Visibility Beyond Disparity

Listen to the sermon by clicking the play button above.

Rev. Carrie Holley-Hurt and LB Lomeli
March 29, 2026
First UU Church of Austin
4700 Grover Ave., Austin, TX 78756
www.austinuu.org

The early warning alarms of genocide directed towards transgender people are starting to sound blaringly loud. How do we turn anger against transgender, nonbinary and intersex people into love? Rev. Carrie Holley-Hurt and LB Lomeli are offering a special Trans Day of Visibility worship service. Can we collectively challenge the systems of oppression by strengthening our spirituality?

Carrie:
It is really a joy to be with you all today, especially because today we are celebrating Trans Day of Visibility, and I can’t think of a better time to celebrate than the time we’re living in. Our preacher today is LB Lomeli. LB is a genderqueer Mexican human. born to a family with a long heritage and farming in a small town in central Mexico where the houses are still made of clay, though they have lived in Texas long enough for it to be part of their heart too. They consider themselves to be a lover of all life forms, even the less likable ones. After a long stench of recovering from Christianity, they were introduced to Unitarian Universalism by a friend and have been a member since. Welcome, L.B.

Chalice Lighting

This is the flame we hold in our hearts as we strive for justice for everyone. This is the light we shine upon systems of oppression until they are no more. This is the warmth we share with one another as our struggle becomes our salvation.

Call to Worship

THE INFINITE DIVINITY
by Rev. Jamil Yandle

The chalice is lit
And in the flames the memory of
Our trans and non-binary ancestors
Do a dance of freedom and liberation
Reminding us that
We are whole and holy
We are loved beyond all measure
And in our refusal to accept anything less
May we know we are rooted
In the infinite divinity
Not relegated to the outskirts
Of the web of all existence
But enshrined at its core
Enfleshed with stardust and fairy dust
An intentional creation of space where our many Gods live

Affirming Our Mission

Together we nourish souls, transform lives, and do justice to build the Beloved Community.

Anthem

“They/Them/Theirs” (Worriers) Bethany Ammon, Voice: Brent Baldwin, guitar

You’ve got a word for one
So there’s a word for all
The smallest things have become
Which side are you on?
What if I don’t want something that applies to me?
What if there’s no better word than just not saying anything, anything?
You are fighting between a rock and “why bother?”
We are floating between two ends that don’t matter
So many questions get asked
So many times when I don’t have the energy, I’d like to correct and react
What if I’m not a part of the see and be seen?
Neither nor, both and me, in between, in between
We are fighting between a rock and “why bother?”
You are floating between two ends that don’t matter
What if I don’t want something that applies to me?
What if there’s no better word than just not saying anything, anything?
We are fighting between a rock and “why bother?”
You are floating between two ends that don’t matter
So there’s a word for all (so there’s a word for all)
You’ve got a word for one (you’ve got a word for one)
So there’s a word for all

Reading

MISS MAJOR
– Miss Major Griffin-Gracy

They have to see us, they have to know that we’re not going anywhere, that we’ve been here ever since God made man and woman, and they have to get over it. I don’t need their permission to exist. I exist in spite of them.

I want you to train and teach and love on and create families within my community and gender non-conforming people, so that we can understand that we have a culture, we have a history, we have a reason to be here.

We have a purpose. We’re entitled to be loved, and seek happiness, and share that with the people that we care about.

Sermon

LB Lomeli:

Now, I want to talk about the word Real.

Real. This word is an adjective; which is used to describe something or someone. Some of the Definitions I’d like to highlight here.

actual, as in having physical existence
occurring or existing in actuality
of or relating to everyday activities

I want to talk about what is real because for centuries now much of the world has been trying to deny the reality of transgender individuals, by using terms such as cross-dressers, suggesting that their experience is merely a disguise, not something that they really are. Or in more recent news, by invalidating their Quite literal Driver’s License Identifications.

Lately, 1 cannot help but resent that most of this invalidation has been in the name of a God that we have yet to meet in actuality. Though I do honor the glory that can come with spirituality experienced through religion; but, I cannot find anything spiritual in the words of the 1500’s English Man, Thomas Hariot. When he spoke of Native American Cultural practices, including that of the Two-Spirit People. Bear with the verbage here, as i quote

” ‘Indian’ myths must fall beneath the weight of the christian bible”

He said much more Heinous things too but the end of his statement was,

“… and should the English need to act malevolently towards the “indians”.. well, the ensuing violence should likely reveal the spiritual superiority of the English”

Well, Thomas.. I see nothing sacred or spiritual in how y’all ripped us of our cultural practices and stole our lands only to come fight more of your wars on them. and yes I said y’all.

