I’m not sure what it means to convert from one faith to another. Philip Jenkins’ article “The Sufi next door,” in the current (April 21, 2009) issue of [1] Christian Century, by Philip Jenkins, again brushes on this sensitive issue of Christian–Muslim relations. He begins:

Many excellent scholars study Islam. Many other scholars explore the changing face of global Christianity. Rarely do those experts look at the two worlds— Muslim and Christian—side by side, which is a pity: when we do, we see some remarkable parallels and connections that shed light on both.

In truth, it is “side by side” that makes both sides nervous, because when we see parallels and connections, we are less likely to be absolutely sure of our own faith. Its uniqueness is usually a prop to help support its truthfulness. But if there is another religion out there, or another world view, which closely parallels our own but interprets things just somewhat differently, how can we be absolutely sure that we are right?

I am sure that, since long before the Crusades, Christians and Muslim both had little interest in understanding the other deeply. Certainly the Taliban in our own times, and the American Religious Reich, have no desire to dialogue.

In recent months I have had occasions for preliminary dialogue in my own community with Jewish people, specifically with a local [2] Chabad rabbi, and with Jewish laymen. Several of my own Lutheran community members have Jewish spouses. It’s idiotic to avoid dialogue if it’s so easily at hand.

Of course, my insights won’t topple any millenniums-old barriers, but if those barriers are inside my own head, wouldn’t it be a good idea to listen, discuss, grow and mature on such matters? This year I was invited to a home [3] Seder that sounded extremely fascinating (but sadly, it was held on our Christian Maundy Thursday, so we couldn’t attend).

On the Protestant side of the Catholic/Protestant divide, of course, entirely new forms of faith continue to emerge, attracting those who were perhaps uncomfortable in or bored by their received (upbringing) tradition. To some extent, there is convergence which was launched by the ecumenical movement several generations ago. Convergence may happen when two things are similar and each affords advantages. But it is far less likely that we will ever converge with what we fear.

In the LGBT community, of course, we already good at bridging chasms and knocking down prejudicial walls. Ethnic, religious and economic lines are more easily jumped once you have already crossed the no-man’s-land or the DMZ of sexual taboo.

But like Christians and Jews in dialogue, or Christians and Muslims in dialogue ([4] Google: 270,000 results, oh my!), who find more in common than they do which separates them, heterosexuals and lesbian/gay people who dialogue find they have more in common than not. It seems scary, and a lot of fundamentalist/ heterosexist types don’t want to risk their strident certainty about masculinity or sexuality by actually talking with a sexual minority one-to-one.

It is tempting to smirk about their small–mindedness or inflexibility. But how many gay or lesbian people have risked building a bridge with a transgender person? What are we afraid of? After all, we may have more in common than we have that distinguishes us.

If we expect the general public, for example, to stop battling same-gender marriage with the argument that our marriage does not hurt anybody else’s heterosexual marriage, then what is it about our own lives that we think we might endanger if we get to know transgender people ?

Yet conversion is not that likely in the sexuality area. I’ve never known a heterosexual who was somehow tempted to experiment on the other side unless the homosexual disposition or orientation was there from early on. Right-wing Christians who push those “change”or “reparative therapy” ministries insist that gay people all suffer from some gender confusion.

But frankly, those of us who are Kinsey 6’s aren’t confused at all. No amount of dialogue with a transgender person is likely to prod me to change my gender. Ditto with straights. None of them have been able to recruit me, no matter how much they’ve tried, prayed or threatened. Most of my dialogue has always taken place with heterosexuals, and I’m still not drawn to “convert” to heterosexuality.

What converges through dialogue is the common will to understand, to set phobias aside, and to walk alongside others whom we used to loathe and fear.

— Pastor Dan Hooper, Los Angeles