My partner says that in Britain it is easier to come out as gay than as a Catholic. If the first is likely to spark some curiosity, the second sounds dull. The publication reviewed here is exactly about being gay and … well, if not always Catholic, then at least having a taste of religion.

Disclosures: Conversations Gay and Spiritual by Michael Ford is a very simple read. It is a collection of interviews with gayand lesbian people, mostly Christians from Britain and USA and few from other places in the world. A lot of these peoplewere or are engaged in different ministries in their faith communities. An Anglican priest who left his Church after a [straight]bishop made clear that no personal talents he had could overweight his homosexuality. Two mothers, Catholic women, withchildren in their teens fell in love with each other. A boy, whose family belonged to a fundamentalist Christian community, at thefirst opportunity went to look for Christians who would not be disgusted with him for being gay. Among the twenty five stories there is one of a person with whom many of us in Quest came across – James Alison, a theologian from London. The last chapter is a particularly touching interview with Sister Eva, a Catholic nun who for some ten years worked for the Terrence Higgins Trust,  the first HIV agency in Britain.

This book is not about prayer or transcendental experiences of two dozen gays and lesbians. “Spiritual” in its title refers to broadly understood fundamental questions, like: Who am I? Why does it happen to me? What should I be like?

A lot of the stories Michael Ford has collected are dramatic. They touch major struggles and decisions: coming out to one’s parents, or wife, or bishop; leaving the seminary or priesthood, separating from a spouse or accepting that one’s relationship would never be accepted, celebrated and supported by the Christian community, etc. Some of those to whom the author spoke, were still struggling to come to terms with who they are. Others spoke about being at peace with what they had discovered about themselves. All these interviews explored, in one way or another, stories of being a gay person in the context of faith, in a  community of believers or of leaving such a community. This book gives a voice to those whom many of our brothers and sisters in the Church would prefer not to hear at all. Especially, because it is not a discussion, or a series of arguments, but a sincere witness to the joyful and sad experiences of these men and women.