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Bisexual Women and Theology: A Guide to My Syllabus
Margaret Robinson
This syllabus project was originally written for Dr. Marilyn Legge’s course, Feminist Theological Ethics (EMT 5943), at Emmanuel College. It does not reflect any course now being offered, but is rather a proposal for a course.
This syllabus reflects the course for which it was written in five ways:
1. Awareness of our positioning. Throughout the course I focussed on how social location can influence values and identity. This is reflected in the syllabus first by the brief Professor Self-Positioning piece. Second, I included the development of this awareness as a learning goal for students. Third, I organized the units specifically to focus on particular elements of social positioning (age, race, class, etc.) and to explore how those differences might change the way that women experience, understand or live out bisexuality. Finally, through the reading questions I have tried to encourage students to ask questions about the social positioning of the authors of the assigned articles.
2. Emphasis on justice-seeking movements. In a sense, this is central to my course syllabus, since the bisexual movement views itself as a justice-seeking movement. As well, its extension beyond issues of sexual identity (to adopting an anti-racist or feminist position, for example) fosters a sense of solidarity with other social justice movements. Through the units I have chosen I have attempted to draw as many of these connections to other movements as possible.
3. Sense of accountability. Through the course objectives and the reading questions I have attempted to lead students to questions how the authors and themselves understand their communities of accountability. The section on monogamy/polyamory attempts to examine in a specific situation what accountability means between individuals, and whether such a concept can be devoid of issues related to social power.
4. Identifying foundational values. This is explicitly laid out as a learning goal in the syllabus. As well, I chose articles that attempt to situate norms in their historical context. Like many of the authors we read in EMT 5943, the writers in this syllabus often begin to re-examine their received norms as the result of the experience of suffering–through exclusion, mis-naming, biphobia, homophobia or heterosexism.
5. Focus on the body. I attempt to keep the course grounded in experiences of the body through some of the units (experiences of racialized bodies, those constructed as disabled, or aged), and also by choosing authors who purposely attempt to create an embodied spirituality or theology.
6. Sense of what is missing. The course also highlights for me a sense of what is missing from my own syllabus. I have not included articles on ecology, or sexual violence, for example. As well, the articles on race do not address post-colonial thought. In part this oversight is a community one, since not many articles exist which address these issues from a specifically bisexual perspective.
Course Description
I have tried to create a two-tiered course which includes both advanced
and basic degree students. Although I have not specified prerequisites,
I would prefer students to have had some familiarity with concept of identity,
community development or political action, either from their personal
histories or prior course work. It may be that the basic degree component
would be more suitable for undergraduate students nearing the end of their
programme.
Professor Positioning
I felt it would be important in the syllabus to make my own social position,
values, and commitments clear. Students often worry that unless they agree
with the opinions of their instructor they will not receive a high mark.
Since I have strong personal opinions and investment in the topic of this
syllabus, this worry might be even more acute for students. I wanted to
be clear that it my goal to mark students on their work and academic skill
in the class and assignments, and not on their personal politics.
Course Objectives
In reality, I probably have a myriad of objective for the course, both
for myself and the students. I choose to include these five in the syllabus
to focus on the critical reading skills I hope the students will develop.
1. Discover and evaluate your own value system and methodology
for ethical decision-making.
I hope that this will come about as the result of deconstructing the arguments
and values of the articles. I expect that if given the tools to identify
assumptions within writing that students will be able to identify their
own assumptions more easily. I may be able to supplement this with assignments
of a self-reflective nature.
2. Accurately assess views different from your own.
Although I am not presenting a large variety of “opposing”
viewpoints I will be presenting their basic frameworks in lectures during
class. These will relate to the articles. For example, before students
read the article on ex-gays I will briefly explain the ex-gay movement
and its beliefs in order to facilitate understanding of the author and
her article.
3. Discover the influence of social positioning on sexuality.
This is an important element to the course, and one I hope will act as
a corrective to monolithic views of same-sex sexuality. I hope that students
will leave the course not with a sense of what bisexuality is, but rather
with a sense that there are many bisexualities, and that social positioning
has an impact on sexuality across orientations.
