How Congregations Can Include LGBT People of Faith

As part of a mission of working toward full inclusion of LGBT people into communities of faith, the Kansas City Coalition of Welcoming Ministries (KCCWM) convened its first Academy of Welcome on Nov. 10 at First Lutheran Church in Mission Hills, Kan. KCCWM is a network of inter-faith welcoming organizations.

Keynote speaker Dr. Robert Minor, a professor in the religious studies department at the University of Kansas, addressed the question, “Why welcome?” He said that many churches have had a reluctance to adopt formal welcoming statements, even though doing so can be an element of spiritual growth. Congregations’ fears stemming from homophobia and an altered reputation often send some looking for a verse to conceal their personal prejudices.

Their concerns, he said, include: “Will we be considered to be a ‘gay church?’ How will outsiders treat us? Will members leave? And if they leave, will they take their money with them?” After all, many churchgoers like tradition, he said – and bigotry is traditional.

full story