Fayetteville minister: Black and gay, I’ve weathered storms. I reject Christian Nationalism
As a Southern-raised Black male, reared in the Pentecostal church, I have weathered many storms of racism, sexism and homophobia.
They include: Observing laity telling other adults that they had to remain in abusive marriages, to telling women how they had to dress to be accepted in the Lord's church, to seeing the effects of white men burning crosses in a white couple’s yard and attempting to burn the Black church that they attended — all driven by hate and camouflaged with trinkets of Christian rhetoric.
What kind of God are we serving, I would ask?
The distasteful actions from Mark Robinson and Christian Nationalism in North Carolina towards the LGBTQIA community is deeply appalling. I want to bring to light that this Jesus we preach and teach about is still very much outside of most temples and the hearts of many Christian Nationalists, especially Mark Robinson, the Republican nominee for North Carolina governor.
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The Jesus I serve
The Jesus that I, as a gay man serve, is the Jesus that sat with the woman at the well, told her about her troubles and provided her instruction as to liberate her from her inward warfare. The Jesus that I serve is the Jesus who was constantly found amongst the rejected offering hope and safety.
This Jesus I serve is the Jesus who paid the price to liberate me from the law of the letter and freed me from the confines of the flesh. He employed me to serve him with my whole heart and to identify those who claim him via the heart and not the flesh. He taught me not to judge a man because of who they love, but that they love. And that they love with an unconditional love that flows beyond materialism, sexism, racism, genderism, classism and any other -ism.
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Mark Robinson, and Christian Nationalists alike, desire to not only eliminate my community's liberties, but to also demote women to only a role of having babies as in the enslaved days, with no ability to choose who they sleep with and what condition they are willing to raise a child in.
Black voters: Do not be blind sided
Mark Robinson and his counterparts weigh in on the issues of the Black community, projecting that they care. But the entire time they are eliminating better healthcare, better school systems and safer communities within moderate and low income living areas. Instead of participating in these malicious efforts, Robinson could be in our Black communities sharing his action steps to addressing the long history of police brutality in North Carolina — a history dating as far back as the 1960s during the Civil Rights Movement.
Robinson could be addressing the lack of mental health programs and institutions that could serve our severely mentally ill citizens, whose condition results in them being on the streets, with no police intervention training or systems to address mental health. However, Mark Robinson chooses to enter our churches and pulpits and talk about LGBTQIA issues. This is NOT a man concerned about the people of North Carolina.
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To my Black voters in North Carolina, do not be blinded to the smoke screen that LGBTQIA rights being restricted is Mark Robinson's real game plan. We are no threat to society. We are tax-paying citizens who work, travel, have families and dreams that in no way impact your safety.
We are leaving your churches and creating our own safe spaces. We respect you and your belief and in no way seek to tell you what to preach and teach in your church or how to live in your homes that you work so diligently to have. What is impacting your safety and OURS are low-paying jobs, unrestricted rental hikes, inefficient healthcare, fewer resources and qualified teachers in our public schools.
Make no mistake — Mark Robinson is a fraud!
Apostle Derrick Montgomery lives in Fayetteville.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Fayetteville minister: Robinson wrong on LGBTQIA, Black communities
