In the autumn of 2025, the National Council of the Slovak Republic passed a constitutional amendment that united the Slovak government—building barriers against progressivism—with opposition Christian fundamentalists fighting against so-called “gender ideology.”

Three years after the terrorist attack outside the Tepláreň bar, the rights of LGBTI+ people in Slovakia continue to be further restricted. Many politicians still divide society, deepening the rifts between people. The major churches play a crucial role in this polarization: through their official statements, they reinforce division and, directly or indirectly, side with those spreading homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia.

Despite this, there are church representatives who disagree with the prevailing discourse. They want to talk about the lives of queer people, to be close to them and listen to them, to speak out against the injustices around them. Yet their voices are hardly heard in the public debate.

The Slovak version of the project Faith in the Colors of the Rainbow seeks to amplify these voices—to show that even as the situation for queer people worsens, there are pastors and ministers who reject the discriminatory views dominant within their churches. There are people in church service in Slovakia who refuse to accept the current socio-political climate. The project aims to explore what life is like for LGBTI+ people within the church, how freely pastors feel they can speak, and how they perceive the ongoing social and political rhetoric directed against queer people.

This project wants to be a positive voice—a voice queer people can hear amid the storm of anger. It seeks to challenge social taboos and open conversations that the church, or Christian society more broadly, often avoids. Some respondents therefore speak anonymously—the authors want to give space to those who are still afraid to speak publicly. Their testimonies show that there are many like-minded people serving in the church; yet they also reveal an atmosphere of fear present both in society and within the church itself.

Three years after the highest state and church representatives prayed together in St. Martin’s Cathedral in Bratislava for the victims of the terrorist attack on Zámocká Street—without once mentioning the victims’ belonging to the LGBTI+ community—a new voice is finally being heard from within the church: a voice that clearly says it stands with LGBT+ people, values them, and does not judge them.

The project is being published in several separate parts, released gradually from the anniversary of the Tepláreň attack—starting on October 12, every Sunday.