"Item Id","Item URI","Dublin Core:Title","Dublin Core:Subject","Dublin Core:Description","Dublin Core:Creator","Dublin Core:Source","Dublin Core:Publisher","Dublin Core:Date","Dublin Core:Contributor","Dublin Core:Rights","Dublin Core:Relation","Dublin Core:Format","Dublin Core:Language","Dublin Core:Type","Dublin Core:Identifier","Dublin Core:Coverage","Item Type Metadata:Text","Item Type Metadata:Interviewer","Item Type Metadata:Interviewee","Item Type Metadata:Location","Item Type Metadata:Transcription","Item Type Metadata:Local URL","Item Type Metadata:Original Format","Item Type Metadata:Physical Dimensions","Item Type Metadata:Duration","Item Type Metadata:Compression","Item Type Metadata:Producer","Item Type Metadata:Director","Item Type Metadata:Bit Rate/Frequency","Item Type Metadata:Time Summary","Item Type Metadata:Email Body","Item Type Metadata:Subject Line","Item Type Metadata:From","Item Type Metadata:To","Item Type Metadata:CC","Item Type Metadata:BCC","Item Type Metadata:Number of Attachments","Item Type Metadata:Standards","Item Type Metadata:Objectives","Item Type Metadata:Materials","Item Type Metadata:Lesson Plan Text","Item Type Metadata:URL","Item Type Metadata:Event Type","Item Type Metadata:Participants","Item Type Metadata:Birth Date","Item Type Metadata:Birthplace","Item Type Metadata:Death Date","Item Type Metadata:Occupation","Item Type Metadata:Biographical Text","Item Type Metadata:Bibliography","Item Type Metadata:Embed Code","Item Type Metadata:Volume Number","Item Type Metadata:Issue Number","Item Type Metadata:Publication Year","Item Type Metadata:Publication Date","Item Type Metadata:Table of Contents","Item Type Metadata:Honoree","Item Type Metadata:Stole Text","Item Type Metadata:Contribution Date","Item Type Metadata:Contribution Story","Item Type Metadata:Denomination","Item Type Metadata:YouTube ID","Item Type Metadata:Vimeo ID",tags,file,itemType,collection,public,featured 1049,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1049,"Rev. Dr. Mark Allen Doty",,,,,,,"Rev. Dr. Mark Allen Doty",,,,,,1146,"Bangor, Maine (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Rev. Dr. Mark Allen Doty","

Rev. Dr. Mark Allen Doty
United Methodist Church

Bangor, ME

I was a fifth generation Methodist minister. Beginning with the ordination of my great-great grandfather, Thomas King Doty in 1834 by Bishop Osmon C. Baker, our family line continued with my own ordination as a United Methodist Elder in 1978. That rich tradition of 162 years was abruptly broken by my outing in October of 1996. I was then the Senior Pastor of a 3,300-member United Methodist congregation in Corpus Christi, Texas. I began my full-time ministry in that church in 1977 as an Associate Pastor and returned in 1989 as the Senior Pastor. It had been a glorious experience.

The great irony of my outing is that I was then a non-practicing gay man – faithful both to my wife and to the Discipline of the UMC. Regardless, the news sent the church into an uproar. Two protests were hastily organized by members of the congregation. I was told that on the following Communion Sunday, one group planned to jeer when I began preaching. Another group was going to refuse taking Communion from my hands. After gathering at the alter rail, the protesters planned to drink the juice from the small glass, place the piece of uneaten bread in it, and hand it back to me.

Needless to say, I found the prospect of doing any further ministry under those conditions intolerable. I resigned my pulpit eight days after the news broke. Suddenly I had no profession, no income, no home, no marriage, no place in the community. My outing set me on a path searching for a livelihood and another denomination to accept me. I found a blessed home in the United Church of Christ. Twelve jobs and five years later, I received a call to Hammond Street Congregational Church in Bangor, Maine.

May God forgive “the people called Methodist” for the pain and shame that has been wreaked on so many LGBT clergy and those who they love!

",,,"United Methodist Church",,,"Doty, Mark Allen,Maine,Methodist,Ordination,Theology,United Methodist Church",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1048,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1048,"Solidarity Stole (St. Lawrence University)",,,,,,,"Kathleen Buckley",,,,,,1145,"Canton, New York (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"St. Lawrence University (Solidarity Stole)","

St. Lawrence University

Canton, NY

In the winter of 2009, the Reverend Dr. Janie Spahr came to St. Lawrence University to give a lecture on the Shower of Stoles, speak in classes, and meet with LGBT student groups. At that time, we displayed 450 stoles from the collection in the student center, the dining hall, the chapel, and the library.

