Mel White
Encyclopedia
James Melville "Mel" White (born July 26, 1940) is an American
clergyman and author
. White was a behind-the-scenes member of the Evangelical
Protestant movement through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, writing speeches and ghostwriting books for televangelists such as Jerry Falwell
, Pat Robertson
, and Billy Graham
. After years of writing for the Christian right
, he came out
as gay
in 1994.
. That same year, he married his wife Lyla. They had two children, one of whom is the actor/comedian and screenwriter Mike White.
After receiving his B.A.
from Warner Pacific College
, then graduating with an M.A.
in communications from the University of Portland
, White followed with graduate work in communications and film at University of Southern California
, UCLA, and Harvard. He received his Doctorate of Ministry
from, and was a professor of communications and preaching for over a decade at, Fuller Theological Seminary
. During this time he also worked as an evangelical
pastor.
After their marriage, White admitted to his wife that he had always been attracted to men. He embarked on a long process of attempted cures for his homosexuality
, including psychotherapy
, prayer
, electroconvulsive therapy
, and exorcism
. None of these techniques changed his homosexuality, and after he attempted suicide
, he and his wife agreed to an amicable divorce
. His son Mike is bisexual.
In 1984, White began dating Gary Nixon. In 1994, White wrote his autobiography, Stranger at the Gate: To Be Gay And Christian In America, which detailed his former career in the Religious Right
and his struggle coming to terms with his sexuality
. His former wife wrote the foreword to this book.
After coming out, White transferred his clergy
credentials to the gay-affirming Metropolitan Community Church
.
In 1997, White was awarded the American Civil Liberties Union
's National Civil Liberties Award for his efforts to apply the "soul force" principles of Mahatma Gandhi
and Martin Luther King Jr. to the struggle for justice for sexual minorities. He founded Soulforce, a national social justice organization that works to end the political and religious oppression of LGBT people, in 1998.
He produced, wrote, and directed 53 documentary film
s and television specials on spirituality
. He is also an author; among his 16 books (nine bestsellers), he wrote about the Philippines
' Ninoy and Corazon Aquino
(Aquino), the Jonestown
tragedy (Deceived), David Rothenberg
, a child burned by his father (David), Lust the Other Side of Love, and talk-show host/producer Mike Douglas (When the Going Gets Tough).
0n June 18, 2008 White and Nixon were the first same-sex couple legally married at All Saints Episcopal Church (Pasadena, California) following the May 16, 2008 action of the Supreme Court of California
overturning the state's ban on same-sex marriage. They currently reside in Lynchburg, Virginia
.
In 2009 White appeared on the fourteenth season
of The Amazing Race
along with his son Mike. The two lasted for seven legs on the race before being eliminated in sixth place in Phuket
, Thailand
. The team competed once again in The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business
, an edition featuring eleven returning teams. They were eliminated in Yokosuka
, Japan
at the end of the third leg.
White is also a contributor to the popular DVD program Living the Questions, an introduction to Progressive Christianity
.
The Cambodian NGO New Future for Children is supported by White.
statements.
Since 1993, he has devoted himself full-time to minister to lesbian
s, gays, bisexuals, and transgender
people, working on their behalf in the media, in the political process, and with fellow religious leaders.
White's autobiography, Stranger at the Gate: To be Gay and Christian in America (1994), is still being read widely, especially by LGBTQ people, their families and friends struggling to reconcile faith with sexual orientation. White's latest book, Religion Gone Bad: Hidden Dangers from the Christian Right (2007), is called "A consciousness-raising, must-read book" by Bishop John Shelby Spong
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
clergyman and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. White was a behind-the-scenes member of the Evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
Protestant movement through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, writing speeches and ghostwriting books for televangelists such as Jerry Falwell
Jerry Falwell
Jerry Lamon Falwell, Sr. was an evangelical fundamentalist Southern Baptist pastor, televangelist, and a conservative commentator from the United States. He was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church, a megachurch in Lynchburg, Virginia...
, Pat Robertson
Pat Robertson
Marion Gordon "Pat" Robertson is a media mogul, television evangelist, ex-Baptist minister and businessman who is politically aligned with the Christian Right in the United States....
