Pulpitations: "Changed and Ever-Changing"

(Today's sermon from our 12 th anniversary as an Affirming Ministry) In addition to today being our twelfth Affirmiversary, it is also Reformation Sunday. It was late October in 1517 when German priest Martin Luther nailed his “95 theses” to the church door in Wittenburg in opposition to Catholic positions of the day. This sounds more inflammatory than it really was – they didn’t have social media, so literally tacking stuff up on church doors was the first type of “posting.”

It ended up being inflammatory anyway, with Luther getting excommunicated after refusing to recant his positions on things like papal authority and plenary indulgences (the idea of paying cash for atonement for yourself or others). The founder of Protestantism had other religious leaders calling for him to be burned as a heretic, and this schism was the first major change in the broader Christian church – but far from the last!

At the end of the day, God is perfect and eternal, a bulwark never failing as we heard. Humans are anything but perfect, which might explain why there are so, so many differing perspectives, even within Christian denominations.

There is a saying in Latin: ecclesia reformata semper reformanda est - “the church reformed is the church always reforming.” And it’s true!

Prior to 1977 there were no ordained women ministers in any mainline denomination.

The United Church of Canada ordained its first gay minister in 1992.

Before either of these things happened, even the Catholic church held Vatican II, its second ecumenical council in the early ‘60s, which Pope John XXIII called aggiornamento, or bringing up to date. And he was no young reformer; he was three months into his mandate and 76 years old when he announced it.

As a guy who turns 60 next year, it is encouraging to see examples proving we are never too old to change.

I haven’t actually run the numbers, but I am still probably a relative newcomer to St. Albert United Church, having only attended services here for about a quarter-century. Median attendee tenure at best! But think of all the change we have been a part of here in just that time, especially through the lens of our Affirmiversary:

• When we hosted deliberative dialogue around the sanctification of same sex marriages
• When we voted strongly in favour of sanctifying those marriages, despite having some of our friends decide that was too much change for them
• When we called a male minister who was married to a man
• When we voted overwhelmingly in favour of becoming an openly Affirming Ministry in 2014
• When a family with same-sex parents openly worshipped with us
• When a transitioning woman and her partner walked through our doors and felt welcome enough to stay

As tough as it can be for an institution to change, or a congregation, it can be just as hard for us to change as individuals.  Which, to be honest, is not good.

Being a Christian has always required a high degree of reflection and self-evaluation, and re-evaluation.

Change is hard. I struggle with it personally and have described myself as change-averse in some contexts. But I try.

I try because of the necessity of it, something that is easier to recognize as I get older even while some of my own attitudes calcify and crystallize. But the other thing that change is besides necessary is constant. Ecclesia reformata semper reformanda est - the church reformed is the church always reforming - but also Homines mutati semper mutantur - changed people are always changing.

We have to constantly re-assess: what is true? What is good? What aligns most with the way God wants us to live and the teachings of Jesus?

We have tools to help us, thank goodness. We have the scriptures themselves, like what we heard from Jeremiah, reminding us that God’s law is not just written there, but written in our hearts.

We have this faith community, a place and time to come together and hear the word and reflect on what it means to us, each of us, collectively and individually. In an increasingly divided and antagonistic world, I think we understate the value of such a place. It may not look like it, but St. Albert United Church is a bulwark. It is a mighty fortress, not because it is supremely defensible – way too many corners and blind spots, to be honest – but because our ideals can be defended here. We have a space dedicated to making praise and asking questions and making room for people to join us and creating opportunities to share perspectives; a space where everyone has room to grow. And there is no growth without change!

It is important to be welcoming, because the world is not always that way. It is important to be radically inclusive because more and more the world seeks to exclude, to divide, to set us against one another. 

What’s a good example of this? Oh, I dunno – has anyone heard anything about a troubling and unnecessary referendum that has pitted provincial residents against each other, as well as against the immigrants that two years ago our government begged to come to our province?

Or while our public schools struggle with having their funding diverted to private and charter schools, often with exclusionary recruitment criteria as well as agendas, that same government has made it a priority to make sure that treaty flags have strict limitations on when they can be flown (on treaty land, no less!) and pride flags can’t be flown at all?

