Take Me to #Church 💒 | Our honest take on faith and being gay 🌈✨🕊️ | Episode 13

Dive into a candid conversation with Adam, Blaine, and Ryan as they explore the intersection of faith and gay life. From Southern Baptist roots to Catholic conundrums, they're not holding back on their personal journeys and the challenges they've faced. 🤠🙏

Get the real scoop on Jesse Duplantis and Kenneth Copeland's extravagant lifestyles, and find out why Prestonwood Baptist Church's Christmas show stands out from the mega-church crowd. The guys share their unfiltered experiences with LGBT acceptance in churches, blending heartfelt stories with their signature sass. 🛩️🏳️‍🌈

Join us for an episode that's as thought-provoking as it is entertaining, filled with honest reflections, a bit of shade, and that's as fabulous as it is faithful. 🎉💬

🎙️ [00:00] Introduction: The episode opens with the hosts introducing the topic of church and religion, emphasizing an intellectual discussion about their experiences and views.

🌈 [02:00] Backgrounds in Religion:

- Ryan shares his upbringing in non-denominational Christianity with Southern Baptist influences, highlighting his involvement in youth group activities.
- Adam, identifying as more conservative, discusses his Catholic background and current non-religious stance.
- Blaine talks about his journey through various Christian denominations, including Southern Baptist and Nazarene, and his involvement in more radical churches.

🤔 [12:00] Prestonwood Baptist Church: The hosts express their admiration for Prestonwood Baptist Church's Christmas show, noting its community focus and contrasting it with other mega-churches.

✈️ [26:00] Jesse Duplantis & Kenneth Copeland: The conversation shifts to Jesse Duplantis and Kenneth Copeland, with a critical discussion on their extravagant lifestyles, including their private jet purchases. The hosts discuss the issue of financial exploitation in some churches.

🏳️‍🌈 [22:00] LGBT Acceptance in Churches: The hosts share personal experiences of acceptance and rejection in various churches, highlighting the progress and challenges within religious communities.

🤝 [30:00] Respect and Understanding in Religion: The hosts emphasize the importance of respect and understanding in religious discussions.

👬 [34:00] Being LGBT and Christian: Ryan shares his journey of reconciling his queer identity with his Christian faith.

👂 [38:00] Listening and Compassion in Faith Communities: The hosts reflect on the power of listening and showing compassion within faith communities.

👋 [42:00] Closing Remarks: The episode concludes with a light-hearted conclusion and a teaser for the next episode, emphasizing the importance of being open to different beliefs and perspectives.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

We're gonna be the loud ones. We're willing to speak out.

Speaker 2: 0:02

I'm not politically correct. If you want the truth, I'll give it to you. We're gonna start having this wine.

Speaker 3: 0:07

Maybe we'll just in true colors. Welcome to another episode of Coffee with Gays. I'm Ryan, hi, I'm Adam and I'm Blaine All right, everybody. And we have a really as always, of course an exciting topic today. Blaine, where are we going to go today?

Speaker 1: 0:27

Oh, it's gonna be done by song.

Speaker 2: 0:32

Oh, I'm gonna give you my Today about church and religion. If I can get the sound to stop that's one of the topics that they say never bring up Politics and religion.

Speaker 3: 1:12

What do we bring up? Politics and religion? I don't know, well, yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:17

So I think a great way to start this off for an intro is each of our backgrounds with religion, a short little like what our backgrounds are through religion, and I do want to also preface this OK, this is not going to be that we hate religion one, or that we hate any certain religion, or that we hate the Christian church, or anything like that.

Speaker 2: 1:41

I think it should be an intellectual discussion about our experiences, which I think are vast interviews or perspective of what we believe in, how we believe, what like what we think of. If you believe in it from I believe it Believe what you have to believe.

Speaker 3: 1:56

I mean, like this is we're here to. Obviously, this is a three of us talking, but it's a conversation and if you don't want to listen to it, don't listen to it. If you do listen, comment whatever.

Speaker 1: 2:05

Religion is a very personal topic, and I think it also is a topic that evolves as you grow and learn, and I think that's the point of the discussion.

Speaker 2: 2:14

I agree, and as somebody has the most open minded person here, I would love to hear everybody's aspects of this. So it's great to hear.

Speaker 1: 2:25

Wow, you're so open minded, adam. So, ryan, let's start with you. What's your like kind of religious background in a nutshell, so?

Speaker 3: 2:32

in a nutshell I'd say my I would say strong influence from my mom. So she grew up Southern Baptist but then when she was raising me, it was more of the non-denominational Christian. So she and she's all about the music and that experience. Wants to have a good sermon but we would always find like hands up, she'll do, like the hands up music base. She wants to feel like she's going to that. Take me to church, going to a concert. She said if it could just be that modern music, rock concert, like to feel the faith, feel God. That was.

Speaker 3: 3:03

But yeah, I grew up non-denominational Christian but also did like. My grandma was at the Southern Baptist Church. So I did like the spring break trips going to get snowboarding, youth group trips rock the universe, if anyone's familiar with that. So you were in the super youth group, be youth group Christian. Like it's hip, fun, cool, promise rings. I feel like we're people did this. Yeah, we're lying K Anyone that love. Oh, my gosh, we're lying K switch. But Toby Mack, gillette, that's the jam. Like you listen to your. You know that's. Yeah, you're in that culture.

