Putnam Church Welcomes Christian Singer-Songwriter Preaching Kindness
News Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
The Gilead Presbyterian Church in Carmel promises to have a memorable event under its roof this Sunday.
The 280-year-old congregation on Church Avenue will host singer-songwriter Bobby Jo Valentine on Sunday afternoon, a performer who crisscrosses the United States performing more than 80 shows a year mainly for Christian congregations and communities, but also in local theaters and concert halls.
He has been gaining popularity while growing in demand for having, as the biography on his website states, “a voice with original, hopeful songs about the gentle everyday spiritual awakenings of an openhearted life.”
Duane Stroud-Boutte, president of the Gilead Board of Trustees and a ruling elder at the church, said Valentine, who is playing in Schenectady the night before, likely sought out Gilead for its welcoming philosophy since he was already performing at other East Coast venues.
“I assume – and it’s only an assumption – that he found our church the way I found our church, which is when we moved to the Carmel area, my husband and I were looking for a gay-friendly church, and we came up with a few places we wanted to visit, and our church has a very clear, welcoming statement on the homepage and read at every service,” Stroud-Boutte said.
Valentine, who was born in California and now lives in Portland, Ore., grew up Baptist. His website biography suggests a strict upbringing with little acceptance for what some would consider an alternate lifestyle. As someone who is Christian and Queer, one of his goals is to encourage compassion, understanding and acceptance. His melodies are also quite striking.
Church elder Mariah Warren said what she enjoys about Valentine’s message is that he welcomes all and recognizes that everyone is a child of God.
“When I hear the words that Bobby Jo’s singing, it’s reinforcing that message that God made us all and we’re worthy to be together and worshipping as one united family of God’s creation, and that there’s not room for judging and intolerance,” Warren said.
Stroud-Boutte said he rarely listens to Christian music, but it’s easy to make an exception for Valentine.
“Bobby Jo’s music really speaks to everyday acts of kindness, to a personal journey of reconciling with yourself,” he said. “It’s got a broader appeal, I think, and it’s also the things that he sings about. He sings about what do you do when you find that the old beliefs that you have are archaic and you don’t identify with them, how do you reconcile the essence of goodness in the world.”
The 113-member congregation, which was originally established in 1743, has had its own trying journey in more recent times to become today’s welcoming congregation. While a strong majority of its members are heterosexual, Warren said making sure the inclusivity Gilead espouses is practiced.
Stroud-Boutte said many of the heterosexual families who are members support the congregation because they know that their children, for instance, will be accepted regardless of who they are.
Gilead is part of the Presbyterian Church USA, which is considered the more liberal wing of the denomination, Warren said, while Presbyterian Church America is viewed as more conservative.
“A lot of people in our congregation had much more conservative theology, and really took it hard, and it did cause a fracture in our church that thankfully has, to my eyes, been repaired over the past decade, because now making the commitment to being a welcoming congregation and supporting our LGBTQ brothers and sisters, we have brought new people into the church, as Duane mentioned,” Warren said. “There’s a warmth and a willingness to be open to whomever comes through our doors.”
Those pains will be far back in the rearview mirror on Sunday when Valentine takes out his guitar and performs for the audience. But Valentine doesn’t look to stir controversy, but rather accepts those as they are, Stroud-Boutte said.
“I wouldn’t say his music is about the things that we’re talking about,” he said. “It’s more about the spiritual journey of self-love, of accepting yourself.”
Sunday’s program is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. at Gilead Presbyterian Church, located at 9 Church Ave. in Carmel. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for children. A share of the proceeds will go toward LGBTQ+ programming at CoveCare of Carmel.
For more information or tickets, visit https://bit.ly/BobbyJoGilead. Tickets may be purchased at the door.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