This stole, made over the course of her visit, is signed by over 250 faculty, staff, and students of the university, as well as community members. The cloth comes from Africa and has many symbols on it, including the West African Adinkra symbol GYE NYAME which means “except for God.” This unique and beautiful symbol is ubiquitous in Ghana.

With the help of Selina French in the Costume Shop and faculty member Meagan Bos, we created this stole to donate to the Shower of Stoles Project in support of LGBT people and the struggle for justice. The University Chaplain, the Reverend Kathleen Buckley, has a stole in the collection that was donated by the First Presbyterian Church of Troy, NY in 1996.

(Note: A signature stole is one that is covered with the signatures of both LGBT and straight members of a congregation, denominational governing body, or other organization. These stoles serve the dual purpose of showing support for LGBT persons, while also protecting their anonymity by including their names as “one among many.”)

",,,"Ecumenical^^Unitarian Universalist",,,"Ally,Bos, Meagan,Buckley, Kathleen,Clergy Activist,Ecumenical,Ghana,New York,Spahr, Janie,Theology",https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/files/original/361eff7574bf24f7d9f174af5cf8ec63.jpg,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1047,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1047,"Shane Desautels",,,,,,,"Rev. Gordon McCoy and Rev. Shane Desautels",,,,,,1144,"Chicago, Illinois (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Shane Desautels","

Shane Desautels

Catholic Church/
Metropolitan Community Church

This stole was a gift from my mother, Joan Gamache-Desautels, and given to me when I was ordained in the MCC. The names written on the back have passed on from this life. They are the friends and family of people who came through the doors of Resurrection MCC. In the late 90’s we began the tradition, on World AIDS Day, to write the names of those who had passed on. The stole then became a stole of remembrance for all those we loved who were no longer with us.

I was formerly in the Catholic Church and left in 1989. I was with a Catholic religious order, the Society of the Divine Word. I have no regrets from the time I spent in the Catholic Church, for it is where I first began my spiritual journey and it helped me become a more loving person. Leaving the Catholic faith was simply a move in my spiritual journey. I was an MCC pastor for over eight years and served as Associate Pastor and then Senior Pastor of Resurrection MCC in Hyde Park, Chicago, IL. I left professional ministry in 2003. I no longer belong to or follow any religion, but see myself as a spiritual being who is connected to all living beings in a loving and caring relationship of mutual care and respect.

",2010,"This stole was donated to the collection during Metropolitan Community Churches' General Conference in Acapulco, Mexico in June, 2010.","Roman Catholic Church^^Metropolitan Community Church",,,"Catholic,Chicago,Desautels, Shane,Illinois,MCC,Ordination,Roman Catholic,Theology",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1046,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1046,"Rev. Christina-Jean Alexis",,,,,,,"Marilyn Paarlberg",,,,,,1143,"Mt. Vernon, New York (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Rev. Christina-Jean Alexis","

The Rev. Christina-Jean Alexis

United Church of Christ

Mt. Vernon, NY

This stole was the one I wore at my last worship service; I have begun a voluntary leave of absence. I was born an intersexual-transsexual, and am post-operative for over 20 years. My favorite Bible verses are Galatians 3:28 (“There is neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female, slave nor free, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”) and these words of hope in my ministry from Matthew 19:26: “But Jesus looked at them and said to them, ‘With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’” I preach salvation through Jesus Christ, who is the greatest possibility-thinker who ever lived!

",2011,,"United Church of Christ",,,"Alexis, Christina-Jean,New York,Paarlberg, Marilyn,Theology,Transgender activism,United Church of Christ,Women and Religion",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1045,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1045,"Stephen Charles Toth",,,,,,,"Stephen Charles Toth",,,,,,1142,"Anderson, South Carolina (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Stephen Charles Toth","

Stephen Charles Toth

United Methodist Church

Anderson, SC

This stole was presented to me when I was ordained an elder in the South Carolina Conference. From 1994-2008, I served the church as a pastor and even served on the District Committee on the Ordained Ministry. In that position, I served as the District Registrar and the Candidacy Registrar for several years. Despite my faithful service, the church refuses to change, and so finally I took a leave of absence because I had to make a decision. I had to choose whether to continue to serve the church in silence or be with the man that I loved. I chose love, and I weep for the church as it continues to call us incompatible with Christian teaching. On National Coming Out Day – October 11, 2010 – I surrendered my credentials to my District Superintendent. It was painful, but I find great freedom in finally being able to be the person that God created me to be.

