by Sarah Petrescu

On Oct. 10, a prayer vigil in remembrance of gay hate crime victim Matthew Shepard will be held at the UVic Interfaith Chapel.

In 1998, Shepard was lured from a campus bar in Laramie, Wyoming by two men who told him they were gay.

He was taken to a remote area, tied to a fence, beaten and left for dead. Shepard died in hospital a few days later. He was 21.

This week marks the fifth anniversary of Shepard’s death and coincides with National Coming Out week.

The service, entitled “The Passions of Matthew Shepard,” honours queer-positive spirituality. It is the first of its kind on campus and is organized by Micah House and the campus ministry of the United Church.

Organizer David Ball said he wanted to do something on campus to commemorate Shepard, “but something spiritual.”

Details of Shepard’s brutal murder and the lengthy trial of his killers provoked public debate about homosexuality, especially in the Christian community. At the trial of one of his killers, Russell Henderson, Rev. Joe Phelps and a dozen picketers chanted anti-gay slogans.

The Web site godhatesfags.com’s monument to Shepard features a picture of him engulfed in flames with an update of how many days he has been in hell.

Since Shepard’s death, his family and friends have established a foundation and several websites devoted to his memory and to fighting homophobia.

UVic Pride Director Michael Joyce said Shepard’s story is an important reminder of difficulties many queer people face. “We must remember the tragedies, the sorrow and the losses we have suffered in our struggle for equality,” he said.

The planned service welcomes people of all beliefs, said Ball. It will incorporate poetry and devotional readings and steer away from a traditional sermon format.

Ball said Shepard’s story is especially significant to Christians because it parallels the story of Jesus. “He was tortured for who he was and for who he loved and crucified on a fence,” Ball said. “The way that Matt Shepard was murdered echoes the crucifixion story.”

Ball is aware the comparison is contentious, but says there is a need for queer Christians to speak up and take a place among the campus community. “The problem is that spiritual people, especially Christians, don’t speak out a lot about homophobia,” Ball said.

Ball said that a service honoring Shepard is a way for the Christian and queer communities to address homophobia and share spirituality.

“It will show that there are Christians who are queer and queer-positive,” he said.

The vigil takes place Friday, Oct. 10, at noon in the Interfaith Chapel.