Speaker 1: 3:39

So that was how it, yeah, how it started. That's your kind of background, okay. So, adam, I know that you're remember we decided to talk about this without talking about this before, because we wanted your shocking talk, so you are actually the exact opposite of this situation. I'm Catholic.

Speaker 3: 3:56

And I said of recovering or currently Catholic.

Speaker 2: 3:59

I've never heard of recovering.

Speaker 3: 4:01

I usually, when I meet Catholics these days I feel like a lot of them. They say recovering Catholic.

Speaker 2: 4:06

This is and this is actually probably a little head turner for as quote unquote on my politics that I'm conservative or on the conservative side, I'm really not religious at all. Like I was baptized as Catholic, I went and had my communion. I didn't have my confirmation. My confirmation Didn't do the confirmation. I baked the bread. After I baked the bread I was like peace out.

Speaker 1: 4:30

Have you ever done a confession?

Speaker 2: 4:32

in a booth.

Speaker 3: 4:33

This is the we're still talking about, like church kind of confession.

Speaker 1: 4:37

Yeah, when you go confess your sins to the priest. I think that is confirmation Correct.

Speaker 2: 4:42

So no, and the way that I've interpreted us Catholics and for anybody that's Catholic, please comment in below but we are the ones who go to church on Sundays. We drink Monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, friday, saturday, get shit-faced sin, and then we come back and we confess our sins on Sunday. That's the way that I.

Speaker 1: 5:01

I think you're a lax Catholic, but okay, I feel like it'll be a stereotype.

Speaker 3: 5:05

I mean, that's even beyond Catholics, I feel like, but especially Catholics, I feel like. That's a stereotype that I think of.

Speaker 2: 5:11

And I will own that stereotype day in, day out. But the last time that I've been to church was a wedding two years ago. I don't go to church. That much Did you grow up going to church. Every Sunday my mother took some mass and like all that, until probably it was like 14 or 15. And then that kind of faded out.

Speaker 3: 5:29

And when it when is mass? Is that that's a certain Sunday morning, or do you do morning?

Speaker 1: 5:35

It wasn't our upbringing where we had to go morning.

Speaker 2: 5:38

Yeah, yeah, wednesday church and yeah, oh you went for church in the Sunday morning, you got your groceries and you lived your life the rest of the week.

Speaker 3: 5:46

Well, cindy was ready to get to the beach after church service Sunday, so we'd go to church the early service, so we could book it to the beach and have a bloody marriage. Did you do the night services as well? Not on, so there was ever a Sunday night service, but sometimes there might be, like the youth group, like a Wednesday night, like thing or something. So then I will go.

Speaker 1: 6:05

So that's basically your upbringing. What?

Speaker 2: 6:09

is your it's?

Speaker 1: 6:09

fascinating. I grew up my my parents really just picked a church for the people that were there. So I've been Southern Baptist Nazarene. They really loved the Nazarene church. It wasn't a radical Nazarene church Is that the Holy rollers? Some are, but do you actually roll on the floor? Not a Nazarene's, but funny story. I became more radical than my own parents so my parents stayed at the Nazarene church when I was in high school and then I went to an assembly of God church, which is a church that, if you don't know, speaks in tongues, where essentially the Holy Spirit speaks through you and people with randomly during church services start going to Hala.

Speaker 3: 6:52

It just it comes over you. It comes over you, that's correct.

Speaker 2: 6:56

What are you talking about? No, it's not.

Speaker 1: 6:58

People truly believe that the Holy Spirit takes them over and that there's a spiritual message for the congregation that needs to be interpreted. There's a whole thing around it.

Speaker 3: 7:07

You said you were open minded, adam. Open minded, adam.

Speaker 2: 7:08

Right, I am a very but my mind's at night when I get gassy. That's when the Holy Spirit takes me over.

Speaker 1: 7:14

I literally was probably more on that spectrum than my parents, and my parents continue going to Nazarene church and I went to an assembly of God church. That's where I met my first really good girlfriend and I went to youth group. I was like the head of youth group. I organized youth group dinners after youth group night on Wednesday. So basically we go to Sunday morning service, I go to Sunday night service and then I had Wednesday youth group. I would do mission trips to Mexico, which I actually will post in the YouTube video. Subscribe on YouTube for all these fun things.

Speaker 2: 7:47

Of course you did, Penelope. Here we go again. We want to talk about. We want to talk about.

Speaker 3: 7:53

That's why you did they encourage mission trips.

Speaker 1: 7:55

I just found pictures of my mission trips and it was. They're really funny pictures. I'll do a little quick slide show of them. But it's sad because they were really improvered border towns and I don't know if what I was doing was right, like looking back on it, because I feel like I was bringing the message of Jesus, but I feel like there was just so much that needed to be done. Like now that I really look from a geopolitical standpoint, I'm like those poor kids who had been, who gone through so much and I, when I say gone through so much, kids have been molested and sex trafficked and I just didn't know any of that back then. That was by my people. Your people came in into that, going back all the way to the Catholic inquisitions, catholic demolition. That's my people. Adam, you have a very strong view of your perception of church and what is that today? What is everyone's perception of church today?