A symbol meant to let some of society’s most vulnerable kids know they are safe and respected apparently has no place in our halls of learning.

Let me give you another example that I will try to keep intentionally vague: earlier this year, here in the capital region, a discernibly marginalized individual went to an event held in what professed to be an inclusive space. Maybe they sported a jersey from the visiting team or a hat from a political affiliation, maybe their skin colour stood out, maybe they held hands with a person of the same gender expression, maybe they wore symbols from a less-familiar faith, whatever. Another attendee at this event talked to this person in an ignorant and disrespectful way. This person found themself belittled and mischaracterized in a way that made them and the person they attended with feel increasingly uncomfortable and unwelcome. The two of them did their best to ignore the jabs, but it was tough, because it was hurtful, even though that was very likely not the intention of the person addressing them.

It’s like if I am not paying attention and am holding a cup of water when someone asks me the time, and I end up inverting my glass. Regardless of my intention, the water is not staying in that glass. The floor is getting wet. The damage is done. And I am grateful to the people in this story showing such tremendous grace when they shared it with me, their care that the other individual not be maligned unnecessarily.  But the sad truth is this: this hostility they felt, this exclusion they experienced, was nothing unfamiliar or new to either of them, just unexpected in that context.

And the real kicker? This interaction did not take place in Churchill Square or Tim Hortons or Lions Park or Commonwealth Stadium or the legislature - it took place here.

In this building.

In this room.

...

Let me be absolutely clear: I am not sharing this example to shame anyone. It is not meant to make the people who maybe recognize themselves in it or perhaps witnessed it feel bad. I honestly and truly do not want to embarrass or guilt anyone who perhaps didn’t realize it was happening or feels somehow that they should have, even if they couldn’t.

I am presenting it as an opportunity; a chance to pause and reflect. In the written psalms you will often see a Hebrew word meaning exactly this: Selah.

And if you do see yourself reflected in this story, or it reminds you of a different time or interaction where you wish you had done better, where you might have inadvertently enabled oppression or accidentally let injustice pass without being called out, hear this good news: “they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord, for I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more.”

We always have the choice to change, to become better. To more accurately reflect our faith in Christ and his teachings in the way we live our lives.

What does this look like?  It can look like a lot of things, but much of it stems from what Paul teaches us in Corinthians – “clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.”

Be kind. Support good causes both financially and verbally. Food banks, books for schools, supporting refugees, your faith community.

Show up. Speak up. If necessary, act up.

Look after those who have difficulty looking after themselves.

Give everyone the opportunity to live in respect and dignity.

Call it out when people minimize or joke about sexual assault.

Acknowledge the harm governments do when they pass abhorrent anti-trans and anti-gay legislation that further marginalizes at-risk populations.

Be radically inclusive and welcoming! It is not enough to simply leave the door open. Recognize that many people you encounter have been taught to think of themselves as outsiders, and they need you to explicitly invite them in!

Rid yourself of “all such things: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth.”

When people make mistakes, and they will, because they are human, try to find it in your heart to forgive them.  

And when it is you who has made the mistake, ask God to forgive you, and when you realize that They do, do the hardest part – find a way to forgive yourself.

In the end, Jesus’s new covenant makes it clear: we need to love one another. “Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.”

Upon reflection, we can all change. We can find what is right, because like we heard in Jeremiah, God has written it in our hearts. Selah.

We have come a long way, sure, but have so much further we can go.

Can you imagine a world running on love instead of hatred or jealousy? A world built on inclusivity not exclusivity? On community instead of division? Make no mistake, the world is likely to call us deranged, with these crazed notions that every individual has value and that love can conquer hate, but we are not irrational, we are trans-rational – we have a different rubric for what is important.

And we aren’t alone, either! Right here in St. Albert, a former Christian Reformed Church denomination has disaffiliated from their denomination and changed their name to Gardens Community Church. Part of the reason for this was the CRC’s Human Sexuality Report that came out in 2020, which opposes same-sex marriage and classifies homosexuality and transgender identities as “contrary to scripture.” They also made these positions binding beliefs, making change or even discussion virtually impossible. So these folks are breaking away to start their own community, and I wish them God’s blessings and all the luck in the world.

