4.5 stars
Reading the Bible Through Queer Eyes by Brian G. Murphy and Shannon T. L. Kearns is a lovely book written for a very specific audience—and I’m giving it 4.5 stars in large part because I am so grateful that a book like this exists.
Both authors grew up in evangelical Christian environments, and they write from their own experiences as queer people of faith. Kearns is a transgender man and ordained priest. What struck me most about this book is how accessible it is. This isn’t dense academic theology. It is warm, readable, pastoral, and deeply rooted in the belief that LGBTQ+ people don’t merely need to be allowed into Christian spaces; they deserve the opportunity to see themselves fully within their faith and within Scripture.
There are plenty of books that make theological arguments for LGBTQ+ affirmation within Christianity. This really isn’t one of those books.
Murphy and Kearns make their position clear very early: they aren’t interested in arguing homophobes into affirmation. LGBTQ+ people are so much bigger than the handful of Bible verses that have been used to debate their identities.
And wow, is that an important distinction.
This book is written by queer people for queer people. It recognizes that many LGBTQ+ people remain deeply faithful and deeply in love with Jesus while also carrying wounds inflicted by Christian communities. Rather than asking them to defend their right to belong, this book asks a much more interesting question: What happens after you already know that you belong?
One of the lines I highlighted captures the entire book for me: “It’s okay to be LGBTQ+” is the starting point, not the finish line.
That is exactly what makes this book different.
The authors begin from affirmation and then go deeper—into Scripture, community, our responsibilities to one another, our bodies, and what it means to live a faithful life. They invite queer readers to approach these ancient texts not simply looking for permission to exist but looking for wisdom, connection, liberation, and a deeper relationship with God.
The Bible comes from cultures very different from our own, and we aren’t going to find modern examples of loving, consensual LGBTQ+ relationships represented in Scripture in the same ways we understand them today. But queer people have always existed. Murphy and Kearns offer readers a way to recognize their experiences within these ancient stories and to see Scripture through a lens that doesn’t begin with shame or exclusion.
There is something especially moving about recognizing how hard-won faith can be for people who have been told that some essential part of themselves separates them from God. This book doesn’t simply argue that queer people deserve a place at the table. It moves beyond that argument entirely. It assumes the seat is already theirs and invites them to open the Bible.
I thought this was beautiful. I appreciated both authors and the tenderness with which they approached Scripture, faith, identity, and community. This won’t be a book for every reader, but for the audience that needs it, I think it could be an incredibly meaningful one.
Reading the Bible Through Queer Eyes will be published December 1, 2026. Thank you to HarperCollins for providing me with an advanced reading copy.
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