4. Be able to address questions about religious and ethical dimensions
of sexuality within a tradition of your choice.
I have tried to provide religious and theological material from a variety
of Christian traditions, as well as some non-Christian faiths. I will
encourage students to engage a faith tradition of their choice for their
projects.
Course Plan
The class will begin with the basic degree tutorial. In this section we
will discuss the readings and the reading questions, which were assigned
the previous week. Strategically, by beginning with the undergraduate
students, I hope to answer many of their more basic concept questions
before the question period in the lecture.
In an hour-long lecture period I would plan for ten minutes of announcements
or clarification, followed by a thirty-minute lecture, followed by a twenty-minute
question period. The content of the lectures will relate to the assigned
readings. My aim is to present each article in its theoretical framework,
and to explicate some of the concepts the authors will use.
Course Requirements
Attendance
My own experience has taught me that attendance is vital to maintain connection
with the course material. I hope that my attendance standards will discourage
skipping, which tends to happen more frequently with courses whose subject
matter (such as sexuality) is deemed “easy” or “self-evident.”
Yet at the same time I don’t want to penalize individuals who are
experiencing a genuine crisis.
Assignments
Reading questions: These are to serve three purposes. 1) They ensure that
people do the reading. 2) They provide a basis for discussion in class
tutorials. 3) They are designed to help students identify the foundational
values and assumptions of the writers.
Reflection papers: These assignments are intended to foster the skills
mentioned in course objective #1. Spacing assignments throughout the course
helps avoid a large end-of-term crunch. For more information on the reflection
papers see the handout.
Major paper: With the major papers students are given the chance to show
that they have understood one of the units of the course thoroughly, but
also to bring in a topic of their own interest. I have made the page limits
rather modest. By having the due date be the last day of class I expect
to be one of the first major papers due for many students. The advantage
of this is that it may be written before the assignment load of other
courses becomes heavy.
Grading Scheme: In the original project I included the grading scheme
of our school, although I have reservations about the way it is used in
practice. It is my ideal that any student who did all of their assignments
perfectly could obtain an A. I don’t like the idea of intentionally
curving the marking. I expect this view could lead to a lot of administrative
meetings.
I. Sexual Identity Development and Personhood
I begin from the belief that an understanding of sexual identity models,
such as social constructionism or essentialism, is necessary for students
to grasp before moving on to look at sexuality-related issues. Articles
frequently have working assumptions about the origins of sexual identity
which remain unsaid. By beginning with the sexual identity models I hope
to enable students to identify the assumptions about sexuality which are
made by writers later in the course.
Class 1: Introduction
I will begin with a half-hour introductory lecture outlining the goals
and approach of the course (see Introductory lecture). I will also introduce
the readings for the next class. Fifteen minutes will be spent on an in-class
assignment, the sexuality questionnaire. This is intended only to gauge
the knowledge level of the class and will not be marked. The remaining
fifteen minutes will be spent grouping the class into their tutorial sessions
and explaining their function.
Class 2: Sexual identity development
Basic degree reading load: 38 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 37 pages
Although the assigned pages are about the same for basic and advanced degree, their content is significantly different. With the basic degree articles, I am trying to introduce the idea that labels are chosen to reflect the experience of selfhood. If this experience changes, or if more applicable labels are discovered, then the way one describes identity may change. In addition, I want to introduce the idea that persons may also conform to fit the expectations of their labels, and that their experience of their self as a sexual person may change over time.
The Chater/Finkler article is divided into two parts. The first is an article Finkler wrote in 1983, called “Lesbians who sleep with men.” The second section is an interview, with Chater asking Finkler, who now identifies as bisexual, how her identity has changed over time, and how various elements of experience have affected that. The article introduces elements of class, lesbian-bisexual politics, sexism, homophobia, and racial difference. The terminology is academic, but the format is easy to read.
The Meg Clarion article, “The hasbians,” is a brief look at a support group for formerly lesbian-identified bisexual women. It’s an easy and quick read and provides many quotes from the women in the group. The article introduces the gendered nature of romantic and sexual interaction, and will provide a wider context for the more specific account of Finkler.