God calls us to community. ALL OF US. White, black, brown, red, yellow, puce, green whatever. Rich, poor, capitalist, socialist, gay, straight, trans, bi, queer, other, introvert, extrovert, innies, outies, briefs, boxers, Mac, PC, Coke, Pepsi, Marvel, DC, every one of us.

Let us continue to worship together here, loved and protected by God, thanking Them for both the abundances and challenges  in our lives, learning the lessons Jesus has laid out for us, and looking for the Holy Spirit to embolden us when we are called to action, as we were 12 years ago, when became an Affirming Ministry.

Amen!

(embedded video jumps to sermon at 40:46 (15 min))

SCRIPTURES

Psalm 46

God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should quake,
and the mountains fall into the depth of the sea,
Though the waters of the sea rage and foam,
and the mountains tremble at the tumult.
Reprise: A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing.


There is a river, whose streams make glad the city of God,
sanctifying the dwelling of the Most High.
God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved;
God will help at the break of day
The nations are in tumult, empires are shaken;
For God speaks and the earth melts away.
[Reprise]

Come and see what God has done,;
the wonders wrought upon the earth.
God makes wars to cease in all the world;
God breaks the bow and snaps the spear;
and burns the shields in the fire.
Be still and know that I am God,
exalted among the nations, exalted in the earth.
The God of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.
[Reprise]


Jeremiah 31: 31-34

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord, for I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more.


Colossians 3: 8-14

But now you must get rid of all such things: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator. In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, enslaved and free, but Christ is all and in all!

Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

Call It What It Is

My church observed Pride Sunday today, like we've done for years. We fly the Progress Pride flag for most of June (and a lot of other times for good measure), we have a rainbow sticker on our street-facing sign and on the glass door leading into the narthex, which also contains a small display window we decorated for the occasion.

PFLAG meets in our church and has support met-ups for various groups. Because of the way Christian communities have treated people in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, that makes some visitors apprehensive, which is completely understandable.

What is not understandable to me is how some people think they can cloak bigotry within "religious belief."

At its heart, Christianity should really be about following the teachings and examples of Christ - loving our neighbours, feeding the hungry, healing the sick, etc. We all do some picking and choosing within the tenets expressed in the Gospel - very few of us sell our belongings and give the proceeds to the poor after all - but these ideals of compassion and justice should permeate what we call Christian acts.

So see a cartoon of a person holding a shield emblazoned with a cross over her children to 'protect' them from a rainbow, with the caption, "here's to all the other faithful holding the line this month!", it makes me unreasonably angry.

So let's break it down. 

First, these people should stop quoting Leviticus unless they follow all its other prohibitions, like not trimming their beards, eating shellfish, or wearing clothes made from two different fabrics.

Next, they should recognize that most of the Hebrew scriptures about "wickedness" that they cite to make their case are not referencing two adults in a loving, same-sex relationship, but human trafficking or the sexual abuse of prisoners of war.

Homosexuality as a word doesn't enter the Bible until a particular and comparatively recent translation, the Revised Standard Version of 1946, something I only recently learned.

In fact, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah by the Angry Almighty in the O.T. was not due to licentiousness or sexual depravity, but because those communities refused to be hospitable and tolerated gang sexual assaults of outsiders.

Meanwhile, Jesus is repeatedly asking us to welcome the outsider. Consider how one of Jesus' most famous parables, the Good Samaritan, used the outsidey-est outsider imaginable to make his point - that all people deserve to be treated with compassion and respect.

But if you really want to make these people's heads spin, hand them a Bible and ask them to show you a verse where Jesus condemns homosexuality (for example).

Because they can't.

Because he doesn't.

You know what he does frown upon though?

Christians cozying up to power instead of standing up for the oppressed.

Hypocrites who pray loudly and publicly in Jesus' name but who support hateful laws and regimes.

And to be clear here, reasonable people can agree to disagree. I happen to feel that two adults in a loving, respectful same-sex relationship should be allowed to live free of judgement, shame, persecution, injury or death. I don't think two women holding hands in Edmonton should be spat at, but maybe you think that is just the cost of free spech. 

