Trans pastor leads Milwaukee’s only LGBTQ+ affirming Christian campus ministry

Where Maryland Avenue and Kenwood Boulevard meet in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, stands the Corner House. It’s a Lutheran campus ministry at UW-Milwaukee.

“We are actually the only Christian campus ministry that’s LGBT+ affirming operational in the city of Milwaukee,” the Rev. Elias Henry said. “We are the only one for 70,000-plus college students.”

The ministry, located across the street from the UWM student union, predominantly serves UWM, Marquette and MSOE students, but is open to any college student in the city of Milwaukee.

The Corner House is a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America and Synod of Greater Milwaukee. Henry has been pastor there for the past year. Inside the big brick duplex, turned ministry, symbols of pride hang on the walls, often next to a cross.

“We are often a place where people come, and they say, ‘I didn’t know a place like this existed. I didn’t know a church, a Christian organization, could be welcoming of LGBT+ people, let alone have a pastor who is part of the community,'” Henry said.

Henry, who is transgender, holds a place in the pulpit that remains rare in American ministry.

“I am one of about half a dozen trans men who are Presbyterian pastors in the country,” Henry said.

The New York native graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary in 2024.

Henry said seminary is where he came out.

“A lot of people, when they hear that, they’re like, ‘Oh, seminary, like pastor school, that must be a really, really hard place to transition,'” Henry said. “It’s actually great. I could not have imagined a better place to come out. Princeton Seminary, the community and the people I was there with, were just so extremely supportive. Everybody from my friends in the LGBT group up to the president of the seminary really were just extremely affirming and welcoming. And so for me, it was kind of a no-brainer.”

Before serving at the Corner House, Henry was a university chaplain at Carroll University in Waukesha and served at West Granville Presbyterian Church, where he was ordained as minister.

Henry is the first openly transgender Minister of Word and Sacrament of the Presbytery of Milwaukee of the Presbyterian Church.

“That was what freed me to be able to be a Christian, to follow Jesus, to really dedicate my whole life to serving God and serving God’s people, was transitioning and having the weight of gender dysphoria taken off of me with social and medical transition,” Henry said. “I really have lived in the legacy of the people who fought for decades, some of whom are my colleagues; they’re still in ministry, to see this kind of future that I get to live in.”

Henry said his own journey helps him better serve others.

“I know what it’s like to be told you can’t be here. You can’t be in that role. And I’m going to use that experience to empathize and to advocate for other people,” Henry said.

Henry said his mission at the campus ministry is to lead by example, showing students they don’t have to choose between their faith and who they are.

“A big part of what we believe is God loves everybody, without exception. And God gives everybody gifts to share with their community. And so why would we think that we have the right to say, you can’t share your God-given gifts because God also made you gay or trans or bisexual?” Henry said. “I think it’s not the worst thing that I’m doing, to help make more faithful Christians who just also happen to be gay.”

“Do you feel brave?” WISN 12 News Kendall Keys asked.

“I feel like I often have to be,” Henry said.

The Corner House’s events have slowed for the summer months, but will pick back up when students return to campus. Henry said he hopes to be able to expand the ministry’s hours next year and reach more students.