Family of Origin, Family of Choice

“These stories are of people who paid the price. They sought reconciliation when it would have been easier to walk away. They did the hard work of showing up to love each other well. And they found a church willing to do the hard work with them. If you are moved by a good, redemptive story, you are going to like this book.”
— Paula Stone Williams
from the foreword

“These narratives speak boldly and carefully about the courage queer folks and their families embody as they discern their way through disclosures and invitations to enter closets and as they invite others to get to know them anew. These relationships are ever-changing and significant as families of origin and choice recognize their beloveds, wrestle with the meaning of their lives together, and become open to transformation. The writers beautifully speak to the pains and the celebrations of queer people whose resilient spirits have much to offer to communities and the world.”
— Joretta L. Marshall
professor of pastoral theology and care at Brite Divinity School

“Hays and Chiasson have assembled a fascinating and forceful collection of stories from LGBTQ+ Christians about their experiences with kinship and condemnation, love and loss, reconciliation and resilience, and coming out—and coming to terms with one’s queer self. An engaging, well-theorized and well-researched text that calls cis-het Christians to lean in, listen, and believe; a text that will make a marked contribution toward repairing the harms that Christian families, faiths, and fellowships have inflicted (and still inflict) on LGBTQ+ persons.”
— Tony E. Adams
chair and professor of communication at Bradley University and author of Narrating the Closet