And if you think Matthew Shepard got what was coming to him (for, you know, daring to be an openly gay college student in Wyoming in 1998 and getting tortured and murdered for it), well, we just aren't going to get along.

And no one is demanding you celebrate or even observe Pride! Feel free to ignore it. I fail to understand how two people choosing to love each other (or trans or asexual or any other kids loving themselves for that matter) impacts anyone except them.

But when you speak to condemn these things, please do not hide behind Christianity, because there isn't anything in the teachings of Christ to justify hatred of other people. (Quite the opposite, actually!)

Please, for the sake of honesty and possibly the sake of your soul, just admit it. Call it what it is.  

You're a bigot.

Everyone else: Happy Pride!

Performative Faith

(This post brought to you by a combination of insomnia and the sudden realization I forgot to blog last night!)

American Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is framing up Trump's war in Iran with a lot, and I mean a LOT of faith-based language. He has instituted regular monthly Christian worship services at the Pentagon, and in a recent one, prayed openly for American service members to have "wisdom in every decision, endurance for the trial ahead, unbreakable unity, and overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy."

No specifics were given as to who specifically might be undeserving of mercy, but we can probably hazard some guesses.

This approach really seems to fly in the face of the teachings of Christ as they have been presented to me (feed the hungry, heal the sick, visit the prisoner, etc.) but it doesn't feel like my place to criticize someone else for how they express their beliefs, however hypocritical and problematic they might appear to me personally.

But luckily even protestants like me can take heart and guidance from the first American pope, Leo XIV, who in his Palm Sunday address said, "(Jesus) does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them, saying: 'Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood',"

Citing the Hebrew Testament prophet Isaiah in this way really helps to draw a line between Christianity and Christian Nationalism, a movement we are having to deal with more and more here in Canada as well. Here in Alberta, the former Wild Rose Party and its "lake of fire" Biblical punishment fundamentalists, aided by citizen groups like Take Back Alberta, have rolled back all manner of protections for gay and trans kids and prompted the provincial government to divert millions of dollars in funding from public to private and religious 'charter' schools. 

Federally, MP Jamil Jivani voted against Bill C-9, which removes a religious exemption for hate speech, while dramatically clutching a bible to his chest. 

This bugs me for a number  reasons, not the least of which is because the House of Commons has strict rules against using props of any kind - even buttons with slogans and symbols are prohibited. But most aggravating is the fact that this guy and his party have voted against multiple pieces of legislation that would seem to be consistent with how Jesus would like us to behave: feeding school children, sending aid to Cuba in midst of an energy blockade, supporting a nationwide dental care program for those without other insurance.

None of these endeavours were worthy of Conservative support, but stop allowing people to use hate speech cloaked in scripture and Jivani and his ilk call it an attack on Christianity. And American-owned media like the National Post (who have a virtual monopoly on text-based media in Canada with 130 daily print and digital brands) are only too happy to back them up in this.

And while NP circumspectly calls it an attack on faith here, I wonder what would have happened had an MP brought a Quran to that vote instead of a Bible.

At the end of the day, I don't feel particularly persecuted as a Christian, and I am grateful to see the religious loophole to hate speech finally is almost closed now that the legislation has passed in the HoC. The arguments never held a lot of water, and as many have said, if the practice of your faith involves hate speech, you should check the instructions again to make sure you are doing it right.

Heck, even with C-9 in the books, I don't think Hegseth's posturing, bellicose prayer meets the threshold for what we would consider hate speech here in Canada - but it's good to know that if it was, scriptural shields are no longer a sufficient defense against accountability.

And who knows what accountability might eventually be rendered by the Almighty?

Unprayed

I don't go to church to be disappointed in myself but it happens from time to time. Usually it is when I am reminded of the tenets of my faith and missed opportunities to apply them better, and during this past Sunday's service, that is what happened.

Most of the service was as one might expect: scriptures were read, songs were sung, and prayers were delivered. During our service, there is an opportunity to light candles of concern or celebration. Two were lit for congregations in our regions, one was lit for the death of a friend, and another was lit for the birth of a great-grandson. Of course someone lit one for the dead in Tumbler Ridge and that whole community, wishing them swift healing from the trauma their community endured. I thought about going up, but wrestled with the idea for too long and the moment was lost. 

