Monthly Archives: December 2012

Born This Way, by Rob York.
Blog / Political Prose

The Good, the Bad, and the Tax-Deductible


Rev. Daniel Payne and the Open Doors Community Church at the 2012 Korea Queer Culture Festival in Seoul
Born This Way, by Rob York.

Check out Rob York‘s new piece, Born This Way, about an American pastor who, from a barroom pulpit in Seoul, preaches a message of Christian love and acceptance of homosexuality, leading his mostly gay congregation in a David-and-Goliath struggle against South Korea’s conservative Christian establishment. Also featured on the site is The Chicago Way, an essay by Nicole Cipri about the long and brazen history of corruption in that city — a “place so crooked,” the Chicago Tribune once lamented, that “even the reformers are on the take.” If you like these or the other stories we’ve featured throughout the year, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to our nonprofit, which very much needs your support to continue publishing into the new year. Happy holidays!

Victor Tan Chen is In The Fray's editor in chief and the author of Cut Loose: Jobless and Hopeless in an Unfair Economy. Site: victortanchen.com | Facebook | Twitter: @victortanchen

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Born This Way

In South Korea, where a Christian minority dominates the country’s culture and politics, fundamentalists are fighting a culture war against their list of abominations: homosexuality, evolution, even Lady Gaga. But one church in Seoul is fighting back, working from within the faith to make it more tolerant — one gay Christian at a time.


The Reverend Daniel Payne, left, at this year’s Korea Queer Culture Festival in Seoul. Payne, who is gay, delivers Sunday night sermons on tolerance and social justice from his church’s house of worship — a Seoul bar. Photo by Rob York

At first glance, the scene seems all too familiar. On the fringe of a gay pride festival, a local church has set up shop. A pastor preaches about homosexuality while his followers hand out Bible passages to passersby.

But look closer. The church is not protesting. The pastor is preaching a sermon of affirmation and acceptance. He is openly gay.

Much like in America, conservative Christianity dominates South Korea’s culture and politics, and there is no shortage of fundamentalist believers who call gay culture an abomination. But as the gay-rights movement has gained traction here in recent years, some liberal Christian congregations have started welcoming members of all sexual orientations, allowing gay Christians — that unlikely but real constituency — to work from within to make their faith more tolerant. One of these churches is the Open Doors Community Church, an activist Christian congregation in Seoul whose members are mostly gay.

Continue reading Born This Way →

Rob York works for a think tank in Honolulu and still prefers communication by Post-it Notes.

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