Books
The list of books below is a sampling of what is available in the Bethany Church Library. Topics explore the historical relationship between the organized church and our understanding of homosexuality and gender identity. Authors include pastors, professors of theology and/or counselors, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community. These books and others can be found in the LGBTQ section of the library.
Red: A Crayon’s Story (2015) by Michael Hall
A blue crayon mistakenly labeled as “red” suffers an identity crisis in this picture book by the New York Times–bestselling creator of My Heart Is Like a Zoo. This funny, heartwarming, colorful picture book about finding the courage to be true to your inner self can be read on multiple levels, and it offers something for everyone.
Reclaiming Church (2020) by J.J. Warren
In Reclaiming Church, J.J. Warren continues his call to reaffirm the Church be welcoming to all, including young people like those he led at Sarah Lawrence College who “didn’t know God could love them because their churches said God didn’t.”
Out of Exodus: A Journey of Open and Affirming Ministry (2018) by Darryl W. Stephens
The story of the Exodus is told in parallel with testimonies, sermons, and personal reflections from a congregation in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, challenging the reader to a journey of faith. Along the way, it becomes clear that open and affirming ministry transcends LGBTQIA+ inclusion. It is also about race relations, poverty, generational change, divorce, immigration, and any other human-created barrier to loving God and neighbor.
The Savvy Ally: A Guide for Becoming a Skilled LGBTQ+ Advocate (2020) by Jeannie Gainsburg
The Savvy Ally: A Guide for Becoming a Skilled LGBTQ+ Advocate is an enjoyable, humorous, encouraging, easy to understand guidebook for being an ally to the LGBTQ+ communities. It is chock full of practical and useful tools for LGBTQ+ advocacy, including:
- Current and relevant information on identities and LGBTQ+ language
- Tips for what to say and what not to say when someone comes out to you
- LGBTQ+ etiquette and techniques for respectful conversations
Transforming: The Bible and Lives of Transgender Christians (2018) by Austen Hartke
Transforming: The Bible and the Lives of Transgender Christians provides access into an underrepresented and misunderstood community and will change the way readers think about transgender people, faith, and the future of Christianity. By introducing transgender issues and language and providing stories of both biblical characters and real-life narratives from transgender Christians living today, Hartke helps readers visualize a more inclusive Christianity, equipping them with the confidence and tools to change both the church and the world.
The Gender Identity for Parents: Compassionate Advice to Help Your Chile Be (2022) by Tavi Hawn LCSW
Talking with your child about gender identity can seem overwhelming—but with the right guidance, you can have healthy conversations and create an affirming environment for them as they grow. Whether your child is cisgender, gender expansive, transgender, or still unsure, this guide provides practical advice and strategies to help you embrace them for who they are and support them as they approach puberty.
Queerfully and Wonderfully Made: A Guide for LGBTW+ Christian Teens (2020) by Leigh Finke
Are you LGBTQ+? Not sure? Whether you’re queer or questioning, understanding sexuality and gender identity can be confusing. And if you’re a Christian, questions of identity can be even scarier. Is there something wrong with you? Will your friends accept you? When should you tell your family? What about church?
Queerfully and Wonderfully Made: A Guide for LGBTQ+ Christian Teens has answers to all these questions and more. You’ll get insight and support from an amazing group of LGBTQ+ professionals, as well as testimonies from young adult queer Christians who’ve recently been exactly where you are. You’ll walk away with a lot of answers, prepared with tools to help. But most importantly, you’ll hear the good news: God loves you exactly as you are. No matter your identity or where in your journey of self-discovery you find yourself, you got this.
How to They/Them: A Visual Guide to Nonbinary Pronouns and the World of Gender Fluidity (2020) by Stuart Getty
What does nonbinary really mean? What is gender nonconforming? And isn’t they a plural pronoun? In this charming and disarming guide, a real-life they-using genderqueer writer unpacks all your burning questions in a fun, visual way. No soapboxes or divisive comment-section wars here!
Sometimes funny, sometimes serious, always human, this gender-friendly primer will get you up to speed. It’s about more than just bathrooms and pronouns–this is about gender expression and the freedom to choose how to identify. While they might only be for some, that freedom is for everyone!