Candace Chellew’s piece comes from Whosoever, an online magazine for GLBT Christians of any tradition. Chellew’s article takes a more essentialist approach. Despite a sexual history that includes a heterosexual marriage, she believes her true identity is, and has always been, lesbian. She also introduces the idea that some people experience their sexuality as a choice. Her primary message is that Christians must choose for themselves whether their sexuality is compatible with their faith.
The shared article, Liz A. Highleyman’s “Identity and ideas:
strategies for bisexuals,” is a good introductory piece. It situates
the bisexual movement in relation to the history of gay and lesbian movements.
It gives a brief explanation of essential and social construction perspectives
on sexuality. Highleyman advocates a political model based on similar
goals rather than similar identities.
With the advanced degree articles, I want to introduce the basic models
of sexual development, but also examine and trouble their assumptions,
such as linearity, and a movement toward increasing accuracy in reflecting
an inner sexual essence or truth. I wanted to introduce the idea of chosen
sexuality as well as social construction and essentialism, and explore
the political meanings and uses of these positions. I have attempted to
choose articles for the AD students which are more traditionally academic
in their presentation of the issues.
The Paula C. Rust, article is a traditional academic piece, and more difficult to read than those chosen for basic degree students. Rust presents the results of a study of lesbian and bisexual women’s identity formation process. Her article challenges the linear model of sexual development, which portrays the identity process as a movement toward a personal truth or essence.
The two pieces by Kim Ficera briefly present the idea of choice in sexual identity. The first article, “The movement is wrong. Choosing is powerful,” introduces Frank Aqueno and his organization, the Queer By Choice network. The second, “A conversation with Frank Aqueno,” delves into the political meaning of sexual identity choice. Both address the implications of asserting sexuality as a choice in light of conservative American arguments against homosexuality.
Class 3: Visibility
Basic degree reading load :15 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 25 pages
This weeks reading overlap, with the exception of one additional article for the advanced degree students.
K evin Lano’s “Bisexual History: Fighting Invisibility,” is an overview of the bisexual movement in the UK, US, Australia and New Zealand, and in some non-western cultures as well. I like this article’s scope as well as its brevity.
Carole Bass’s article, “Both ends against the middle: how gays and straights make bisexuals invisible,” examines monosexism. This article was chosen in place of Kenji Yoshino’s original article in Stanford Law Review, “The Epistemic Contract of Bisexual Erasure,” which is 99 pages long when printed. The Bass article discusses the Yoshino argument in non-academic language, and interviews him about his position. I have included Yoshino’s original paper in the bibliography as an additional resource.
Jay P. Paul’s article, “The bisexual identity: An idea without
social recognition,” is a scholarly writing. It provides a review
of bisexuality’s place in early psychiatric theory, its role in
ground-breaking sexuality studies, and its position in relation to gay
and lesbian movements and communities.
Class 4: Age and Disability
Basic degree reading load: 21 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 44 pages
In this section I want to introduce basic degree students to the ways in which sexuality might be experienced differently by the disabled and elderly, both of whom are presented by society as non-sexual. I hope to draw a parallel between the way that sexual identity is socially constructed and the way that age and disability are constructed by maintaining a particular image as normative and creating a society which reflects and caters to that norm.
Pamela Walker’s article, “Reflecting on physical disability and (Bi)sexuality,” begins with the July 1987 issue of Playboy which features Ellen Stohl, a disabled woman. She brings up important issues around bodies, who is considered sexual, infantalization of the disabled, and gender differences.
“Grey-haired and above suspicion,” is by Bobbi Kepel, a marriage therapist and substance abuse counsellor. Her piece is a personal reflection on her coming-out journey, which began for her later in life, after having married and raised children. The reading level is easy, but it raises issues of identity, emotional commitment, polyamory, monogamy, and life changes which will be important later in the course.
