It can, but it does not have to. Many of the guys in prison profess to be Christians using the same kind of judgmental standards we see among evangelicals. When we treated them with love, respect, and acceptance, often their paradigm shifted. It may as well for people like the Johnsons. I’m not saying it will, but I am saying that it can’t help but soften their hearts a bit. And that is the beginning of acceptance.

In my life as a trans woman, but passable these days, I often have run into disapproving people on my journey – especially those who knew me from before and were very disapproving of what I was becoming. I would meet their disapproval or summary dismissal with friendliness and ignore their negative reactions. Almost uniformly, the situation would change. The tension would leave the room and ultimately they became much friendlier. They began to realize I was still the same person on the inside, even if I had changed on the outside. People do change. First impressions are not always the final determinant, no matter how strongly held the underlying beliefs.