A Review of the Book "In the Courts of the Lord" by James Ferry

Title: In the Courts of the Lord

Author: James Ferry

Publisher: Key Porter Books Limited

Year: 1993

231 pages

From the Back: In February 1992, the New York Times reported: "Before an ecclesiastical tribunal knows as Bishop's Court, an archaic forum used by Anglicans to hunt down heretics and other miscreants since the time of King Henry VIII, lawyers for the Bishop of Toronto began the trial of the Rev. Jim Ferry."

    This extraordinary court, the first of its kind in over forty years, found James Ferry guilty of willful disobedience and disrespectful conduct toward his bishop. But the real issue the Court faced was that James Ferry was in a loving homosexual relationship while ministering to the spiritual needs of his Unionville, ON parishioners. James Ferry lost his parish, his livelihood, his privacy, and the man he loved, but he remains a priest, and an articulate advocate for gays and lesbians who yearn for full inclusion in the Anglican Church.

    In the Courts of the Lord chronicles the anguished process by which, after the failure of his marriage to an evangelical Christian woman and several loving but fragile relationships with men, Ferry came to terms with his sexual orientation. Ferry describes the history of his devotion to the Anglican Church, his successful work in one of the more difficult parishes in Toronto, and his election to the Unionville parish where his clerical career was abruptly halted. His account of how a homophobic member of his congregation encountered his partner while snooping around the rectory, and then agitated for James Ferry's removal, is both vivid and shocking.

    With pain, compassion, and deep insight, Ferry explains the moral dilemma in which the Church now finds itself, on the one hand committed to accepting gay people within the Church and society, on the other hand requiring that they refrain from entering into loving relationships.

Personal Thoughts: This book was very powerful and a reminder that the past is not really that long ago. As a transman going through the ordination process, I had to tread carefully and fully expected to be booted from the process by my bishop. Luckily I wasn't and I continue to be lucky with finding supportive people around me. However, I can probably guess why I didn't get certain positions within the church, especially considering how public I am on social media and in the news.

    In the Courts of the Lord is a perfect book for anyone who questions why we still need to talk about the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and their place in the church as well as the pain the church has caused.