The first shared article is by Beverly Wildung Harrison. “The older person’s worth in the eyes of society,” approaches the issue from a theological and ethical perspective. Because Harrison writes so clearly, I felt she was a good choice for both basic and advanced degree students.
The second shared article is an piece called “Older Adults,” prepared by the Office of the General Assembly, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). This deals specifically with sexuality and eros, and the older members of congregations. It aims to assists parishes to respond to the changing sexual needs of older parishioners.
The advanced degree articles look at sexual identity as an embodied reality, and explore the way that experience changes over time. I hope to make advanced degree students aware of the social and symbolic significance that is attached to particular bodies, and the ways this affects those individuals.
“Bisexuals at midlife: Commitment, salience, and identity,” by Martin S Weinburg, Colin J. Williams and Douglas W. Pryor, is a scholarly article. It presents the results of a study of fifty-six bisexuals in San Francisco, and looks at changes in sexuality over time from a constructionist perspective. It raises issues of monogamy and polyamory, choice of partners, and the meaning of sexuality for the participants.
Elizabeth Stuart’s article, “Disruptive Bodies: disability, embodiment and spirituality,” offers a theology of the body which places the disabled experience at its centre. She addresses issues of embodiment, de-sexualization; abuse, and sexual surrogacy.
II. Sexuality and Social Difference
In this section I aim first to provide an overview of the political issues
between lesbian and bisexual feminism, and then to show how the experience
of sexuality might differ according to gender identity, race and class
positioning. I want to present gender as encompassing a variety of forms
apart from masculinity and femininity, and as changing over time and across
cultures. I present racial issues first in terms of black lesbian and
bisexual experience, and then in terms of other racial groups including
mixed or multiple race identities. By doing this I hope to first identify
the tendency to binary thinking in terms of gender, sex and race, and
then to challenge simple distinctions by introducing moments of discontinuity,
overlap and blending.
Class 5: Feminist Politics
Basic degree reading load: 25 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 41 pages
The basic degree articles in this section rely heavily on personal narrative. I expect this will help the students to understand the issues from a personal perspective. I also wanted to introduce the work of two key figures within the bisexual movement, Loraine Hutchins and Lani Kaahumanu. They are best known for their groundbreaking book, Bi Any Other Name, but the have also continued to do important work as anti-racist feminist bisexual activists.
Sharon Dale Stone presents her article from a first-person perspective as a lesbian-identified woman. “Bisexual women and the ‘threat’ to lesbian space: or, what if all the lesbians leave?” looks at the vilification of bisexual women in lesbian communities. She writes of her own experience of moving out of her biphobia, and examines some of the myths and fears around women’s bisexuality. Her focus encompasses communities in the US and Canada, with a heavier emphasis on the Canadian context.
Peg O’Connor’s article, “Warning! Contents under heterosexual Pressure,” also examines biphobia from a lesbian perspective. She connects the stereotypes of bisexual women with patriarchy’s stereotypes of women.
Loraine Hutchins and Lani Kaahumanu present two articles, each called
“Overview.” These pieces look at what makes “a community,”
what makes a community “bisexual,” and how we build a community
that is safe and supportive without replicating the oppression we have
experienced elsewhere.
Although the authors of the advanced degree articles do draw on personal
experience, they tend to place bisexual feminism within a more complex
philosophical and political framework.
In her article “Bisexuality politics and community,” Loraine
Hutchins reflects on the creation of bisexual community and culture. She
names some of the experiences which led to bisexual separatism, describes
milestone events in bisexual community history, beginning in 1972, and
examines how AIDS, erotophobia and other issues shaped bisexual political
consciousness.
Tamara Bower, in “Bisexual women, feminist politics,” argues that lesbians and bisexual women share the experience of a fundamental oppression: male supremacy. She examines issues such as heterosexual privilege, arguing that such privilege is given only to those who accept male domination. The oppression that some lesbian theorists see as targeting only lesbians is, Bower argues, actually directed at any woman who gets “out of line.” She then looks at how male supremacy affects dynamics within glbt communities.