I had first had the notion when we passed the peace at the start of the service, shaking hands with other people in the congregation and asking that the peace of Christ be with them. I shook hands with Madeline, a trans woman who started attending last fall with her partner Diamond. I know people in that community have experienced even more expressions of hatred since it was revealed that the Tumbler Ridge shooter was a trans individual, and I told Madeline I was glad to see them.

Then I shook hands with Nicole and Danielle, the couple who joined us as full members about a year ago through profession of faith, and who now look after the supplies for the post-service-fellowship. They are sweethearts and I am always delighted to see them.

But it got me thinking about the communities of faith where the four of them might not be welcome, and the unspoken prayer began to form.

A little while later we got to our reflection, which was not a sermon per se, but a brief talk by the guest invited by our Outreach Committee: Samuel Juru, the executive director of the Newcomer Centre (which was formerly called the Mennonite Center for Newcomers).

He spoke about his experiences growing up in Zimbabwe and being visited by armed government agents there after questioning those in power in a televised Q&A while a student. About coming to Canada as a political refugee, and how his first job here, despite having a degree in international relations, was unloading trucks on the nightshift.

Despite the fact that many other immigrants and refugees in his circle felt having a decent paying job and an apartment meant he had "made it", he reflected on what he wanted to do with his life, returned to school and started two decades of public service helping those trying to come to Canada to make it a better place.

It was a wonderfully personal and inspirational story, that had less to do with faith (although he related praying to God to give him Samson's strength on his first night of unloading heavy, tube-style televisions) and more to do with values, and maybe that is when it hit me:

How many of my fellow Albertans would have been indignat or even angered by the things that brought me joy that morning?

Shaking hands with a transgender woman? Greeting a lesbian couple? Listening to a black immigrant share his story about not only making a successful life with a family here in Canada but helping others to do the same?

It feels like I am continually reading the amplified grievances of people lamenting the way things "used to be," which, let's face it, were probably a pretty good time for white Christian males...but not a lot of others. 

This seems to be the banner that the Alberta separacists (no, I believe that is spelled correctly) are trying to draw people to, and in that moment of realization, a few things came into sharp focus to me:

1) sometimes, the simple act of being a wholly inclusive community of faith and providing a safe space for people is enough in itself, and

2) that being a welcoming and justice-oriented organization is going to feel threatening to some people, and

3) that impasse will be difficult, if not impossible to bridge in our current environment, and we should ask for help.

As people lined up to ask for prayers of both joy and concern, I recognized that what I should do, what I ought to say, is to go up, and highlight that impasse, and then pray - not for us but for the haters.

Pray that the Divine opens their eyes, or their minds, or their hearts, whatever requires broaching. Ask them to see a world that celebrates differences instead of fearing it, to imagine one that embraces diversity as a source of strength and not dilution. Because as entrenched as our positions might seem to be, we won't be able to move forward effectively without some of those on the other side changing their minds.

And with corporate-owned news media and billionaire-owned social media so intent on keeping us divided and antagonistic for eyes and subscriptions and likes and clicks and advertising dollars , the oligarchs and the rest of them can sit back and watch us divide ourselves, and then roll up to conquer later on.

All of this ran through my head as I struggled to pay attention to the other candle-lighters asking for prayers, but when the last one spoke, I was still there, in my seat. Unwilling to stand and make this ridiculous ask that we, as followers of not just the 'brand' but the actual teachings of Jesus, try to find it in ourselves to recognize the intolerant as fellow children of God.

And what has gnawed at my soul since then is not so much the fact that I was unable to do it; the real pain is the lack of regret I feel for not having done it.

Perhaps next Sunday...

Guest Pulpitations: The Work Continues

Last week, Fenya delivered the sermon for our congregation's 11th anniversary as an Affirming Ministry. Our Affirming Team put the whole service together and Fenya was working on her reflection right up until the day before. This is similar enough to my own process that I was unconcerned, but I was also unprepared for just how good it was, as well as the conviction with which she delivered it.

She also achieved something that made me a bit jealous - someone found her content a little bit too much, or too political, and walked out. Achievement unlocked, I say!

