Grace and Demion: A Fable for Victims of Biblical Intolerance Paperback – December 15, 2015

This book is amazing. Being the mother of a gay son, I would have given any amount of money to have had this book to share with my son when he told me he was gay. It touches the heart in such a wonderful way to those that are struggling with this. Every mother, father and gay person would be thoroughly blessed by reading this. It is worth it at any price and should be in every home.

I am honored to count myself a friend of the good man who wrote this book, first as a gift to his husband, Gary, and now as a gift to the world. Mel White is a serious author and this is a serious book, told as a delightful fable of the struggle between good and evil and the eventual triumph of good in the form of a courageous little cherub named Grace. It's a book that I hope finds its way into homes of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender kids and their parents because it's so instructive as to what they are experiencing. It's told with humor and love, something we all need more of in the world. Mel, you opened the eyes of so many with "Stranger at the Gate: To Be Gay and Christian in America" and now you touch our hearts with this amazing book. I urge everyone to buy copies for themselves, their families, their friends, and especially their churches. It's a story that touches all our lives in a profound and spiritual way.

Mel White shares hope yet again in his book that the world desperately needs to hear! His book "Stranger at the Gate" was life saving and life changing for me. This one will serve to do the same for those who struggle with coming out.

A wonderful read. This allegory is filled with passion and beauty, as well as truth.

Anything by Mel White is excellent!

I love Mel White's book 'Stranger at the Gate'. I think he should stick to non-fiction.

Mel White’s Grace & Demion is inspired, delightful and profound! It’s a serious tale of love pitted against lies, of faith pitted against doubt, all played out in the heart and mind of a young boy scout as he discovers that he is gay. The small but resolute angel, Grace, is enchanting. Even the demon-in-training, Demion, is endearing in a perverse way. Grace embodies the holy love her name implies; and Demion, tries his hardest to be the best of Satan’s worst. While the struggle for Gay Civil and Human Rights is engaged in the public arena, the struggle for self-acceptance and self-esteem by young lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people is a deeply personal, private and too often lonely one. Thanks to Mel for this splendid fable that speaks the truth, with both force and tenderness, about God’s unconditional love and the inherent dignity and integrity of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.Jimmy Creech, Raleigh, NC

From the beginning of the formation of tribal societies, being different - an "outsider" - has been anathema to each tribal unit. The bible – or the Torah – addresses the particular strictures on the Jews for how they live their lives; these essentially tribal “laws” have been distorted by later-day religious leaders to condemn and criminalize same-sex attraction. Mel White addresses both the pain of being different due to his same-sex attraction and the competing joy of God’s love in his new fable.Grace is an apprentice angel assigned to carry the message. Of God’s love of all his children to a young Boy Scout who is frightened and ashamed of his attraction to his tent mate. Meanwhile, Demion, a student demon in hell is sent to whisper in his ear “you are different” Both are assigned to this young man for life. Demion is charged with undermining his self esteem, while other demons slyly encourage parents, religious and political leaders, and others to attack anyone who is attracted to their own biological sex. Grace battles Demion and the others by constantly assuring the young boy that God loves him – just as she created him.The fable follows the training of both; Grace in Heaven and Demion in Hell, in alternate chapters. Demion’s training is a vehicle for examining the meaning of the “clobber passages” and the story of Sodom used by many who have succumbed to Satan’s lure. Grace’s instruction is more direct – God loves every one of her children, just as she has created them. As a parent of a trans* child, I found it interesting that God “holds” her trans* children just a little longer before sending them off to be born because their lives will be especially challenging.This is an excellent introduction to discussions about the various excuses given by many, especially religious leaders, for their discrimination and hateful teachings for discrimination against LGBTQ people. It includes a series of discussion questions about passages specifically directed toward each excuse. Affirming churches, support groups should find this book a valuable asset when discussing the Bible, same-sex attraction, and gender identity in their Sunday schools and programs.