Gay Christian theologian Dr. Brandon Ambrosino
RICH LOPEZ | Staff writer
Rich@DallasVoice.com
These are troubled times. That’s both an obvious statement and practically an understatement. And yet, we are still getting the same old messages about “God’ will” and being offered only “thoughts and prayers” to allay the damage done.
This puritanical approach to justify the immorality of the country is next level.
Faced with practically daily statements and legislation speaking against and criminalizing the LGBTQ+ population, what’s a queer to do to keep from simply going crazy?
The world is lit on fire, and I don’t have a life-changing answer here,” theologian and author Dr. Brandon Ambrosino admitted. “As a theologian, I’m often confronted with the problem of ‘If God is all-loving, then why is there evil?’ But the real problem is the problem of goodness.
“The world is shitty, so where does the good come from right now?” he continued. “What gives me hope is there are still plenty of reasons for hope.”
Ambrosino weighs in on the state of the world with his new book, Is It God’s Will? Making Sense of Tragedy, Luck, and Hope in a World Gone Wrong. Released earlier this month, the book reveals how America’s “God’s plan” theology damages the ability to solve collective problems such as climate change, gun control, disasters and so on.
And as a gay Christian theologian, Ambrosino adds insight and perspective to the question of how marginalized communities navigate — and often reject — toxic religious frameworks that blame victims while protecting systems.
Ambrosino is an out theologian and award-winning journalist who writes for The Atlantic, Washington Post, Politico and BBC. He’s a visiting professor at Villanova University and a monthly contributor to Commonweal and Christian Century.
Ambrosino’s Jerry Falwell Jr. exposé was the second most-read article online in 2019, and his viral analysis of American religious and political intersections demonstrates how someone inside these systems can still call out their failures.
The inception for his book was simply to question some of the answers he’s been given.
“I don’t like any claims that God is in control. My husband and I tried to become parents three times, and each time failed. A family member told me that just means God is planning an even better baby for us,” he said. But God is “not a puppet master or a fortune teller.”
The book was also birthed in part by an essay Ambrosino wrote after the attempted assassination of the current president last summer.
“People were saying how great it was God that saved him,” he said. “I asked then did God really save his life? Ultimately this book offers ways to reframe how we think of God and speak of it in the 21st century.
“I think about [philosopher] Jack Caputo who said, ‘The question is not what is God, but what happens in the name of God.’ It can be war, injustice and even love. My hope is for this to shine on what happens in his name.”
Ambrosino said he sees how the LGBTQ+ community can connect to the title of his book through shared experiences with harmful theology, a resilience in community, an intersectional understanding of the world and Ambrosino’s own voice challenging theological systems that have often been pitted against the LGBTQ+ community.
“Queerness is not my content, but it’s certainly my methodology,” Ambrosino said. “We queer thinkers can be messy queens. That ‘messiness’ animates every page of my writing, and I name that in the intro.
“I would say the intro connects my way of doing theology to my time in ex-gay therapy.”
Ambrosino also clarified the goal of theology and what people get wrong about it.
“I want to move people away from responding to theology as a search for what is right or wrong,” he said. “The goal of theology is to heal us and help us and to integrate fully into the dazzling people we are becoming. I can’t say I know what queer people are getting wrong, but straight people are getting God wrong when it comes to their anti-gay and -trans attitudes.”
The queer community has learned to question religious authority mostly on its own. Ambrosino’s book validates that, plus it offers a path forward for everyone.
The book recognizes the data out there about the problems with nations that lean in toward a non-secular slant. Those with the strongest beliefs in the divine exhibit the lowest support for collective action, while countries with more secular cultures demonstrate an increased capacity for responses to shared challenges.
“I am, just by nature, allergic to any systematic theology. I don’t argue; I suggest,” he said.
“This book is written for anyone who is thinking about hope.
“Hope does not spontaneously emerge from hopelessness. It is not a response to despair,” he continued. “Instead, it needs to be provoked either by love or God or the universe, where we can come together.
“I use Christian vocabulary, but it’s not just for Christians. This is for anyone who grapples with suffering.”
Is It God’s Will? Making Sense of Tragedy, Luck, and Hope in a World Gone Wrong is available at all major book retailers.