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Religious Workplaces: The Joys, Trials and Tribulations of LGBT Clergy

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Sexual Orientation and Transgender Issues in Organizations

Abstract

Christian and Jewish congregations are exempt from many of the anti-discrimination laws and regulations that govern businesses in the US and LGBT clergy may therefore experience workplace issues very differently from their “management” counterparts in the for-profit business world. While there is a very small, predominantly qualitative, literature on the personal experience of sexual and gender minority clergy, there is almost no available writing on the workplace issues that such individuals must deal with on a regular basis as church or synagogue employees. The present chapter therefore aims to introduce a sociocultural framework that can be applied to the study of LGBT clergy workplace experiences by presenting cultural-historical case studies of both progressive Jewish (American Reform Judaism) and Christian movements (the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America). After exploring the religious and political developments leading to the acceptance of gay and lesbian clergy within these congregations, the chapter concludes with a review of the major theoretical approaches that can be applied to future inquiries focusing on broadening our understanding of LGBT clergy workplace experiences. Relying upon empowerment theory and positive psychology, this chapter provides a conceptual and theoretical overview of the workplace issues that LGBT clergy in the United States confront within two distinct Judeo-Christian religious traditions. The chapter concludes with suggestions for future research in this understudied area of religious organizational culture.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The Reform Movement’s traditional exchange between secular and religious values was embodied by the committee’s review of medical and psychological studies regarding the origin of sexual identity, legal literature, and documents “prepared by Christian groups grappling with the status of homosexuals and homosexuality within their own denominations with a specific focus on the question of ordination” (CCAR 1990).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. New York City College of Technology, City University of New York, Brooklyn, NY, USA

    Eric M. Rodriguez Ph.D.

  2. Barnard College, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Chana Etengoff Ph.D.

Authors
  1. Eric M. Rodriguez Ph.D.
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  2. Chana Etengoff Ph.D.
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Correspondence to Eric M. Rodriguez Ph.D. .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept of Mgmt, Vienna Univ of Economics & Business, Vienna, Austria

    Thomas Köllen

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Rodriguez, E.M., Etengoff, C. (2016). Religious Workplaces: The Joys, Trials and Tribulations of LGBT Clergy. In: Köllen, T. (eds) Sexual Orientation and Transgender Issues in Organizations. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-29623-4_11

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