Murder of Matthew Shepard.
Birth of Fannie Lou Hamer.
Laramie – Magdalen Hsu-Li
Scarecrow – Deena Rae Turner
The Fence – Peter Katz
Matthew Shepard – Heather Lev
American Triangle – Elton John
Scarecrow – Melissa Etheridge
God Loves Everyone – Ron Sexsmith|
Remaining songs by Fannie Lou Hamer:
Precious Lord
Run Mourner, Run
City Called Heaven
All the Pretty Little Horses
I’m Gonna Land on the Shore
Oh Lord, You Know Just How I Feel
I’m Going Down to the River of Jordan
Jesus Is My Only Friend
Pick a Bale of Cotton
Keep Your Lamps Trimmed and Burning
Walk with Me
This Little Light of Mine
Certainly Lord
Woke up This Morning
Tag Archives: LGBTQIA2S+
6 October 2025
Filed under Antiracism, Current Events, Human Rights, Music, playlist
A prayer after Pride month
I thank you, God,
for friends who share photos and stories
of their participation in Pride Parades and events.
The joy, the love, the faith, the freedom,
the courage, the hope, and yes, the pride
in their faces and their bodies
fills my soul with gladness
almost beyond words.
I thank you for their witness.
It touches me profoundly and
deepens my understanding
that you create each of us
in your image and that
each person of
every sexual orientation and
every gender identify
is your beloved child.
I pray, God,
for each friend, each person
who, for whatever reason or reasons,
chose not to participate
in public events.
May they know they are loved by you and
that they too fill my soul with gladness.
Help me remember that Pride
is a focus for a month
and a way to live each day.
Inspire me to love you
and all your children more dearly.
Guide me to work
more faithfully for
a community, a church,
a state, a country, and a world
where everyone knows welcome
and everyone belongs;
where everyone is treated
with dignity and respect;
where all people can participate in Pride events: and
justice and equity prevail for all.
May it be so, Rainbow God.
Amen.
2 July 2025
Filed under Current Events, Family, Friends, Human Rights, Prayer
A prayer as the struggle continues
(on the anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising
and as the Pentagon renames the USNS Harvey Milk)
When fear calls us to forget,
when bigotry seeks to rewrite and erase,
we remember, God.
We will remember.
We remember Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera,
and all your beloved children
who participated in the Stonewall Uprising,
demanding dignity, respect, and justice.
We will remember.
We remember your beloved child Harvey Milk.
Even as the Pentagon removes his name from a U.S. naval vessel.
We remember his service in the U.S. Navy.
We remember his service in San Francisco.
We remember efforts to recruit us,
to recruit us for the fight to preserve democracy
from those who are trying to constitutionalize bigotry.
We remember his challenge and inspiration.
”you have to give them hope.
Hope for a better world,
hope for a better tomorrow,
hope for a better place to come to
if the pressures at home are too great.
Hope that all will be all right.”
We give thanks for the hope Harvey Milk gave,
the hope he still gives,
and we will remember.
We remember individuals and organizations
who have worked through the years
for the recognition, rights and inclusion of
the LGBTQIA2S+ community
within society and the church.
We will remember.
We remember with thanks those
engaged in this work and ministry
who we knew, and perhaps worked with:
who we know and work with now:
(say names aloud or silently in your heart).
We will remember.
We remember with thanks those
engaged in this work and ministry
whose names we did not know,
whose names we do not know,
and yet who touched our lives
and made life better, more whole, more just.
You know their names, God.
You made and love each one.
And we will remember.
We remember and confess
that some organizations
and individuals (myself among them)
have been too careful, timid, and fearful
through the years.
We accepted the status quo
and failed to challenge the oppression
endured by your beloved LGBTQIA2S+ children.
Forgive us. Renew us. Inspire us.
Help us find our voices.
Help us locate our places in the struggle.
We will remember.
And by your grace, may we do better.
We pray in the name of Jesus.
Amen.
words in italics are a paraphrase of Harvey Milk’s words in “That’s What America Is” a speech delivered by San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk, June 25, 1978 (Gay Freedom Day); words in quotation marks are from “You’ve Got to Have Hope” by Harvey Milk delivered on June 24, 1977; note that like many public speakers (and preachers) Harvey Milk presented the same ideas in numerous speeches; words in bold italics are stage directions for your prayer
Filed under Antiracism, Current Events, Human Rights, Prayer
Along the Graybeard Trail 