Abstract Attuning to a significant, yet understudied, thread of early 1970s gay rights advocacy, this essay analyzes William R. Johnson's ordination rhetoric. Johnson became the first openly gay individual to become ordained in a mainline denomination in the United States, and his rhetoric represents a landmark example of queer Christian advocacy. During his ordination process, Johnson used proleptic apologia to minimize his sexuality as he developed an argumentative framework that enabled his ordination committee to affirm his sexuality and ordain him as a minister. Johnson's proleptic apologia invokes salient religious and social justice themes in explicit contexts that carve a space within his denomination for queer individuals. The essay shows how rhetors can respond to already-articulated criticisms while maintaining proactive arguments in favor of change.