Love Conquers Hate!

",2011,,"United Methodist Church",,,"Methodist,Ordination,South Carolina,Theology,Toth, Stephen Charles,United Methodist Church",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1044,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1044,"Rev. Dr. Ruth Snyder",,,,,,,"Linda Tomsen",,,,,,1141,"Buffalo, New York (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Rev. Dr. Ruth Snyder","

Rev. Dr. Ruth Snyder

United Church of Christ
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Buffalo, NY

1

My Pastor shared the story of her journey, and I was so moved that I decided to make a stole and donate it in her honor.
Ruth was a Lutheran minister who found it necessary to leave the church when she fell in love with another woman. She has since become a minister with the United Church of Christ and our congregation was privileged to call her as a Co-Pastor.
With her permission, I am donating the stole to the Shower of Stoles Project as a way of honoring her and her story.
As I thought about a design concept, I was struck by the similarities between her personal journey and our experiences as we follow the church calendar. So, I designed the stole following the colors and seasons of the church year.
In her book, Things Seen and Unseen: A Year Lived in Faith, Nora Gallagher follows the church calendar as a way to illustrate that ""the road to the sacred is paved with the ordinary,"" so I used excerpts from her book to help explain each section of the stole.
2
ADVENT
The swirling blue and gold fabric represents your formative years. Your faith is being formed with help from your parents, teachers, Pastors, and Sunday School teachers. Ever present through your journey is the Holy Spirit (gold ribbon).
3
CHRISTMAS
The Lutheran Rose honors the Lutheran Church for helping you find your passion and love for Christ, and the stole symbol represents your ordination. The white background invokes the same Christmas feelings of hope and promise for your life, as you enter the ministry.
""They, too, were in the midst of something being called of them and of hearing a voice that would lead them along right pathways and stretch into time.""
 
4
EPIPHANY
Though a design was not included in the stole to represent Epiphany, it is important to include it here. Surely you experienced your own epiphany...
""I want to bring my whole self to church. I don't want to have to leave a part of my history or a piece of myself at the door.""
 
""The church was originally designed, I think, to shape itself to us, not to force us to shape ourselves to it.""
 
5
LENT
The dark purple of the stole represents the period of time when you were forced to choose between two loves... your church or your new-found love.
""What was asked of Jesus is what is asked of us: that we give up illusion - its false promises and its addicting inertia - and come to our senses. That we, as Vaclav Havel would say, 'live within the truth.'""
 
6
GOOD FRIDAY
Other than the continuing gold ribbon (Holy Spirit) there is no embellishment on the black cloth. You contemplate leaving the ministry. This was your rejection. This was your wilderness. This was your moment of feeling abandoned. This was your tomb... ""because of the way the world is organized.""
""The Eleventh Station:  Jesus is nailed to the cross. Jesus was crucified, not because of a whim, but because of the way the world is organized. It rejected Jesus and eliminated him. But it is God's will to establish the Kingdom in the midst of creation. God does not cease to will it.""
 
7
EASTER
The Holy Spirit is working miracles in your life. You now have a new calling to an open and inclusive church. You can be with your love openly and freely. The dove represents your faith - stronger than ever, and the heart and infinity sign illustrate your love.
""They stood outside the tomb and endured its emptiness. Then they ran outside to tell the others. They gave all they had for something new.""
 
""Out of the chaos and trauma of death, something new is written or revealed. Jesus walked through the curtain, into the Reality blazing behind it, a place he had grasped and apprehended all his life. Then, because he lived fully in hope, fully in love, something happened to him. Nothing kept him, nothing held onto him, the past didn't weigh him down. He returned a more coherent, more real, carrying Reality with him, in a final act of love. The resurrection means that nothing is hopeless anymore.""
 
8
PENTECOST
You are called to the Church of the Nativity, United Church of Christ. You are no longer ""passing through territories not your own."" How you are ours... we are yours... we are His.
""Pilgrims are persons in motion - passing through territories not their own,"" writes Richard Niebuhr, ""seeking something we might call completion, or perhaps the word clarity will do as well, a goal to which only the spirit's compass points the way.""
 
