Last Updated on January 6, 2024 by Kittredge Cherry
Saints and heroes of the LGBTQ community come alive through bold artwork in “Heavenly Homos, Etc” by Jan Haen, a Dutch artist and Roman Catholic priest in the Redemptorist order. The new graphic book launches today.
It was published in June 2022 for LGBTQ Pride Month by Apocryphile Press, a New York publisher specializing in edgy spirituality and religion at the margins.
[Update: The sequel “Heavenly LGBTQ+: Queer Icons from LGBTQ Life, Religion and History” was released in June 2023.
[Update: Haen reveals his own journey in the illustrated memoir “My Life: as a Boy, Priest, Gay Man, and Artist,” published in fall 2023. ]
About 30 saints and historical figures from all over the world are presented, including popular favorites such as Sebastian, Sergius and Bacchus, Joan of Arc, David and Jonathan, Harvey Milk, Matthew Shepard, Perpetua and Felicity, and Hildegard of Bingen.
Less famous but richly deserving people are also canonized by Haen’s artistry. Intended for adults, the book naturally includes the occasional nudity that is needed to tell the history.
He paints diverse people of faith, courage, and love who can inspire readers with new models of queer holiness. The book shows many people who changed the world by facing opposition or violence for loving someone of the same sex or breaking gender rules. Short, accessible text lets the pictures tell their stories.
Haen brings an international perspective based on his years of ministry in both the Netherlands and South Africa. Haen has painted murals in churches, schools and public places all over the world too. He is an active member of the Werkverband van Katholieke Homo-Pastores, an association of gay Catholic pastoral leaders.
“Heavenly Homos, Etc.: Queer Icons from LGBTQ Life, Religion, and History” has a deceptively simple style that conveys sophisticated understandings of sexual orientation and queer Biblical scholarship. Large, colorful illustrations on every page of the graphic book present a fresh, unsentimental view of saints and other inspiring people. Even when Haen concludes that someone was probably not gay, he still celebrates them as a role model for the LGBTQ community.
“Let the heavenly homos inspire you by revealing the value of LGBTQ people in human history and in God’s creation,” says lesbian Christian author Kittredge Cherry, who served as editorial consultant for the book. She is founder and publisher of Qspirit.net, which promotes LGBTQ spirituality with saints, history, art and books.
“The LGBTQ community needs queer saints to show us alternative ways to lead loving lives,” Cherry said. “Queer saints danced in my soul when I read ‘Heavenly Homos, Etc,’ so I joined forces with Apocryphile Press to bring it to readers.”
The cartoon-style trip through LGBTQ religious history is a user-friendly introduction for beginners and fun for advanced scholars. “Heavenly Homos, Etc” combines the best of multiple genres: Part Bible study, part comic book, part history lesson, and part meditation guide, it adds up to much more than the sum of its parts. The clear, concise style packs a whole pantheon of saints into a single volume.
Early Christian saints and Roman soldiers Sergius and Bacchus from “Heavenly Homos, Etc” by Jan Haen
News and reviews of “Heavenly Homos, Etc”
“Jan Haen has written a unique and intellectually stimulating book … and it is indeed a ‘heavenly’ read. Thank your lucky stars for a book that features such a vast array of saints, people in the Bible, writers, scientists and so forth—inclusivity is the keyword in this fascinating book. Beautifully drawn artwork by artist Haen informs the pages of this book which is drenched in page after page of beautifully drawn human figures who represent hope for the LGBTQ community.”
— Dignity USA book review by David Friscic
“What must be considered essential reading for all members of the LGBTQ community (and those who love them), ‘Heavenly Homos, Etc.: Queer Icons from LGBTQ Life, Religion, and History’ is a singularly original, informative, and effective way to learn about the history of homosexuality and religion/spirituality.”
— Midwest Book Review, September 2022
Priest’s New Book Celebrates “Heavenly Homos”
— By Robert Shine, managing editor, New Ways Ministry, Sept. 24, 2022
“In a delightfully innocent and ‘child-like’ way, Dutch priest Jan Haen presents the stories of some of these ‘gay/lesbian/bi/trans’ saints in comic book fashion. What a nice and simple way to convey this information.”