Elizabeth Armstrong’s article, “Traitors to the cause?” examines several instances of biphobia in gay and lesbian community history, and explores the issues behind the exclusion of bisexuals. She explores why the response to bisexuality is gendered, with lesbians responding more negatively than gay men. She introduces concepts such as phallocentrism, compulsory heterosexuality, and internalized oppression.
Kristen G Esterberg’s article is “Bisexual accounts and the limits of lesbian community.” The piece draws heavily on personal narrative as it addresses issues such as homogeneity and fluidity of identity, and identification with particular communities. The article was written in 1997, before bisexual communities were as visible as they are now. The main focus of the article is on why some women feel comfortable or uncomfortable seeing themselves as part of the lesbian community.
In “Queer ethics; or, the challenge of bisexuality to lesbian ethics,”
Elisabeth D. Daumer argues that bisexuality can offer “an ethics
of difference.” Daumer wants an ethic that can acknowledge difference
without creating oppressive hierarchies.
Class 6: Gender Variation
Basic degree reading load: 22 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 42 pages
The basic degree readings for this week take on a stronger religious focus than those of the previous weeks. Part of this is that more material is available on gender variation from an explicitly theological perspective. I aimed to introduce the writing of a significant theologian in this area (Mollenkott). I chose articles that would explore binary labels such as butch/femme and masculine/ feminine as well as explore categories such as transgender and transsexual. The articles for the basic degree students tend to approach these issues through personal narrative.
Virginia Ramey Mollenkott is a Christian theologian and increasingly
has become a spokesperson on transgender and transsexual issues. Her article,
“Gender diversity and Christian community,” looks at gender
binaries and the ways they are reinforced. She introduces the work of
Judith Butler, relates gender acceptance to scriptural texts, and provides
definitions for gender-related terms.
Kory Martin-Damon is a female-to-male (FTM) transsexual. His “Essay
for the inclusion of transsexuals,” examines some of the misconceptions
about transpeople and argues that they share many issues in common with
bisexuals.
Paul Turner is a gay male pastor from Atlanta, GA, who writes a column called “Seeds of Hope” for Whosoever, and online magazine for glbt Christians. This article, “Seeds of Hope: What is transgendered?” responds to a letter asking how bisexuals and transpeople fit into the debates in many churches around homosexuality.
The shared articles introduce the idea of butch/femme genders in queer women’s culture, and attempt to address the stereotypes which surround them (e.g., all bi women are femmes; butch and femme replicate heterosexual inequalities).
Leah Lilith Albrecht-Samarasinha’s article, “On being a bisexual femme,” uses her own experience, as well as the work of gender theorists such as Leslie Feinberg, to examine how femme identity differs from feminine identity. She offers a vision of femme as a form of queer visibility which can challenge, rather than reinforce the gender binary.
In “Too butch to be bi” Robin Sweeny explores the infrequently-addresses issue of bisexual butches. Generally, people assume bisexual women will gender present as feminine (how else, they reason, could they attract men). Sweeny explores how dynamics between her and her partners differ when their gender does not meet the expected binary pairings of masculine/ feminine, or when this pairing does not coincide with the “appropriate” sex (e.g., when a masculine woman dates a feminine man).
The advanced degree articles take an academic approach to the issues of gender variation. The Mollenkott and Starchild articles are theological and philosophical, whereas the Allgeier and Lebacz articles are medical/scientific. The latter are extremely technical. It is not my aim to produce students steeped in the fine details of genetics, but rather to introduce some idea of the complexity of the discussion of gender, sex, and issues such as transsexual and intersexed people.
Virginia Ramey Mollenkott’s article, “Femininity, masculinity, and human fulfilment,” describes the role of heteropatriarchy in defining what is a “natural” gender expression. She looks at historical approaches to gender, from Greek philosophy to medical examinations of brain difference. Her approach is theological and her interest is for the implications of gender variation for Christian communities.
Albert and Elizabeth Allgeier’s article, “Normal and atypical gender differentiation,” is an excerpt from a medical text. They describe the developmental stages of sexual differentiation in the fetus. They explore variations caused by hormonal or chromosomal differences. This will provide a foundation for advanced degree students from which to examine issues of transsexuality.