Speaker 2: 8:44

If you want to believe whatever belief that you want to believe Hannah's in the most heartwarming way you can believe whatever you want. Do I believe that, after I leave this earth, that I'm going to another world? I do not. I do not. I think that once you're dead, I believe that Jesus, mary, all of that was actual people. I do believe that there was a book, which is called the Bible, written about that. I do believe that, but I do believe that the way of the Bible is to keep people in check, to stay in line with being in good faith of humanity and to keep you on the right path to be a good person. I 100% believe that. But do I believe that there's an afterlife? Absolutely not. I don't believe that.

Speaker 1: 9:37

I believe there's an afterlife.

Speaker 2: 9:39

I hope. I absolutely understand. I hope there's an afterlife. I hope that I can get through this. If I lived so 80, 80 years of hell on this earth for nothing Like I really hope that there's an afterlife and I'm gonna sit here and say I don't need to believe in God and Jesus and all that to make me a good person. I'm doing it out of the goodness of my heart to be a good person and I wanna be the best person that I'm going to be. But I also refrain back on this that I feel like this is almost like Santa Claus. Okay, now just wrap your head around this. That Santa Claus is for the kids, to keep the good kids in check. There was a guy that was in the name of Mr Claus that went around and gave the kids gifts. That did happen. But I believe that this is in good check to keep the later people in the older years who don't know that there's not a Santa Claus, to keep them in good check. I really do.

Speaker 1: 10:41

I have to say and I'll try to tie your Catholic background into, probably like both Ryan's in my experience and Ryan, I wanna get your thoughts on this when I went to Papadine University, which is a Church of Christ school, the Church of Christ is, they're not overly radical. I think they're very like middle of the road, but they are very stringent, so to speak. So the interesting thing I had to take these classes. You had to take three religion classes and it was a New Testament, old Testament and Religions of the World. And when I took the Old Testament and New Testament courses, I did not realize that the Bible and I had been in, I got into Christian private school, I had my whole life and I had always been in church I did not realize that the Bible was canonized by the Catholic Church. I did not know that either.

Speaker 1: 11:35

Yeah, so the way the Bible was actually created Shocker Is, essentially there were all these scrolls and these texts that were found from back when Christ was around and they essentially the Catholic Church took all of these scrolls and texts and they looked through them and they said does this make sense? And I don't wanna oversimplify it for everybody If you wanna comment and tell me I'm wrong. Please do Always welcome that, always welcome comments. But they essentially took all these texts and they said what makes sense? And then they essentially created the Bible and the New Testament and they said, okay, all this makes sense together.

Speaker 1: 12:16

And there were outliers and, for example, I remember one in particular from one of my classes where Jesus was a kid and he was making little clay doves in a riverbed and some other child came up and stomped his plate birds and Jesus got mad and struck the child dead. And Struck the child. What Dead Dead. Jesus did that. Yeah, jesus did it as a child. It's not in the Bible Because when they were canonizing the Bible and creating the Bible, it did not make sense for Jesus as a character or as a person to do so, because he is a God of love and would not do that.

Speaker 3: 12:59

Oh, why did you smash my dove? It's okay, let's talk about that.

Speaker 1: 13:04

But the question is and much like in social media and the stuff that we talk about is was that story even real or did someone just make it up? And that's what the Catholic Church was trying to do without a ton of research? They had all these texts and they had to make, they had to pick the source, or they tried to do the best they could to come up with the true story of Jesus. Is it the true story? We'll never know.

Speaker 2: 13:25

Nobody will ever know. Nobody. There's nobody on this earth that can sit here and say there's an afterlife, that this is the way it is, it's all. And that's the way you go back. And I say you believe in what you believe. If you want to believe there's an afterlife, agree. Our friend Ronald thinks that this is our hell and that we go to an afterlife. I would love for that. Take me now, then. As long as there's tractors on the street, I'm good. Take me now, but so, ryan, what is?

Speaker 1: 13:52

how does that? How does canonization hit you? Does that shock? Are you shocked by that? Did you know?

Speaker 3: 13:58

about it. I didn't know about that one. I felt like there's a lot of thoughts in my head through the years of experience.

Speaker 1: 14:04

Does mama sende know that's how the Bible was like actually created.

Speaker 3: 14:07

I'm not going to speak for her, but I think we could say in my opinion, I feel like, yeah, it's man, like humans, right coming together and trying to organize, make sense and form all these things that get, and I think that's probably what shaped, or like the Catholic church, trying to shape and rule and create whatever order that the people that were in that authority wanted to create and that's passed down over time.

Speaker 1: 14:30

And my argument on this is somebody had to do it at some point and I do think what came out of it and I think to your point, adam is it's a book that really does exemplify being good to other people For the most part.

Speaker 3: 14:48

Mind your own shit. Be nice to people, be respectful, be kind, just like those good tenants Like that carries through in many religions.

