Gay and amish
Why a Gay Man Serves the Old Order Amish
On the importance of dialogue with—rather than withdrawal from—those whose theological understandings differ from ours.
The question was posed with deadly peaceful. The poise and take care as he looked past the other members of the group and into my eyes alerted me that it had been considered for some second, awaiting the right, doubtless prayerful moment to be spoken aloud.
“Jim, based on some of the things you’ve said, I hold to ask. Are you gay?”
I was. Not only gay, but out to the vast majority of friends and coworkers.
The human asking so bluntly about my sexual orientation was an Old Order Amish minister, leading a community of Amish men with whom I had built an alliance and worked for some time. His question was a question in what had, until then, been a neutral forum. I alternately told myself that I remained discrete to respect the Amish belief that homosexuality is a sin, or struggled with the cowardice of an ultimately untenable secrecy. However, at that moment my motives no longer mattered. I could blatantly lie (an doomed moral choice), or utter a brief prayer, declare the truth, and admit the consequences to follow.
And so, t
The Struggle for Acceptance: Are There LBGQT+ Amish?
So, it is Pride month and I know some people have wondered: are there lgbtq+ Amish or LBGQT+ Amish? Well, of course, there are. Now, in all of the years I have been visiting Amish settlements I have never met someone who openly identified themselves as much but, statistically, yes, there are gay and lesbian Amish.
My estimate is that the more conservative the order, the more unique challenges the person faces. And because of the strict scriptural perception the Amish depart by, my infer is that there is not much of a place for a lgbtq+ person within the Old Order Amish. The New Arrange, my guess, is a bit more accepting. I realize some wonderful Recent Order Amish who I can't dream turning their assist on someone because of their sexuality.
In 2019, a former Amish man named James Schwartz came out as same-sex attracted in an interview with The Modern York Times. Schwartz had this to say: “Really the only choice you have if you’re gay and Amish and want to be true to yourself is to leave the Amish community,” said Mr. Schwartz, who now lives in Hawaii. “Otherwise, you are pretty much forced to stay in the closet.”
And that would be my guess,
The Queer Psychoanalysis Society
Leaving the Aged Order Amish group equals leaving everyone and everything you know. Any Amish that identify as gay, lesbian, bi-curious or gender questioning will be met with condemnation and Scriptures (Leviticus, always a classic).
They will not be handed a complimentary reproduce of ‘Christianity, Social Tolerance and Homosexuality’ by John Boswell.
Where traditions and heritage run grave there is small choice but quit or live a lie.
Most Amish are of German descent but we are of Swiss stock, my Mom passing when I am 9, thus my upbringing with my father, a model of Swiss tolerance.
I don’t connect the church and will not leave back.
I go clubbing in Indiana and Michigan.
At 22 I step onstage, making my drag debut at Brothers Beta Club (Kalamazoo, MI) Closet Ball pageant and achieve at The Zoo Bar.
I would exchange the cabaret for the poetry slam circuit in my mid 20s and seriously began writing with stars in my eyes.
The Literary Party: Growing Up Gay and Amish in America collects my poetry, writings from 2005-2010 with a few preliminary poems.
THE BEGINNING
The inky garbed men cluster by the shed
As the morning
What’s It Like To Be Male lover And Amish
At 17, he was removed from his home and community. He was sent, by his parents, to an ex-gay religious counselor. He was not allowed to visit his parents and to this day, his extended family and community execute not know why he “left.”
This doesn’t come as a finalize shock to a lot of LGBTQ people. We have familiarity with discrimination and what it feels like to have those close to you, turn away.
Many of us feel like we lose our personal faith because we’re taught that religion doesn’t accept us.
We grow accustomed to finding new support systems and a new life. But there are others where coming out can mean losing everything you thought was your life.
But what if you grew up in a society that never talks about homosexuality? What if they only see it as a problem that doesn’t affect them only others? You might respond that you have heard that happen in other countries, not here in our own.
Would it surprise you to find out that it happens not that far from Cleveland, OH?
Growing Up Amish
Ohio has the largest Amish population in the United States. That isn’t a surprise if you are driving around the Kirkland area or even further d