CHERUBIM

02-13-2017-cherubimsm

Hello!

I’m Jay H, a.k.a Bonesnail.  You can find my work at bonesnail.com, or at Bonesnail on Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, and Instagram.

I’ve always been a fan of mythology ever since I was a little kid. Even though I wasn’t raised in a particularly religious household, growing up in Kansas always had an overwhelming presence of Christianity in the culture.  As a young adult I’d read about Apocrypha (Biblical writings Protestantism considers non-canonical) and older, discarded elements such as the Angelic Hierarchy.  I like to joke that it’s a real shame they left those out of Sunday school teachings, because I would have enjoyed church so much more if they told me stories about 4-headed Cherubim and Ophanim, the eye-covered Wheels of God’s Throne.

I feel like there’s a lot of queer folks like myself in the Midwest who grew up around religion and adopted elements of that into their work, either as inspiration or as reclamation and defiance to Christian-based bigotry. It’s certainly been a way for me to not only enrich my art, but also shed myself of long-existing angst about my nonbinary trans identity.  It’s still in its infancy, but I feel like the Queer Occultism aesthetic is something that will continue to grow and inspire others.

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An Interview with Transgender Faith Leader Stephanie Mott

I first met Stephanie Mott in May, 2011. We were fighting for the Manhattan, Kansas commissioners to not repeal the anti-discrimination ordinance passed back in February that added sexual orientation and gender identity to the list of protected classes. You read that right, only three months after passing the ordinance the new Manhattan commission was working on revoking the rights of queer Manhattan residents. The anti-discrimination ordinance had made Manhattan, Kansas the second place in Kansas to add not only sexual orientation but gender identity to protected classes of citizens with Lawrence, Kansas being the first. In three short months, we saw these rights being ripped from under us.

We heard arguments from both sides, watching as ministers and fellow residents saying the protection was unnecessary because they had never seen someone discriminated on these bases. These responses came after person after person recounted tales of discrimination based on their gender and their sexual orientation, one of those people being me and another being Stephanie Mott. I remember coming down from speaking, shaking like a leaf. I was red, scared, and nervous. Stephanie hugged me and told me I had done an amazing job and handed me the card for her organization, KSTEP (Kansas Statewide Transgender Education Project).

This experience of being given rights and then watching them ripped out from under you and meeting Stephanie are experiences that have changed my life and have shaped many things in the years after. They are stories I recount often as the fight for basic protections continues across the United States and across the world. Stephanie, her kindness, and her story, and her dedication are something I look to frequently as something to strive towards.

What strikes me most about Stephanie is her unwavering faith. Stephanie is a Christian transsexual woman who frequently posts about her religion and its influence on her life. She even has a book titled God Doesn’t Have a Penis, and Other Writings by a Transsexual Christian Woman. She does not let those who question her identity and its intersection with her religion get in her way. This is most evident in her Trans Faith Tour she is currently doing across the country, talking about her experiences as a Christian trans woman.

I recently interviewed Stephanie about her Trans Faith Tour, KSTEP, and several other things.

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