Speaker 1: 14:56

If I had to boil down the New Testament, I would say it is, don't hurt anybody else and just be a good person.

Speaker 2: 15:04

So the world is saying basically this if you and that's where I think that the Bible and all of that gives you the guidelines to be a good human. But what's sad about that is is I think that a lot of people can't be a good human without keeping their mind on the Bible, which is horrific to me. Just be a good person, be a good human being. But if any of you called me or whatever, I need help or even a slight shit. I need an ear.

Speaker 1: 15:35

And I'd be there for you too. I did drive your wrecked car home at night. It was really scary.

Speaker 2: 15:43

We ain't talking about that right now, but the best phrase is do to others as you would want done to you.

Speaker 3: 15:51

I've also heard. But what is the modification that like do unto others as they would want to be? Like treat others how they would want to be treated. Right, because what if they don't want to be treated the way that you?

Speaker 2: 16:01

want to be treated yourself. Okay, so let me take in, for instance. I was at a store the other night and two guys were struggling to get this big box in a car. Right, I could have the option to walk past them or I could have the option to help them. So I walked over to help them, as they're struggling through their life to get this in, to put it in their cars, and it took five seconds for me to help them, save them probably a lot of strength and a lot of stress. Got it in their car. They're done and over with. I move on with my life, don't think about it. I'm in and right now.

Speaker 3: 16:36

More people need to do those acts of kindness.

Speaker 2: 16:39

All of your Gen Z's. There's other people that live here in this earth other than you. Be good and be nice.

Speaker 1: 16:49

Ironically, I feel like a lot of Gen Z has grown up in the church as well and they are reacting against it. And I can see why because I think the church, and I think one of the things that you brought up Adam, as like one of the reasons you dislike the church.

Speaker 2: 17:04

and this is where I want to say that I don't dislike the church. I think the church and all is a good thing and I think you need to believe in what you believe.

Speaker 3: 17:14

When we say church, I feel like we're really focused on just Christianity.

Speaker 1: 17:18

Yeah, let's try to like because that's our experience as Catholic and Christianity. Let's just try to focus on one religion right now. But I do think when we do talk about the church, we should say the church as an institution and our churches traditional churches run by pastors that we go to versus religion and spirituality, which is what I really more identify with now. I think those are two very different.

Speaker 2: 17:43

So let me get back to what Ryan was just saying. Do you think and I may be just ignorant with this, but are there religions that don't have church?

Speaker 3: 17:53

Yeah, I'm just thinking about different terms, if it's like a temple or a mosque or in different. So if there's anything, because I've also dated someone yeah, I guess it was more I think I'd go to a temple and I think I had some experiences that kind of made me start to think broader than like a Christian faith only. And then I've worked at a university where I first learned about like the interfaith chapel. So I think that's later on post the kind of Christianity upbringing, just kind of exposure to seeing how do these different, how can we different religious backgrounds, but still interact, respect each other and still have our own beliefs? So I just want to know, like when we're saying church or our focus, we're focusing on mainly our Christian upbringing that the three of us have had.

Speaker 2: 18:40

So that's where my ignorant comes from, because I would say the temple and all that like that would still be classified as church to me. Like to me, that's still your area of worship, wherever it is, that's classified to me, I don't care. If you want to do it in your home, that's your church, that's your area of worship.

Speaker 1: 18:58

You have your religion, which is in this room, we have Christianity and then you have your church, which is your people and the people who govern that church, which is your religious leaders over the church, and I think most religions have that structure. So hence, like our experience is all Christianity, and I feel like I'm most the best one I can speak on is Christianity and some Catholicism. I worshiped with the Catholics quite a bit, even though that is Christianity as well, but it's Catholic.

Speaker 3: 19:28

Christian. Part of the reason, just when I say non-denominational Christian is because when I was growing up, my mom didn't want it to be like Catholic, christian or Lutheran or any sect of Christianity within that. It was more of a let's just get to the root, like how we grew up was the root is a relationship with Jesus, and the church can be like hey, I'm like I remember thinking of like prayer wasn't like I have to go to a physical building to pray or talk to God or Jesus. It's just so I can close my eyes right here and have a little moment and say, hey, what's up, what's up God? And here's what's going on.

Speaker 2: 20:03

That's how I was taught which is good because I'm going to be on line with you. Like, as much as I don't want to sit there and say there's an afterlife, I still sit there and I'm like, god, help me, let's get through this together and somehow help me. And even with what I went through yesterday, because one of my employees and I had a conversation about this, because he's very religious, he's from Mexico and he was telling me about, like, how they they pray and like they worship and all of that which is interesting to me. So I sat there and had a whole like feast of just information. But, like, even yesterday, I was like, dear God, if you can hear me, get me through this day and make things work. So that's where I sit there and I go.

Speaker 2: 20:47

Maybe there is something, because there's weird things that have happened in my life that I can't put my name on it. I don't. I like I can't understand how this evolved and how this happened, and that's why I say I will never rule it out, but I'll never rule it in. Like I'm very what Miguel, my, my employees said to you you're very on the fence, you're a wishy-washy, you don't know which way to go on this and you still, you actually know which is going to be the day that you die. You'll never know.