— Book review by Toby Johnson, gay spirituality author, at tobyjohnson.com, August 2022
LGBTQ saints and historical figures are featured
The cloud of witnesses gathered in “Heavenly Homos, Etc.” includes traditional saints, people in the Bible, martyrs whose deaths changed LGBTQ laws, priests and nuns, LGBTQ activists, writers, scientists, and athletes. Most are already profiled at Q Spirit at the following links:
* Traditional saints:
Sebastian, Sergius and Bacchus, Joan of Arc, Aelred of Rievaulx, Brigid and Darlughdach, Hildegard von Bingen, Walatta Petros
* People in the Bible:
David and Jonathan, Ruth and Naomi, Beloved Disciple
* Martyrs whose deaths changed LGBTQ laws:
Matthew Shepard, George Duncan
* LGBTQ activists:
Harvey Milk, Fanny Ann Eddy, David Kato, Xulhaz Mannan and Mahbub Tonoy
* Priests and nuns
Mychal Judge, Juana Ines de la Cruz, Jan van Kilsdonk
* Writers, scientists, athletes
Virginia Woolf, Mary Daly, Alan Turing, Danell Leyva
Haen has an extensive career as a priest and muralist, but this is his first book. He is already working on a second volume with even more heavenly LGBTQ people, including Ukrainians affected by the Russian invasion.
Diverse “heavenly” figures come from all over the world
Some scenes are rarely if ever portrayed by artists. Haen’s unique approach combines ripped-from-the-headlines immediacy with progressive spiritual sensibility in a modern Pop-Art style. He makes ancient history feel surprisingly contemporary.
South African gay activist David Kato page from “Heavenly Homos, Etc” by Jan Haen
His heavenly homos etc. come not only from the United States and Europe, but also from Africa, Asia, Australia, Latin America, and the Middle East. He uses hard edges, flat colors and spiritual depth to create his own unique style, inspired by his experience as a muralist and his admiration for gay artist Keith Haring.
17th-century Mexican nun Juana de la Cruz excerpt from “Heavenly Homos, Etc” by Jan Haen
The book focuses primarily but not exclusively on “heavenly homos” — homosexual men. The “Etc” in the title covers a broad range of other people and topics. Lesbian, bisexual, transgender and genderqueer figures are also profiled. For example, the wide-ranging mix brings together such women as British novelist Virginia Woolf, American philosopher Mary Daly and Mexican nun-poet Juana de la Cruz.
Early Christian martyr Sebastian from “Heavenly Homos, Etc” by Jan Haen
Most but not all of the heavenly homos come from the Christian tradition. The emphasis on Catholic figures reflects the author’s decades as a Redemptorist priest, but he also profiles people with Protestant, Orthodox or Jewish backgrounds. A few chapters explore related subjects such as pansexuality, asexuality and scriptures on procreation and homosexuality. Other graphic novels such as “Queer: A Graphic History” cover secular LGBTQ history, but “Heavenly Homos, Etc.” is the first with a religious focus.
Author’s international background adds realism and charm
Haen draws on his international background to infuse realism into his charming images of LGBTQ history. He was student-pastor at the University of Pretoria, South Africa and secretary of various departments of the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference. In 1978 he was declared persona-non-grata by the apartheid regime of South Africa. He then worked as naval chaplain to the Royal Netherlands Navy for 16 years. After that he painted murals in South Africa, Ukraine, Austria, Belgium, England, France, Ireland, the Netherlands and Switzerland.
Aelred of Rievaulx excerpt from “Heavenly Homos, Etc” by Jan Haen, illustrating his theology of friendship
The stories in “Heavenly Homos, Etc” unfold as a dialogue between two archetypal characters: John, who explains LGBTQ history and theology, and Tony, who is eager to learn. They grapple with controversies over whether particular figures were homosexual.
“Heavenly Homos, Etc” (ISBN 1955821968) is published by Apocryphile Press, a publisher and purveyor of fine books on religion, spirituality, philosophy and poetry. Their stated goal is to bring to market “books that ‘normal’ religious publishers wouldn’t touch with a 10-foot pole.” John Mabry is founder and editor-in-chief. Based in Hannacroix, New York, Apocryphile has published more than 300 books since 2004 — including “Art That Dares,” “The Passion of Christ: A Gay Vision” and other books by Kittredge Cherry.
Bangladesh LGBTQ activists Xulhaz Mannan and Mahbub Tonoy from “Heavenly Homos, Etc” by Jan Haen
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Related links:
An artist who communicates to the wounded world through colours (profile of Jan Haen in Redemptorists Scala News)
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Top image credit:
“Heavenly Homos, Etc.: Queer Icons from LGBTQ Life, Religion, and History” by Jan Haen book cover and printed book open to pages on the Beloved Disciple and Sergius and Bacchus.
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This post is part of the LGBTQ Saints series by Kittredge Cherry. Traditional and alternative saints, people in the Bible, LGBT and queer martyrs, authors, theologians, religious leaders, artists, deities and other figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people and our allies are covered.
This article was originally published on Q Spirit on June 1, 2022, expanded with new material over time, and most recently updated on Nov. 16, 2023.
