Document Type

Editorial

Publication Date

2-6-2025

Publication Source

Blog of the Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion

Abstract

As a group, we took multiple months to enact a vision Dr. Neomi De Anda, director of the International Marian Research Institute at the University of Dayton, had because of her research around chisme and spilling the T. The Spanish word chisme loosely translates as gossip in English, and the phrase “spilling the tea (or T)” is an American English slang phrase that means sharing gossip or revealing interesting news about someone.

While Gen Z has popularized this phrase in queer culture, specifically Black drag culture, the notion of "the T" is not simply a frivolous sharing of information, but a powerful form of sharing truths known by those who live in the margins.

Coming out of our conversations and work was a presentation at “Imago Dei: Embracing the Dignity of LGBTQ+ Persons,” an assembly in June, 2024, at the Bergamo Center in Dayton, Ohio, which was a celebratory event hosted by the Marianist Social Justice Collaborative LGBTQ+ Initiative on the 50th anniversary of “The Gay Christian,” a conference in 1974, which was also held at the Bergamo Center, as a national meeting for training clergy and laity on developing a ministry to gay Christians.

Comments

This document is made available with the permission of the author and the publisher. Permission documentation is on file. Readers can download the PDF or view the blog on the Wabash Center’s website.


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