CONN 215 | Queer Religion

What has been the role of religion in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBQTQ) lives and communities? This course begins by considering the dominant picture of religious versus queer opposition, and it investigates the sources and normative perspectives that contribute to this picture. The course proceeds to focus on what this dominant story obscures: the complexity and variety of LGBTQ+ religious and spiritual engagement during the twentieth- and twenty-first centuries. This course covers the historical emergence of sexual and gender identity communities in the United States and the attendant formations of established heteronormative and cisnormative teachings as backdrop and critical context for both opposing and supportive religious involvement LGBT politics. The course examines anti-queer religious responses but focuses predominantly on how to study queer-inclusive religious and spiritual expression. Readings include The Lord is My Shepherd and He Knows I¿m Gay, Hijab Butch Blues, and She of the Mountains.