Hello readers! It’s been great to see so many new faces in the comments this week. We’re glad you’re here. For those just finding your way to A Queer Calling, it’s Saturday where we host a Saturday Symposium question to encourage discussion between our readers. We invite everyone to participate!
Now it’s time for this week’s Saturday Symposium question:
How this works: It’s very simple. We ask a multi-part question related to a topic we’ve blogged about during the past week or are considering blogging about in the near future, and you, our readers, share your responses in the comments section. Feel free to be open, reflective, and vulnerable…and to challenge us. But as always, be mindful of the comment policy that ends each of our posts. Usually, we respond fairly quickly to each comment, but in order to give you time to think, come back, add more later if you want, and discuss with other readers, we will wait until after Monday to respond to comments on Saturday Symposium questions.
This week’s Saturday Symposium question: We’ve been talking a lot about love this week. On Thursday, we started a conversation about how traditional churches can love LGBT people well. Today, we’d like to broaden that discussion by asking how have you seen churches show love to LGBT people. Where have you seen a church show extravagant love? Which stories stand out to you because they show that local churches can indeed love well? What stories give you strength to continue loving well? Where have you found unexpected fruit from trying to love LGBT people well?
We look forward to reading your responses. If you’re concerned about having your comment publicly associated with your name, please consider using the Contact Us page to submit your comment. We can post it under a pseudonym (i.e. John says, “your comment”) or summarize your comment in our own words (i.e. One person observed…). Participating in this kind of public dialogue can be risky, and we want to do what we can to protect you even if that means we preserve your anonymity. Have a wonderful weekend!
Blessings,
Sarah and Lindsey
Comment Policy: Please remember that we, and all others commenting on this blog, are people. Practice kindness. Practice generosity. Practice asking questions. Practice showing love. Practice being human. If your comment is rude, it will be deleted. If you are constantly negative, argumentative, or bullish, you will not be able to comment anymore. We are the sole moderators of the combox.
I notice that many Protestant Denominations and the Roman Catholic Church are trying to open dialogue with LGBT People. Communication between different cultures and different types of people is a very positive step forward. I believe the Lord has heard our prayers and is working on these problems within the congregations. I am impressed by the love of my fellow Christians throughout the world. The Church is a hospital for sinners. We come forward to repent and also adore and worship our Lord.
Joseph Gusmerotti
Amazing things happen when people start talking as people. Thanks for the reminder about the importance of earnest dialogues.
I am actually struggling right now to find a church where I feel accepted. I have been attending one but I am not feeling welcome. I am going to try a different church next month that seems to be open and accepting. They are going to be discussing a book called “They Love Jesus but Not the Church.” I bought the book and noticed it has a section on homosexuality. I am looking forward to that.
Also, the Pope has been inspiring me to become more involved in church. He makes me feel hope and I am not even a Catholic!
I don’t like to complain but coming from The GCN Conference it has been a hard week for me. I live in South Dakota and I didn’t know any gay people before last weekend. It was amazing to feel a part of something and to finally be able to relate and not feel like I am alone in my journey. I felt like I was at the most loving church EVER when I was at the conference during worship. I wish I could experience that every Sunday!
Joseph….”The Church is a hospital for sinners.” I LOVE THAT! Thanks for sharing.
Hi Marshall, thanks for your comment! It can be hard to know whether one is welcome in particular church communities. So many communities say so much by saying nothing. We’d be interested in hearing more about the book discussion.
We can relate to the challenges of entering back into the real world after GCN conference. The GCN community is great; we hope you were able to connect with other people who attended. Once you’ve made a few connections, you never know who else you’ll meet! All God’s best to you!