What can we do to better welcome, affirm and support LGBTQ+ people of faith in our tradition/congregation?

From the book Ministry Among God’s Queer Folk:[1] “there are three basic steps to building a community of care for LGBTQ People: (1) Create a Genuine Welcome, (2) Integrate Queer People into the Life of a Congregation, (3) Build Alliances with Queer Communities outside the Congregation.” I recommend this book for any congregation looking to expand its welcome.

I also found good advice in the UU Association’s Welcoming Congregation Handbook:

A congregation that is interested in becoming more welcoming of bisexual, gay, lesbian, and/or transgender persons will need to take the time to involve as many people as possible in the decision-making process… The more listening, consultation, dialog and consensus that occur at the beginning between the professional staff, trustees, boards, committees and members of the congregation, the more likely the program is to succeed once the congregation as a whole is invited to participate.[2]

The authors suggest to begin by forming a Welcoming Congregation Committee, with “members of all genders, sexual orientations, ages, and cultural and racial groups (who are) thoroughly committed to the goals of the program” and to set up events for parishioners to attend.

The Welcoming Congregation Handbook offers a list of suggested actions that congregations might take to express their welcoming affirmation to LGBTQ+ people. I have included an abridged version that Episcopal congregations may want to make use of:

  1. Offer religious education that incorporates bisexual, gay, lesbian and transgender life issues.
  2. Offer a congregation-wide workshop program(s), with follow-up opportunities for study and reflection.
  3. Use inclusive language and content as a regular part of worship services, and provide (clergy and other preachers) with guidelines on inclusive language.
  4. Provide worship space and ministerial services for (LGBTQ+) rites of passage.
  5. Welcome (LGBTQ+) persons in the congregation’s brochure… recognize same-gender couples in directories and other publications as they desire.
  6. Celebrate & affirm bisexual, gay, lesbian and transgender issues and history during the church year
  7. Participate in and/or support efforts to create justice, freedom, and equality for (LGBTQ+) people in the larger society.
  8. Advertise in the local press and/or other media that reach the bisexual, gay, lesbian and transgender communities.[3]

Some of these suggestions will take more involved planning and time to implement than others, and individual congregations may not want to take on every option, or might already have some in place. The Institute for Welcoming Resources has a wide array of materials, articles and information for congregations wishing to explore how to best reach out to LGBTQ people, such as, Building an Inclusive Church: A Welcoming Toolkit, which is available as a free PDF download.[4]

I am working on gathering more resources – please contact me with suggestions: deaconariwolfe (at) gmail (dot) com

 

 

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[1] David Kundtz and Bernard Sloan Schlager, Ministry among God’s Queer Folk: LGBT Pastoral Care (Cleveland: Pilgrim Press, 2007), 161.

[2] Scott W. Alexander, Meg Riley, and Keith Kron, eds. The Welcoming Congregation Handbook: Resources for Affirming Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, and/or Transgender People. 2nd ed. (Boston, MA: Unitarian Universalist Association, 1999), p. 7.

[3] The Welcoming Congregation Handbook: Resources for Affirming Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, and/or Transgender People. Scott W. Alexander, Meg Riley, and Keith Kron, eds. 2nd ed.  Unitarian Universalist Association, 1999. The Handbook details ideas for how to implement these suggestions and provides a Workshop Series in 14 lessons for doing so. While written in 1999, it remains relevant to many of the current challenges faced by congregations.

[4] Building an Inclusive Church: A Welcoming Toolkit, PDF, available on “The Institute for Welcoming Resources”

Welcoming trans and gender non-binary people…

 

Here are some other resources to check out:

  • An Expansive Welcome – pdf and information for congregations – “a resource for LGBTQI+ affirming communities engaging intersectional work.”
  • More suggestions are given in my thesis paper,Queer Diakonia