The Blog post from February 4th was missed as my computer needed a trip to the MacBook spa after I put it to work on my study leave last week! Please forgive the missed post. Thank you, ~k
January 27th the congregation of Cole Harbour Woodside United Church voted 95.5% in favour of becoming an Affirming Church. This means that we now declare ourselves to be fully inclusive of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities. We have made a commitment to back up our words with action. So, what does this really mean? And, why does it matter?
According to the Affirm United/ S’affirmer Ensemble(AU/SE) website “all gender identities and sexualities are a gift from God and <…> churches should be a safe and fully welcoming space for LGBTQ+ and Two-Spirit people to worship.” A group of volunteers representing this congregation worked tirelessly this past year through what is known as the affirming process. By doing so, they were able to present a motion to our congregation requesting that we become an Affirming Church. By exclaiming “Yes!” with its overwhelmingly positive vote, this congregation has committed to being held publicly accountable to Practice What We Preach!
This process took time, dedication, and hard work. The requirements of the process are too many to mention in this short post, but please review them here: Affirming Ministry Requirements. You will notice that the last step listed under the requirements (but, certainly not the last step in an ongoing Affirming Ministry) is to publicly celebrate this ministry. You are ALL invited to attend this celebration on Sunday evening, April 7 at 7 pm!
This post is offered in the Care and Comfort of Christ,
~kim curlett
Minister of Spiritual & Pastoral Care
Cole Harbour Woodside United Church 