Evangelicals claim that their opposition to homosexuality is an inherent feature of their faith, rooted in their unchanging beliefs about the Bible. Most scholars, journalists, and observers have accepted this account; in Born Again Queer, William Stell upends it. Arguing that the antigay majority in evangelicalism has been less dominant and more vulnerable than previously thought, Stell describes a network of authors, ministers, and professors鈥攁ll veterans of major evangelical institutions鈥攚ho worked in the 1970s and 1980s to persuade Christians that their churches should affirm the relationships and ministries of gay and lesbian members. By the late 1970s, some even thought that these activists might shape the future of evangelicalism.
Of course, that speculation proved mistaken, and the antigay evangelical majority eventually overpowered the gay-affirming minority. Stell鈥檚 history of the rise and fall of evangelical gay activism shines a light on this largely forgotten chapter in American evangelicalism. Drawing on extensive archival research and interviews, Stell documents the work of four prominent activists: the founder of a predominantly LGBTQ+ denomination called the Metropolitan Community Churches, the leader of a gay advocacy organization called Evangelicals Concerned, and the evangelical feminist coauthors of the influential book Is the Homosexual My Neighbor? By recovering the successes of evangelical gay activists and the struggles of their opponents, Stell鈥檚 account transforms how we think about evangelicalism, how we talk about the culture wars, and how we approach both religion in queer movements and queer activism in religious movements.
William Stell teaches in the Department of Religious Studies at New York University.
"A nuanced study that effectively undermines the assumption that evangelicalism has always been antigay. . . . A meaningful portrayal of complex humans at the center of the late-20th century evangelical gay activist network."鈥�Kirkus Reviews
"Exposing the tactics used to create an antigay evangelical majority, Born Again Queer is an important religious history text that lauds four evangelical activists who worked to make churches more accepting."鈥�Foreword Reviews
“In this pathbreaking and beautifully written book, William Stell recovers a world that most people today have not only forgotten but believed to be impossible: one deeply shaped by the witness of evangelical gay activists, who pushed to swing wider not just the doors of their churches but the very meaning of faithfulness. Born Again Queer underscores the power of history to challenge even our most deeply held assumptions. It is an essential read, not just for scholars, but for anyone invested in the past, present, or future of evangelical Christianity in the United States.”—Heath W. Carter, 快色直播 Theological Seminary
“A groundbreaking, erudite, and utterly fascinating history of gay evangelical theology and activism in the 1970s and 1980s. Stell’s revelatory study brings a hidden chapter of queer history to life and challenges our understanding of evangelicalism itself.”—George Chauncey, author of Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the Making of the Gay Male World, 1890–1940
“William Stell’s Born Again Queer offers a fascinating exploration of the personalities, theological debates, and moral arguments that made homosexuality a defining issue for modern American evangelicalism. Stell reveals that evangelicals could hardly claim a consistent interpretation of the Bible’s literal meaning about homosexuality, as newly empowered evangelical gay activists turned to scripture to defend their place within their Christian communities. Instead, this richly detailed and beautifully written book shows that the very meaning of ‘evangelical’ became, after the late 1970s, increasingly tied to antigay animus cloaked in theological purity. In rescuing a lost history of evangelical gay activism, Stell provides a far more complex and contested story about the origins of the culture wars than scholars previously assumed.”—Rebecca L. Davis, author of Fierce Desires: A New History of Sex and Sexuality in America
“In many American cities, the first formal LGBT organization was an evangelical church. Stell's astute scholarship helps explain this astounding fact, taking us beyond simplistic notions of a culture war between a secular gay movement and the religious right. In a masterful retelling of both the evangelical and gay rights movements, Stell complicates our understanding of the rise of evangelical homophobia. And he shows himself to be an artful storyteller and an exacting historian.”—David K. Johnson, author of The Lavender Scare: The Cold War Persecution of Gays and Lesbians in the Federal Government
