Archive for October, 2006

In God’s House

In God’s House: Asian American
  Lesbian & Gay Families in the Church

Asian American lesbians and gays and their parents and allies have been largely invisible and silent in Christian churches. Some Asian American churches avoid the issue for fear of division and conflict. Other Asian American church leaders have condemned homosexuality and publicly protested against same-sex marriage.

Yet there are many gay and lesbian Asian American Christians and their families, quiet and invisible, in churches across the country. Where are their stories? What are their experiences? This honest and thought-provoking film invites you to hear personal stories which have long been unheard.  It tells a story that those in the church need to hear: that of Asian American Christian lesbian and gay people and their parents.

Oneida Chi, a devout young adult Chinese American in an evangelical Christian church, speaks of her struggle with the discovery of her own sexual orientation and her search for self-acceptance and religious community. Husband and wife Harold and Ellen Kameya, active leaders in their Japanese American church, tell the story of their shock and confusion when their beloved daughter first came out, of the isolation and alienation they felt in their church, and of the importance of a church community in their Christian journey to grow in understanding, courage and love for their daughter.  The Rev. Nobuaki Hanaoka, an immigrant Asian pastor, seeks to fulfill Jesus’ message of justice and love for all people as he speaks out and supports the full acceptance and affirmation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender  people in the church.

All four are church-loving and God-loving Christians. And yet they struggle to find kindred spirits and their recognized place in God’s house.

This film invites you to listen to their stories of courage, inspiration, and renewed faith, and to hear the importance of supporting LGBT people as important members of our Asian American families and churches.

Filmmaker Lina Hoshino and the PANA Institute’s project on Civil Liberties and Faith present In God’s House: Asian American Lesbian & Gay Families in the Church. This short film highlights the spiritual journeys of four Asian American Christians who discover that lesbians and gays are not just “others,” but loved ones in their own families.

For more information, please see: http://www.ingodshouse.

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