ABSTRACT
This chapter sets out to study the intersectional relationships between sexuality, culture, and religion. In particular, it examines how, and in what ways, culture influences the coming out experience of Christian LGBTQs. Studies on queer Christians have rarely prioritized LGBTQs from non-Western culture. This chapter intends to fill the gap by providing a glimpse on the experience of Christian LGBTQs from Confucian-influenced culture. It focuses its investigation on one particular event, that is, coming out to parents, as highlighted by our participants and by studies as the most difficult, yet most significant, of all coming out events. Based on the in-depth interviews with 35 Asian Christians in North America, this chapter analyzes parental responses towards the coming out of their child and its effects on the parent–child relationship. There are several findings that were salient. Contrary to the assumption that they would most likely stay in the closet, most of our participants had come out to their parents. But typically, they had delayed until they had achieved certain milestones in their lives before coming out to their parents. Also, we have found that there were parents who were reaching out to their child or accepting their sexuality. About one-third of our participants said that, over a period of time, one or both of their parents came around to accepting their sexuality. It is also important to take note that even though coming out creates tensions in most families, several participants mentioned that their relationships with their parents, especially their fathers, had eventually become stronger and closer.
