion, according to Shanker.
“Spiritual violence can lead to people feeling depressed, anxious and it can lead to a suicide risk,” he said. “For some people, it’s everything they believe in and if they experience rejection, it can create a harmful situation.”
The mini-series, moderated by the Rev. Beth Goudy, will provide a safe place to explore and discuss these experiences.
Goudy has spoken frequently about spiritual violence, reconciliation and affirming LGBT spirituality.
“LGBT people of different faith traditions have positive experiences, too, through communities creating rituals affirming and specifically speaking to LGBT experiences like same-sex marriages or celebrating and honoring people in gender transition, parents adopting or building a family through medical processes,” Shanker said. “The goal of this mini-series is to hold community-level conversation on both positive and negative experiences.”
Two national religious leaders will participate in the mini-series, which will take place on two days in February at the Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center, 522 W. Maple St., Allentown.
The first event will be held 7 p.m. Feb. 5 and will feature Rabbi Deborah Waxman, president of Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and Jewish Reconstructionist Communities.
Rabbi Waxman was the firm woman and lesbian to lead a Jewish congregational union and Jewish seminary in 2014.
The next event will be held 7 p.m. Feb. 19, featuring the Rev. Justin Tanis, managing director of the Center for Gay & Lesbian Studies in Religion.
“We want to have these conversations, not just within the community but within our region to help people who care deeply about creating spaces that can be LGBT-inclusive and welcoming,” said Shanker.
“It’s really relevant to bring two national leaders to the table with a personal background and incredible credibility. We are really honored.”
The mini-series is free and open to the public. The Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center received grant funding from the E. Rhodes & Leona Carpenter Foundation, headquartered in Philadelphia, making the event possible.
This is the second time the foundation has funded an LGBT spirituality program at the center.
For more information on the mini series, please visit http://www.bradburysullivancenter.org/events.