Gay, Lesbian, And Queer Individuals With A Christian Upbringing: Exploring The Process Of Resolving Conflict Between Sexual Identity And Religious Beliefs

The role that religious faith plays in individuals’ lives can be very important, often providing emotional and social support. However, religious beliefs can come into conflict with other aspects of people’s identities, such as sexual orientation. Research to date has focused on the eventual outcomes of the conflict between sexual identity and religious beliefs, rather than examining the process by which individuals resolve this conflict. The purpose of this study was to understand the process by which gay, lesbian, and queer identified individuals with a Christian upbringing resolve the conflict between their sexual identity and religious beliefs. There were four research questions directing this study: (a) how do participants define the conflict between their sexual identity and religious beliefs? (b) what personal and contextual factors shaped their efforts to resolve this conflict? (c) what is the process by which individuals resolve this conflict? and (d) how do participants describe their resolution of this conflict