1 February 2026 This Month in Queer Religious History* Congregation Beit Simchat Torah On 9 February 1973, a small group of LGBTQ+ Jews gathered in a Manhattan living room for the first service of what would become Congregation Beit Simchat Torah (CBST), the world’s first LGBTQ+-founded synagogue. This humble beginning marked a revolutionary moment in queer religious […]
30 January 2026 Since any time of the year is a good time to talk about the fact that religious people have been advocating for LGBTQ inclusion for quite a while, your congregation might want to take the opportunity now to investigate the movement for LGBTQ equality within your tradition. You can then highlight your […]
1 January 2026 This Month in Queer Religious History* The 1965 New Year’s Benefit Ball in San Francisco “Drag queens and attendees at the New Year’s Mardi Gras Ball, held at California Hall in San Francisco on January 1, 1965. Photos from the Citizen’s News, in the Periodicals Collection of the GLBT Historical Society.” [San […]
1 December 2025 This Month in Queer Religious History* World AIDS Day On 1 December 1988 the first World AIDS Day was observed, marking a global moment of solidarity, remembrance, and activism in the face of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. For the LGBTQ+ community and its allies, this day transcends mere awareness: it has become a sacred occasion […]
1 November 2025 This Month in Queer Religious History* Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray On 8 January 1977, history was made when the Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray became the first African American woman ordained as an Episcopal priest. Yet this groundbreaking moment was merely the culmination of an extraordinary life spent breaking boundaries of race, gender, law, […]
1 October 2025 This Month in Queer Religious History* National Coming Out Day (October 1988) Every year we celebrate the 11th of October as National Coming Out Day, a powerful annual reminder of the importance of visibility, authenticity, and freedom for LGBTQ+ individuals. With roots in the political activism of the late 1980s, National Coming […]
1 September 2025 This Month in Queer Religious History* The Founding of DignityUSA (September 1969) In early 1969, a year that would see the Stonewall uprising in New York City galvanize the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement, an Augustinian priest in San Diego was quietly planting seeds for what would become one of the most enduring […]