From the UCC Open and Affirming Coalition:
Join Us for #GiveOUTDay and Our #Pride Fundraiser!
We are excited to announce that the Open and Affirming Coalition is participating in #GiveOUTDay, the only national giving event for the LGBTQ+ community. This is our chance to make a real difference and we need the help of our amazing supporters to reach our goals!
Donations are now being accepted and every contribution counts. Not only do your donations directly support our work, but they also help us compete for Leaderboard prizes through friendly competitions with other LGBTQ+ organizations! These are thousands of additional dollars awarded to organizations with the most unique donors in their category. Your donation could be the one that helps us win!
Click the headline to see how to help.
Read MoreSupport Space Sessions for Pastors and LGBTQ+ Licensed and ordained UCC Clergy
Are you looking to connect with colleagues, share experiences, and gain support in a safe and affirming space? The Open and Affirming Coalition is hosting virtual support groups specifically tailored for UCC clergy!
There are two separate groups:
These sessions offer a supportive environment for you to connect with others, share your journey (if you'd like!), or simply listen and learn from your peers. You're free to participate at your own comfort level, and the drop-in format allows you to join for the entire session or just a portion.
Participation is free, but donations are always appreciated!
Read MoreJoin Rev. Derek Terry, Coalition Program Director, in a discussion of Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman. This book is the text famously carried around by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from his graduate school days until the end of his life. This work was used to shape the civil rights movement of the 1950's and 1960's through the leadership of people like Dr. King.
Join us as we read and discuss Jesus and the Disinherited through a queer lens and consider how the theology shared in this text could be used to inspire new activism for the rights of the LGBTQIA+SGL community.
Registration is free and the discussion will be on Zoom. Register here.
Donations are welcomed (but not required) when you register! Please share widely with your circles and encourage your communities to read and join the discussion.
Read MoreONA 101 Webinar will be held twice in August by former Coalition ED, Rev. Andy!
August 3rd Registration
August 22rd Registration
Read MoreMore resources for Pride Sunday, June 25 from our friends at The Open and Affirming Coalition of the United Church of Christ.
Read MoreWorship Gathering Space Safety and Security: How to start, Where to go, What to do
Join Lisa Gonzalez, Director of Loss Control at Insurance Board, for a vital and informative event.
Read MorePride Sunday is the last Sunday of June - June 25th this year. Get your worship resources now!
Read MoreRead the entire Ripples newsletter here. Don't miss the reflection from Dr. Katrina, or the LGBTQ+ centered youth summer camp, or the memoir "Coming Alive" by a UCC pastor, and more!
Read MoreONA NEXT is a powerful webinar that shares best practices we’ve learned from thriving Open and Affirming churches, including tips on marketing, communication, ministry and advocacy. Learn how other ONA congregations are attracting new members, building relationships with their LGBTQ+ neighbors, and making a difference in their communities.
Read MoreThe Open and Affirming Coalition of the United Church of Christ has opened applications for a new Executive Director. The application deadline is Nov. 25. The start date is Dec. 19.
Read MoreYou’re invited to the third annual fundraiser to support the National Open & Affirming Coalition of the United Church of Christ and AllianceQ of the Christian Church Disciples of Christ!
When:
Saturday, October 15nd, 2022
4:30 - 6:30 pm AZ / 5:30 - 7:30 NM & EP
Where: This event will be hybrid with Zoom (link will be sent via email) or in-person at Parkway United Church of Christ at 2841 N Ballas Rd, St. Louis, MO 63131.
Read MoreNational Open and Affirming Gathering brought together ONA activists from across the country. For some, it was an opportunity to learn that the United Church of Christ is not yet “100% Open and Affirming.” With 35% of our congregations certified as ONA, we have both room and moral urgency to grow. For others, National Gathering was an introduction to new voices as we began to imagine together what our movement could become over the next fifty years.
Read MoreFrom the UCC Open and Affirming Coalition:
Join us Aug. 5-7 for our first National ONA Gathering since 2019! Our virtual event celebrate the 50th anniversaries of the ONA Coalition and Bill Johnson's ordination as the first openly gay man authorized to serve an historic Christian church as a minister of word and sacrament.
From Friday to Sunday evenings, our celebration will offer inspiring worship, powerful testimonies, and stories from our growing movement. We'll honor the past, lift up the present, and claim our visions for the future.
Read MoreOn June 25, 1972, the United Church of Christ made history when William R. Johnson became the first openly gay man ordained to ministry in an historic Christian church. Bill’s ordination, by the Golden Gate Association in the Northern California/Nevada Conference, opened doors for a new generation of openly LGBTQ leaders in our church.
Read MoreDuring Pride month, three of our most popular webinars are on sale. For just $35, an unlimited number of members of your church can participate from their own computers or devices.
ONA 101 and ONA and the Bible are for congregations taking their first steps towards, or just curious about, an Open and Affirming Covenant.
Bending Gender is for both ONA and not-yet ONA churches: with transgender and nonbinary Americans under attack in many states, it's time for congregations to understand how to welcome trans and nonbinary seekers into their congregations.
Read MoreThis year's National ONA Gathering will celebrate this milestone in our beloved church. We'll celebrate the past 50 years and the extraordinary growth in our movement from small beginnings, honor our elders, and learn from each other the ways our movement needs to expand its vision at the beginning of our second half-century.
Join us on Zoom August 5, 6, 7 for this once-in-a-lifetime event.
Read MoreThe first three webinars are designed for churches exploring the possibility of an ONA commitment, or beginning and ONA process. (Not-yet ONA churches are two-thirds of all UCC congregations.) They share best practices for leading a church to an ONA covenant in ways that build consensus and reduce the risk of conflict. "ONA NEXT" is the successor to our "ONA 201" webinar: it's designed primarily for existing ONA churches looking for ways to revive their ONA commitment, with best practices we've learned from thriving ONA churches.
Read MoreWhether your church is just beginning its journey towards an Open and Affirming covenant, or you've been ONA for many years, you'll find a webinar that meets your needs.
Also check out the Open and Affirming Experience, a one-day virtual conference with two tracks, one for not-yet ONA churches, the other for existing ONA churches.
Read More
