I had the privilege last night of watching an amazing movie called Camp Out.  From the web site:

"Camp Out is a feature documentary film that follows ten Midwestern teenagers as they attend the first overnight Bible Camp for gay Christian youths. For these six boys and four girls, it’s just as hard to come out as Christian as it is to come out as gay.  They’re caught in the battle between religion, politics and sexuality that’s raging in the United States today. These kids are outsiders – their straight classmates ostracize them and their churches reject them. But like all teens, they yearn to feel at home, somewhere. Struggling to find a way to be true to both their spirituality and their sexual identity, these teens come to camp hoping to finally find a place of acceptance."

I was moved by the differences in these kids but how all of that disappeared as they realized common community for the first time. I also saw glimpses of myself in some of the students as I remember the struggle for identity and relationships… and I saw myself in the counselors as I left feeling very motivated to get involved in a camp like this.

One of the most striking things in the movie for me was near the end when the students were contemplating leaving camp to return home and one of them called it a return to “the straight world.”  Though I’d never heard that term before, I think it’s a reality for many in the GLBT community who don’t feel like they fit in the world around us – and it highlights the need for such safe havens as this camp provides.

I strongly recommend this film to anyone who wants to try to understand the reconciliation of faith and sexuality.  This film shows not only the possibility of such a merger, but also the faces of the victims who are caught in the crossfire.

If you’re in the State College area, this movie will air again next week on Tuesday, April 29 at 7:30pm as part of Penn State’s One in Ten Film Festival.  I’ll be there and I’d love to see a lot more!