Generally gay people pose as straight people to hide their true identity, but what happens when a Christian poses as a gay man? Well, he sheds his bible as a weapon and pens a novel as a teaching tool.
Graduate of the evangelical Liberty University turned author, Timothy Kurek, lived as a "gay" man for a year and then wrote about the enlightening experience in the novel "The Cross in the Closet" – and not only did his views change through the process but he is inspiring others to change as well.
In his own words, Kurek was raised to use his bible as a weapon and "convert at all costs" – a motto he later realized was hyper-conservative.
"It wasn’t till I saw the rejection a friend faced at the hands of her family that I realized I needed to understand first-hand what I had put others through," he says of his lesbian friend who was shunned by her family when she came out.
At the time, the then 26-year-old realized he needed to question and understand what she went through from her perspective and then began the challenging journey of posing as a gay man. He told his entire family he was gay, including his mother – though his aunt knew the truth so that she could help his mother cope with the news. He had a gay friend named Shawn to pose as his boyfriend and he got a job at a gay café and joined a gay softball league.
"Being in the closet was the most challenging aspect. I came out as gay to my friends, family and church and by doing so, I went into the closet as straight," Kurek says. "I had no idea how emotionally detrimental being in the closet is, or how difficult it would be to live such a suppressed lifestyle. I can’t imagine what it would be like to spend decades in the closet."
What Kurek learned was life-changing and he hopes others feel the same way once they read the book and open their minds.
"I learned that homosexuality and Christianity aren’t mutually exclusive. It’s not either or. And I learned that the ultimate goal of my faith and my life, in order to be more Christ like, is to love my neighbour as myself and to live in that love intentionally every day."
Kurek was surprised by the gay community and learned that there is no gay agenda and yes, the gay community is just like the straight community.
"There is no difference, besides the obvious of course."
But what was surprising is how his own family and friends treated him while he was "gay". While Kurek expected backlash, what he received was silence and disappearance. He quotes a Martin Luther King saying; "In the end it’s not the words of our enemies we will remember, but the silence of our friends..."
"And that silence was deafening," Kurek adds.
When Kurek finally revealed his year-long journey as a gay man was indeed to gain insight into living as a gay man, the reactions were varied, but he’s proud to say most of his gay and lesbian friends stood beside him. His mother, who at first preferred to have cancer than a gay son, ended up becoming an ally to the gay community herself and it’s this kind of reversal Kurek hopes others too will embrace.
Kurek admits he had a few regrets through the whole process but won’t delve into what, only that he believes it happened the way it was supposed to. He still believes "Christ’s love never fails" and hopes other Christians too realize that homosexuality and faith can go hand in hand.