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Union Theological Seminary

Liberation, Body and Spirit: Connecting Sensuality, Sexuality and Tradition in the Liberation in Truth Movement

True Liberation:  connecting sensuality, sexuality and tradition in the Liberation in Truth Movement
 
The Unity Fellowship Church, also called the Liberation in Truth Movement was begun by Rev. Carl Bean in Los Angeles, California in 1982 as a response to the needs of primarily African American gays and lesbians.  However, the mission statement is more inclusive:  “…to proclaim the sacredness of all life, thus focusing on empowering those who feel oppressed and made to feel shame.”  In order to accomplish this goal, the movement weaves together African ritual, Christian gospel and contemporary liberation theology.
 
Some Black feminist scholars have leveled some criticism towards this movement.  Some authors have argued that, although the movement seeks liberation, its structure and some of its rites remain patriarchal.  However, from my observation and interviews with two communities in Newark and New Brunswick, NJ, the structure differs from community to community.
 
The paper addresses this critique, but mainly focuses on the ritual expressions themselves which rely on a variety of bodily and sensual expressions in the attempt to reverse the brokenness of the shamed, particularly for those of non-heterosexual orientation. The paper relies on research of the movement’s history, personal interviews and observation of the two communities in Newark and New Brunswick, NJ.

Dr. Gayle R. Baldwin, Associate Professor and Acting Chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religion, the University of North Dakota, holds a Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Marquette University.  Her current research concerns the religious responses to the murder of Sakia Gunn. She plans to finish the manuscript entitled: I Am Whosoever: Religious, Sexual and Political Discourses of Response to the Murder of Sakia Gunn this summer.  The work which includes a critical investigation of the issue of race as a factor in hate crimes and among Gay and Lesbian communities.

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