TULINAM is an LGBT+ religious organisation that commits itself to creating dialogue with church leaders and communities. This, in order to create safe spaces for sexual minorities in churches around Namibia. On the 9th and 10th of October, TULINAM held an intervention with the leadership of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia (ELCRN) in Windhoek. The aim was to sensitise the clergy around LGBT+ issues and inform how dialogue with LGBT+ Christians can move communities towards inclusion of all people who are pushed to the margins.
“We have LGBTI persons in our choirs, leaderships and still we segregate them from the congregation, as if we have no knowledge of their existence,” shared an unnamed clergy member in the workshop.
Day one was spent looking into the psychological impact of discrimination and stigma on the LGBT+ community. Dr. Sanmarie Steenkamp, a clinical phycologist, explained how LGBT+ persons fall into double homophobia through internalised conflict, and external battles for acceptance in society and at home. 
The doctor lead the group through the diagnostic manual of mental illness, explaining that while sexual orientation and transgenderism were classified as disorders once, they were not anymore. She zoomed in on mental health, saying LGBT+ persons do tend to find an outlet for their frustrations at the door of suicide. She shared that between 38-65% of transgender persons experience suicide ideation. While LGBT+ persons are four times more likely to question themselves, and three times more likely to attempt suicide.
LGBT+ people are human first, before their sexual preference or gender identity. But we are made to feel unaccepted in spaces like the church, in the streets, and even at home. The session created a safe space that allowed participants to share their personal stories. Stories about being different. Stories about being human.
For most parents keeping their children out of coffins is a primary concern. This is even more true for the parents of children who are out. The pressures are more terrifying and urgent. Through sharing such experiences, the participating clergies were made to look at the formations of the church and interrogate the bible and its interpretations with the assistance of Professor Christo Lombard from the Theological Seminary Paulinium in Windhoek. He discussed how the bible is often misused as a weapon. He looked at the separation of church and state - questioning which law is higher that of the government or God?
The final day of the intervention looked for a way forward. Clergies suggested a proposal be drawn up for a conversation with the clergy that were not present. It was emphatically expressed that these issues must be discussed with respective congregations. In this regard, TULINAM pledged to continue to walk this journey with them.
Based on the success of this meeting, TULINAM has been invited to facilitate another week of interventions with the religious leaders.
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