In “A Transsexual theology,” Starchild examines the meaning of scriptural texts on eunuchs for developing a Christian position on transsexuality. She distinguishes transsexuality from other issues, such as cross-dressing, and she explores the meaning of vocation in relation to the role of transsexuals in the church.
Karen Lebacqz examines the issue of intersexed children in “Difference or Defect? Intersexuality and the Politics of Difference.” She explains the medical procedures around determining the sex of the child, and some of the procedures used to “fix” intersexed children. She explores the role of intersexed persons in non-Western cultures. She also examines the ethical issues around medical intervention, arguing that it creates and maintains a gender binary at the expense of the intersexed.
Class 7: Race - Black lesbian and bisexual women
Basic degree reading load: 28 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 28 pages
I chose to begin to examine race from the perspective of black lesbian and bisexual women for two reasons. The first is that there is a large body of black lesbian feminist writing from which to draw. This heritage makes it easier to introduce complex issues relating race and sexuality. The second is that I expect that students will initially be thinking of race in terms of binaries. By beginning from where students are (or where I suspect they might be) I hope to introduce complexity to the discussion of race and sexuality that will lead to exposure of the binary as insufficient, limiting and artificial. Since race is not yet addressed sufficiently in university classrooms I chose to have the basic and advanced degree students share readings of moderate complexity.
Beverly Greene is a psychology professor at St. John’s University in New York. Her article, “African American Lesbian and Bisexual Women,” looks at the impact of heterosexism, racism and sexism on sexual identity development. Greene notes that studies of the psychology of sexual identity have tended to ignore women of colour. She makes connections between racialized stereotypes, gender, and sexuality, revealing how the history of black slavery has influenced black women’s experience of themselves as sexual. She notes the role that black churches play in the African-America community, and attributes their homophobia and sex-negativity to internalized racism.
In “Mati-ism and black lesbianism,” Wekker compares and contrasts mati-ism, an Afrocentric working-class construction of bisexuality, with black lesbianism, which she identifies as having middle-class Eurocentric roots. She begins her article with an examination of the sexual history of slavery, particularly in relation to Surinamese (West African) women. She compares the sexual traditions of African women as they developed under slavery conditions in various locales, including the Dutch West Indies, the Netherlands, and the US.
Valerie Barlow presents a short womanist reflection in “Bisexuality and Feminism: One black woman’s perspective.” She names some of the weaknesses she sees in the mainstream feminist movement, and turns to the writing of Angela Davis for new approaches. Barlow endorses a feminist socialist approach to sexism, racism and homophobia which, folllowing Davis, she sees as emerging from economic structures of domination.
White bisexual feminist Abby Wilkerson examines the “myth of the cyborg” in her article, “Ending at the skin: Sexuality and race in feminist theorizing.” She uses Donna Haraway’s image of the cyborg to explore how white racial and sexual norms are reproduced. She introduces such concept as the “flight from whiteness,” which ignores white privilege, and coalitional politics, which require racial awareness on the part of white participants.
Class 8: Race- thinking beyond binary categories of race
Basic degree reading load: 29 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 52 pages
By focussing on the parallels between biracial and bisexual women I hope to reveal the difficulties of maintaining separate or distinct categories within a binary. The first three basic degree articles approach biracial and bisexual experience through personal reflection.
Yasmin Prabhudas’s short article, “Bisexuals and people of mixed Race,” draws parallels between the two “middle” grounds of bisexuality and mixed race identity. She sees these bridge identities as fostering greater dialogue.
In “Passing: Pain or privilege?” Naomi Tucker reflects on her identity as a Jewish bisexual, and her experience of passing and not passing. She presents issues of racism, antisemitism, sexism, and homophobia in historical context within her personal narrative.
Beverly Yuen Thompson’s article “Fence sitters, switch hitters, and bi-bi girls,” looks at multi-racial experiences from her position as a bisexual who is “both Chinese and white.” She explores connections between the experience of being biracial and bisexual (the bi-bi girls).
