This event takes place in person at Charis and on Crowdcast, Charis' virtual event platform. This event is free, but registration is required for virtual attendance.

In honor of World AIDS Day, Charis welcomes Ashon Thomas Crawley in conversation with Duncan E. Teague in celebration of From Infinite World, an innovative work that explores the relationship between the Black Church, the Hammond organ, and the musicians that bring it to life.

The Hammond organ has long distinguished the Black Church. Masters of the instrument, often Blackqueer men, invented and advanced gospel music, pioneered new modes of worship, and helped define black life in the twentieth century. But when the AIDS crisis struck, churches vociferously rejected all forms of queerness, even as musicians grew ill, rumors spread, and people died. Drawing on years of experience as a preacher, choir director, and organist, award-winning visual artist and scholar Ashon Thomas Crawley combines personal history and cultural analysis to tell an urgent story about how AIDS fundamentally changed gospel music and the sound of the church.

From Infinite World immerses readers in the history of this pivotal instrument. Crawley profiles its inventor, a white supremacist named Laurens Hammond, and describes the vicious lawsuits fought over the organ’s unique sound. He also introduces little-known but foundational figures in the church and black life, such as Reverend Clarence Cobbs of Chicago and his First Church of Deliverance, where Black Gospel flourished alongside Blackqueer life in fascinating and complex ways. And he explores his own experience as a Blackqueer church musician learning the power of the Hammond organ even as a generation of elders perished in silence. A major work of scholarship and a deeply vulnerable performance of creative nonfiction, Crawley’s lyrical work offers a captivating new portrait of the Black church as a site of refuge and rejection for Blackqueer genius.

Ashon Thomas Crawley is a professor of religious studies and African American and African studies at the University of Virginia. He is also a visual and sound artist, and an award-winning writer. He lives in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Rev. Duncan E. Teague is lead minister and founder of the Abundant LUUv Congregation in Atlanta. He is an out, Black, gay man recognized by Georgia legislators for his decades of HIV/AIDS research, education and advocacy. He currently serves as vice-president of the UU Ministers Association. He has worked in global HIV research at Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University. Rev. Teague and his husband/longtime companion of more than thirty years, live in Decatur, Georgia.

The Counter Narrative Project (CNP) is a narrative change organization that stands in the tradition of Bayard Rustin, James Baldwin, Essex Hemphill, and other movement leaders, artists, organizers, and visionaries committed to countering narratives and speaking truth to power. CNP shifts narratives about Black gay, bisexual, queer, and other men who have sex with men to change policy and improve lives. Learn more at https://thecounternarrative.org/. 

The event is free and open to all people, but we encourage and appreciate a donation of $5-20 in support of the work of Charis Circle, our programming non-profit. Donate on Crowdcast or via our website: www.chariscircle.org/donate or in person at the event.

Charis Books is a fully wheelchair accessible space with on site van accessible parking, two ramps, and additional overflow accessible parking nearby. Additional accessibility information can be found on the Accessibility page of our website.

Please contact us at info@chariscircle.org or 404-524-0304 if you would like ASL interpretation at this event. If you would like to watch the event with live captions, you may do so by turning subtitles on in Crowdcast once the event begins. You can also choose small, medium, or large subtitle text. Your subtitle settings only affect your own viewing experience, so you can change them without affecting anyone else watching the event. If you have other accessibility needs or if you are someone who has skills in making digital events more accessible please don't hesitate to reach out to info@chariscircle.org.

Please read the in-person event guidelines below to be sure you can participate in the event.

All attendees must wear a face mask during the event.

We will begin seating people at 7:00 PM ET.

This event will be live-streamed via Crowdcast. 

As a reminder: If you are not feeling well, please do not come to the event.

If you have any questions regarding these guidelines or to request specific accessibility accommodations, please contact info@charisbooksandmore.com or call the store at 404-524-0304.

By attending our event, whether in person or virtually, you agree to our Code of Conduct: Our event seeks to provide a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), class, or technology choices. We do not tolerate harassment in any form. Unsolicited sexual language and imagery are not appropriate. Anyone violating these rules will be expelled from this event and all future events at the discretion of the organizers. Please report all harassment to Charis staff immediately or email info@chariscircle.org.

From Infinite World: The Sound of the Hammond Organ and the Tragedy of AIDS in the Black Church