It falls heavily on me how Most Trans existences are known and sometimes even expected to have a close relationship with suffering. as Zeyn Joukhadar wrote in their essay “An incomplete history of trans immortality“:

“Most of us don’t have the luxury of believing ourselves entitled to the future – Yet, here we are, trans folk of the future, experiencing the same fear as our trans ancestors.”

I’ve been told to watch my use with the word hate, but i mean it when i say I hate that we have to continue to exist in a world where Trans Women are labeled as real life monsters, yet historically, they have actually endured fetishization in similar ways we see towards womanhood.

I hate how little we know from the so called “female” soldiers of history. our ancestral trans-mascs who fought wars, many died and most lived in fear of being outed. I say we know little from them because we have lots of records of these “female” soldiers or “female” husbands. But, rarely do the accounts come from the person themselves. They are often seen more in scandalous news reporting or in law proceedings of their very public outings. Trans Men, although not labeled as monstrous, still experience invalidation from being accepted as real men.

I hate how fervently they have worked to burn our access to knowledge about the multitudes of gender non conforming stories. These stories ranging from no gender to third gender come from all over the world; from the Hijras of Hinduism, Kathoeys of Thailand, Babaylans of the Philippines, The Two-Spirit people from these very own lands we stand on. Like the Muxe’s of Oaxaca Mexico, Muxe’s are considered a third gender that is seen to honor the indigenous Zapotec culture. They believe there is no one way to be a muxe and are welcome to embody their gender expression with fluidity.

This resentment has felt like it is boiling over inside of me lately, fueled by the weight of how long we have been suppressed, erased, denied, silenced, burned, censored and most importantly-
Oppressed.

Initially, this fury made me think I could go into this situation with their same guns blazing kind of energy, because it feels like a hot hot hot blaze of fire within me. In Gabrielle Bellot’s essay The Goddess in the Volcano I read about how she related her identity to a volcano and let me tell you, I fully agree with her right now. I have felt like I’m on the verge of erupting.

Lately though, I’m recognizing that energy is just energy. I’ve had to surrender to the reality that I simply am not called to be the face that stands right up to the oppressors; like I said, I am but a very small entity. But, I still have this energy and I’m here every day learning what to do with it so I don’t implode. They say when we are angry we see red, but did you know? the hottest stars actually burn blue. A color us meager humans associate with calm. I hope this means my anger is able to manifest calmly. This can seem like a contradiction, but I recently learned the difference between anger and wrath. Anger is just the feeling, wrath is the destruction that can come from that anger. I will not ever contribute to intentional wrath, but damn is the angry feeling still in there!

Through all this deep guttural hurt and frustration I know we have to continue to fight AND ALSO change these systems

The systems
that make me feel small,
that make me feel hurt.
and hopeless
and powerless
and SCARED.
I know to me, it’s not worth having a fight where things stay the same.

In the book – Reclaiming Two-Spirits by Gregory Smithers I read,

“the idea of static gender or sexual categories makes little sense for people who strive to bring balance and harmony to their communities”

Unlike Thomas Hariot I don’t feel the need to use the weight of my spirituality to channel the balance and harmony I long for into our reality. Because any dynamic that feels the need to break us down is not worth our grandiosity.

So what do I do?
What do we do?

Rather than breaking ourselves down, how do we find ways to break down this big ball of energy?

In one of our Adult Religious Education classes recently we were asked, What are we still seeking from our Spirituality?

One of our collective answers was: daily practice.

And it got me thinking about how I can quantify distributing such a massive ball of energy into all of my days? And in what ways can I make it feasible?

I’m truly terrible at math, so big numbers give me a jump scare! –

How do I, on top of seeing the divine in everyone, conjure the divine within myself?
How do I take my anger towards trans history and turn it into love for trans souls?

I feel like this is an ever unfolding question, a question I will most likely have to ask and answer to myself more than once. I’ve been learning to embrace things that are in constant flow, as I have been connecting with Mexica, or more commonly known as Aztec Traditions, I have learned that movement is something very holy to us. The Earth and Life itself is never still, so 1 started welcoming this concept into myself just recently.

So, for right now what I can think to do is honor and uplift trans existences with love.