The two shared articles are easy to read, yet they raise important issues around race and sexuality in a Canadian context. I expect that basic and advanced degree students will draw from these pieces at whatever level they are able.
“Toward a feminist bisexual politic,” is a transcription of a conversation between members of the Bisexual Anthology Collective, who edited the book Plural Desires. Acharya, Leela, Nancy Chater, Dionne Falconer, Sharon Lewis, Leanna McLennan and Susan Nosov explore the implications of mixing feminism and bisexuality from their varied positions as queer women of colour in Canada. The dialogue between these writers and activists is highly productive as it connects movements such as anti-racism and bisexual visibility with lived experience.
Similarly, “Purifying the (identi)ghee,” is a record of a group discussion. This time the participants are all Canadian women of South Asian descent. Acharya, Leela, Amina, Amita, Farzana Doctor, and Nupur Gogia discuss how racism, cultural pressures and different gender and sex expectations influence how they view their bisexuality and sexual experience.
The advanced degree article is lengthy and dry, although it offers a unique perspective as well as contributing an original model of development.
Collins, J. Fuji’s article, “Biracial-bisexual individuals,” is a long scholarly work which looks at biracial and bisexual parallels from a Japanese American perspective. Fuji critiques identity development models, and proposes a four step development model that he believes more accurately describes the identity formation of biracial bisexuals (questioning/confusion; refusal/suppression; infusion/ exploration; and resolution/acceptance).
Class 9: Class
Basic degree reading load: 22 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 22 pages
At the time this syllabus was made I was unable to find specifically bisexual writings about class. These three articles are from working-class lesbian perspectives, yet they introduce the issue with sufficient clarity and raise foundational questions about the classed nature of gender and sexuality.
Joanna Kadi’s piece, “Homophobic Workers or Elitist Queers?” tells the story of bringing her girlfriend home to meet her working-class family. She uses this positive experience as a lens to view the stereotypes about “homophobic rednecks,” and draw some conclusions about how classism and homophobia relate.
Susan Raffe’s “Queerly classed questions,” draw attention to some of the ways that sexuality and class are shaped by our own positioning. Issues such as vocabulary and education, for example, not only provide a way to describe our experience, but also shape the way that we experience.
Dorothy Allison is well-known for her novel, Bastard Out of Carolina.
In “A Question of Class,” she uses her personal history to
make some observation on the experience of shame as it relates to economic
and sexual realities.
III. Theology and Sexual Ethics
In this section I want to connect the diverse experiences of sexual identity
and social positioning with the practice of positing sexual theologies
and ethics. I want to distinguish between religion and spirituality, but
not create a false binary between the two. I want to show examples of
how people learn from their embodied life experiences and create theologies
of sexuality to reflect these histories. I leave the discussion of sexual
practices, such as polyamory, to last, in the hope that a stronger foundation
will enable the students to bring a more complex social analysis to the
issues.
Class 10: Sexuality and Religious Practice
Basic degree reading load: 30 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 30 pages
Each article in this section is very short. I attempted to represent a variety of religious traditions, yet not every tradition has addressed bisexuality, or produced bisexual theologians. Many of the pieces are heavily personal, which I hope will prevent this section from being a comparison of “positive” with “negative” traditions.
John J. Carey, chair of the Presbyterian Task Force on Human Sexuality, raises several key issues in his short article, “Sexuality: What we couldn’t say.” He briefly outlines some of the challenges that Presbyterians still face around singleness, diversity, gays and lesbians, patriarchy and heterosexism, marriage, bisexuality, monogamy, cohabitation and class.
Also writing from a Presbyterian position, Susan Halcomb Craig focuses on bisexuality in her article, “A word we cannot yet speak/ A word we must now speak.” She looks specifically at the policies of the denomination, and at the power of the spoken word to effect change.
Lily S. Ransom’s piece, “Navigating sex, sexuality and Christian Values,” is a autobiographical essay. She reflects on gender and sexual awareness from her perspective as an African-American Christian growing up in working-class Ohio. She presents religion as both a force for and against sexual acceptance.
