Atlanta Pastor Troy Sanders recently developed a web ministry, Preach2Me.com, to reach African-American gay men and lesbians as well as others. Contributing to the site is Dr. Kathi Martin (inset), associate pastor of First Metropolitan Community Church of Atlanta.
Internet inspiration Preach2Me.com founder believes technology can facilitate faith
A NEW WEBSITE FOR GAY MEN AND LESBIANS promises to deliver religious inspiration without the stigma of anti-gay doctrine, according to founder Atlanta Pastor Troy Sanders.
Preach2me.com, based in Atlanta, launched April 13 as an internet community for gay men and lesbians seeking religious guidance. The ministry is geared specifically toward African Americans, though Sanders said the site would expand to address disparities between black gay men and lesbians and other groups.
“We’re targeting members of the LGBT community who are not necessarily involved in local churches, or actually who don’t want to be involved in church. Church has been used oftentimes to damn and ostracize our community,” Sanders says.
Raised in church himself, Sanders said that by age 15, he had already become a minister in his home church in South Carolina. The driving force behind his ministry is powered by personal experience.
“Before coming out and deciding to walk in truth, the African-American churches I’ve been a part of here, none of them have been affirming,” he says.
Rejection of gay men and lesbians is particularly prevalent among African-American churches, he said.
“The percentage of affirming African-American churches across denomination lines is very small. Not only are they not affirming, but most times they’re even abusive,” Sanders says. “So there isn’t a lot available for proud LGBT people in African-American churches.”
PREACH2ME.COM WILL BE PRODUCED FROM an Interfaith stand-point, inclusive of all major religions, Sanders says. As an outreach, Sanders adds the site’s staff is planning an educational forum, “Sexuality in the Bible, Koran and Torah,” for July.
“Religious oppression is just as dangerous and deadly as oppression along sexual orientation lines,” he says.
The site currently offers commentary and articles from Sanders and a staff of writers and editors, including recognized religious leaders from Atlanta. They include Dr. Kathi Martin, associate pastor of First Metropolitan Community Church of Atlanta, who had long dreamed of forming her own web-based ministry.
“To tell you the truth, I had been thinking for a long time about developing a cyber ministry. And it just seemed so divinely timed when Troy called me,” Martin says.
The site opens separate portals for gay men, lesbians and transgender users. Martin works specifically with programming for lesbians and trans women, who she says are often forgotten victims of anti-gay religious scourge.
“I refer to it as marginalized among the marginalized. I think sometimes for women who think about it, they might consider it that way,” Martin explains.
“I think there are any number of women who don’t put a whole lot of thought in it because they’re simply accustomed to the manner in which our society treats them,” she says.
Martin, who also serves as minister of multicultural outreach for First MCC, says her most important goal is helping youth — who are left with few positive beacons to light their paths.
“I just have a real concern about reaching out to young people. I have a real passion for that now, the way our society is at large for young people, it’s not very affirming,” she says, referring to what she perceives as exploitation of women as sex objects in music videos and other media .
“I don’t see a whole lot of role models. I just have a real pain in me that young women don’t have a lot of places they can go to develop the more positive aspects of being women,” she says.
AS PLANNED, PREACH2ME.COM WILL ALSO eventually attract users who are not African American.
“We’re trying to reach out to non African-American communities, but the response has been rather slow,” Pastor Sanders says.
Reaching out to a gay audience with a religious message using the internet can work because some gay men and lesbians feel alienated from traditional church activities, he says.
“There are people who are not going to get up on Sunday morning and go to church. But they’ll log onto their computers on Saturday night or Sunday afternoon,” Sanders says.
The site will also eventually step up into a second phase that allows increased user interaction, including streaming audio and video, chat and blogging capabilities. Sanders says that the site will expand as it uncovers funding.
In the meantime, he thinks his ministry, overall, will benefit from a web presence.
“We’re in a technological society and a technological age where whatever we desire is offered and available to us through the internet. I believe inspiration should be one of those components available to us,” he says.
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warrior on 8/16/071:41 PM:
I have known this so-called false prophet for a number of years. I am mortified at his behavior and I hope that he will return to a sense of morality.