""This is the craving of the Holy Spirit, the driving passionate voice. It is her hand set against my back. I see now. It is not finished, she whispers. It did not end with the one on the cross.""
 
9
ORDINARY TIME
Now you are in ordinary time - in your own life - bringing your whole self to church - living out the gift of the Holy Spirit. What was extraordinary is now ordinary. (Or is it?)
The final symbol - the Alpha and Omega cross reminds us: ""'I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the ending,' saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.""
""In most of the other church seasons, we trace the life of Jesus - from expected arrive to resurrection, Advent to Eastertide. But in Ordinary Time we are in our own lives, living out the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.""
***
""Come now, disturbing Spirit of our God, breathe on these bodily things and me us one body in Christ. Open our graves, unbind our eyes and name us here; touch and heal all that has been buried in us that we need not cling to our pain but may go forth with power to release resurrection in the world.  -- Janet Morley
",2011,"The letter that accompanied the stole:
My name is Linda Tomsen and I designed and created this stole for my Pastor, the Rev. Dr. Ruth Snyder. Ruth shared the story of her journey with me and I was so moved. I decided to create the stole and donate it in her honor.
Ruth was a Lutheran Minister with the LCA/ELCA for 23 years. She found it necessary to leave the ministry with that church when she fell in love with another woman. Ruth has since become a minister with the United Church of Christ and our congregation, The Church of the Nativity in Buffalo, New York, was privileged to call her as a Co-Pastor in May 2010.
As I thought about a design concept, I was struck by the similarities between her personal journey and our experiences as we follow the church calendar. So, I designed the stole following the colors and seasons of the church year.
In Things Seen and Unseen: A Year Lived in Faith, Nora Gallagher also organized her book according to the seasons of the church, so I used excerpts from this wonderful book to help explain each section of the stole.
","Evangelical Lutheran Church in America^^United Church of Christ",,,"Evangelical Lutherans of America (ELCA),Gallagher, Nora,Lutheran,New York,Ordination,Snyder, Ruth,Theology,Tomsen, Linda,United Church of Christ,Women and Religion",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1043,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1043,"Iliff School of Theology (Solidarity Stole)",,,,,,,,,,,,,1140,"Denver, Colorado (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Iliff School of Theology (Solidarity Stole)","

Iliff School of Theology

United Methodist Church

Denver, CO

This stole is donated by FLAME, the GLBTQ group at Iliff School of Theology. It is specifically signed by Sara Roseneau and John Fiscus, the co-chairs of FLAME who both left traditions that would not ordain out Christian leaders. It is also signed by members of the Iliff Community, along with special guests, Chris Glaser and Beth Stroud, who helped celebrate GLBT worship on May 14, 2008. This stole celebrates the spirit of Pentecost that still fills the GLBT community with hope, love, and empowerment.

",2011,,Ecumenical,,,"Ally,Clergy Activist,Colorado,Ecumenical,Fiscus, John,Glaser, Chris,Ordination,Roseneau, Sara,Stroud, Beth,United Methodist Church",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1042,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1042,"Rev. Dr. Letty Mandeville Russell",,,,,,,"Rev. Barbara Hager and Elder June O'Neil",,,,,,1139,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Rev. Dr. Letty Mandeville Russell","

Rev. Dr. Letty Mandeville Russell
1929-2007

Presbyterian Church (USA)

Ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament, United Presbyterian Church

Pastor, East Harlem Protestant Parish

Trailblazing Feminist Liberation Theologian

Author and Yale Divinity School Professor

Leader in Ecumenical, Interfaith, International Theological Dialogue

Extensive work with World Council of Churches, National Council of Churches, and the Presbyterian Church (USA)

Religious Consultant, National Board, YWCA

Winner of Presbyterian Church (USA) Woman of Faith Award

Co-Founder, Presbyterian Promise

Partner to Rev. Shannon Clarkson

B.A. from Wellesley College;

S.T.B. from Harvard Divinity School; and

S.T.M. and Th.D. from Union Theological Seminary

Stole made by Rev. Barbara Hager and Elder June O’Neil

",2011,,"Presbyterian Church (USA)",,,"Clergy Activist,Feminism,Presbyterian,Presbyterian Church (USA),Russell, Letty Mandeville,United States,Women and Religion",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1041,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1041,"Austin Theological Seminary",,,,,,,"Rev. Dr. Theodore J. Wardlaw",,,,,,1138,"Austin, Texas (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Austin Theological Seminary","

Austin Theological Seminary

Presbyterian Church (USA)

Austin, TX

This stole is donated by Rev. Dr. Theodore J. Wardlaw, President of Austin Seminary, on behalf of the congregation of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in honor of the past, present and future LGBT students.