Compliments from those who remained were effusive and sincere. Many people shared personal stories of bad experiences at churches in the past, and how much they appreciated Fenya's forthright declaration of what being inclusive and welcoming actually means. The title referred to how much work still needs to be done by affirming ministries, from the recent apology by the United Church of Canada to 2SLGBTQIA+ peoples and communities, to the need for support for trans people impacted by the Alberta government's use of the notwithstanding clause to shore up their unconstitutional banning of gender-affirming care.

I can't say what part of it compelled that one fellow to leave, but I know his spouse or partner stayed, so I am hoping there was perhaps a discussion at home later.

If you would like to see it for yourself (and I highly recommend it!), here is a link to the start of it (about 20 mins). Her speaking notes appear below, and you will just have to imagine it delivered with righteous conviction and matching intensity!

So proud.

THE WORK CONTINUES

When I agreed to deliver the sermon for affirmiversary Sunday, I thought I had a pretty good understanding of what it means to be an affirming ministry, but I wanted to learn more about how we got to where we are today. We became affirming back in 2014, when I was 15 years old. I was attending St. Albert United Church at that time, but at 15, much of my time was spent downstairs in the youth room, and I wasn’t nearly as in-the-loop about the goings-on upstairs.

Fast-forward to now, and I have become a fully-fledged member of the Affirm committee, so when the opportunity came for me to preach this Sunday, the other affirm committee members were more than happy to fill me in on the important St Albert United Church history that I missed. And now I get to share this information with all of you! I thought it might be helpful for those who have joined the church post-2014  in case you, like me, did not realize the amount of work it took for our church to become affirming. And for those of you who have been here since before 2014, hopefully you enjoy getting a brief review!

St Albert United Church's affirming journey spanned a total of around 9 years, starting in 2005 with the deliberative dialogue process. This involved 7 sessions of intense discussions examining the sanctification of same sex marriages, and at the end of those discussions, a resolution was presented to the church council for an inclusive marriage policy, which is one of the requirements to become an affirming ministry. The resolution was passed at the 2006 AGM with ⅔ of those present being in favour. 

Then in June of 2013 a group was assembled to finish the journey started in 2005 and to complete the application process for our church to become an affirming ministry. This process built upon the extensive work that had already been done while allowing for further necessary discussion and education. This part of the process was a lot of work and effort, and required the participation of the whole congregation. The Affirming ministry program offered educational activities and ideas to help the ministry explore issues of sexual orientation and gender identity, engage with the bible, plan activities to support justice for lgbtq2s+ people, and write an affirming ministry vision statement (which you hear every week when we welcome all regardless of age, race, gender, gender expression sexual orientation, belief, economic circumstance, ability, or background.) 

These conversations and activities challenged peoples’ way of thinking, and when reading some of the activities suggested, I can imagine they were not always the most comfortable experiences or easy conversations to have. And that makes me all the more proud of my congregation for doing them. 

Some of the discussions involved bringing in guest speakers. One of these was the late Dr. Lorne Warneke, a psychiatrist who specialized in helping trans individuals work through gender dysphoria. There was also a panel of lgbtq2s+ individuals and their families who shared their perspectives.

Some of the educational material provided by the affirming ministries program explained how some of the passages cited as arguments against homosexuality also condemn other behaviours we consider acceptable, such as creating images of people, birds, or animals (Romans 1:22) or eating foods such as shrimp that are deemed to be unclean-a practice that is also called an abomination in the Bible (Leviticus 20:25).

One suggested workshop included an activity sheet where people had to indicate how closely they obeyed different bible passages, such as:

(luke 18:22): Sell everything you have and give the money to the poor 

(1 corinthians 14:34) Women should keep silent in the church  

(obviously I’m not following that one particularly closely)

And other passages like:

(Deuteronomy 23 19-20) Do not charge interest on loans, except loans to foreigners

(deuteronomy 22:19-20) If a man claims the woman he married is not a virgin and her family can’t prove her virginity, she should be put to death

There was another activity exploring the concept of texts of terror - biblical texts in which women experience abusive male power - and how the story of sodom and gomorroah can be a text of terror for lgbtq+ folk, used to condemn all lgbtq people when it is clearly a story about multiple perpetrator sexual assault. The activity explored how developing a theology of blessing for lgbt folk also meant coming face to face with the horrors found in the bible. 

