Descriptive Summary
Access
Publication Rights
Preferred Citation
Acquisition Information
Processing Information
Administrative History
Scope and Content of Collection
Indexing Terms
Descriptive Summary
Title: Southern California Council on Religion and the
Homophile records
Dates: 1965-1984.
Bulk Dates: 1965-1969.
Collection number: Coll2008-057
Creator:
Southern California Council on
Religion and the Homophile
Creator:
Kepner, Jim (James), 1923-1997
Repository:
ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives.
Los Angeles, California 90007
Abstract: Official records for the Southern California
Council on Religion and the Homophile for the years 1965-1968, including copies
of the articles of incorporation and by-laws; minutes of the pre-foundation
planning committee and of the Board of Trustees and general membership meetings
from June 1965 to August 1968; and several contemporary membership lists. The
collection also contains a notebook of the Rev. Ken Wahrenbrock, Secretary of
the organization, and manuscript materials from the papers of gay activist and
journalist Jim Kepner, a founder of the organization, who served as
Wahrenbrock's pro-tem and later succeeded him as Secretary. These include his
detailed handwritten notes of Board meetings for the years 1965-1972; a file on
the 4th North American Conference of Homophile Organizations (NACHO) in 1968,
to which Kepner served as a delegate; and a file of notes on the early history
of the organization and its parent, the Council on Religion and the Homosexual,
in San Francisco. The collection also contains a file of correspondence;
informational brochures; flyers and announcements of the organization's monthly
meetings and other activities; and copies of the nine issues of the
organization's newsletter,
Concern, published irregularly from 1966
through 1969.
Languages: Languages
represented in the collection: English
Access
The collection is open to researchers. There are no access
restrictions.
Publication Rights
Researchers wishing to publish materials must obtain permission in
writing from ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives as the physical owner.
Researchers must also obtain clearance from the holder(s) of any copyrights in
the materials. Note that ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives can grant
copyright clearance only for those materials for which we hold the copyright.
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain copyright clearance for
all other materials directly from the copyright holder(s).
Preferred Citation
Southern California Council on Religion and the Homophile records,
Coll2008-057, ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives, Los Angeles,
California.
Acquisition Information
Date and method of acquisition unknown.
Processing Information
Collection processed by Michael P. Palmer,
October 24, 2008.
Processing this collection has been funded by a generous grant from the
National Historical Publications and Records Commission.
Administrative History
The Southern California Council on Religion and the Homophile (SCCRH)
traces its origins to a June 1, 1965, meeting of 20 individuals in the
Westchester YMCA called by the Council on Religion and the Homosexual, of San
Francisco, which had been founded in 1964. The purposes of SCCRH were "to open
the avenues of communication and understanding between churchmen and
homophiles; to investigate and implement ways for meeting the spiritual needs
and social responsibilities of homophiles; to encourage more satisfactory
climate of opinion within the community on broad matters of sex and morals;
[and] to seek just social treatment of the homophile community". The articles
of incorporation submitted to the California Secretary of State in April 1966
were signed by the Rev. Alexander Smith, director of the Downtown Service
Bureau of the Los Angeles Missionary Society of the Methodist Church; W. Dorr
Legg, of ONE Institute; the Rev. Kenneth Wahrenbrock, of the First Methodist
Church in Glendale; the Rev. Marjorie Likins; and the gay activist and
journalist Jim Kepner. The SCCRH provided an extensive program of monthly
lectures, discussion groups, and informal meetings of clergymen, church
members, and members of the GLBT community; retreats and conferences exploring
homosexuality and religion; "exposure education" for non-gay clergymen and
church members to learn about such aspects of GLBT culture as gay bars, clubs,
and organizations; assistance to churches developing policies relating to
homosexuality and religion and to homosexual law reform; and training for
counselors, teachers, clergymen, and others who counseled homosexuals. The
organization originally utilized the mailing address of the Rev. Smith's
Downtown Service Bureau; by 1970 it used the address of the Los Angeles Council
of Churches on West Adams Blvd.; and by February 1971 the Venice Blvd. address
of ONE Institute, of which both Legg and Kepner were officers.
Despite vigorous activity in its early years, by the 1970s the SCCRH was
overtaken by more activist religious organizations, in particular the
Metropolitan Community Church and Dignity, whose more militant, and even at
times confrontational, stand appealed more to the Gay Liberation generation of
the GLBT community. While the SCCRH continued to hold meetings as late as 1974,
a notice for a meeting in July of that year ended with the statement, "[w]e
hope that many of you will wish to attend, for just because groups such as
DIGNITY, the Metropolitan Community Churches and the various metropolitan
Community Temples exist does not mean that the need for keeping channels open
toward the major church denominations is less than before. It suggests, rather,
that the opportunity for developing better relations with large religious
bodies is greater than ever and should not be neglected." The SCCRH appears to
have ceased operations by 1975.
Scope and Content of Collection
The collection comprises the official records for the Southern
California Council on Religion and the Homophile for the years 1965-1968. These
are contained in the Minute Book / Membership Register, which contains copies
of the articles of incorporation and by-laws; minutes of the pre-foundation
planning committee and of the Board of Trustees and general membership meetings
from June 1965 to August 1968; and several contemporary membership lists. The
collection also contains a notebook of the Rev. Ken Wahrenbrock, Secretary of
the organization, with his correspondence, copies of Board minutes, and other
materials on the organization for the years 1965-1967. The bulk of the
remaining manuscript materials derive from the papers of Jim Kepner, a founder
of the organization, who served as Wahrenbrock's pro-tem and later succeeded
him as Secretary. These include his detailed handwritten notes of Board
meetings for the years 1965-1972; a file on the 4th North American Conference
of Homophile Organizations (NACHO) in 1968, to which Kepner served as a
delegate; and a file of notes on the early history of the organization and its
parent, the Council on Religion and the Homosexual, in San Francisco. The
collection also contains a file of correspondence from 1966 to 1971 (the
letters from 1975 and 1984 represent letters of inquiry written to the
organization after it has ceased activities); informational brochures; flyers
and announcements of the organization's monthly meetings and other activities;
and copies of the nine issues of the organization's newsletter,
Concern, published irregularly from 1966
through 1969.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this
collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Council on Religion and the
Homosexual (San Francisco, Calif.)
Gays--Religious life
Homosexuality--Religious aspects
Kepner, Jim (James),
1923-1997
Lesbians--Religious life
North American Conference of
Homophile Organizations (4th : 1968 : Chicago)
Southern California Council on
Religion and the Homophile
Wahrenbrock, Kenneth A.,
1919-1998