Pride Month 2023: The Antidote to Fear

It would be easy, if you’re a member of the LGBTQIA community, to look around America right now and get pretty discouraged. Let’s be honest: there’s a lot of bad news out there.  

In too many corners of our country, hatred and ignorance are teaming up to erase our LGBTQIA friends and family members from our libraries, our classrooms, our doctor’s offices, our statehouses and yes, in too many of our churches.  

People who are frightened by change, or who are scared by what they don’t know, are lashing out and targeting the LGBTQIA community. It’s why the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s leading LGBTQIA civil rights group, declared its first-ever National State of Emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans. 

Looking around, it’s enough to make you wonder what happened to human decency, the that hope and optimism that was moving through this nation so many of us felt a decade ago. At times, it feels like politicians and culture warriors are trying to push the LGBTQIA community back into the closet, particularly our Trans siblings. LGBTQIA Americans are beloved children of God, not political pawns.  

Yet that’s exactly why Pride Month is so necessary. When the forces of shame and exclusion threaten to overtake us, Pride offers America a different vision.

Pride shows us what it looks like when we celebrate the diverse tapestry of God’s creation. Pride shows us what it means to embrace our neighbors, to provide shelter for our children and to do the challenging work of building equality. Pride offers us an antidote to hatred, bigotry and, yes, fear.  

This year, maybe more than ever, we need to remember that. We need to celebrate it. We need to protect it.  

Scripture reminds that us “weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes in the morning.” Right now, there’s a lot of tears in this midnight hour. But we can trust in God’s assurance that love wins in the end. Love always wins.