Piggy Bunny (2012) by Rachel Vail
Most piglets want to be pigs when they grow up. Not Liam. He wants to be a bunny. Even if it takes a lot of practice to learn how to hop…and to eat salad. Even if no one believes that a piggy can be a bunny. With a lot of determination, and a little help from his grandma, Liam is determined to make his dream come true.
Be Who You Are (2016) by Todd Parr
In a brand-new companion to his beloved classic It’s Okay to Be Different, New York Times bestselling author Todd Parr encourages kids to be proud of who they are inside.
Be who you are!
Be proud of where you’re from.
Be a different color. Speak your language.
Wear everything you need to be you.
Raising Rosie (2018) by Stephani Lohman & Eric Lohman
Part memoir, part guidebook, this powerful book tells the authors’ experience of refusing to have Rosie operated on and how they raised a child who is intersex. The book looks at how they spoke about the condition to friends and family, to Rosie’s teachers and caregivers, and shows how they plan on explaining it to Rosie when she is older. This uplifting and empowering story is a must read for all parents of intersex children.
The Family Book (2003) by Todd Parr
There are so many different types of families, and THE FAMILY BOOK celebrates them all in a funny, silly, and reassuring way. Todd Parr includes adopted families, step-families, one-parent families, and families with two parents of the same sex, as well as the traditional nuclear family. His quirky humor and bright, childlike illustrations will make children feel good about their families. Parents and teachers can use this book to encourage children to talk about their families and the different kinds of families that exist.
UnClobber (2022) by Colby Martin
Armed with only six passages in the Bible–often known as the Clobber Passages–the conservative Christian position has been one that stands against the full inclusion of our LGBTQ siblings. UnClobber reexamines each of those frequently quoted passages of Scripture, alternating with author Colby Martin’s own story of being fired from an evangelical megachurch when they discovered his stance on sexuality.
UnClobber reexamines what the Bible says (and does not say) about homosexuality in such a way that sheds divine light on outdated and inaccurate assumptions and interpretations. This new edition equips study groups and congregations with questions for discussion and a sermon series guide for preachers.
Jesus, the Bible, and Homosexuality (2006) by Jack Rogers
A minister and teacher in the Presbyterian Church, hopes to explode the myths of homosexuality and heal the church. He looks at the attitudes toward people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) and how they have divided the church and our country. He concludes, “How we choose to respond to this issue is a test of who we will become as a nation.”
What the Bible Really Says about Homosexuality (1996) by Daniel A. Helminiak, PHD
Dr. Helminiak explains in a clear fashion the fascinating insights of Yale history professor John Boswell, New Testament professors L. William Countryman of Berkeley and Robin Scroggs of Union Theological Seminary. These scholars show that those who perceive the Bible passages as condemning homosexuality are being misled by faulty translation and poor interpretation.
Is the Homosexual My Neighbor (1978, 1994) by Letha Dawson Scanzoni and Virginia Ramey Mollenkott
This book is a powerful wake-up call for Christians to reexamine their attitudes toward gay and lesbian people. This revised and expanded edition [contains] updated information on topics such as gays in the military, AIDS and genetic research on homosexuality. Looking at homosexuality from scientific, psychological and biblical perspectives [the book] is both informative and compassionate – the ideal resource for Christians on our cultures hottest social debate.
Videos
An Act of Love
The video documentary about Rev. Frank Schaefer’s trial in the United Methodist Church is now available in Bethany’s library. From the DVD cover: “Rev. Frank Schaefer never set out to be an activist, but after officiating the same-sex wedding of his son, the United Methodist Church put him on trial, igniting a media firestorm. Schaefer’s act of parental love for his gay son thrust him to the forefront of a decades-long movement for LGBTQ equality in the nation’s second largest protestant denomination. This gripping documentary plays out like a courtroom drama, chronicling the Schaefer family’s struggle and the divide in a mainstream church facing cultural shifts.”
Love Free or Die
This acclaimed documentary from award-winning filmmaker Macky Alston is the story of Bishop Gene Robinson, whose two defining passions the world cannot reconcile: his love for God and for his partner Mark. It is about church and state, love and marriage, faith and identity – and one man’s struggle to dispel the notion that God’s love has limits.
Love Simon
Everyone deserves a great love story. But for seventeen-year-old Simon Spier (Nick Robinson) it’s a bit complicated: he’s yet to tell his family or friends he’s gay and he doesn’t actually know the identity of the anonymous classmate he’s fallen for online.