Speaker 1: 21:15

Is that true, and we'll never know till the day we die? Is there a really good Reliant?

Speaker 3: 21:20

K song about that.

Speaker 1: 21:22

Yeah, I'm dealing with a lot of family issues now, like a few people very close to death and it's like such a question and, yeah, I guess we'll know when we know we can hope for the best. But, adam, one of the things that you said bugged you about the church is what I refer to as the prosperity gospel.

Speaker 3: 21:39

Come again.

Speaker 1: 21:41

I don't know this. The prosperity gospel.

Speaker 2: 21:45

You said that to you the church really means money and oh, okay, so I do have a very like heart wrenching sickness to this, where I feel like this is going to be a really bad touchy subject on this, and it's so in my head. This is only my own personal belief is that you can worship God wherever, like everybody will tell you. You can worship wherever, wherever you want to, however you want to Do. I think that there has become a financial gain with it, absolutely, absolutely. Where I feel like, where I feel like that people have taken religion and they have gone, I can get a financial gain out of this and it absolutely makes me sick to my stomach because they're like oh, what is the? What is the really big church here that's in North Dallas?

Speaker 1: 22:44

Preston, what about to?

Speaker 3: 22:45

is it where we're going for the Christmas show and we're going to go for the Christmas show.

Speaker 1: 22:49

Okay, but stop, I'm going to stop you right there.

Speaker 2: 22:52

I'm going to stop you there because they have gotten so much hate over the Christmas show and I want to say it is one of the most magical experiences you've been, we've been, we've been and I will say this from now on it's absolutely breathtaking what they do, how they do, and they pour a lot of money into it and they do a lot with it. But I will say their funds are not hurting by any means.

Speaker 1: 23:16

Their funds are not hurting, but I will tell you this, I will tell you this and this is where I disagree with everybody on fricking TikTok that does not know this church and I will go ahead and post some of the videos of the drummer boy first and then second. I want to post the the very cool Carol the bells thing that they do. That I think, is great.

Speaker 3: 23:35

This is going to be my third year going. It was like trying to get Taylor Swift tickets this year. I was on the phone, I was in the queue. Did you get tickets? Yeah, did you get tickets? I got tickets.

Speaker 2: 23:47

How did you get tickets?

Speaker 3: 23:49

Because I'm on the email subscription or whatever, so I got notified that it's going to be available. How many tickets is yet?

Speaker 2: 23:55

Six, one, two, three, four, reynolds five. Did you want to go? Reynolds five.

Speaker 1: 24:03

You didn't invite, adam, us to become part of the Ryan. That's so mean.

Speaker 2: 24:09

You're the last you would win.

Speaker 1: 24:10

He really loved it we will have front row tickets. The front row tickets were like how much were they? Oh, they're probably not even available now. No, they're definitely not, but they were $200.

Speaker 3: 24:20

I was in the queue. I got it on the early pre-release day. No one, you didn't mention it either. I just sent it in our little fun chat.

Speaker 2: 24:30

I knew the little drummer boys from behind the pew.

Speaker 1: 24:34

He was a huge controversy over this church last year. They've been doing this for many years but I have to say Prestonwood Baptist Church in Dallas does one of the most amazing Christmas shows. I will show a few clips of it that I think are the most spectacular. They do a whole non-Christian section of it which is like Santa and Santa's sleigh and it's just cute and fun. And then they go into the Christmas story with Jesus and they have live camels and I was in the front row and basically that hit in the face by camel tails Great Like camel shit. And then they have angels flying and drummer boys coming down and it is the spectacular production.

Speaker 2: 25:15

It is like a Broadway show when they do this.

Speaker 1: 25:17

They got trolled last year on TikTok. They did not deserve that. They actually number one charge for this production decently. It is no different to me than somebody putting on a really giant Christmas. Yeah, and by the way, you know how much I pay. For tickets to go to the Dallas Pops at the Meyers and Symphony I pay $240.

Speaker 2: 25:37

So this is where I come into this. If you have an issue with it, don't go to the show. It's as easy as that. Don't go to the show, don't If you? I am not a religious person, but I think it's an amazing show. I'm going to pay it. I want to go see it. Oh, you do want to go? Come to it. Shut up and, by the way, it's for the community. This is why I go back to the people in this world If you have a problem with it, don't go to the show. I don't understand why people go above and beyond that.

Speaker 1: 26:11

I think it's because of other people and I want you guys to listen to this clip, which will insert into the video portion too, but it's my favorite Southerner. He's not my favorite, he actually makes me grossed out but Jesse Duplantis, who's been around forever and I think again we can play. Ok, we're going to play. My dream has now come to pass.

Speaker 5: 26:31

I've been believing in the long-gotten.

Speaker 1: 26:32

ladies and gentlemen, I now own a Falcon 7X. It's mine.

Speaker 4: 26:40

Or if you're going to TikTok, they eating my lunch. Tiktok, talk your.

Speaker 1: 26:44

TikTok, I don't care it, don't make a lick of difference. While I heard, you have a Falcon 902, yes.