As the late Filipino-American genderqueer artist Mark Aguhar wrote in their art piece “Not You (Power Circle)” – here on the screens for you to witness

“Who is worth my love, my strength & my rage?”

to me:

The Ancestral Trans Souls are worth it
The Trans community of now is worth it
I AM WORTH IT

I don’t feel like spirituality is defined by what I am.

I don’t think I need to earn acceptance by looking, or believing or thinking one specific way. I feel like my spirituality is defined by what I do. What brings strength into my spirit.

Even if all I have is a corporal body and sometimes a voice, that makes me enough. Enough to be loved by the universe and to spread that love through the universe.

Even in my small human form, 1 can be a the face that stands up for you to feel welcomed, A face that sees you, when you’re not feeling seen I can be one to pour my heart out for your existence.

And, I hope that I can help you feel like I stand here as a voice for you, a shoulder for you, maybe some time even a guide for you, should you ever need it.

In the Book So Many Stars -an oral history of trans, non-binary, genderqueer and two spirit people of color. A compilation of interviewed stories, Bambi Saucedo rejoices in saying

“being loved equally is beautiful & I can say I lived and experienced that”.

I ache at the thought that this experience of love with equality isn’t universal for trans people. So here I am, building the blocks in my life to love in equality-

For all the transmascs yearning for boy love from someone who refuses to really see them as a boy
I am here for you

For all the transfemmes feeling the daunting pressure of how to style new girly clothes, do your nails or learn the scary scary world of makeup
i am here for you

for all my fellow NB babies, (non-binary for those of you not in the know) questioning where you land and if you are even valid for how you feel on the inside. or maybe battling a constant push and pull between the big two or more identities within you.
I want you to know you are the realest, to me.

for anyone feeling afraid to accept what their identity is, afraid to water that secret sapling within you.
I am here for you.

Even, and maybe especially, for all the people who haven’t quite yet figured out how to support your trans and gender non-conforming loved ones. I can offer you an ear, some ideas, or maybe a book or two to help you gain the confidence to spread your universal love to them.

And for whoever wants to opt in for a lil’ extra blessing and universal love, Reverend Carrie and myself will be doing glitter blessings and or hugs in Howson Hall after the service.

I may not feel certain that something godly is out there for our salvation, but, humanity is in our hands always.

And if something godly exists, I believe it must be within us – therefore it is within me. And anything that exists within me is not allowed to hate me.

It can only love me.. simply because I LOVE ME

The prefix trans meaning beyond feels powerful to me in the face of our current reality.

OUR EXISTENCE IS BEYOND REAL;
and we are here, in actuality for you to behold.

Thank You.

Extinguishing the Chalice

We extinguish this flame, but not the light of truth, the warmth of community, or the fire of commitment. These we hold in our hearts until we are together again.

Benediction

Poem From the Spanish-Trans Poet Bruno Cimiano Matilla.

Presenció nuestra historia
tan colapsada
tan desprovista de memoria.

El tejido social
que podria sostener el desastre
desgarrándose en dinámicas mediocres.

Ante el auge del fascismo
intento cuidar de mi entorno
arrimar el hombro
acudir a la espiritualidad
y escribir algún verso.

Cierro los ojos.
Me vuelco hacia adentro.
Llevo mi grito contra el acantilado.

Nadie contesta.
No importa.
Ya no importa.

Porque yo sé
que todas las que yo también fui
estân alli.

En su espera. En su fuerza. En su lucha.
En su soledad prematura. En su quietud
infinita.

Pacientes.
Esperando.

I witness our history
so collapsed,
so stripped of memory.

The social fabric
that might sustain the disaster,
tearing apart amidst mediocre dynamics.

In the face of rising fascism,
I try to tend to my surroundings,
to lend a hand,
to turn to spirituality,
and to write a verse or two.

I close my eyes.
I turn inward.
I hurl my cry against the cliff.

No one answers.
It doesn’t matter.
It no longer matters.

For I know
that all the selves I once was
are there.

In their waiting. In their strength. In their struggle.
In their premature solitude. In their infinite stillness.

Patient.
Waiting.

May the congregation say blessed be.
Go in peace.

SERMON INDEX

Most sermons during the past 26 years are available online through this website. Click on the index link above to find tables of all sermons for each year listed by date (newest to oldest) with topic and speaker. Click on a topic to go to that sermon.

PODCASTS

Podcasts of this and other sermons are also available for free on iTunes. You can find them by clicking on the podcast link above or copying and pasting this link. https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/first-unitarian-universalist/id372427776