When the educational workshops and discussions came to an end, the congregation took a vote at the AGM in June 2014 to officially become an affirming ministry, with 98% of those present in favour.

Now like I said, this process was a lot of work. It required people to face some really horrific things in the bible and things done to people in the name of christianity. But why was it important? Someone might wonder, “you know, we were already pretty welcoming before, why did we need to do all this extra work to become an officially affirming ministry?”

It’s important for a lot of reasons. It’s important because as we heard from our non-scripture reading today, the assumption that we are already welcoming enough hasn’t been the case for much of the church’s history. It’s important because we might think we were welcoming enough before becoming affirming, but members of the lgbtq2s+ community have had enough experiences indicating the opposite that it is understandable that that welcome is not assumed to be guaranteed. And that welcome is still not a guarantee in many churches today. 

Becoming affirming is important because open-mindedness is necessary, even if others around us might disagree. It’s important because in 1988 the United Church put out a report recommending that the church welcome lgbtq individuals in all aspects of the church, including the ministry. A poll came out later indicating only 28% of church members were in favour of this, and many conservative members of the United Church ended up leaving. It’s important because in the 4 years following that report coming out, the United Church of Canada lost over 78,000 members. Our decision to become affirming is important because St. Albert United Church lost members after passing the inclusive marriage policy and becoming an affirming ministry.

It’s important because Jesus didn’t tell us just to love each other. He taught us to love each other radically. He didn’t call for us to be “welcoming enough”. He calls us to give all our money to the poor. He calls us to wash each others’ feet. To give the shirt off our backs. “Already welcoming enough” just doesn’t cut it.

Becoming affirming is important because the church has homophobia and transphobia in its history, which has caused substantial harm to members of our community. It’s important because there is a lot of work to be done to make amends for the harms that have been perpetrated towards the lgbtq community. And that work starts with each and every one of us. We have a responsibility as individuals and as a congregation to not just say we are welcoming, but to show it in our actions. And one of the most important actions we can take is to put in the work to educate ourselves and learn how to do better.

In the story of Jesus healing the centurion’s servant, the centurion talks about how he can give an order and it will be done. His faith in Jesus operates in the same way, where Jesus himself doesn’t even need to go to the centurion’s house, but he only needs to speak the word and the servant is healed. We have faith that Jesus need only speak, and his will will be carried out. And when it comes to what Jesus has and has not spoken about, I want to point out that there is not a single time in the bible that Jesus ever condemns homosexuality. But you know what he is quoted saying?

 

Do not judge. 

 

Love your neighbor. 

 

Like the centurion commands his servants and his will is done, so too does Jesus command us, and it is through us that his will is done.

And the work to live out that message of love continues. Just because we became affirming in 2014 doesn’t mean that was the end of the journey. In fact, that was when a lot of the work actually started. Once we had put in the work internally to become affirming, it was time to share our affirming message with the rest of the world, that there are Churches and Christians who love the lgbtq+ community for exactly who they are. 

We have a pride flag flying outside for all to see. We are present in pride events and  parades and have hosted a ton of fantastic events like drag shows, film viewings, and educational panels with guest speakers. Most recently, we helped sponsor St. Albert's Pride in the Park this year, donating $3,000 from a community grant we applied for. And we have built a reputation for ourselves. I’ve heard us referred to as “the gay church on the hill”. 

(…to be honest, when we were called that it was actually done with the intention of being offensive, but I kinda love that as a nickname because that’s what we are known for. *And I also kinda love not letting bigots win at name-calling*). 

 

We’ve also had queer organizations ask to partner with us or use our spaces because they know we support them and that we exist as a safe place for them to be themselves. It’s a reputation I am incredibly proud of.

This reputation has also incited some reactions of opposition. We’ve had angry letters detailing how upset our love of the lgbtq+ community makes people. How disapproving they are of our pride flag. We’ve even had people storm into the church to harass individuals engaging in bible study, arguing that flying that flag means we are promoting pedophilia. Which we know is absolutely not true. And our response to that incident was deciding to fly that flag even more than we had been before. 

Sometimes speaking out can be scary. … Sometimes it can be hard. … But that’s why it’s important. 

