I'm not saying you should skip out on my March 2nd sermon but...

Sunday, March 2, 10:25am, First Congregational United Church of Christ (1126 SW Park Ave) in downtown Portland is pleased to have as its guest preacher in worship The Rev. Malcolm Boyd, a priest for over 50 years in the Episcopal Church who first “unofficially” came out as a gay man when he wrote the prayer, “This is a homosexual bar, Jesus” in his best-selling 1965 book, Are You Running with Me, Jesus?  He officially came out in 1977.  His remarks, titled “Departures and Arrivals,” will speak to his experience as a gay clergy and civil rights activist.

Boyd will be joined by his life partner, Mark Thompson.  On May 16, 2004, The Rt. Rev. Jon Bruno, Bishop of Los Angeles, blessed the union of Rev. Boyd and Mr. Thompson, on the twentieth anniversary of their relationship, in the Cathedral of St. Paul, Los Angeles.  Six Episcopal bishops participated in the holy union ceremony.

Boyd is the author of 29 books, including: As I Live and Breathe: Stages of an Autobiography;  Free to Live, Free to Die;  Christian: Its Meaning in an Age of Future Shock; and Take Off the Masks.  In 2005, Union Theological Seminary awarded him the prestigious Unitas Award, citing him as: “Poet, priest, pioneer; for his activism in the Civil Rights movement; for his lasting influence as a role model for gay clergy; and for his best selling spiritual classic, Are You Running with Me, Jesus?”  Boyd is in Portland promoting his new book, Samuel Joseph for President, a collection of satire and stories on the media, politics, religion and race, published by KenArnoldBooks.

You can learn more about First Congregational UCC Portland here.