Nearly a month after the controversial “Homosexuality and Christianity” lecture held in Talley Student Union, students, faculty and local religious leaders gathered in Dabney Hall on Wednesday evening for “Welcoming Faith Communities: A Panel Discussion.” The panelists discussed the relationship between faith and sexuality.

The event focused on addressing divides within faith communities in accepting members of the LGBTQ+ community as well as facilitating community conversations to foster their inclusion. Juliette Hallen, president of the GLBT Community Alliance, moderated the panel and following discussion.

“We definitely want to encourage an open discussion today as a counter to some of the other discussions that have been had on this topic,” Hallen said.

Panelists included the Rev. Brian Crisp, Rabbi Leah Citrin, deacon Emma Akpan and the Rev. Jennifer Manis, each representing their unique positions within their Baptist, Reform Judaic, African Methodist Episcopalian and Lutheran faith communities, respectively. Imam Abdullah Antepli, a panelist representing his Muslim faith community, was unable to attend the panel due to sudden illness. The GLBT Community Alliance, the GLBT Center and the NC State Department of Social Work hosted the panel.

Approximately 50 students attended the panel, including Emily Summers, a junior studying animal science.

“I think the panel was something made to be different,” Summers said. “There were definitely a lot of themes brought up here that were not brought up in [Brady Cone’s] presentation. I think that it ended up being a nice conversation on its own. The way we change things is by having small conversations with people.”

The panelists attended the lecture not only to express their opinions in the evolving discussion between faith and sexuality but to also offer support to audience members in addressing the complex social issue. Each remarked on their unique experiences, beliefs and role.

“I think we live in a world where people use their religion as a stone to hurt others, and that’s a sad thing,” Crisp said. “I feel called to help those people where the stones are being thrown. That’s what the Bible tells me to do: go to the excluded — go to the oppressed. I have no obligation to oppressors these days.”

Much of the discussion centered on forming substantive conversation about the pains imposed by discrimination and prejudice against members of the LGBTQ+ community in some faith communities. One student inquired about facilitating discussion on biblical passages used to condemn minority sexual orientations with their peers.

“I would bring my perspective, which is to know the historical context,” Citrin said. “Just because something was written then doesn’t mean that it has to have the same meaning now.”

In addition to discussing social stigma, panelists addressed pre-existing challenges in distinguishing between faith communities’ welcoming attitudes and accepting of those with non-heterosexual sexual orientations. Crisp asserted that the two attitudes were dependent upon each other.

“The phone call that I get all of the time in my office is from congregations,” Crisp said. “They say, ‘Yes, we would like to talk to you because we would like to be welcoming but not affirming.’ Really? If you can’t affirm someone’s humanity, you’re not welcoming.”

Reflecting on her experiences within her AME church, Akpan encouraged an accepting viewpoint as well.

“I believe that sexuality is what makes us human, and if we’re to have faith, then we want to embrace all parts of our community, regardless of what sexuality we have,” Akpan said. “I think that if the church is going to be a place where you can find refuge, then we have to have support in our communities, and I think that sexuality is an important part.”

Following Akpan’s response, Manis encouraged those in attendance to “find a community that engages you in conversation regardless of what they believe.” The panelists’ words resonated strongly with Summers and many other students at the event.

“You see the big campus ministries, like CRU, but you don’t really think about those smaller communities outside of those,” Summers said. “It’s nice to see that you can have your faith and have a sexual identity and be proud of that.”