VOA常速英语:Church For All

Hello happy pride
你好，快乐，骄傲
It was very interesting I had started preaching when I was 13 years old.
非常有趣的是，我13岁时就开始布道了。
I was the licensed to preach in the southern baptist church at age 15.
我15岁时获准在南方浸信会教堂传道。
I felt a call to ministry all my life I felt like I was going to be a clergy person that I was going to be a priest.
我一生都感受神到对牧师的召唤，我觉得我要成为一名神职人员，我要成为一名牧师。
I then later went to visit my church official
后来我去拜访我的教会官员。
and I said Ive learned something about myself and he said what.
我说我学到了一些关于我自己的东西。他问是什么。
I said I think Im a homosexual
我说我觉得我是个同性恋
all the blood drained out of his face and he said have you molested kids in the sunday school class
他脸上气血上涌，他说，你在主日学课上猥亵过孩子吗？
and I said no sir.
我说没有，先生。
When I was removed from the church as a pastor because I wanted to preach to be a pastor so bad,
当我被教堂赶走不能再作为牧师，因为我很想当牧师，
I went through a very bad time I tried to find a church to go to.
我经历了一段非常糟糕的日子，我想找个教堂。
I couldnt find one I would last three sundays.
我找不到一个能让我能坚持三个星期天的。
My mother asked me do you have to tell them every time that youre a homosexual.
我妈妈问我，你每次都要告诉他们你是同性恋吗？
I said mother Im never gonna lie again.
我说了妈妈我再也不会说谎了。
I said I am who I am and so the third sunday I would go back to the same church and I was not welcome,
我说我是我，所以第三个星期天我回到同一个教堂，我不受欢迎，
and god spoke to me in the still small voice of the minds ear and said to me I love you.
神用微小声音和我心灵对话，他对我说，我爱你。
Youre my son I dont have stepsons and daughters.
你是我儿子，我没有继子和女儿。
And with that I knew god loved me and I was a gay person.
我知道上帝爱我，我是个同性恋。
It took me three months before it dawned on me.
我花了三个月才明白。
If god loves me as a gay person then god has to love every gay person too.
作为一个同性恋，如果上帝爱我，那么上帝也必须爱每一个同性恋。
With that I started my journey to found the metropolitan community church.
就这样，我开始了建立大都会社区教堂的旅程。
October the 6th 1968 I held the first meeting of metropolitan community church
1968年10月6日，我举行了第一次大都会社区教会会议
in the living room of my home in Huntington park California.
在加州亨廷顿公园我家的起居室里。
12 people showed up.
有12个人参加。
And within a year and a half we were running over a thousand in attendance
在一年半的时间里，我们的出席人数就超过了一千人。
and had bought our first piece of property here in LA.
在洛杉矶买下了我们的第一块房产。
You know I give Jesus credit for saving my soul but Troy Perry saved my life.
你知道我相信耶稣拯救了我的灵魂，但是特洛伊·佩里救了我的命。
I grew up in the pentecostal church and all of our family both sides my moms people my dads people
我在五旬节教会长大，我们全家都是，包括我妈妈那边的亲戚，我爸爸那边的亲戚
everybody went to the same church,
每个人都去了同一个教堂，
and so it was our source of family it was our social life as well as our spiritual lives.
因此，它是我们家庭的源泉，是我们的社会生活，也是我们的精神生活。
I knew I couldnt stay in the church and be gay but it trying to figure out how to get rid of the gay didnt work.
我知道我不能呆在教堂里，我是同性恋，但它试图找出摆脱同性恋的方法是行不通的。
I would pray on my knees right beside my bed.
我会跪在床旁祈祷。
At church we would have healing lines.
在教堂我们感到治愈。
You could go up and ask for prayer and they would lay hands on you and pray for you and nothing changed.
你可以上去祈求祷告，他们会把手放在你身上，为你祈祷，但一切都没有改变。
So when I would ask god to deliver me it was like asking god to cut off an arm or cut off a leg.
所以当我请求上帝来救我的时候，就像要求上帝砍下一只胳膊或者一条腿。
It was a part of me I was like god I dont understand.
那是我的一部分，我想说上帝，我不明白。
When I was in college I read reverend Troy Perrys book.
我上大学的时候读过特洛伊·佩里牧师的书。
The lord is my shepherd and he knows Im gay.
上帝是我的守护人，他知道我是同性恋。
When I read that book and found out there was somebody else who had gone through that,
当我读了那本书，发现有其他人也经历过，
it saved me from taking my own life.
它救了我一命。
I couldnt live without god.
没有上帝我活不下去。
I loved god and I knew I was a child of god.
我爱上帝，我知道我是上帝的孩子。
But I also was told by the church that I couldnt be gay and be gods child.
但教会也告诉我，我不能做同性恋，也不能做上帝的孩子。
I was so closeted I knew I was different,
我是如此的隐秘，我知道我与众不同，
but the word transgender had not come up either you conformed or you were a freak.
但是跨性别这个词并没有出现要么你遵从，要么你是个怪人。
Nobody wanted to be a freak nobody wanted to take that rejection on
没有人想成为一个怪胎，没有人愿意接受这种拒绝。
and along with the hiding came the shame and the guilt,
伴随着隐匿而来的是耻辱和罪恶感，
and also fear of being recognized fear of being challenged feeling be going to church,
也害怕被认可，害怕被挑战，害怕去教堂，
who wants to be rejected over church in front of your friends,
谁会想在你朋友面前因为教堂而被拒绝，
and I walked into founders on 6th of January 2006 so 14 years ago my life changed.
2006年1月6日，我走进了大都会社区教堂，所以14年前，我的生活发生了变化。
And now Im getting emotional.
现在我变得情绪化了。
The number of people that said to me no we dont recognize you as trans
有多少人对我说不，我们不承认你是跨性的
youre just one of us youre just like that, I love that.
你只是我们中的一员，你就是这样，我喜欢这样。
Were just being accepted for who we are.
我们只是因为我们是谁而被接受了。
When I told my family that it came out when it was 1970 I came out to them
当我告诉我的家人，它是1970年出来的时候，我对他们说了
and we talked for maybe two hours and my mother cried my sister cried
我们聊了两个小时，我妈妈哭了我姐姐哭了
and you know my mothers sisters biggest concern was that I would get hurt which I have.
你知道我母亲姐姐最担心的是我会受到伤害，我也受到了伤害。
Ive been gay-bashed you know and my dad didnt say much through the whole time
我一直都是同性恋，我爸爸一直没说什么
which was not unusual for my dad you know he didnt say we just kind of sat there but at the very end,
这对我爸爸来说很平常，他没有说我们，只是坐在那里，但是在最后
he got up and he hugged me and he said remember you will always be my son and thats my image of god,
他站起来拥抱我说，记住你永远是我的儿子，这是我对上帝的印象，
thats the god that I know and I learned that here.
这就是我认识的上帝，我在这里学到了这一点。
I always said Jesus died for my sins not my sexuality.
我总是说耶稣是为我的罪而死的，不是我的性倾向。
I dont cease being a sexual person because I become a christian whether Im heterosexual or homosexual
无论我是异性恋还是同性恋，我都不会因为成为基督徒而停止我的性取向