For this year’s Snidow Lecture, the Office of Spiritual Life will host Brian Murphy and Father Shay Kearns of Queer Theology, an organization devoted to creating a space where people can explore how their sexuality and gender identity can enrich their faith.
“Queering the Spiritual Life” will begin at 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 26, in Snidow Chapel. Admission is free and the public is invited to attend.
According to their website, “Murphy and Kearns met in New York City in one of those friend-of-a-friend serendipitous moments.” They add that, “through Skype conversations, text messaging, and personal activism, Murphy and Kearns realized they could accomplish more if they worked together.”
“Both have been changed and strengthened by their own queer identities and wanted to share that strength with others,” culminating in the 2013 founding of Queer Theology.
Nathan Albert, Lynchburg’s University chaplain, said that “Queer Theology was specifically chosen because they have been creating community, content, and healing for those individuals who have often been marginalized or shunned in particular religious traditions and communities.” Albert also wanted to “specifically give our LGBTQ students an opportunity to hear and meet others who are further on this journey.”
Murphy is an activist, educator, and certified relationships coach who studied film production and religion at the University of Southern California. It’s “through his work as a coach and content creator” that Murphy “helps LGBTQ+ people claim their sexuality and gender, set healthy boundaries, develop meaningful spiritual practices, and step into an ever-more fulfilling life,” according to his bio.
Kearns, a seminary graduate from Union Theological Seminary in New York City, is an ordained priest in the Old Catholic Church. A writer, speaker, and theologian, he is “committed to work by and for marginalized communities.” He is the author of “In the Margins: A Transgender Man’s Journey with Scripture.”
The Clifton L. Snidow Lecture is sponsored by the Spiritual Life Center. For more information, contact the Spiritual Life Center at spirituallife@lynchburg.edu.