",,,"Presbyterian Church (USA)",,,"Austin,Clergy Activist,Presbyterian,Presbyterian Church (USA),Texas,Wardlaw, Theodore J.",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1040,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1040,Anonymous,,,,,,,"A Bereaved Mom",,,,,,1137,", -- Withheld (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Anonymous,"

Anonymous

My son lived and died in the closet. He wanted to remain anonymous even in death. It is ironic that he wore the red AIDS ribbon and still thought that we didn’t know. Now he’s gone,
and I missed my chance to say, “I love you anyway.”

– A Bereaved Mom

",2011,,#NAME?,,,"AIDS,United States",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1039,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1039,"Central Atlantic Conference of the UCC (Solidarity Stole)",,,,,,,"Lucy Brady",,,,,,1136,"Westminster, Maryland (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Central Atlantic Conference of the UCC (Solidarity Stole)","

Central Atlantic Conference

United Church of Christ

Signed by straight allies from the Central Atlantic Conference, the National Youth Event, and General Synod 2009.

",2011,,"United Church of Christ",,,"Ally,Brady, Lucy,Gay Liberation Movement,Maryland,Ordination,United Church of Christ",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1038,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1038,"MK O'Haver",,,,,,,"Rev. Kay A. Albright",,,,,,1135,"Charleston, West Virginia (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"MK O'Haver","

MK O’Haver

United Methodist Church/United Church of Christ

Charleston, VW

MK received her call to ministry from God in 1993 and began her service to the Church in 1994 in Youth Ministry and Christian Education. In 2001 she began the candidacy process for ordination in the United Methodist Church and enrolled in seminary at the Methodist Theological School in Ohio in 2003. In 2005, we began dating, and by 2007 we were engaged, graduated, and MK had been removed from the candidacy process for being a “self-avowed, practicing homosexual.” She now lives in an in-between place – a United Methodist living in a United Church of Christ world. Together we are planning a new church in Charleston, WV – Bridges of Grace UCC – where I am clergy and MK is laity.

MK chose this stole for donation to the shower of Stoles after an LGBT Pride event where we were drenched by rain. Removing from my shoulders my stole, with its bleeding colors, she said, “This is my story. God is still weeping for those who have been called, but kept out. The UCC would welcome me and ordain me, but I don’t think that is how she meant to fulfill the motto That They May All Be One.”

– Rev. Kay A. Albright,
MK’s wife and partner in life and ministry

",2011,,"United Methodist Church^^United Church of Christ",,,"Albright, Kay A.,O'Haver, M.K.,Ordination,United Church of Christ,United Methodist Church,West Virginia,Women and Religion",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1037,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1037,"Lord of the Mountains Lutheran Church",,,,,,,"Lord of the Mountains Lutheran Church",,,,,,1134,"Dillon, Colorado (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Lord of the Mountains Lutheran Church","

Lord of the Mountains Lutheran Church

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Dillon, CO

From 2007 until May 2008, the Yak and Yarn folks at Lord of the Mountains Lutheran Church (ELCA) in Dillon, Colorado created 230 of these stoles to be distributed at the 2008 Rocky Mountain Synod Assembly in Denver. Three large baskets containing the knitted or crocheted stoles were placed near the Shower of Stoles exhibit in the main exhibition area, and assembly attendees were encouraged to take a wear a stole as a show of support. It was encouraging to look across the assembly room and see so many delegates and visitors wearing their stole. As the assembly ended, all the stoles had been claimed, a few even by hotel employees who were intrigued by this quiet and visible mark of support for LGBT clergy and congregational staff members.

",2011,,"Evangelical Lutheran Church in America",,,"Ally,Clergy Activist,Colorado,Evangelical Lutherans of America (ELCA),Lutheran",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1036,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1036,Kevin,,,,,,,"Kevin Downer",,,,,,1133,"Chicago, Illinois (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Kevin,"

Rev. Kevin Downer

Metropolitan Community Church

Chicago, IL

I am the founding pastor of aChurch4Me? MCC, a new community and church where love is a blessing, diversity is a gift, worship a celebration, and life a journey!

