This compelling essay collection offers a nuanced perspective on reconciling religion, sexuality, and self-expression.
In a literary landscape where personal identity meets collective tradition, Bill Hulseman’s debut essay collection, six to carry the casket and one to say the mass, emerges as a powerful and necessary voice. Through deeply personal and often provocative reflections, Hulseman invites readers into the tension-filled space where Catholicism, queerness, and self-authorship intersect. His essays offer more than mere memoir—they act as meditations on faith, family, grief, and the courage it takes to live truthfully.
A former Catholic school principal and campus minister, Hulseman spent years immersed in religious institutions that shaped his sense of community, ritual, and service. Yet, as a queer man, he also grappled with the limitations and wounds that often accompany rigid religious frameworks. His book does not seek easy answers. Instead, it explores the honest and vulnerable journey of reconciling a deeply ingrained spiritual identity with a need for authenticity and wholeness.
A Voice Rooted in Tradition—Yet Breaking Free
Hulseman’s writing is infused with reverence for the traditions that raised him. He draws on Catholic imagery, sacraments, and liturgical rhythms to frame his stories, creating an emotional resonance for readers from similar backgrounds. Whether recounting a childhood memory at Sunday Mass or reflecting on the rituals surrounding death, his essays are rich in symbolism and spiritual weight.
But what makes six to carry the casket stand out is how it challenges the very frameworks it honors. Hulseman questions patriarchal norms, examines the silence around queer existence in religious spaces, and urges readers to think critically about what it means to inherit faith—and whether or how to transform it. In doing so, he gives permission to anyone who has ever felt “othered” by their own community to speak, question, and reclaim their place within it.
Intersectionality in Action
In today’s polarized world, books that can hold nuance and tension without resorting to cynicism are rare. Hulseman’s collection achieves this with remarkable grace. His essays are not declarations of disavowal but invitations to dialogue. For those who have struggled with reconciling religious upbringing and queer identity, Hulseman’s words offer both validation and solidarity.
His work resonates strongly with those who understand the emotional weight of being told—implicitly or explicitly—that they cannot be fully themselves within a tradition that shaped them. Readers will see in his journey a reflection of their own questions about faith, sexuality, and belonging.
Hulseman’s experience as an educator and community leader adds a unique layer to his writing. His voice carries both the vulnerability of personal confession and the clarity of someone who has guided others through complex emotional terrain. The result is a book that feels at once intimate and universal.
More than Memoir—A Cultural Conversation
While six to carry the casket is firmly rooted in personal experience, it also contributes to a broader cultural conversation about identity, spirituality, and transformation. In an age when many are walking away from organized religion, Hulseman’s story offers an alternative: engaging with it, reinterpreting it, and even reclaiming it on one’s own terms.
For readers outside the LGBTQ+ community or unfamiliar with Catholicism, the book still offers deep emotional insight. The themes of grief, legacy, and self-discovery are universally resonant, and Hulseman’s lyrical prose and thoughtful structure make each essay a contemplative pause in the hustle of modern life.
Moreover, his writing exemplifies how storytelling can serve as a bridge across difference. In showing us the intricacies of his own identity, he reminds us of the sacredness of each person’s path to self-understanding.
A New Kind of Faithfulness
Ultimately, six to carry the casket and one to say the mass reflections on life, identity, and moving forward is about reclaiming voice and agency in spaces that often demand silence or conformity. Hulseman models a new kind of faithfulness—one that values personal truth, embraces ambiguity, and honors both the past and the possibility of change.
For anyone standing at a personal crossroads, wondering how to integrate seemingly incompatible parts of themselves, this book offers not a roadmap but a kindred spirit. It affirms that the act of writing, remembering, and reclaiming can itself be a form of sacred ritual.
As more readers discover Hulseman’s work, his voice is sure to become a touchstone in conversations around faith, queerness, and identity. His book is not just a collection of essays—it is a testament to the power of language, reflection, and the courage to live out loud.
Learn more about Bill Hulseman and his work at www.billhulseman.com.