Radical Love: An Introduction to Queer Theology by Patrick S. Cheng

If you’ve been following along for awhile, you know that I like to choose books for review that are about some aspect of religion, particularly Christianity, as it relates to the LGBT and otherwise queer community. Most of the books I’ve looked at to date have been written by individual pastors who are queer or who possess open minds, by LGBT lay people who wish to remain identified with the church and it’s teachings and a couple by academics. The academic books tend to do the best job of dissecting Christian theology and explaining what it is and what it is not.

Never before has a book taken “queer theory” and meshed it completely with Christian theology until Patrick Cheng’s book, Radical Love: An Introduction to Queer Theology did when it was published this past March. It’s academic in nature, given the background of the well educated Reverend Dr. Cheng (Ph.D., Master of Philosophy, and M.A. in systematic theology from Union Theological Seminary in New York, a J.D. from Harvard Law School, and a B.A. from Yale College) and an ordained minister with the LGBT based Metropolitan Community Church. Dr. Cheng does though the best job I’ve ever seen of breaking down his thesis for those of us who do not hold advanced degrees in theology nor possess highly advanced critical thinking skills.

This is relatively short at 176 pages but it’s packed with ideas and connections. You can’t read it and get every nuance in a sitting. This is to be chewed upon slowly rather than devoured. You may, after finishing his work, disagree with some of his conclusions, but I think that overall some of your previous assumptions and beliefs may be changed.

Some other reviews of the book for an overview:

“Patrick Cheng’s Radical Love is an excellent introduction to queer theology. It is readable and nuanced, a marvelous teaching resource.” –Carter Heyward, author of Keep Your Courage: A Radical Christian Feminist Speaks and Professor Emerita of Theology, Episcopal Divinity School

“Patrick Cheng’s Radical Love is not only an excellent introduction to LGBT theology but an important contribution to the discipline of theology and the life of the church. It is a must read for anyone who cares about the health of the church and theology today.” –James H. Cone, Charles A. Briggs Distinguished Professor of Systematic Theology, Union Theological Seminary, New York, NY

“Thoroughly Christian and thoroughly Queer, Cheng helps readers welcome a theology that leaves no one behind.” –Chris Glaser, author of As My Own Soul: The Blessing of Same-Gender Marriage and Coming Out as Sacrament

“This book is a clear, accessible and exciting analysis of Queer Theology. Cheng perfectly captures both the challenge and the rootedness of Queer Theology.” –Professor Elizabeth Stuart, Pro Vice-Chancellor, University of Winchester, UK

“I would characterize Cheng’s notion of ‘radical love’ as ‘wild grace’ with which mainstream theology has yet to wrestle. This is a good text for introducing queer theology to undergraduate and graduate students.” –Rev. Dr. Bob Shore-Goss, Senior Pastor/Theologian, Metropolitan Community Church in the Valley, North Hollywood, CA

“Radical Love – a love so extreme that it dissolves our existing boundaries! What concept could be more liberating for a culture like ours, where lives are crucified on rigid binaries like male vs. female, us vs. them, straight vs. queer? Radical Love is an excellent introduction for beginners and an excellent synthesis for more advanced readers.” –Virginia Ramey Mollenkott, author of Sensuous Spirituality and Omnigender, among many other books.

From Publishers Weekly

Queer theology is more than LGBT people talking about God, according to Cheng, professor at Episcopal Divinity School and ordained minister in the Metropolitan Community Church. The real enterprise for queer theology is challenging binary distinctions and erasing boundaries. This erasure is made possible (indeed demanded) by the radical love espoused by Christianity. Through this love, all boundaries (gay/straight, male/female, life/death, divine/human) are dissolved. The first third of the book gallops through the history and method of queer theology. The barrage of snippets from theologians feels somewhat disjointed and overwhelming, but does provide a taste of the breadth of queer theology. Cheng then uses the framework of the Nicene and Apostles’ Creeds to show how radical love can dissolve distinctions. Even liberal Christians might be alarmed at some of the explicit images Cheng connects with God and spiritual matters. Such shocks, however, play into the argument that queer theology should trouble assumptions. Cheng’s work provides an accessible if somewhat rushed glimpse into how queer theology works; its main benefit is the extensive bibliography for those wanting more. (Mar.)
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