I grew up in a small, rural New England farming village, attending a Congregational Church/UCC and felt called to ministry at an early age. A patriarch of the congregation confirmed this calling in my late teens, though by then I was sure that I could not be gay and Christian, let alone serve the church. I became a business consultant and busied myself for many years, avoiding faith and spirituality all together – until I wandered into an MCC. That first worship celebration changed my life and my journey, and slowly I reconciled my relationship with myself and my God, and the Spirit of God resurrected my calling.

This stole was created by a Lay Leader at the first church that I served, MCC San Antonio. I am reminded of the communion of saints who have gone before us who have (and continue to) courageously heard the still small voice and responded, “Here I am, send me.” In their courageous witness, LGBTQ people like me are able to serve as our Maker gifts, calls, and sends us. This stole also remains a powerful reminder of the many callings never resurrected, and the untold needs that go unmet.

",,,"Metropolitan Community Church^^United Church of Christ",,,"Chicago,Clergy Activist,Congregational Church,Downer, Kevin,Illinois,MCC,Ordination,Texas,United Church of Christ",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1035,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1035,"Ray Barkey",,,,,,,"Ray Barkey",,,,,,1132,"Chicago, Illinois (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Ray Barkey","

Ray Barkey

Church of the Brethren/
Metropolitan Community Church

Chicago, IL

This stole is being sent to the Shower of Stoles Project as a celebration of past ministry that is no longer available to me in the Church of the Brethren as the Northern Indiana District removed my ordination in December of 2010 ending over twenty years of ordination and ministry due to my integrity regarding my sexuality and a wonderful relationship.

Of equal if not greater significance is the fact that we celebrated my In-Care status with the Universal Metropolitan Community Churches.

As we say often at aChurch4Me? MCC, “God is good – all the time!”

",2011,,"Metropolitan Community Church^^Church of the Brethren",,,"Barkey, Ray,Chicago,Church of the Brethren,Church Trials,Illinois,MCC,Ordination,Theology",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1034,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1034,"Rev. Brenda E. Lee",,,,,,,"Rev. Brenda E. Lee",,,,,,1131,"Chicago, Illinois (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Rev. Brenda E. Lee","

Rev. Brenda E. Lee

Metropolitan Community Church

Chicago, IL

Psalm 28:7 The Lord is my strength and my shield: my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.

This stole was given to me upon my completion of seminary, the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University in Richmond, VA. The stole holds special meaning for me because my journey in seminary was one which I was had to stand strong in my authenticity as an African-American lesbian minister called to be a voice in the wilderness. My presence was challenged by many of my peers because of their religious belief systems that perpetuated discrimination and homophobia. However, God’s Grace held me and kept me to endure and that experience strengthened me to continue becoming all that God created me to be and do the work that my soul is so ordained to do.

For me, this stole represents God’s power in our lives when we trust in God’s Grace. It is through God’s Power and Grace that we who are LGBTQ will overcome the challenges we face in our world today. I am currently serving as a minister in achurch4me? MCC in Chicago, IL.

",2011,,"Metropolitan Community Church",,,"African American,Chicago,Illinois,Lee, Brenda E.,MCC,Theology,Women and Religion",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1033,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1033,"Rev. Ron Roberts",,,,,,,"Rev. Ron Roberts",,,,,,1130,"Camdenton, Missouri (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Rev. Ron Roberts","

Rev. Ron Roberts

Presbyterian Church (USA)

Camdenton, MO

From a letter to Shower of Stoles Project founder, Martha Juillerat:

Martha,

I am sending my favorite stole, a Pentecost stole hand-fashioned by Roger, the long-time organist at Grace Church. It is sent as my personal celebration for the new era in the PCUSA marked by the enactment of Amendment 10-A on July 10, 2011. I was both a commissioner to the General Assembly where this amendment passed and Moderator of Missouri Union Presbytery when we voted to join the majority of Presbyteries with the first positive vote on this issue in the Presbytery’s history.

I am delighted with the church-wide vote and want to express my gratitude to you and others who so diligently and at times so painfully advocated for this openness. I have always appreciated your role and that of the divinely inspired Shower of Stoles for helping all of us to visualize so dramatically this blind spot in the church’s vision. I hope there is room for one more stole and that you are well and joining in this celebration.

