Quest Conference 2006
NORWICH
‘Sexuality in Other Faiths: Jewish and Islamic Perspectives’
First-timer’s Quest Conference impressions:
‘Please book me in for next year!’
By H.A.
As a very new member of Quest and a very recent convert to Catholicism, it was with some trepidation that I accepted Mark Dowd’s plea (on bended knee) to attend the 2006 Quest Conference at the University of East Anglia. It was to signal the end of a long and difficult journey for me, which had, of late, taken on a momentum of its own.
A personal journey
Born into the Church of England, I had lost my faith aged 14. A few years later, I discovered my sexual identity, along with the attitudes of the Church. This increased my antipathy towards all religious bodies, which I viewed with much contempt. It wasn’t until the age of 40 that I began to attend a Catholic Church with my partner of that time. Of course I was seduced by the ‘smells and bells’ and the wonderful Latin Mass. However, once that relationship ended, I stayed away for another 6 years.
My next encounter with Catholicism was in 1998 when I fell hook, line and sinker for a mad woman, who, for good measure, was also straight! After a few months, she announced that she could no longer see me as she was a Christian, and was not allowed to associate with people like me. It was a really devastating experience. Through a friend, I was put in touch with Quest, and through the helpline was referred to a sympathetic priest who passed me on to a psychotherapist who is also a Religious Sister. Finding someone who was religious yet not disapproving meant a lot to me at that time. It also seemed incredible to me that a woman of such intelligence and education should choose to be a nun. The seeds of curiosity, if not faith, had been sown.
In 2002, I began a diploma in theology at Birkbeck, initially attracted to the philosophy of religion module, which promised to prove the existence of God! In addition to the academic interest, I began praying occasionally in Catholic Churches, drawn by the spirituality. However, I deliberated for a long time over such questions as did I truly believe, how could I find a sympathetic priest, and what would happen if I fell for an Anglican!
Having joined Quest in January 2006, I eventually contacted Ruby, the London women’s rep. In the meantime, circumstances allowed me to distance myself from external influences, so that when Ruby introduced me to Fr Jim Kennedy at the Blessed Sacrament, it was more a question of when, rather than if, I would be joining the church. A few days later, I returned to speak to Fr Jim and was astounded when he announced that, as I’d been baptised, I could be received into the Church at any time. I departed saying that I would have to consider the matter. I was confirmed on 31 May, i.e. 10 days after my initial enquiry!
Wholly inclusive
Arriving at the conference on the Friday evening, I was filled with the usual misgivings: would I fit in; would everyone else be intimately acquainted (well, perhaps not intimately); would they be cliquey; would they be ‘holier than thou’? I need not have worried. Never have I met such a delightful and welcoming bunch of people from all walks of life and various religious persuasions. There was never a feeling of the ‘in crowd’ and outsiders.
The venue was a large, sprawling example of 1960s architecture: grey concrete structures and landscaped grounds. It was all very pleasant apart from innumerable steps which proved somewhat exhausting during the heat-wave.
The programme was a careful blend of business, religion, information, eating and other social activities. The weekend started fairly low key on Friday, but by Saturday morning we were in full swing, starting with Mass at 7.45. The day’s programme included our first guest speaker, Adnan Ali, a pilgrimage to the Catholic Cathedral, and a Gala meal and ‘Surprise’. The food was great, but given the rampant population of rabbits on campus, the omission of ‘Sauté de Lapin’ from the menu seemed a missed opportunity. The ‘Surprise’ turned out to be a futuristic discourse by Mark Dowd on the work of Pope Bernadette (would that we live to see the day!). The evening rounded off with a disco, where those of us who can’t dance were persuaded to do so, and where Rabbi Mark Solomon amazed us all with his practised gyrations! (I’ve seen it all now,’ said one delegate.) Despite his nocturnal exertions, he was able to deliver a most eloquent and enlightening talk on Sunday morning.
Both speakers gave talks from personal, cultural and religious perspectives but with different emphasis.
Adnan Ali was born and grew up in Pakistan. According to him, homosexuality is discussed neither in the Muslim countries, nor in the Muslim community in Britain. There, it is assumed that everyone will marry and there is much concern over public opinion. At the same time, homosexuality is often seen as a ‘Western’ illness; what is perceived as the gay lifestyle – what people see on TV or read in newspapers – contradicts many aspects of Muslim tradition emphasising modesty and mutual care. However, the failure of many Muslims to lead an open life as gay people must not be attributed only to their religious persuasions – in many cases it is social pressure and the matter of convenience that makes gay Muslims compromise their own longings.
Rabbi Mark Solomon also related his own personal story. As a student, he left Orthodox Judaism and joined a liberal movement in Judaism. Liberal Jews are a minority among the 250,000 Jews in the UK. For a long time, homosexuality was perceived as a non-Jewish, pagan phenomenon – Jews just do not do that. Only very recently Jewish thinkers and teachers turned to the subject. Mark Solomon spoke on differing opinions about the meaning of Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 – the only fragments in the Torah (first five books of the Old Testament) that relate to same-sex relations. The attribution of these verses to the context of equal and loving same-sex relations has been challenged by many scholars. However, Judaism is very much a family-focused religion, and this creates a serious cultural barrier for gay people to be at home in their own religious/ethnic community.
In conclusion
It seems that gay followers of all the Abrahamic religions experience similar problems, although recent progress is uneven. Both speakers were excellent, and my only regret is that they were unable to be there simultaneously to engage in a debate. The conference as a whole was well organised, very informative and extremely enjoyable. Please book me in for next year.