Speaker 5: 26:51

You got two jets, you got two cars.

Speaker 1: 26:55

You have two cars. Look at me, I'm talking to you out there. Do you have two cars? Why do you have two cars? Because your wife wants one. Delta wished they could fly me. Because when I quit flying Delta, they lost a ton of money.

Speaker 3: 27:18

I said pastor at his church.

Speaker 2: 27:20

This is where I have the problem.

Speaker 1: 27:23

He also has a clip, by the way, that he says he lives in the largest house in Louisiana, that it is the house from Gone with the Wind, and he says he doesn't care and it is disgusting, his $237 million aircraft.

Speaker 2: 27:38

So this is where, again, I'm going to go to both parts of this. This is where I have a stomach crunch issue with money in the church, but you will never see me. If that's what he wants to do and that's how he's doing it, then great. If he is, hold on. I don't want to say scamming the money from those people to preach. Let me turn it back around. If those people are giving him that amount of money to be able to preach, then they need to check themselves, because they're the ones that are making the issue of him being able to afford two jets. That's an issue. There's people in this world that can't afford one car. One car more or less a jet Like that is their problem and that's their issue. And that's on them, that's on the people that are feeding him money.

Speaker 1: 28:34

That's on you, dumb people for doing that, because I think the argument is is the way our tax laws are worked, is that basically all the money he gets is tax-free, so he's able to afford just so many other things, and he uses them for himself. And, unfortunately, the way this should work is the governing body of the church should say you know what, jesse Deplantis, you don't get two $37 million jets, one for you and one for your wife, and you don't get to have your personal personage be a $35,000 square foot home in Louisiana, and I think that's the problem. And then so the people that aren't in the congregation are the ones that are like ick, that is gross. So again, we just have people taking advantage.

Speaker 1: 29:21

I will say Preston would Baptist Church. I think they do great things for the community, even putting on this production it's all volunteer too, by the way like nobody gets paid for the production and other reason why they're able to offer cheap tickets. That's how I think a church, a megachurch, should work, not like this, not with 37. They don't have a $37 million falcon plane. So I think the problem is, again, we conflate things together and say, oh, megachurches are bad. I just think some are bad and some are good.

Speaker 2: 29:51

And that's why I go back to what I've said or other podcasts. You have to look at the single person or the single thing, not as a group or as a whole.

Speaker 1: 30:00

Yeah, for sure.

Speaker 2: 30:02

But if that's true and he's really flaunting that he has two jets in the middle of a service and they were applauding that. And they were applauding it. That's your dumb people's fault for doing that.

Speaker 1: 30:14

Because I think he's able to just fly around the world and preach the gospel, but they've actually talked about where he flies, and he flies to his beach homes and stuff. And then there's actually another clip of Kenneth Copeland on an inside edition. He actually about Tyler Perry's plane and he looks like a demon. I'm going to insert that clip too, because it's just so scary, but he basically is. Let me tell you something it is so scary and you're like are you a demon? And Kenneth Copeland is a very old school preacher like this one.

Speaker 5: 30:45

Isn't it true that you want to fly commercial so that you can fly in luxury? How much money did you pay for Tyler Perry's Gulfstream jet, for example? Well, for example, that's really none of your business, but isn't it the business of your donors? Listen, I paid the airplane that we had that I bought from Tyler Perry and I didn't pay any more than Tyler's, one of the greatest guys. He made that airplane so cheap for me. I couldn't help but buy it. I love your eyes Again. Getting back to the comment, you said that you don't like to fly commercial because you don't want to get into a tube with a bunch of demons. Do you really believe that human beings are demons? No, I do not, and don't you ever say I did. We wrestle not with flesh and blood, but principalities and powers.

Speaker 1: 31:39

I tell you I've followed these guys since the 80s, since I came out of my mom's vagina. I'm telling you I think this is a great point about the church community and in and of itself, and it's one of the things that I think I personally struggled with because of my coming out and the episode where I talk about this we no longer have out, because it was our first episode and it was a shit show. So we took it down Thanks to everybody's advice, but I wanted to reintroduce it here because it was really traumatic for me. But basically, I was in college, my parents were going to that Nazarene church. I was at Pepperdine's, at Church of Christ, and this woman who is at the Nazarene church, who really wanted me to date her daughter for some reason, the whole time I was at a high school Because she knew her daughter was a Huzzi and she knew that you were a Homo and figured that's the best, perfect match.

Speaker 2: 32:27

If I can put a Huzzi with a Homo, then there ain't going to be shit going on at all.

Speaker 1: 32:32

It's crazier than that, adam. No, I was on Myspace and I put that I was gay on Myspace. I was being a little rebel at college and I thought nobody back home in Sherman Texas knows anything about Myspace, it's a college thing. And this lady somehow found Myspace and ended up asking my mom if I was gay. She said probably, but it's a pub Catholic.

