Baby, You are My Religion: Women, Gay Bars, and Theology Before Stonewall (Gender, Theology and Spirituality)

Genuinely found Dr. Cartier’s book very inspiring. Her usage of information transformed into an experience to comprehend and acknowledge the history of gay bars.

From archaeological evidence, the female body was considered sacred for millennia. In her aptly-titled Baby, You are My Religion, Marie Cartier presents a good case that the butch-femme bars of the mid-twentieth century were places where the female form was likewise worshipped. After reading about that worship, and the blood-price the worshippers often paid, it is hard to think of the bars in non-theological terms, for they were surely sanctified spaces.It's an important book, a biblical-type testament that records part of the rebirth and reshaping of very old ideas.

This book is fantastic. I grew up as a twenty something lesbian in the 80's and it is so descriptive of alot of my experience. I have a better understanding of the generation before me and SO appreciate the insight into their lives, struggles and how they paved the way for myself and this newer generation. I wish the twenty somethings would read this book and gain more understanding of why it is important to keep the words like "lesbian" "vagina" and "feminism" as a source of power. Highly recommended!

I simply CANNOT put this book down. I'm learning some very interesting information about some of my friends. Although I usually can read only large print books, I'm reading on unaware of that supposed fact, although with the aid of a magnifying glass on some of the very small print. The theology part I compare with "sacred place/space"....the unifiying word being "sacred". The extensive annotation also impressed me. I will go back to my wonderful book after I finish my VERY POSITIVE review.

A must read to understand where we are today..cheers!

wonderful book about a subject that only a small number of us has experienced. we are dying off, so this book is a must for the younger generations to learn about "how it was".

I have waited for a book of this caliber, content and history to be written and published. I had perfect moments listening to Melissa Etheridge, reading BABY, YOU ARE MY RELIGION and sipping coffee. Thanks to all who shared your stories and to Dr. Marie Cartier for your love of community and commitment to being the vessel, the messenger and the scribe.

Out of the closet and into the bars.. our sanctuaries.. Thank you for bringing back all those memories of so long ago. Your book is wonderful, a validation; a must read for all gays, lesbians and those that love them.Jennie