Kelvin stood in the South Corridor, facing Keefe, holding both his hands. "You don't have to do this if you don't want to," he said. "If it's too much, nobody will care. It can just be Judy and BJ."
"No, Brother," Keefe told him. "I want to." Still calling me Brother! Kelvin noted with a smile.
He heard Judy and BJ giggling on the other side of the hall. Everything was so easy for straight people! You go on a date, you kiss, you go upstairs and have sex. Easy. You walk hand in hand without worrying about being attacked. You announce your engagement, and no one yells that you're destroying society. When you are gay, and Christian, and a Gemstone, everything is hard. It took a life-or-death crisis to say "I love you." The first time they held hands was an emotional triumph. And this might not necessarily be a joyous occasion.
"I want to do this, too," Kelvin said, so loud that the security guard at the south entrance stared. "I don't think I've wanted anything more."
"Showtime!" Jesse exclaimed, pointing toward the sanctuary. One last kiss, and Kelvin took his place just behind Jesse, on his right side. Judy walked on his left side. The partners followed a few steps behind. Ushers would guide them to their marks, stage left and stage right.
They walked onto the main stage, smiling, waving, as if they were about to perform a song. The congregation rose and applauded. If they looked at their program, they would see "Commitment Ceremony," but nothing else. Would they think he was marrying his sister?
He looked around. Quadruple security. Photographers at the ready. Dang it, did Jesse call the press? No picketers in the back, no one snarling, ready to pull out a gun. He glanced at stage right, hoping to see Keefe, if only for an instant, but the lights were too bright.
Jesse raised his hands to quiet the audience, and Kelvin and Judy took their places at center left and right, facing away from him. "Partners, boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands, wives," he began. "Spouses, soul mates, better halves. Whatever you want to call them. They are the first person we see in the morning, the last person we see at night. They will be the last person we see before we go to meet Jesus."
Gulp! Hopefully he wouldn't be meeting Jesus today!
More after the jump break
"They have their faults and quirks. Sometimes they can be a pain in the butt." He paused for the congregation to laugh. "But they push us and prod us to become a better person. Their unconditional love gives us a glimpse of what God's love is like."
Kelvin couldn't see the images flashing on the screen behind Jesse, but he had reviewed them before. Husbands and wives of various ages and races, arguing over a ledger, trying to put out a fire on the stove, walking hand in hand through a field, praying in church, having a picnic with their kid, in a hospital bed. Except one of the couples was gay, and another lesbian. They went by so fast that you might not notice, or you would interpret them as platonic buddies. He didn't hear any gasps or frantic whispers.
"Today," Jesse continued, "It is my honor to lead my sister Judy and my brother Kelvin as they confirm their commitment to their partners, to the church, and to God. First, please welcome Judy's partner, BJ Barnes."
The right end lights went off, immersing Kelvin in darkness. BJ walked onto the center stage, smiling and waving. He and Judy faced each other and held hands. A flowered canopy descended from the rafters.
"They are going to repeat the beautiful vow that Ruth took with her partner Naomi, in the Book of Ruth 1.16 and 17."
Kelvin smiled. How many members of the congregation knew that Ruth and Naomi were a lesbian couple? Did they know now, or did it go right over their heads?
Judy began the vow: "Where you go, I will go, and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God." BJ finished: Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me severely, if anything but death separates us."
Ulp, Kelvin had not realized how morbid that quote was, death in nearly every line. He hoped no one in the congregation had their finger on a trigger.
They faced the congregation and raised their hands. Everyone applauded and cheered. Then the left end lights were extinguished, and the right end lights illuminated Kelvin. His hands were trembling. Showtime!
"Now, please welcome Kelvin's partner, Keefe Chambers-Gemstone."
No one applauded as Keefe walked onto the stage, smiling and waving. Were they instructed not to applaud? Did they applaud when BJ came on stage? Kelvin couldn't remember. Their canopy descended from the rafters. Keefe took both his hands and squeezed them. He was smiling. It was the most beautiful smile Kelvin had ever seen.
"This is how I want to die," he thought. "Looking at the most beautiful man in the world, being amazed that he chose me." But not today!! Lord, let us at least start our life together!
Keefe looked at him quizzically. What was wrong? Oh, right, he had to began the vow: "Where you go, I will go, and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God."
So far so good. No one yelling about sodomites. Keefe finished: "Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me severely, if anything but death separates us." Then he leaned forward -- wait, they hadn't kissed in rehearsal. Judy and BJ didn't kiss! But he let Keefe kiss him. They faced the congregation and raised their hands.
Applause. But not only applause. Signs came up: "Love is love"; "We are all God's children"; "Y'all means all!"; a dozen rainbow flags. Shouts of "Yeah, Kelvin!" "Kelvin and Keefe!" Jesse had to say "Calm down, please. This is a sacred place."
Amber appeared, as they had rehearsed. Jesse turned to face her, and they linked hands. Kelvin faced Keefe again, and took his hands. Three couples facing each other. They were going to take turns singing the Christina Perry song "A Thousand Years."
Jesse began:
The day we met, I held my breath. Right from the start, I knew I'd found a home for my heart.
Judy came next:
Colors and promises/ How can I be brave? / How can I love when I'm afraid to fall? / But watching you standing alone/ All of my doubt goes away. / Right from the start, I knew I'd found a home for my heart.
Kelvin was next, but he couldn't begin. He had performed a thousand times, he knew how to project a stage persona, but today he was crying too hard to continue the song. After a moment of silence, Keefe glanced at someone -- maybe Judy, the music director? -- and then jumped in. Kelvin wondered why he learned the song. Did he know that he would have to take over?
Time stands still/ Beauty in all he is/ I will not let anything take away/ What's standing in front of me. / RIght from the start, I knew I'd found a home for my heart.
There was another song, a dance number, a short film about their food bank, a sermon, and a closing prayer, but Kelvin and Keefe weren't needed anymore, so they went backstage, wiped off their makeup, and sat on the dressing room couch to watch. Occasionally a member of the crew would stop in to congratulate them.
One of the security guards knocked. "Do you want to see a Percy?"
His BFF Percy? "Sure, let him in."
Percy pushed through." "I hope you don't mind me ducking out, guys," he said. "Church isn't really my thing. But your ceremony was lovely."
"I expected a little kickback," Kelvin said. "Someone yelling about the Book of Leviticus or something."
Percy sat on the couch and linked his arm. "We sort of stacked the deck. We called every gay-friendly church within 50 miles of Charleston -- all twelve of them. Plus the Gay Men's Chorus and the Lambda Youth League. You got more queer folk in the audience today than at Charleston Pride."
"Why didn't you tell us?" Keefe asked. "We went out there expecting all sorts of hate."
"Because it's coming. Some -- a lot -- of Christians hate us. They really hate us. And they'll hate a gay Evangelical minister and his husband the most of all. You need to be strong." He reached over and squeezed Keefe's hand. "You both do. There's a battle coming, and like it or not, you two will be on the front lines."
"I'm ready," Kelvin said. "I don't care what it is. I'm ready for anything."
"Oh, listen to me, casting a shadow on your special day! I brought rainbow cupcakes, but Old Burly back there confiscated them."
"Thanks. We'll retrieve them later."
"Don't let it get you down -- there are lots of rainbows in your future, too. More than you can imagine." He kissed them both on the cheek.
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