Speaker 1: 32:56

But I'm bonkers. She definitely thought I was gay. And, yeah, my mom called me, asked if I was gay, said that this woman found me on Myspace. I was like why was this woman stalking me on Myspace? I thought it was really uncomfortable and weird. The next week, after this revelation had come up, the woman had gone to the pastor and told the pastor and the pastor had a sermon. What did it say? On your Myspace, you know how you could say whether you are gay or straight. That's all it said.

Speaker 2: 33:22

And for him.

Speaker 1: 33:24

But then the same woman proceeded to go and tell the pastor and it's actually really hard to talk about because that next week he had a sermon at the Nazarene church which, by the way, I went to the more radical church. My parents went to a more less radical church and he had a sermon and said if you raised a gay child, then you screwed up as a parent, you did something wrong, and my mom started crying and both my mom and dad stood up and walked out A week after they found out that I was gay. And I was so disappointed because I always felt the Nazarenes to be a fairly accepting group and, by the way, I don't want anybody to say this is against the Nazarenes, because I think a lot of Nazarenes are very accepting and a lot of people in that church. That pastor ended up getting fired eventually, but it did cause a huge ref and it was very inappropriate. And again it's about the community in that church.

Speaker 1: 34:22

I am going to add an additional piece to this because the woman that outed me to the church and my parents ended up telling my mom later down the road that she didn't want her daughter to date me. She wanted to date me when I was 15. She thought I was so cute. So basically she was a pedophile and was lusting after me, since I was a 15 year old boy, and she thought you were cute and she thought I was cute girl.

Speaker 2: 34:51

She must be a hell of a killer.

Speaker 1: 34:53

At 15, I'll throw in a photo of what I looked like. Maybe he was cute then. I was pretty cute in high school. I did have really nice dimples and hair anyway. But anyway, how gross is that when you really.

Speaker 2: 35:04

People are going to be, people are going to tear us up for that.

Speaker 1: 35:06

When you really think about it, how gross is that? That a woman who was lusting after a teenage boy decided to create all this. And it was in the church, and that was my issue. Even at my church and the Instability of God, there was always somebody, a shitster, so to speak. A what A shitster.

Speaker 2: 35:23

Oh, you're from Florida, we're from the country, that's why.

Speaker 3: 35:26

You know how many times I hear things come out of Brally's mouth and I'm like what he said shitster, before I can guarantee you that.

Speaker 1: 35:32

Yeah, yeah Shitster. Somebody that just stirs up shit just to get attention. That's what a shitster is.

Speaker 2: 35:38

So let me get back on this. I feel like that there's a lot of people and as the conservative one of the group, the conservatives are the worst when it comes to the religion side of everything and their beliefs but I think that a lot of it is because that there's a lot of gays in conservatives. There is way more for anybody that's a liberal gay. There's a conservative gay. On the other side of that, there's as many liberal gays as there are conservative gays, and you may not realize it.

Speaker 3: 36:14

I'm just curious Is there an actual or based on your own experience?

Speaker 2: 36:18

From my own experience there is because there's a lot of people who I have gone and had chats with and we, as gays that are conservative, dance around politics and we don't want to bring it up and nothing against liberals for bringing it up, but they will bring it up because they're like, oh, it's all of us, like we're the one, not even religion Just talking about politics right now, right For a second, for a split second. But there are a lot of people who are conservative, right that are fighting their own demons of being gay. So that's where I'm trying to go with this is there's a lot of gay closeted people out there and they are coming to the front force so strong, being like you can't be gay. They're the ones that are typically the gay ones that are like you can't do this, you can't do that and this is going to kill your life, because they're so scared of actually who they are that they don't want to sit there and admit it.

Speaker 1: 37:22

I think Ryan had actually a really good experience with this, because you struggled a lot with coming out to and then you interviewed Dr Cindy Ryan.

Speaker 3: 37:32

So three years ago, when I tested with my own podcast was looking so for me when it was starting on, my first couple episodes had to do with like identity and like queerness related to identity that in my mind or traditionally felt like, oh, it couldn't merge.

Speaker 3: 37:48

So Christianity and being gay oh, can you be both? Obviously, like now I've gotten to a place from like yeah. But so three years ago I interviewed Dr Cindy Ryan, so she's in our area in Dallas based, but yeah, it was a really good conversation and for me I think it was just another thing on my journey of wanting like some affirmation from a religious or spiritual person to feel like honestly, just to get like that Affirmation and validation like I'm okay, like I can live who I am, and this is someone who has a lot of experience to become a pastor, like going to school for that and in the church, and it was a really great conversation. I still get her like emails and just daily, like tips for living in general and positivity and yeah, that's been. That was a really good experience.

Speaker 1: 38:39

So you can be gay and Christian. Yeah, and you feel good about that now, but it took you till you're what? 30 to figure that out.

Speaker 3: 38:47

I don't know it's weird and I know this talked about this, but like the term gay, I still feel, is a little tough for me. I still feel like I like queer better, no, it's my for me, I feel. I still feel like it's easier for me to say I'm queer than it is to say gay, yeah, but that's just terminology. I can now because I think the biggest moment for me obviously in this past few months was like putting a ring on a guy's hand was huge and are you guys going to get married in the church?

Speaker 3: 39:18

Probably out. Yeah, outside. It's the land we got a lot of ideas and motion right now, but it's probably inside a church.

