Aging queerly and queering aging

This article brings together, for the first time, queer gerontology and queer Christian theology. Focusing particularly on the notion of queer time that challenges chrononormativity, it is argued that current theologies of aging can be critiqued and augmented to open new horizons that better address the circumstances of elderly queer people. Incidentally, the discussion fills a lacuna in sexuality and intimacy more generally within Christian perspectives in gerontology. Matters such as the late voluntary disclosure of sexual orientation, family prohibition of identity, later in life sexual activity, reaching an unanticipated older age bracket and fears of being heterosexualised by care providers anchor the discussion in the lived experience of queer folks in the USA, Australia, India, and the UK. Freeman’s challenge to temporal regulation discloses expectations and blind spots in the potential for both participation and care provision for elderly queer people. Aging queerly can benefit from theological perspectives including ‘outwitting identity’ (Loughlin), truly attending to multiplicity (Cheng), relating differently to power (Tonstad), finding ‘queer grace’ (Reichel), and reclaiming sexual intimacy in mystical traditions (Díaz).