PORTLAND, Maine — Over the years, the lyrics to many of Ophelia Hu Kinney's favorite church songs haven't changed, but her feelings towards them have.
As a queer Christian woman, she could sing about being a child of God, but believing it was hard when she was growing up attending churches that were not affirming, meaning they weren't accepting of LGBTQ+ members.
"It's impossible to embody that, to really believe that, and be a part of the community full on," Hu Kinney said.
Now as an adult, with a wife and daughter, she's finally able to sing, pray, and simply exist in a church where her entire family is welcome. "It kind of feels like, for the first time in a long time, you go from that spiritually hunched position to one where you can straighten your back, look up, and see everyone eye to eye," Hu Kinney said.
The last few years have marked a historic time for LGBTQ+ communities socially and politically, and much of that shift can also be felt in churches, with more and more announcing affirming practices. However, in the words of Hu Kinney, "It's just the beginning."
"No amount of legislative change by a deliberative body is going to change the substance of our actual churches. That doesn't roll down into a place like HopeGateway and suddenly change who we are," said Hu Kinney.
She believes a cultural shift has to come next. Her current church, HopeGateway, has been affirming since 2014. They're now taking it a step further, with a different message for queer members. "You have always been welcome here, so what is your capacity to lead if you'd like," Hu Kinney said.
By inviting queer members to stand in positions of power, Hu Kinney says they can move past just accepting them and fully embrace them. Hu Kinney has taken it upon herself to be one of those leaders. Last month, she worked to support delegates as they were voting on whether or not to allow LGBTQ+ members in United Methodist churches to be ordained or appointed as ministers.
It was Hu Kinney's job to make sure the messages and goals of queer communities were being properly communicated to the voting members as they made the vital decision. The delegates voted 692-51, in favor of repealing their church’s longstanding ban on LGBTQ+ clergy.
"How can we welcome folks if we're putting up walls or barriers of who can be here and who can't?" Christie Dahlin said. Dahlin isn't a member of the LGBTQ+ community, but she is a pastor. She says she never understood why the two would have to cancel each other out.
"Jesus was most concerned about loving those who were pushed aside and those on the margins," Dahlin said. From a woman who has found love in leading churches, she wishes the same for others, regardless of who else they love. Hu Kinney is a prime example of someone who has found that, but she's not the first, and if she has her way, she definitely won't be the last.
"I want to get to a point where you can come to a place where people say, 'Yes, you're queer, that's old news. Now let's get going on this work of ministry that is all of ours to carry,'" Hu Kinney said.