The separation of Church and Liz has been going on for quite some time. I think it started when I was told that God hates gay people, so I should too. I had been attending a Lutheran church for 2 years, choosing the social outlet that I found there over the Catholic church my family attended. At a time when the kids at school were particularly ruthless, it was the one place where I felt welcome. When my family started attending a more liberal Catholic church, I started to go with them. For the first time in my life, I was exposed to other gay people and finally, felt like it was okay to be who I was. I was 15, when I spoke to someone from the Lutheran church about my new gay friends. According to her, 'those people' are going to hell and I shouldn't talk to them. I couldn't get away from her and that church fast enough. Since then I've learned to accept myself for who I am, and acknowledged that sometimes the best I can do is just be me.