Reverend Troy Perry
Country
United States
Birth - Death
1940 -
Occupation
Religion
Description
Troy Perry is the founder of the largest LQBTQ-affiliated Christian Church in the world, the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC). His spiritual work in this endeavour was both a personal representation of his faith and a mission to provide social justice: to create a spiritual environment for the LGBTQ community which was free from intolerance and bigotry.
Perry describes his early youth and adult years as one of religious fanaticism. He was licensed as a Baptist preacher at the age of 15. After marriage and two sons he became a preacher in Illinois and subsequently in California. In both cases, however, Perry’s homosexuality was revealed and he was forced to resign. It was in the second of such circumstance that he divorced his wife.
After several years of aimless drifting, Tory Perry attempted suicide in 1968. This failed attempt encouraged Perry to return to religion, but at this time he decided to do so by embracing his homosexuality. He founded the Metropolitan Community Church in Los Angeles specifically for LGBTQ parishioners and their allies. By 1971 the congregation had constructed its own building, being the first such established church of its kind anywhere in the world.
Troy Perry used the MCC as an outlet for his LGBTQ activism. For example, he performed same-sex marriage rituals despite the fact that they were not legally recognized, and he ordained women from the very beginning. He rallied his congregations against various State and Federal pieces of legislation that impinged on LGBTQ rights, and he organized the 1979 National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights. Similarly, Perry spoke at the National Equality March on Washington in 2009.
Today there are over 300 Metropolitan Community Churches around the world in 22 countries and with over 43,000 members. Troy Perry is an internationally recognized spiritual leader and an award-winning human rights activist. His continued advocacy for the integration of LGBTQ spirituality into the wider religious community has resulted in the MCC becoming a member of the World Council of Churches. In addition, Troy Perry has authored the book The Lord is My Shepherd and He knows I’m Gay (1996), and co-authored Don’t be Afraid Anymore: The Story of Reverend Troy Perry and the Metropolitan Community Churches (1992), and Profiles in Gay and Lesbian Courage (1991).
The MCC is considered the largest organization in the world which touches the lives of the LGBTQ community. It is also considered the largest private organization to support those individuals affected by HIV/AIDS on an international basis. These achievements are the result of Troy Perry’s decisive action to move beyond his personal challenges to create an embracing fellowship in a culture that had rejected, and continues to reject, his LGBTQ community.
The need for the MCC was driven by Troy Perry’s personal need to both feel safe in a hostile and unfriendly environment, and to have a warm home of acceptance and family. He succumbed to an honest desire to love an individual of the same sex, a desire which did not conform to society’s views on how life should be lived. Fortunately, he was not alone in his quest to find peace and happiness with his lifestyle, and thus the MCC became his extended family. His very first sermon at the MCC was titled ‘Be True to You’ and discussed personal honesty, the importance of community support, and the need for action to support each other and the community as a whole.
Throughout, the MCC has attracted opposition and homophobia. Many times its affiliated churches have been vandalized and members harassed or beaten.. This includes many deaths in 1973 when a building used by the church was torched – its pastor was among the dead. Despite these obstacles, Perry and the MCC continue to flourish based on its foundations of honesty and promotion of human rights.
