Two New Open & Affirming Congregations in February!
We are proud to announce that two congregations have added their names to GLAD’s Open & Affirming Ministry Program during the month of February.
Shawnee Community Christian Church in Shawnee, KS, is a new church, born out of the former Shawnee Park Christian Church, and they have proclaimed as one of their core values that “We value church as an expression of Christ’s grace & welcome, celebrating the gifts and faith of all of God’s children regardless of race, gender, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, nationality, ethnicity, marital status, physical or mental ability, political stance or theological perspective.” Pastor Johnny Lewis tells us that the church affirmed this value unanimously, and the congregation now continues to consider and practice what welcome means in a variety of ways including hosting educational events for families to understand better the science and journey of transgender children, and laying the groundwork for ordaining and hiring staff who are LGBTQ and celebrating same sex marriages among members of the congregation.
Lee’s Summit Christian Church in Lee’s Summit, MO, has been working diligently towards becoming an Open & Affirming congregation for over two years, educating the congregation, writing an Open & Affirming Statement, and modifying their equal employment policies. In fact, we liked their new Open & Affirming statement so much that we added it to our list of sample Open & Affirming statements.
Is your church ready to start the journey towards Open & Affirming? No? Yes? Either way, GLAD’s Open & Affirming Ministry Programs has resources for you!
And beyond clicking – drop an email to Mark Johnston, Executive Director of GLAD’s Open & Affirming Ministry Program, at mark@gladalliance.org.