Your OLD friend,
Ron Roberts

",2011,,"Presbyterian Church (USA)",,,"Ally,Clergy Activist,Missouri,Presbyterian,Presbyterian Church (USA),Roberts, Ron",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1032,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1032,"Rev. Anne M. Rousseau",,,,,,,"Congregational Church of Needham, MA, United Church of Christ",,,,,,1129,"Needham, Massachusetts (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Rev. Anne M. Rousseau","

Rev. Anne M. Rousseau

United Church of Christ

Needham, MA

Beautiful child of God,
Wonderfully and fearfully made,
Her childhood religion not understanding,
Leaves to find her spiritual home.

Loving God all the while, hearing her call –
Another fearful, misunderstanding denomination says
You are not what God means;
You are not what God needs!

Seeking truth, finding self and voice and face,
When it was easier to be discouraged,
Hearing her call to ministry,
Working to find homes for those with none,
Speaking the language of justice and love,
Shining on those forgotten,
Saving young women’s lives,
Serving God and humankind.

One day, the United Church of Christ
Welcomes and affirms
Her soul and her gifts and her ways.
Once made invisible by others,
You are what God means;
You are what God needs.

Beautiful child of God:
Minister, example,
Igniter of hearts to justice and love,
Church beacon,
God’s good and faithful servant
In whom God is surely well-pleased.

May God’s grace fill your life,
And God’s voice continue to fill your ministry.

With love and gratitude,
The Outreach Committee
and the Open and Affirming (ONA) Committee
Congregational Church of Needham, MA
United Church of Christ
January 2009

",2010,"Given to the collection by Kathie Carpenter from the Congregational Church of Needham","United Church of Christ",,,"Massachusetts,Open and Affirming in the UCC (ONA),Ordination,Rousseau, Anne M.,Theology,United Church of Christ",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1031,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1031,"Anonymous (Signature Stole)",,,,,,,"Students, faculty, and staff of Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary",,,,,,1128,"Evanston, Illinois (USA)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Anonymous (Signature Stole)","

Anonymous

United Methodist Church

Illinois

This stole belonged to a woman Elder in the Illinois Great Rivers Conference of the United Methodist Church. A fierce and vocal advocate of the ministry of LGBT persons, she was due to be brought up on charges for the strength of her advocacy when she was disabled by Alzheimer’s disease.

It has been signed by students, faculty, and staff in support of all LGBT members of the Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary community, past and present. 

",2010,,"United Methodist Church",,,"Education,Illinois,Methodist,United Methodist Church,Women and Religion",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0 1030,https://exhibits.lgbtran.org/items/show/1030,"Rev. Bob Jones",,,,,,,"Rev. Gordon McCoy",,,,,,1126,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Rev. Bob Jones^^Rev. Paul Whiting","

Rev. Bob Jones
Rev. Paul Whiting

Metropolitan Community Church

I inherited this bandanna stole from my close friend, Rev. Bob Jones, who died of AIDS in August, 1992. Bob was raised in the United Methodist Church in Kansas, where, in the mid-seventies, he had a same-sex relationship blessing. Shortly after the ceremony, the bishop found out and Bob and his partner were asked to leave the church. In 1978 Bob was licensed as clergy in the Metropolitan Community Church. He moved to Liverpool, England in 1988 where he served the MCC congregation until his death.

I was raised in the Pentecostal Assemblies in Britain. After attending Mattersey Bible College, I began pastoral ministry and was licensed by the Assemblies of God in 1980. The following year I was outed and ousted. After spending several years exploring a vocation in the Anglican Church, I joined Metropolitan Community Church and in 1988 because transfer clergy. My ordination was affirmed by MCC in 1996 upon moving to the USA. I have served MCC congregations in Manchester, England, Des Moines, IA, Gainesville, FL, West Palm Beach, FL, and most recently, London, Ontario.

– Rev. Paul Whiting

",2010,"This stole was donated to the collection during Metropolitan Community Churches' General Conference in Acapulco, Mexico in June, 2010.

Click here to read Rev. Paul Whiting's biographic profile in the LGBTQ Religious Archives Network's Profiles Gallery.","Metropolitan Community Church^^United Methodist Church^^Assemblies of God",,,"AIDS,Assemblies of God,Canada,England,Jones, Bob,MCC,McCoy, Gordon,Methodist,Ordination,United Methodist Church,United States,Whiting, Paul",,Stole,"Shower of Stoles",1,0