Balanced genitals: YouTube confessional disclosures and signposts for Malaysian gay theologies

Although homosexuality in Malaysia has been condemned as a “crime worse than murder,” gay men continue to seek recognition, and resist oppression and discrimination. in this essay, I focus on two Malaysian men who identified as gay—a Malay-Muslim and a Chinese-Christian—whose appearances in an “It Gets Better in Malaysia” video project in December 2010 were subsequently posted on youTube. These men spoke candidly on issues of sexuality, religion and theology, even at the risk of vitriolic antagonism from political leadership, and mainstream Islamic and Christian institutions. In light of Lacan's notion of the phallus and James B. Nelson's analysis of masculine spirituality based on male genitalia, I argue that the “hard” and “soft” approaches of these men in publicly identifying as gay men of faith to counter accusations of lack provide religious and theological signposts which are crucial in the future development of gay theologies in Malaysia.