I the Mission Unconscionable Stonehenge to stonewal I A missionary hymn from my Episcopal hymnal goes something like this: “From Greenland’s icy mountains, from India’s coral strand/From many an ancient river, from many a palmy plain/They call us to deliver their land from error’s chain.” V Well, I have been on many a palmy strand myself and I don’t recall hearing anybody calling Christians to deliver them. In fact, it was very refreshing to be in Buddhist Thailand last year. Buddhists tend to leave you alone when it comes to religion. No cheap pamphlets on your windshield; nobody yelling about salva- tion; no‘ sappy TV preachers. It is an incalculable human tragedy that the Christian ideal reflected in this hymn was put , into action during the last five centuries against the native tribes of the Americas. The forcible conversion and gener- al slaughter of those who clung to “error’s chain” has had terri- ble repercussions—in<_:luding today’s total rejection of the two—spirit person or berdache by neai;ly all Indian tribes. “We have always had some A of ‘them’ around, nobody real- ly hurt them,” says a Pima trib- al elder. “Oh, they were always teased, especially as children, but they are just a part of life, so no one really thinks any- thing about it.” ' According to all I have read, I ' however, the truth here is that homophobia is rampant on most reservations as a result of white Christian values. Most tribes are in denial that they ever even had these kinds of people, and that is tragic for native gay men and lesbians trying to live honestly and stay _ true to their heritage. From many an ancient river Not long after writing a col- umn introducing We-Wha of Zuni, the remarkable Navajo berdache of a century ago, a news item caught my eye: “Openly gay student mur- dered in New Mexico.” It was a short story detailing the beat- ' ing death of a young Navajo, but it struck a chord that still vibrates in my heart. -According to Navajo tradi- tion and culture, the berdache (nadleeh in Navajo) was a spe- cial creation with special func- tions. This boy was actually a gift to the people of his tribe, like We-wha, yet they rejected him. His Fred name was I By Charlie Emond Martinez, Jr, “openly gay, out- going, and happy.” He wore a dress and carried a purse to school. A hundred years ago, his tribe would have rejoiced in his presence among them and thanked the Great Spirit for this “nadleeh.” In our time, after a brief lifetime of consid- erable taunting and abuse, he was killed as a direct or indi- rect result of twisted Christian teachings. He was 16 years old. We whose souls are lighted He‘is only the latest in a long line of ‘such killings. Horrifyingly, many were car- ried out under the direction ‘of Catholic priests in the name of a loving Jesus. Walter Williams reports that missionaries came to have such power on Indian reservations in the 19th centu- ry that their condemnation of berdaches led many to commit suicide. ’ Just as horrifying is the fact that so many of the priests were gay themselves. In his autobiography, Gay Priest, Malcolm Boyd says, “I assumed my own closetedness, and that of scores of other priests and seminarians whom I knew to be gay, to be com- pletely natural. Our closeted- ness seemed to be accepted at the heart of the Establishment as a basic part of the life of the church.” Boyd says some esti- mates put the numbers of gay clergy as high as 50 percent,—— which will not surprise you if you are a regular reader of this column. John Boswell’s Christianity, Social Tolerance and Homosexuality carefully details gay clergy in every time period of western civilization. I can’t count the number of gay priests I have known since childhood; I know two who currently live with their boyfriends in" their respective rectories. I recently saw an extensive list of gay men that included the names of Cardinal Cooke and Cardinal Spellman, both of New York. (Now there are stories I will have to look into!) I know of two gay bish- ops, one of whom is very pub- ‘ licly anti-gay. He is reported to have a male lover and a retire- ment home on Cape Cod. (Can you say the word “hypocrite,” Your Eminence?) Deliver their land from errors chain I have never been able to understand the incredible hubris of Christian proselytiz- ers. Driving through Springfield, VT, the other day, I had to run a gauntlet of peo- ple shouting things at passing cars and waving huge wooden crosses and Jesus banners. Somehow I don’t think that any ofthis is what Jesus had in mind. I don’t doubt for a sec- ond that should he return, he would immediately change his name. Unlike such Christians, I accept all religions to be equal, including the traditional native American beliefs. My boyfriend is Buddhist, and I regularly j0in_him in prayer. I believe there is room- in every human soul for all saints and all manifestations of a higher power, including the spirits of the natural world. I was once asked what my church (Catholic) thought about my singing in a United Church of Christ choir. I was taken aback by the‘ question and quickly replied that my spiritual life is none of the church’s damn business. Before the coming of Christian missionaries, the native American tribes had so much right. We should have respected that and learned from them. They respected the different among them, they appreciated a gift when they got one, and they didn’t expect their sacred cross-dressers to “hide beneath the lodge skins!” Next time: On Walden Pond: was it something in the water? ' For More Information: This gay history column is the 33rd in a series that began in prehistory. Ifvyou area new OIT M reader, or have not fol- ‘lowed this column from the beginning, you might want to catch up by checking the OIT M Archives online at www.moun- tainpridemediacom and click- ing on “Stonehenge to Stonewall.” Charlie Emond has a bach- elor’s degree from Queens College and masters degrees from ‘both Dartmouth and Keene State. He teaches col- lege ,history courses in Springfield and White River Junction. Stonehenge to Stonewall is syndicated by Above the Fold, LTD, info@abovefold.com COLUMNS September 2001 OITM - 21 Janet Langdon, M. Div. 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