By Grace Tesoro, Staff Writer
Guest speaker Peterson Toscano hosted his weekly LGBTQ+ friendly bible study in the Center for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI) on Oct. 29.
In this week’s edition of his bible hour, Toscano talked about transition and transitioning, drag and disguise and non-proactive sex-positive stories. Through talking about these themes, students were exposed to different perspectives on how to think about specific stories in the Bible.
“These are themes that LGBTQ people know about and they are themes that come up in the Bible,” Toscano said.
On the topic of transition and transitioning, Toscano made relevant connections to how the story of David in Samuel 16:7-13 could be compared to how someone could undergo transitioning in today’s society.
The story detailed how God sent Samuel in search to Jesse in search of a new King, who happened to be David, even though he was a child.
Toscano described how Samuel had this innate sensation overcome him because he knew David was the king.
As he got older, David himself knew in his heart he was the King despite being young and a shepherd.
“Then Samuel said something very interesting. He said, ‘Man looks on the outside, God looks on the heart.’ And in this little boy, he saw the heart of a King,” Toscano recounted.
According to Toscano, this is how God views people, looking into their hearts as opposed to only viewing the surface of someone and what lies externally.
Toscano talked about how a transitional period took over David’s life as he grew up, the transition of becoming a King. “For some people in the LGBTQ community, that’s very much their transitioning experience.”
“They know from an early age, ‘I’m a boy/girl regardless of what my body looks like. I know this. The outside may not match the inside but I know who I am.’ Then they go through a life where they go through a transition,” Toscano explained.
“I like this story because there’s this known reality but nobody else can see it. But over time, people start to see it,” Toscano said.
The next topic Toscano covered revolved around drag and disguise and how there are stories in the Bible that portray this theme.
Toscano compared drag to a performance, he said: “Drag is about presenting in a form that is not your own.”
“The ultimate drag performance is Jesus in the Bible as human drag,” Toscano said. He established the idea of how Jesus presented himself to the people in human form despite being divine. “He lives as a human even though his real personality is covered by all that makeup of humanness,” Toscano said. Toscano also talked about non-proactive sex-positive stories present in the Bible.
He provided a different perspective on sex and how it does not always have to be centered on procreation. Toscano shed light on how there are passages from the Bible that celebrate sex and honor it as a connection between two people.
“For gay and lesbian people, often they are condemned by people for having the sex they have, how they have it, and how they cannot have children,” Toscano said.
He shared a passage about two lovers from the first chapter from the Psalms of Solomon that detailed erotic poetry and portrayed sex as more of a sensual and intimate experience about love. “I think it is a powerful story of a non-procreative celebration of love,” Toscano said.
After the discussion, Toscano explained how it is important as well as inevitable to have different perspectives on what the Bible is saying.
According to Toscano, all perspectives are valid and equal.Toscano will be hosting the third and final bible hour in the CDI at 8 p.m. on Nov. 5, and it is open to all Susquehanna students as well as the public.
