Pride Month is more than a celebration. It’s a powerful reminder of the journey so many of us have taken—from shame to authenticity, from silence to visibility, and from oppression to liberation.

As a teenager in the 1960s, I lived in secret. There was no Pride Month, no gay liberation, only shame, secrecy and fear. This foundation sent my life on a trajectory lasting over two decades.

As a high-profile Pentecostal preacher in Australia’s megachurches, I was delivering sermons to 1,000s every Sunday while silently struggling with my sexuality and true identity. I fasted, prayed, endured conversion “therapy,”, and exorcisms—all in a desperate attempt to NOT be gay.

In 1991, after decades of internal torment, I came out.

I resigned from ministry, lost friends, livelihood, and more and stepped into a new world—one that would eventually become the most honest and freeing chapter of my life.

My initial coming out was not with a sense of pride but reluctant acceptance. It would take several more years before I could fully break free from the deeply entrenched internalised shame and self-loathing that had ruled my life.

After sharing my story in A Life of Unlearning, and ever since, I’ve worked to help others find their way out of that same darkness.

Pride Is Healing

When people hear about Gay Pride, they often think of rainbows and parades. But it’s much more than that.

Pride was not born out of a need to celebrate being gay. It evolved out of our need to break free of oppression and exist without being criminalised, imprisoned, pathologised, institutionalised, and persecuted.

Pride is our response to centuries of shame. It’s our declaration that we are not broken. And for LGBTQ people of faith—who’ve often been taught that their very existence is sinful—Pride becomes a powerful, healing act of transformation.

Coming out doesn’t just change your life—it changes the world around you.

Every single courageous act of coming out chips away at the curse of homophobia. Most importantly, it’s destroyed within yourself, and that act creates the potential for its destruction in friends, family, and society.

Living openly challenges stigma. It pushes back against prejudice. And it gives others permission to do the same.

Pride is Living Authentically: One Day Is Better Than a Lifetime of Hiding

One of the most important things I’ve learned is this:

It is better to live one day on this planet being true to yourself than an entire lifetime, which is a lie.

That’s what Pride Month calls us into—authenticity. Not just for our own peace of mind, but so that others see what is possible.

As the founder of Ambassadors & Bridge Builders International (ABBI), my mission has been to create understanding, not division—to help churches, faith leaders, and communities come to a more enlightened understanding of LGBTQ people, our community and relationships. To move beyond a simple welcome and acceptance to equality and affirmation.

We work with faith leaders, organisations, communities, and LGBTQ people of faith to bridge the gap between faith and identity. And while change is happening, we still have a long way to go.

Pride Is a Beacon of Hope for Those Still Living in Shame and Darkness

To those who are still living in fear, still hiding, still carrying the heavy burden of shame—this is for you:

We march, we speak, we celebrate—not just for ourselves, but for YOU.

YOU are not alone. YOU are not broken. YOU are LOVED.

This Pride Month, why don’t you help us make a difference but becoming a member of the #ABBIfamily.