This past weekend, I had the privilege of attending our conference's annual convocation for all ONA churches and hear Andy Lang, Executive Director for the UCC Coalition for LGBT concerns, speak. By the time I came home, I was on FIRE for ONA!!!! I learned so many things that I'm excited to bring back to Central!
This convocation really impressed upon me that when we took the courageous step a few years ago to go through the process to become ONA (FAQ about ONA or Open and Affirming), that was not the end of our ONA story, but the very beginning! It is not enough to simply declare that we as a church are welcoming and supportive of the LGBT community, we must actually live it. So....
--What have we done lately to open our doors to LGBT persons, many of whom feel exiled and hurt by God, the church, and even their families?
--What have we done lately to affirm LGBT persons -- to speak the good news to that community, to advocate on their behalf, and stand up for justice?
--How have we begun to extend our open and affirming posture to all groups, such as those with different physical or mental capabilities, different races or creeds, different nationalities or socio-economic status, different ages or gender expressions, etc.?
So in the same way it is not enough to just declare yourself a Christian, we must not simply declare that we are open and affirming without continually checking in with ourselves, asking ourselves those questions above.
But how do we walk the ONA walk? How do we grow in our openness and affirming? There were many ideas shared at the convocation about how to do this and I'll just share a couple with you now:
1) Andy Lang impressed upon us that only insiders know what "ONA" means, so it's almost useless to declare ourselves "ONA" to the public. Something that everyone -- insiders and outsiders -- understand: a rainbow. He encouraged us to use the rainbow as a symbol to welcome LGBT persons and allies, especially on our church sign and website.
2) Many churches shared how marching in a Pride Parade as a church was an incredible experience of activism, fellowship, outreach, evangelism, public relations, and just plain fun. One church passed out 2,000 bags of skittles with a card on it with their church name that said, "Jesus loves you just the way you are and there's nothing you can do about it!" They became well-known by all in the GLBT community as "the skittle church."
3) Andy Lang also impressed upon us how important it is that we work for justice on behalf of the LGBT persons, asking LGBT community centers how to help, speaking up when there are incidents of violence, hate or bullying in our community, writing letters to the editor to speak up for Christian LGBT persons and allies, and writing letters to our congresspeople when issues of justice for the LGBT persons arise.
4) Many churches have an ONA Sunday and celebration, often on the anniversary which the church became ONA or on National Coming Out Day, where they invite the wider LGBT community, and some even bless the people in our community that work on behalf of LGBT concerns. This is an opportunity for celebration, outreach, and evangelism.
5) We, like many ONA churches, have taught our children what it means to be open and affirming and to embrace our God-given sexuality by using the Our Whole Lives, or OWL curriculum! Kudos to us!
Lastly, I would like to share with you a very interesting finding that almost all of our churches expressed. Andy Lang confirmed that this observation was is indeed nation-wide trend: When churches become ONA, they expect that immediately their church membership will begin growing with LGBT persons. But that's not true; most churches see only a few new LGBT members after they become ONA. The church never becomes "the gay church," as some members might have feared, but it does grow....
Instead, ONA church immediately begin to growing with allies, and most significantly, with young families. And that's exactly what we've seen at Central. We have seen a particular amount of growth among our young adults and families. Why? Well Andy Lang posed a theory that I, as a young mother who knows lots of other young families, will fully support: Across the country, as my generation starts families, we start looking for a church home where we can raise our children and teach them our values. But intolerance of LGBT persons is not a value that most young people today want to pass on to their children! Most young coupes today want to raise their children in a church family that teaches about a God of unconditional love, and the importance of valuing each person just as God created them; we want to raise our children in a church family that would welcome our LGBT family and friends; we want to raise our child in a church family promises to love that baby no matter what -- even if they grow up to be LGBT!
From the day I started working at Central, I have been so proud to serve an ONA church. Since becoming a mother, I also am so now profoundly grateful that my son will be nurtured by an open and affirming church family who promises to love him no mater who he is. But remember: ONA is not just a designation or a status -- it's a way of life for our church family. And we're not just walking this ONA path for LGBT persons, we're walking it on behalf of all God's people, all families, and all God's children who deserve to be nurtured in communities that speak the good news and manifest Christ's amazing and unconditional love.
If you're interested in "walking the walk," and lending your hand to the ONA efforts at our church, please email, call me, or track me down! There's so much we can do! And please, be a lazy evangelist: share this article to your Facebook page by clicking the small "f" button here at the bottom or click the little envelope button next to it to email it to your friends. Also, to automatically be emailed with this blog's new posts, enter your email address at the above right under "follow by email."
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