By Jason Carson Wilson Justice and Peace Policy Fellow, Justice and Witness Ministries We asked Jason Carson Wilson from Justice and Witness Ministries’ Washington office to blog about “Creating Change,” the annual gathering of the National LGBTQ Task Force. Creating Change created community and connections. That…
Below is the video of the Vigil at Amistad Chapel UCC in the UCC’s Church House in Cleveland. Below is a link to the full liturgy. Permission is granted to use any text from this service. Please use the “Comment” feature on this page to…
This page is devoted to images of vigils, prayer services and public rainbow displays in response to the Orlando Massacre. From California to Maine, Minnesota to Florida, ONA congregations responded with grief, prayer, and re-commitment to the values of inclusion, justice and reconciliation that are…
At vigils and prayer services, congregations are reading out the names of the 49 who were killed Sunday at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando. Most of the victims were Hispanic. It is becoming a common practice for churches to sound a bell for each name….
The following statement was released Monday morning by the Open and Affirming Coalition and the National Officers of the United Church of Christ. Later today, we’ll email suggestions for actions ONA congregations can take in response to this tragedy. Please post your own responses, prayers,…
We’ve just welcomed Open and Affirming church #1300! That means exactly 26 percent of UCC congregations are Open and Affirming. We’re the largest and fastest-growing LGBT-affirming church movement in the world! But 26 percent is not 100 percent. Let’s work together to build an Open and Affirming…
“Religious Exemption” laws—an attempt to give private business owners and public officials a legal basis for discrimination—is the latest threat to LGBT civil rights, says Andy Lang, executive director of the UCC’s Open and Affirming Coalition. The Coalition is asking General Synod to approve a resolution…
by the Rev. Rebecca Voelkel June 5, 2015 As a lesbian minister, a daughter, a partner and a mother, I have loved and been involved in the Open and Affirming movement since the early 1980’s. As a youth delegate to General Synod in Ames, Iowa,…
The Open and Affirming Coalition Tuesday joined the Collegium of the United Church of Christ in a statement opposing Indiana’s law legalizing anti-LGBT discrimination on the basis of “religious freedom.” “Public businesses should not be allowed to deny service in restaurants, evict tenants from their…
CLEVELAND, March 15, 2015–The Coalition’s Leadership Team has declared support for Bishop Yvette Flunder, pastor of City of Refuge UCC in Oakland, CA, and presiding bishop of the Fellowship of Affirming Ministries. A group of clergy has challenged Bishop Flunder’s invitation as a guest lecturer…
The Open and Affirming Coalition advocates for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in the United Church of Christ and beyond, and equips UCC congregations to become effective witnesses to Christ’s extravagant welcome. Read more