Freedom Fighter of Faith: Rev. Dr. Pamela Lightsey on Queer Liberation, Intersectionality, and Hope in the Church

Rev. Dr. Pamela Lightsey

Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs and Associate Professor of Constructive Theology, Meadville Lombard Theological School (Chicago, IL)

Original Photo Credit: United Methodist News Service

During Pride Month, we honor those whose faith compels them not just to believe, but to build a more just and loving world. Rev. Dr. Pamela Lightsey is one of those voices—an unflinching theologian, educator, and advocate whose ministry stands at the intersection of race, gender, sexuality, and justice.

Today, Dr. Lightsey is a prophetic and influential voice in The United Methodist Church and the broader Christian community. While her early efforts focused on LGBTQ+ inclusion within the denomination, her vision now extends to a wider call for liberation across the global Church and society.

She currently serves as Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs and Associate Professor of Constructive Theology at Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago. In both the classroom and the pulpit, she champions the teaching of queer theology—a theology that proclaims the gospel as good news for all people, without exception.

As ordained clergy, Rev. Dr. Lightsey has helped shape the movement for LGBTQ rights in The United Methodist Church. She made history as the first out queer lesbian African American ordained elder in full connection in the denomination, breaking barriers and creating space for others to follow.

“The gospel message is one of love—love for God, for our neighbor, and for ourselves,” she said. “And that message of love doesn’t stop at the pages of Scripture. It demands that we advocate for the liberation of the oppressed.”

As a womanist theologian, Dr. Lightsey centers the experiences of Black lesbian, bisexual, trans, and queer women. Her intersectional lens invites the Church to ask deeper questions—not only about who is present, but who has been made invisible. “Systems of oppression interlock,” she explained. “They tend to make some groups disappear. My work is to center the voices that are being minimized.”

She sees signs of hope in the church, pointing to the 2024 General Conference as a significant shift in the UMC’s stance on LGBTQ+ inclusion. But just as powerful to her is the community that has grown around this work: “It’s not just queer people anymore. It’s parents, friends, loved one. The witness keeps expanding, and that gives me hope.”

To young LGBTQ+ Christians discerning a call to ministry, Dr. Lightsey offers words of encouragement rooted in wholeness: “Seek to be whole—mentally, physically, spiritually. You can’t do the work if you’re not caring for yourself.” She sees in younger generations a deep sense of community and a shift away from individualism. “They get it—none of us are free until all of us are free.”

And what about those who want to be allies in the movement for justice? Dr. Lightsey gently challenges that framework. “I encourage people not to think of themselves as allies,” she said. “Allies can choose to come and go. Instead, be freedom fighters. This work is uncomfortable, sacrificial, and long-term. Sometimes you don’t even get to choose when you’re called into it—you’re just there.”

For Dr. Lightsey, Pride Month is both celebration and remembrance. It is a call to honor the Black LGBTQ+ elders at Stonewall and the countless others whose stories haven’t yet been told. It is a sacred remembering of the struggle to be seen as fully human and worthy of love.

Through her scholarship, her ministry, and her prophetic witness, Rev. Dr. Pamela Lightsey continues to call the Church into deeper love, broader justice, and holy liberation.