Speaker 1: 39:25

It's not going to be with a pastor.

Speaker 2: 39:26

The church would burn down between the two of them. What are you talking about? I'm joking by the way.

Speaker 1: 39:32

I do support a church's right to not have a gay wedding in a church if it does not agree with their beliefs as a church, but there are plenty of churches that will allow gay weddings.

Speaker 3: 39:43

For me. Just, I always had the idea of it being like on a cliff outside overlooking the ocean. That's just a vision I've had. So what you're saying is you haven't asked Bradley. No, we have talked about that and Bradley, we talked about the price. Bradley doesn't want to pay for a church. We're considering Royal 38 as a venue. Girl.

Speaker 1: 40:01

Bradley's new favorite happy hour spot. It's right down the street for me, which I love.

Speaker 2: 40:06

If you want to do whatever you want to do, by all means I will be behind you, judging you 100%, absolutely.

Speaker 1: 40:18

Looping it back at my final point on the church and my experience in it over time and I think it really comes to be with our, like, aging population and I spent a little bit of time with my grandfather it's 90 now and last two years ago I got to spend a little time with my grandmother, who was in her late 80s and I talked to her about things like serigacy and all that, and I saw creator and really going to try to find the video, but I wasn't able to find it prior to this podcast because I wanted to show you guys. But she got trolled in the comments for not telling her 80 year old grandmother that she had to use certain pronouns or talk about trans rights or something like that. And the girl's like eating ice cream and she doesn't give a shit and she basically is the girl, like the young girl, she's like my grandmother's 80. She's I'm not going to change her and I'm not here to change her and I just thought that was a powerful thing.

Speaker 1: 41:09

And as our final note, I think I want to say my view on the church is I've seen a lot of acceptance. I've seen a lot of horrible things, but I also have seen a lot of acceptance and I will say, like Preston with Baptist, I'll give it to them. All of us gays go to Preston with Baptist and I think they all welcome us with open arms and I really appreciate that. It's amazing, and they have, by the way, a lot of gays.

Speaker 3: 41:33

Easter service I took my grandma to the Easter service.

Speaker 1: 41:36

They got the gays. All the gays are doing that production. Congratulations to Preston with Baptist for being a very gay friendly church, which I will say is very different from first Baptist downtown Dallas. So, look, not everybody is progressive in this world, but I think we need to give a little credit. And again, I think, from what we talked about with Israel, palestine, previously, this isn't a blanket statement and I think that we and our stories and the way we interact with the Christian community or the churches and our friends and families who go to church, I think like the way we act with them and the patients we have and just them, learning about us and integrating with them. I think that helps them slowly accept us as people and I think it's a good thing and I've seen it.

Speaker 2: 42:23

And go out, listen to other people's what they believe in. Just listen. What's it going to hurt? Makes you grow into a better person. It's not going to do you any harm. I'll listen to anybody all day long. I want to know what are you believing? How do you think? What do you think it makes you grow as a better person?

Speaker 1: 42:38

Look, I can walk into my 90 year old grandfather's East Texas freaking Baptist church. Everybody knows I'm gay and I am so welcome with open arms. And I can tell you, when I was 20 years old a new gay that was not a place I wanted to be and to me that is progress and that's because I've always maintained a respectful demeanor there. I've never screamed at anybody or forced anyone to accept me, but I've showed up and I've been respectful and people see that and they see that I'm a good person and because of that they're like oh, I accept gay people now and I would just like to give that little tidbit to people maybe, just being a normal person and not a mean person, be respectful, be respectful. R-e-s-t-c-t. You could get a little more credit.

Speaker 3: 43:29

I think I already shared about my grandpa on the phone another episode already. So that was one example, but another one that came up to mind because this was like early on, when I think it was either living at home or still like in college in Tampa, when I like first held the guy's hand, it was clear and I was going on and I remember my mom had just said hey, can you go? There's this other guy in leadership at the church, so the non-denominational Christian church. I'll chat with him and I'll just always remember that he was. He just listened and he was like just kind of, be a good person, trust yourself, listen to your inner voice, be a nice, like he wasn't worried at all. There was no like judgment or hate or any of that, and I think that to this day, like I remember that. So that goes a really long way when you're yeah, when you just listen to people and show that compassion.

Speaker 1: 44:20

I'd not get freaking angry at everybody.

Speaker 2: 44:22

Ryan runs into the church and he says this guy, gang and Ryan, just here we go. Here we go.

Speaker 3: 44:30

I heard your the pastor's son's gang. Now where is he?

Speaker 1: 44:34

Make sure to follow us on YouTube. That's our big thing, and comment in the comments. Look out for our mugs. It'll be on our website. Copy with gayscom by the time this airs.

Speaker 2: 44:43

We got merch, but I'm buying it all right now.

Speaker 1: 44:45

So I will say I got to confess I don't know what the next episode is, because I think it might be our lesbian episode after this one, cheers. I'm Blaine Ryan Adam. Happy cheers to copy with gays. We'll see you next time. See ya, church girl. See ya, church girl. It is church time. Let's go.