Reading Secrets

A trans pastor’s transformation of the Scripture inherited from his closeted, fundamentalist father When his dad died, Malcolm Himshoot inherited his father’s bibles. Rereading them, examining his dad’s notes in their margins, Malcolm weaves details of his upbringing and gender identity into the structures and forms of biblical narratives. For Malcolm, coming out meant exile and verbal excommunication; he embodied all his gay father tried to hide. In Reading Secrets, Malcolm travels alongside the ghost of his father, exploring their inherited homophobia and the American culture that shaped their triumphs and tragedies. With these poetic and evocative meditations, Malcolm transforms the Scripture he inherited, and finds a place in it for himself.