, and Billy Graham
Billy Graham
William Franklin "Billy" Graham, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian evangelist. As of April 25, 2010, when he met with Barack Obama, Graham has spent personal time with twelve United States Presidents dating back to Harry S. Truman, and is number seven on Gallup's list of admired people for...
. After years of writing for the Christian right
Christian right
Christian right is a term used predominantly in the United States to describe "right-wing" Christian political groups that are characterized by their strong support of socially conservative policies...
, he came out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
as gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
in 1994.
Biography
In 1962, White graduated from Warner Pacific CollegeWarner Pacific College
Warner Pacific College is an urban, Christian liberal arts college located in Southeast Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1937, the college is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities...
. That same year, he married his wife Lyla. They had two children, one of whom is the actor/comedian and screenwriter Mike White.
After receiving his B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from Warner Pacific College
Warner Pacific College
Warner Pacific College is an urban, Christian liberal arts college located in Southeast Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1937, the college is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities...
, then graduating with an M.A.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
in communications from the University of Portland
University of Portland
The University of Portland is a private Roman Catholic university located in Portland, Oregon. It is affiliated with the Congregation of Holy Cross and is the sister school of the University of Notre Dame. Founded in 1901, UP has a student body of about 3,600 students...
, White followed with graduate work in communications and film at University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
, UCLA, and Harvard. He received his Doctorate of Ministry
Doctor of Ministry
The Doctor of Ministry degree is, according to The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada , a doctoral level degree oriented toward ministerial leadership often in an area of applied theology, such as missions, evangelism, church leadership, pastoral psychology or the...
from, and was a professor of communications and preaching for over a decade at, Fuller Theological Seminary
Fuller Theological Seminary
Fuller Theological Seminary is an accredited Christian educational institute with its main campus in Pasadena, California and several satellite campuses in the western United States...
. During this time he also worked as an evangelical
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
pastor.
After their marriage, White admitted to his wife that he had always been attracted to men. He embarked on a long process of attempted cures for his homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
, including psychotherapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
, prayer
Prayer
Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
, electroconvulsive therapy
Electroconvulsive therapy
Electroconvulsive therapy , formerly known as electroshock, is a psychiatric treatment in which seizures are electrically induced in anesthetized patients for therapeutic effect. Its mode of action is unknown...
, and exorcism
Exorcism
Exorcism is the religious practice of evicting demons or other spiritual entities from a person or place which they are believed to have possessed...
. None of these techniques changed his homosexuality, and after he attempted suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
, he and his wife agreed to an amicable divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
. His son Mike is bisexual.
In 1984, White began dating Gary Nixon. In 1994, White wrote his autobiography, Stranger at the Gate: To Be Gay And Christian In America, which detailed his former career in the Religious Right
Christian right
Christian right is a term used predominantly in the United States to describe "right-wing" Christian political groups that are characterized by their strong support of socially conservative policies...
and his struggle coming to terms with his sexuality
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
. His former wife wrote the foreword to this book.
After coming out, White transferred his clergy
Clergy
Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. A clergyman, churchman or cleric is a member of the clergy, especially one who is a priest, preacher, pastor, or other religious professional....
credentials to the gay-affirming Metropolitan Community Church
Metropolitan Community Church
The Metropolitan Community Church or The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches is an international Protestant Christian denomination...
.
In 1997, White was awarded the American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
's National Civil Liberties Award for his efforts to apply the "soul force" principles of Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
and Martin Luther King Jr. to the struggle for justice for sexual minorities. He founded Soulforce, a national social justice organization that works to end the political and religious oppression of LGBT people, in 1998.
He produced, wrote, and directed 53 documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
s and television specials on spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
. He is also an author; among his 16 books (nine bestsellers), he wrote about the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
' Ninoy and Corazon Aquino
Corazon Aquino
Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino was the 11th President of the Philippines and the first woman to hold that office in Philippine history. She is best remembered for leading the 1986 People Power Revolution, which toppled Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy in the Philippines...
