Progressive Pastor Defends Sacrilegious ‘Beyoncé Mass’

A wildly progressive church in San Francisco conferred sainthood onto the pop singer Beyoncé by celebrating her with a “Beyoncé Mass.”

The so-called “Mass” in honor of the singer who once gave homage to the Black Panthers during a performance, was held at Grace Cathedral, an Episcopalian congregation, during their hip, young adult service called “The Vine.”

On the event’s Facebook page, the saintly Beyoncé was described as one whose “art opens a window into the lives of the marginalized and forgotten.”

“Beyoncé? At church? That’s right!” said the page. “Come to The Vine SF on Wednesday, April 25 to sing your Beyoncé favorites and discover how her art opens a window into the lives of the marginalized and forgotten—particularly black females.”

After the so-called “Mass” went viral, the church pastor, Jude Harmon, has defended his decision to host the event, saying Jesus used “very provocative images” to support his teachings.

“I know there are people who will say using Beyoncé is just a cheap way of trying to get people in the church,” said Jude Harmon. “But Jesus used very provocative images in the stories he would tell to incite people to ask hard questions about their own religious assumptions. He regularly provoked. We’re following in the way of Jesus.”

“It’s all about finding the appropriate context,” explained Harmon. “Everything Beyoncé has said and produced isn’t appropriate for every venue. But Beyoncé has 20 years of work. Of course you can find things that fit the context of the Mass.”

Jesus telling stories in parables is one thing, depicting a pop singer in the same light as Christ Himself is nothing short of sacrilege:

[[{“fid”:”32801″,”view_mode”:”default”,”fields”:{“format”:”default”,”field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]”:false,”field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]”:”Facebook”},”type”:”media”,”field_deltas”:{“1”:{“format”:”default”,”field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]”:false,”field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]”:”Facebook”}},”attributes”:{“title”:”Facebook”,”class”:”media-element file-default”,”data-delta”:”1″}}]]

The “Beyoncé Mass” is hardly the first time that Grace Cathedral used such “provocative” imagery. In fact, just weeks prior, another service lectured on how Mary Magdalene was the “original nasty woman” and featured the biblical figure in a “p***y hat.”

Beyoncé songs “Freedom” and “Flaws and All” were played following readings from Psalms and Luke.

Delivering the sermon was Rev. Yolanda Norton, an Assistant Professor of Old Testament at San Francisco Theological Seminary (SFTS), who also teaches a class titled “Beyoncé and the Bible.”

“Empire never falls lightly,” Norton said in her sermon. “Sometimes we call it racism; we call it empire. You call it homophobia; we call it heterosexual aggression; and tonight, we call it empire.”

Norton rejects the claim that Grace Cathedral engaged in an idolatrous worship of a pop singer.

“Our goal is to have a worship experience that honors the fact that we’re all created in the image of God,” said Norton, adding condescendingly, “You might want to remind them that God is in all the world and that Beyoncé is made in God’s image. The church has not treated women of color fairly and it is time to face this truth.”

“I’ve been asked time and time again, ‘Why Beyoncé?'” Norton told parishioners, “I believe in Beyoncé because she reminds us you have to do things your way.”

She added, “When we talk about womanist biblical interpretation, Beyoncé felt like a natural fit. If we look at the trajectory of her person and her relationships, we can see so many issues black women face and how it can affect how we interpret the text.”