Troy
lives in Los Angeles with his long term partner, Phillip Ray De Blieck,
whom he married under Canadian law at Metropolitan Community Church of
Toronto. Troy and Phillip sued the State of California upon their return
home after their Toronto wedding for recognition of their marriage and
won. The State appealed and the ruling was overturned


This is the sixty-fifth post in a series highlighting the best gay and
lesbian authors from the 20th century (with a few before and after that
period) who have recorded in fiction, and nonfiction, the history of gay
people telling what life is, and was, during an important time of
history.

Troy
Deroy Perry II (born July 27, 1940) founded the Metropolitan Community
Church, a Christian denomination with a special affirming ministry with
the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities, in Los Angeles
on October 6, 1968.


Early life

Troy Perry is the
eldest of five brothers born to "the biggest bootleggers in Northern
Florida," Troy Perry and Edith Allen. As early as he can remember, Perry
felt called to preach, labeling himself as a "religious fanatic". He
was influenced by his aunts, who held street services in his hometown,
and who hosted Perry giving sermons from their home. Perry's father died
fleeing the police when his son was eleven years old, cementing Troy's
resolve to become involved in the church as much as possible. After his
mother remarried and moved the family to Daytona Beach, Perry was abused
by his stepfather and he ran away from home, to return after she
divorced him.

His fanaticism increasing, Perry dropped out of
high school, but was a licensed Baptist preacher by the age of 15 years.
He married a preacher's daughter named Pearl Pinion in 1959,
remembering, "I was always interested in pastor's daughters because I
thought they would make good preacher's wives. I didn't love her when I
married her, but I did love her after our first year." They had two sons
and were relocated to Illinois where Perry attended Midwest Bible
College and Moody Bible Institute. Perry was the preacher at a small
Church of God, and sometimes had sexual relationships with other men,
but considered it just youthful exploration. When he was 19 years old,
however, church administrators told him one of the men he had been with
had told them what they had done. He was forced to leave the church
immediately.

They
moved to Southern California, pastoring at a Church of God of Prophecy.
Perry's wife found his copy of The Homosexual in America by Donald
Webster Cory, that he kept hidden under the mattress and their marriage
quickly dissolved. After being directed to pray about being led astray
by his homosexual feelings, Perry's bishop told him to renounce himself
in the pulpit and resign. Perry worked in a Sears department store, and
was drafted for the army in 1965 where he served two years in Germany.

Founding the Metropolitan Community Church
In
1968, after a suicide attempt following a failed love affair, and
witnessing a close friend being arrested by the police at the Black Cat
Tavern, a Los Angeles gay bar, Perry felt called to return to his faith
and to offer a place for gay people to worship God freely. Perry put an
advertisement in The Advocate announcing a worship service designed for
gays in Los Angeles. Twelve people turned up on October 6, 1968 for the
first service, and "Nine were my friends who came to console me and to
laugh, and three came as a result of the ad."After six weeks of services
in his living room, the congregation shifted to a womans' club, an
auditorium, a church, and finally to a theater that could hold 600
within several months. In 1971, their own building was dedicated with
over a thousand members in attendance.

Being outspoken has caused
several MCC buildings to be targeted for arson, including the original
Mother Church in Los Angeles. Perry's theology has been described as
conservative, but social action was a high priority from the beginning
of the establishment of the denomination. Perry performed same sex
unions as early as 1970 and ordained women as pastors as early as 1972.

MCC
has over 300 congregations in 18 countries.The 2007 documentary film
titled Call Me Troy is the story of his life and legacy, including the
founding of MCC and his struggles as a civil rights leader in the gay
community.
Civil rights activism

Rev.
Perry's activism has taken many turns, including positions on a number
of boards of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender organizations. He
held a seat on the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations in
1973. Perry worked in political arenas to oppose Anita Bryant in the
Save the Children campaign in 1977, that sought to overturn an
anti-discrimination ordinance passed by the city of Miami. Unsuccessful
in Miami, he also worked to oppose the Briggs Initiative in California
that was written to ensure gay and lesbian teachers would be fired or
prohibited from working in California public schools. The Briggs
Initiative was soundly defeated in 1978, due in large part to
grass-roots organizing, which Perry participated in.Perry also planned
the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights in 1979 with
Robin Tyler.[citation needed]

In
1978 he was honored by the American Civil Liberties Union Lesbian and
Gay Rights Chapter with its Humanitarian Award. He holds honorary
doctorates from Episcopal Divinity School in Boston,Samaritan College
(Los Angeles), and La Sierra University in Santa Monica, California for
his work in civil rights, and was recently lauded by the Gay Press
Association with its Humanitarian Award. Rev. Perry was invited to the
White House in 1977 by President Jimmy Carter to discuss gay and lesbian
civil rights, and by President Bill Clinton in 1995 for the first White
House Conference on HIV/AIDS. In 1997 he was invited to the first White
House Conference on Hate Crimes. Perry was also a guest of the
President that same year for breakfast in the State dining room in the
White House to be honored with 90 other clergy for their work in
American society.

On Valentine's Day
2004 he spoke to a crowd of gay newlyweds at the Marriage Equality
Rally at the California State Capitol.  He retired as Moderator of the
MCC in 2005, and the Reverend Elder Nancy Wilson succeeded him at an
installation service on 29 October 2005. He remains active in public
speaking and writing.
Writings

In
addition to his work as a gay religious leader and human rights
activist, Perry has written an autobiography, The Lord is My Shepherd
and He Knows I'm Gay. Rev. Perry has written a sequel to this book,
titled Don't Be Afraid Anymore, published by St. Martin's Press and
Profiles in Gay and Lesbian Courage also published by St. Martin's. He
is a contributing editor for the book Is Gay Good? and the subject of
another book, Our God Too.