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International Welcoming Church Sunday: Celebrating Your Open & Affirming Journey

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International Welcoming Church Sunday: Celebrating Your Open & Affirming Journey

“There are important reasons to celebrate a congregation’s Open & Affirming journey at least once a year,” says Mark Johnston, Executive Director of GLAD’s Open & Affirming Ministry Program. “Often church members need a refresher course on Biblical welcome, or new members may love the welcome they find in your congregation but still carry some of the discomfort that comes from growing up in churches where welcoming LGBT people openly was, let’s put it mildly, frowned upon.”

Dr. Johnston shares with us several ways that a congregation can celebrate and renew it’s commitment to being Open & Affirming and welcoming all:

  • The fourth Sunday in January has been designated Welcoming Church Sunday. This year that is January 25. Read your O&A statement in worship, preach a sermon on welcoming all, and/or have an education hour on welcome. There are many resources under the Resources tab on GLAD’s website.
  • Consider having a longer term study on welcome to remind your church of its welcoming journey and to guide welcome into the future. Hearts Unbound is a great Bible study on welcome, and the book Radical Welcome is a great way to challenge a congregation to a wider welcome.
  • Does your Open & Affirming statement include bisexual and transgender people? Consider an education series and create a plan to add more welcome to your Open & Affirming statement. You can find resources on bisexual and transgender people on GLAD’s Resources page also.
  • Join your congregation with GLAD’s mission to build a Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) where all are welcome to the full life and leadership of the church by taking an offering for GLAD.
  • Participate in GLAD’s membership drive. GLAD has challenged all Open & Affirming congregations to sign up 10% of their members as members of GLAD. How is your congregation doing? Check out your congregation’s progress here.

If you have any questions or could use suggestions for resources, contact Dr. Johnston for more information.