 

Oppression thrives in silence. And doing nothing only benefits the oppressors. 

 

Those who are discriminated against fight back in part simply by existing. But allies have to do it consciously. … Allies have to make the choice to do it. 

And it can have consequences. We might not make everybody happy doing what we do. It might make some people uncomfortable or angry. … But the safety of my queer siblings to live lives free of violence and fear is more important to me than people being comfortable. … And you know what? Jesus rubbed people the wrong way all the time. Doesn’t mean he was wrong.

We became affirming back in 2014. … But 11 years later in 2025, our affirming mission is even more important today.

 

It’s important because we are still seeing a rise in hate crimes based on sexual orientation. … It’s important because sexual and gender diverse youth are twice as likely to consider taking their own life. … It’s important because even though lgbtq+ individuals only make up 4% of Canada’s population, they make up 13% of all individuals currently experiencing homelessness.

 

Being publicly, intentionally, and explicitly affirming is important because earlier this year, the Alberta government passed 3 discriminatory laws that prohibit gender affirming care for minors, restrict students from using chosen names and pronouns without parental notification and consent, and ban trans women and girls from participating in sports. … These laws restrict access to health care, limit freedom of expression in schools, and curtail protections against discrimination.

 

And now that these hateful, discriminatory, unjustifiable laws are facing legal challenges, the government plans to use the Charter’s notwithstanding clause to advance these policies and circumvent the legal process entirely, shielding these laws from constitutional scrutiny. … This deliberately undermines the rights and dignity of trans people and sets a dangerous precedent for all Canadians. And that last sentence isn’t from me. … That’s a direct quote from the Canadian Civil Liberties Association condemning these decisions. … The CCLA warns that invoking the notwithstanding clause to advance discriminatory policies threatens the integrity of Canada’s constitutional democracy.

This is why our visible allyship is important. It’s important because the pronoun restrictions have left some trans youth with an impossible choice: to be outed at home or remain closeted at school. … It’s important because gender affirming care saves lives, is backed by decades of evidence, and is supported by every major Canadian Health Organization. It is important because the canadian medical association says that the healthcare law “requires doctors to disregard clinical guidelines, the needs of patients and their own. conscience.”. Our support of trans youth is important because this legislation is denying them the ability to access gender affirming care in schools and the medical system, which may be the difference between them surviving to adulthood or not.

Like I said before, … sometimes speaking out can be scary. … Sometimes it can be hard. … But that’s why it’s important.

As followers of God, speaking out and working against discrimination is not a choice, …it is a responsibility. … It is a core tenet of who we are and what we believe. 

In the reading from Isaiah, God’s people come to her, saying, “why have we fasted and you have not seen? Why do you take no notice?” and God proclaims that while they have followed specific religious practices, they lack sincerity because the true fast that she desires is not merely a religious act, but a lifestyle of love and justice.

We see from the reading in Isaiah that we can engage in all the religious practices and rituals we want, but if those actions are not alongside action towards liberation and justice, they ring hollow, …and lose almost all meaning. 

I want you to understand that I still believe these practices hold value, but coming here and being here is not the work that God calls us to do. 

Here is where we find community, where we recharge for the week ahead, where we find inspiration and feel God's presence. But the work … is out there. …God’s work is being done more by people of all faiths and no faith in food banks, at protests, and in the volunteer-run queer suicide hotline than it ever will be by any of us simply going to church.

Uplifting and supporting any of God’s cherished and beloved children is a form of worship. … As Christians, this is the fast that we have chosen. To bring the homeless poor into our house, …to cover the naked. … To loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the straps of the yoke, and let the oppressed go free.

God calls us to action. … Jesus calls us to love one another, and like the centurions servants, he need only speak and it will be done. 

And we learn from the reading in Isaiah what happens when we answer this call:

“If you remove the yoke from among you,

the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil,

if you offer your food to the hungry

and satisfy the needs of the afflicted,

then your light shall rise in the darkness

and your gloom be like the noonday.

The Lord will guide you continually

and satisfy your needs in parched places

and make your bones strong,

and you shall be like a watered garden,

like a spring of water

whose waters never fail.”

Thanks be to God.