BANKERS HILL – San Diego Pride week kicked off Wednesday night with Light up the Cathedral, an interfaith service full of LGBTQ+ affirming religious leaders that has held a special place in the hearts of spiritual locals for the past decade.
“It’s a rare and perhaps even unique relationship between a Christian faith community and Pride, and I hope it’s a model that other pride organizations might follow,” said the Very Reverend Penny Bridges, dean of St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral, at the service, which she said is one of her favorite moments of the year.
County Supervisor Monica Montgomery-Steppe also loves attending the service at St. Paul’s each year.
“These types of events and ceremonies are more crucial than they’ve ever been, and it gives all of us a much needed reminder that giants can fall and mountains can move when we come together,” she said, describing her faith as what grounds her during turbulent times.
Montgomery-Steppe acknowledged that has not always been possible for LGBTQ+ people.
“You have been pushed away from the church and discriminated against in your right to worship. This, as we have heard already here this evening, has caused tremendous hurt, often leaving the LGBTQ+ community members feeling that places of faith are not for them. But I am here to say that I believe the right to worship is for everyone, not just for some,” the county leader said, adding that others, including Bridges, share the belief that faith is for everybody.
For that reason, on behalf of the Board of Supervisors, Montgomery-Steppe presented a proclamation naming July 16 as Rev. Penny Bridges Day.
Councilmember Stephen Whitburn brought a similar proclamation naming July 16 as Light up the Cathedral Day in the city of San Diego.
History
In 2015, Bridges initiated a tradition of St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral lighting up its entire exterior in rainbow colors, the first time a mainstream denomination so visibly took part in Pride celebrations.
In 2017, an award was added to the service, handed out to a religious leader or organization for its persistent, sustained support of the LGBTQ+ community.
The Light of Pride award was first given to Reverend Troy Perry, a founder of Metropolitan Community Church and queer faith pioneer. This year’s honoree, Pastor Dan Koeshall, is a local leader in the same denomination created by and for LGBTQ+ people.
“Siblings, let us keep shining boldly and brightly. Let’s keep on bringing hope and justice and love wherever we go,” Koeshall urged the congregation upon receipt of the award.
A year after the inaugural Light of Pride award in 2017, event organizers turned to more political and social justice work. Instead of just highlighting religious institutions where LGBTQ+ people are welcome, a coalition of faith leaders was formed, devOUT, to publicly denounce when religious rights were used to defend homophobic and transphobic actions.
Through public advocacy and educational programming, these faith leaders meant to show that religious freedoms and LGBTQ+ rights are not at odds with each other.
“The knowledge that there are leaders and institutions that would welcome us, would fight and work alongside us, and would make active the words and convictions of their faith to build us up, to protect and defend us, to welcome and comfort us, is, and has always been, a powerful thing,” said Kristin Flickinger, interim executive director at Pride.
Social justice became key to the interfaith service, as honorees and speakers focused on such issues as combating antisemitism, Christian nationalism, the border crisis, missing and murdered Indigenous women and two-spirit folks, racism and transphobia.
“We are in a season of rampant and vast disregard and loathing, in some cases, for the sanctity or the preciousness of life. The misuse and abuse of power and resources is causing global catastrophes,” said Caedmon Grace, this year’s keynote speaker.
The transgender pastor urged the audience to find the light which makes darkness flee, rather than trying to fight the darkness.
This week’s service
The interfaith service remains popular, with some saying it is their favorite Pride event. This year as in the past, hundreds crowded in to hear music, prayers, liturgy, poetry, scripture readings and a keynote address in the two-hour service.
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The Pride Pop-Up Symphony, San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus and San Diego Women’s Chorus combined protest songs, musical theater numbers and pop classics for the audience.
Reverend Maria Harman led a meditation while playing crystal singing bowls. To match this year’s theme of finding the light, composer Joey Pearson, music minister at the Oceanside Sanctuary, wrote and performed a song to close out the service.
Dozens of faith leaders took turns doing readings from multiple traditions while sporting rainbow vestments, vivid yamulkes and other religious accouterments. The majority of the clergy in attendance were protestant, yet Jewish, Catholic, Buddhist, Muslim, humanist, spiritualist and universalist leaders stepped forward to speak as well.
Government officials like gubernatorial candidate Toni Atkins, city attorney Heather Ferbert,
Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera and San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/Clerk Jordan Marks attended.
After the service, Bridges led a procession around the cathedral where each rainbow light on its exterior was lit, walking the same route as 10 years ago in a tradition that marks the historic Bankers Hill building as a beacon on a hill for the LGBTQ+ community.