Gilly Rosenthal is a Jewish bisexual. Her article, “I can love all the faces of G-d,” draws comparisons between her two invisible identities, and relates this to a Jewish incarnation theology.
In “The voice of a wandering Jewish bisexual,” Rebecca Gorlin reflects on integrating her Jewish and bisexual identity, and draws on her Jewish heritage to give strength to her bisexual activism.
Amanda Udis-Kessler’s short article, “The holy leper and the bisexual Christian,” looks at the boundary-crossing behaviour of the historical Jesus. Udis-Kessler argues that present-day Christians are called to lives of boundary-crossing in love.
Christopher Alexander’s article, “Affirmation: Bisexual Mormon,” traces the writers history of coming out as a bisexual Mormon, and of his movement from married monogamy to polyamory, and then grieving the death of his male partner.
Class 11: Spirituality
Basic degree reading load:16 pages
Advanced degree reading load:16 pages
In this section I chose authors that were consciously making a distinction between religion ad spirituality. I hope the class will be able to explore what the authors see as the nature of that distinction, and relate it to issues of binary thinking, the human body and sexuality.
Brian Utter’s short article, “Bisexuality and the spiritual continuum,” traces his journey from a Catholic upbringing to his current identification with a continuum of spirituality, in which truth is not limited to one position within a binary.
Barbara Gibson’s article, “A bisexual feminist spirituality,” expresses her yearning for a spirituality which is ethical without being exclusive and dogmatic.
Karen Hurley’s religious journey has teken her form Catholicism to Wicca. Her article, “Coming out in spirit and flesh,” takes an autobiographical approach to issues of mutability, openness and learning to value the body and its experience.
Laura Dykstra shares her experience in the anarchist Catholic Worker movement in her article,. “Jesus, bread, wine and roses: A bisexual feminist at the Catholic Worker.” She draws on the work of Audre Lorde to link her passion for activism with her sexuality. She introduces concepts such as the salvific nature of beauty, open table fellowship as an expression of love, and the paradox of being queer and participating in Catholic Eucharist.
Class 12: Sexual Ethics: the case study of Monogamy and
Polyamory
Basic degree reading load: 25 pages
Advanced degree reading load: 25 pages
I chose to have a unit which examines monogamy/polyamory because it brings forth one of the key issues most people associate with bisexuality and consider to be a moral problem. Most of these articles attempt to place monogamy in an historical context of sexual ownership of women by men. Their aim in challenging the assumption of monogamy is to raise questions for women around the purpose, benefits, social and political implications of sexual behaviour.
Annie S. Murray’s article, “Forsaking all others,” looks at what she terms “compulsory monogamy.” She critically examines the expectations around monogamy from a bisexual feminist perspective, exploring the political meaning attached to sexual behaviour.
Lenore Norrgard’s short article, “Can bisexuals be monogamous?” argues that issues of monogamy cannot be addressed without examining the social pressures and power of compulsory heterosexuality. Monogamy, Norrgard argues, is therefore a different social reality depending on an individual’s gender and sexual orientation.
Dossie Easton and Catherine A. Liszt are the authors of The Ethical Slut: A guide to infinite sexual possibilities. The pieces I have chosen for the course are chapters two and three, “Values and Ethics,” and “Paradigms, Old and New.” Chapter two examines the heteropatriarchial sources of mainstream society’s sexual values. Yet even as they challenge the “givens” around sexuality they also express the desire to act ethically within sexual relationships. They offer consent, honesty and recognition as starting points for an ethical sexuality that departs from compulsory monogamy. Chapter three addresses some of the labels which have been used to name particular sexual behaviours as bad: promiscuous, sinful, pathological, addicted. They address five myths about sexual “sluttiness” and propose a new foundation for a sexual “economy.”
The Reverend Paul Turner addresses monogamy and polyamory twice in his column, “Seeds of Hope.” The first responds to a bisexual woman who asks, “Is it okay for a married woman to act on her bisexual feelings?” The second responds to the general question, “Can bisexuals be monogamous?” Turner touches on the nature of a covenant, and favours committed, sexually monogamous relationships.
