Rev. Dr. Maurice Charles, Dean of Rockefeller Memorial Chapel on the College of Chicago, is among the many new board members.
CHICAGO — Pride in the Pews, a grassroots group addressing the harms Black LGBTQ+ folks expertise via interactions in and with the church, welcomes 4 new board members, Rev. Naomi Washington-Leapheart, adjunct professor of theology and religious studies at Villanova University, Rev. Carmarion D. Anderson-Harvey, Alabama state director of the Human Rights Campaign, Kim Each day, lawyer and founding father of The Qulture, and Rev. Dr. Maurice Charles, Dean of Rockefeller Memorial Chapel at the University of Chicago.
“It’s an honor to welcome our new board members to Pleasure within the Pews,” mentioned Rev. Don Abram, founder and government director of Pleasure within the Pews. “We’re making a actuality the place Black LGBTQ+ believers can domesticate holistic well being and well-being within their relationships with the church and past. We’re assured these of us will help us in attaining simply that, and we sit up for their contributions as we proceed to construct bridges with religion leaders, organizers, advocates and actions across the nation.”
Rev. Naomi Washington-Leapheart brings a breadth of data and expertise. A Blackqueer daughter of Detroit, she is a minister, professor, and motion strategist. She is so grateful to have the ability to make a life doing the work she was made for — preaching, educating, and plotting resistance to inhumane political, financial, and non secular methods. Rev. Naomi Washington-Leapheart has labored as a religion organizer and director for POWER Interfaith, the Nationwide LGBTQ Job Pressure, and the Mayor’s Workplace of Public Engagement within the metropolis of Philadelphia. She teaches rising students of faith and theology at Villanova College, Arcadia College, and Harvard Divinity College.
“As extra consideration is given to the vulnerabilities of LGBTQ+ folks on this political period, Pleasure within the Pews is in a league all its personal,” mentioned Rev. Naomi Washington-Leapheart. “By addressing Black LGBTQ+ wellbeing via the body of faith as a social determinant of well being, PITP’s impression will probably be completely felt – in pews, pulpits, and the general public sq.. I’m proud to be a member of the PITP board to help this thrilling work.”
Bringing a robust perspective that sits on the intersection of academia and spirituality, Rev. Dr. Maurice Charles at the moment serves because the dean of Rockefeller Memorial Chapel on the College of Chicago. Previous to his time on the College of Chicago, he served as affiliate dean for spiritual life at Stanford College. An alumnus of the College of Chicago Divinity College (MDiv, PhD), Maurice returned in 2019 to function the seventh dean, having beforehand served as Affiliate Dean for Non secular Life at Stanford College and Dean for Religious Engagement at Hobart and William Smith Faculties.
“Once I first learn Don’s story within the Chicago Tribune, I reached out to him instantly as a result of I wished to help his nascent imaginative and prescient of dismantling the obstacles that preserve Black LGBTQ+ of us from flourishing–spiritually, mentally, and bodily. Since then, Pleasure within the Pews has drawn collectively a powerful community of inventive folks dedicated to this trigger.”
Rev. Carmarion D. Anderson-Harvey is the primary trans individual of colour to serve in a management function with Human Rights Marketing campaign within the group’s historical past. Bringing a beneficial public well being background, Carmarion labored within the area of Public Well being and Training in Texas, managing each native and nationwide prevention initiatives specializing in HIV/AIDS and different well being disparities that impression marginalized communities.
Additionally becoming a member of the staff is Kim Each day who brings a beneficial perspective as an award-winning trial legal professional, viral public-speaker, and founding father of The Qulture, a nationwide group often known as heaven on earth for queer Black girls. As a former ministry chief and later-in-life lesbian, Kim is devoted to serving to queer folks reconcile their religion and sexuality to allow them to stroll in freedom.
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Pleasure Within the Pews is a grassroots group addressing the harms Black LGBTQ+ folks expertise via their interactions in and with the church. Pleasure within the Pews is dedicated to constructing a actuality the place all Black LGBTQ+ communities can domesticate and keep their holistic well being and well-being within the church and past in ways in which honor their humanity and religion.
Contact:
Takara T. Pierce
Pleasure within the Pews
[email protected]
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed on this article are these of the authors and don’t essentially replicate the official coverage or place of Faith Information Service or Faith Information Basis.