(Aquino), the Jonestown
Jonestown
Jonestown was the informal name for the Peoples Temple Agricultural Project, an intentional community in northwestern Guyana formed by the Peoples Temple led by Jim Jones. It became internationally notorious when, on November 18, 1978, 918 people died in the settlement as well as in a nearby...
tragedy (Deceived), David Rothenberg
David Rothenberg
David Rothenberg is a professor of philosophy and music at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, with a special interest in animal sounds as music...
, a child burned by his father (David), Lust the Other Side of Love, and talk-show host/producer Mike Douglas (When the Going Gets Tough).
0n June 18, 2008 White and Nixon were the first same-sex couple legally married at All Saints Episcopal Church (Pasadena, California) following the May 16, 2008 action of the Supreme Court of California
Supreme Court of California
The Supreme Court of California is the highest state court in California. It is headquartered in San Francisco and regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacramento. Its decisions are binding on all other California state courts.-Composition:...
overturning the state's ban on same-sex marriage. They currently reside in Lynchburg, Virginia
Lynchburg, Virginia
Lynchburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 75,568 as of 2010. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the banks of the James River, Lynchburg is known as the "City of Seven Hills" or "The Hill City." Lynchburg was the only major city in...
.
In 2009 White appeared on the fourteenth season
The Amazing Race 14
The Amazing Race 14 is the fourteenth installment of the reality television show The Amazing Race. The Amazing Race 14 featured 11 teams of two, with a pre-existing relationship, in a race around the world....
of The Amazing Race
The Amazing Race (U.S. TV series)
The Amazing Race is an American reality game show in which teams of two or four race around the world against other teams, with the first-place team winning $1,000,000. As the original version of the Amazing Race franchise, the CBS program has been running since 2001 and is airing its nineteenth...
along with his son Mike. The two lasted for seven legs on the race before being eliminated in sixth place in Phuket
Phuket Province
Phuket , formerly known as Thalang and, in Western sources, Junk Ceylon , is one of the southern provinces of Thailand...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. The team competed once again in The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business
The Amazing Race 18
The Amazing Race 18 is the eighteenth installment of the reality television show The Amazing Race. The Amazing Race 18 features eleven teams of two – each returning from a previous edition – in a race around the world for a $1 million prize.The eighteenth cycle started on Sunday,...
, an edition featuring eleven returning teams. They were eliminated in Yokosuka
Yokosuka, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 419,067 and a population density of 4,160 people per km². It covered an area of 100.62 km²...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
at the end of the third leg.
White is also a contributor to the popular DVD program Living the Questions, an introduction to Progressive Christianity
Progressive Christianity
Progressive Christianity is the name given to a movement within contemporary Christianity characterized by willingness to question tradition, acceptance of human diversity with a strong emphasis on social justice or care for the poor and the oppressed and environmental stewardship of the Earth...
.
The Cambodian NGO New Future for Children is supported by White.
Writings
White ghostwrote several books for fellow evangelicals, including Billy Graham (Approaching Hoofbeats), Pat Robertson (America's Date with Destiny), and Jerry Falwell (Strength for the Journey and If I Should Die Before I Wake). White began coming out privately during the same period that the Religious Right stepped up its anti-homosexualHomophobia
Homophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
statements.
Since 1993, he has devoted himself full-time to minister to lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
s, gays, bisexuals, and transgender
Transgender
Transgender is a general term applied to a variety of individuals, behaviors, and groups involving tendencies to vary from culturally conventional gender roles....
people, working on their behalf in the media, in the political process, and with fellow religious leaders.
White's autobiography, Stranger at the Gate: To be Gay and Christian in America (1994), is still being read widely, especially by LGBTQ people, their families and friends struggling to reconcile faith with sexual orientation. White's latest book, Religion Gone Bad: Hidden Dangers from the Christian Right (2007), is called "A consciousness-raising, must-read book" by Bishop John Shelby Spong
John Shelby Spong
John Shelby "Jack" Spong is a retired American bishop of the Episcopal Church. He was formerly the Bishop of Newark . He is a liberal Christian theologian, religion commentator and author...
.