Spiritual Essence: 10 Spiritual Internet Resources for Queers piritual seekers are increas- singly taking their quests for wisdom into cyberspace. says a recent report. Nearly two- thirds of all Americans online have used the lntemet for religious pur- poses. according to the Pew lntemet and American Life Project's “Faith Online" study released in April. Although most lntemet users sought information about their own religion. about 26 percent of the online faithful have used the lntemet to seek or exchange infor- mation about the faith of others. The spiritual surfers said they did so out of curiosity. but some also sought infomtation about other faiths out of a desire to grow spiri- tually. While the Pew lntemet study didn't specifically track the responses of gay and queer lntemet users, there is no shortage of fasci- nating pit stops for the queer cyber surfer. Here are ten of my favorites. Enjoy ‘l.GIy8#IIIlfl!yICIlIIlI Here's a website with fresh writ- ing on gay culture and spirituali- ty on a regular basis. lt‘s a weblog (or blog. an online jour- nal) by independent writers who share a common vision for including spirituality and inner growth in the conversation about what it means to he gay. There are currently eight contributors to the blog. including men from Christian. Jewish. Buddhist. neo-pagan. and other faith traditions. One of the contributors is Joe Kort. author of the popular book I0 Smart Things Gay Men Can Do to Improve Their Lives (Note: I'm the founder and one of the writ- crs, so I'm definitely biased. But if you ask me. it's worth a visit.) 2. White crane Journal The White Crane Journal is a quarterly magazine that's been around for about I5 years. lt was founded based on the belief that gay men have a unique and won- derful spirituality to share with each other and the world. Unfortunately, the web- site doesn‘t have many articles online, so you will need to sub- scribe to read most of the wis- dom (it's definitely worth the price). You can find sample ani- cles online, plus a forum where you can connect with other spiri- tual gay and queer men. There’s also one of the largest and best directories of links you'll find anywhere. 3. Phat! Olll: Spiilllflly mm.nhnnrzut.;szrn To find this site. go to the popu- lar PlanetOut site. click the People tab. and then click Spirituality. There are some arti- cles and news links (many with a pop culture angle), but nothing too deep. A recent feature included personal stories of how average gay people reconciled with their religion. Probably the main attraction here is the forums. There are discussion boards where you can connect with gay and queer people of many faiths: Christian. Islamic. Jewish. Pagan. Buddhist. and so forth. This is a great place to ask those silly questions you're too embar- rasscd to ask your friends. 4. Independent Guy Forum mmJ Includes a large collection of essays on homosexuality, reli- gion. and culture. Paul Varnell is one of the regular contributors. and he has posted several essays that explain how arguments against homosexuality from the Bible reflect bad scriptural inter- pretation. These writings often have a slightly “conservative“ bent. since these writers share a common belief that gays should not support radical social change or the restructuring of society. Still, there’s a diversity of per- spectives, including religious and secular gays, and a common effort to counter the claims of the religious right. 5. Gaysplflhtdflct 1-s Offers an Internet directory with especially strong links in the areas of pagan spirituality and sacred sexuality. If you can get past the loud color scheme and background music, it’s worth a look. The author of the site ranks some sites and offers his opinions, so this is a good direc- tory if you want commentary r along with your tour. 6. Enslon Mou-3&1 7. Gay spilt Visions w;w£1 8. Body Electric I_ram These three well-regarded organi- zations offer workshops, retreats, and intentional communities for gay men. Easton Mountain, for instance, is the home of an inter- faith intentional community and retreat center for men who love men. It offers Gay Spirit Camp in the summer, which is exactly what the name suggests. 9.GoyBuddNst0pen FOIIIII m shot 10. Gay Mystics s mung There are also dozens of lntemet discussion groups related to gay spirituality. Here are two that I especially recommend. For gay men with an interest in Buddhism or meditation. the Gay Buddhist Open Forum is an excellent resource. Beginners are welcome. Gays with an interest in mysticism should also check out the popular Gay Mystics list. This is a more helpful resource if your interest is in interfaith or Eastern mysticism rather than Christian mysticism, though all are wel- come. In addition to these ten sites, there are many others for gays from particular faith traditions. out in the mountains ianuary 2005 15 \ Here are a few good starting points for Jews, Pagans, Muslims, and Christians. Ihe World congess of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and ‘ll-ansgender Jews 9&1 glbtjews.org is an umbrella organ- ization that includes more than 65 Jewish organizations from around the world. There’s also a list of resources and links to related sites you can explore. Rndcd Faeries Radfae.org is a most excellent site for queer pagans, particularly those who identify with the Radical Faerie movement. It’s one of the largest sources of information and links about Radical Faeries, the spiritual group founded by Harry Hay for queer men with strong pagan leanings. Al-Fatln Foundation tmmmal-fatiha.net The Al-Fatiha Foundation is an organization for gay Muslims. The web site provides lots of valuable resources including events, discus- sion groups, mailing lists, and per- sonals where Muslims can connect. whosoever wwvawhosoever. Whosoever (www.whosoever.org) is an online magazine dedicated to the spiritual growth of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Christians. Under the guidance of editor Candace Chellew, the editorial qual- ity is excellent, making this a must- see site for Christians. Whether you want to deepen your spiritual growth or just satisfy your curiosity, there are many online resources just for gay and queer folks to choose. V ' Joe Perez has studied comparative religion at Harvard University and currently works as a writer in Seattle. He is the author of Soulfully Gay, a bi-weekly column that explores spirituality and reli- gion from a gay man '5 perspective. Send feedback to: joe@writingwolf.com. Visit Joe's blag on spirituality at r - w To team more about: - HIV testing - Benefits of knowing your HN status - Treatment, support and counseling ‘options HIV/AIDS PROGRAM info Call Vennont AIDS Hotlinez 1 -800- 882- AIDS Events Activities Advocacy Education Networking Buyer's CO-Op Vermont People With AIDS Coalition , P.O. Box 11 Montpelier, VT 05601 in Vermont 800-698-8792 or 802-229-5754 Burlington Area Consumer Advocate: 802-324-1507