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Affirming
and accepting Churches This is one of the most complete searchable lists Welcoming Ministries Search - Provides the ability to search 1,416 local churches, 55 campus ministries, 37 Judicatories, and seven national and international ministries that have publicly declared themselves welcoming of lesbian and gay people. These 1,500+ welcoming communities are found in ten denominations in 46 states and the District of Columbia and in six provinces of Canada. The complete list is up to date as of January 2001. . Denominational Support Organizations Anglican - Alliance of Lesbian and Gay Anglicans - http://www.alga.org We are united in working for the unconditional inclusion and full participation of lesbian and gay people in every facet of the Church's life throughout the Anglican Communion. Baptist - Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists (AWAB) – http://members.aol.com/wabaptists Members are churches, organizations, and individuals willing to go on record as welcoming and affirming all persons without regard to sexual orientation. They have joined together to advocate for the full inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered persons within American Baptist communities of faith. These congregations reach out to the lgbt community with the message of the Good News of Jesus Christ and welcomes all Christians into full membership and participation. Alaska Palmer Church of the Covenant PO Box 2888 Palmer, AK 99645 California Berkeley First Baptist Church of Berkeley
www.fbc-berkeley.org
2345 Channing Way Berkeley, CA 94704 Oakland San Leandro Community Church 1395 Bancroft Avenue San Leandro, CA 95477-5103 510-483-1811 Kay Wellington, Pastor Colorado Grand Junction Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church 3534 Lakeshore Avenue Oakland, CA
94610 San Francisco Dolores Street Baptist Church 1268 Sanchez Street San Francisco, CA
94114 San Jose New Community of Faith 6350 Rainbow Drive San Jose, CA 95129 San Leandro Koinonia Church 730-25
Road Grand Junction CO 81505 Connecticut Hartford Central Baptist Church 457 Main Street Hartford, CT 06103 Noank Noank Baptist Church www.noankbaptistchurch.faithweb.com
18 Cathedral Heights Noank, CT 06340 District of Columbia Riverside Baptist Church 680 Eye Street SWWashington, DC 20024 Georgia Decatur Oakhurst Baptist Church
www.oakhurstbaptist.org Illinois Chicago Grace Baptist Church 1307 West Granville Avenue Chicago, IL 60660 Evanston Lake Street Church http://www.lakestreet.org
607 Lake Street Evanston, IL 60201 Massachusetts Dignity/Boston Cambridge Old Cambridge Baptist Church 1151 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA
02138 Northampton First Baptist Church 139 Main Street
Northampton, MA 01060 Provincetown The Lighthouse Ministry PO Box 1945, Whalers' Wharf
Provincetown MA 02657 Worcester Bethany Christian United Parish 1189 Main Street Worcester, MA 01063 Minnesota Minneapolis Judson Memorial Baptist Church www.judsonchurch.org
4101 Harriet Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55409 University Baptist Church 1219 University Avenue SE Minneapolis, MN
55414 New Jersey Middletown Old First Church (ABC, UCC) 69 Kings Highway Middletown NJ 07748 Princeton Christ Congregation 50 Walnut Lane Princeton, NJ 08540 New York Albany Emmanuel Baptist Church www.emmanuelalbany.org
275 State Street Albany, NY 12210 Cortland United Community Church 19 Church Street Cortland, NY 13045 Ithaca First Baptist Church Dewitt Park - Box 254 Ithaca, NY 14851 New York City Judson Memorial Church www.judson.org
55 Washington Square South New York, NY 10012 Madison
Ave. Baptist Church http://madavebap.beliefnet.com/index.html
30 East 31st Street New York, NY 10016 The Riverside Church www.theriversidechurchny.org
Riverside Drive New York, NY 10027 Rochester Lake Avenue Baptist Church http://www.lakeabc.com
57 Ambrose Street Rochester, NY 14608 Schenectady Emmanuel Baptist Church - Friedens United Church of Christ
North Carolina Chapel Hill Olin T. Binkley Memorial Baptist Church 1712WillowDrive
Chapel Hill, NC 27514-2945 Hickory Abundant Grace Church 828-638-0566 David Thomas pastor. Raleigh Pullen Memorial Baptist
www.pullen.org
1801 Hillsborough Street Raleigh, NC 27605
Ohio Athens United Campus Ministry at OhioUniversity Trinity United Church of Christ
http://www.trinityucc.com First Baptist Church 115 W Broadway Granville, OH 43023-1179 Toledo A New Life MCC
www.anewlifemcc.org 1 Trinity Plaza, Toledo. Pennsylvania State College University Baptist and Brethren Church
www.ubbc.home.mindspring.com
411 S Burrowes Street State College, PA 16801-4017 Wayne Central Baptist Church www.cbcwayne.org
PO Box 309 Wayne, PA 19087-0309 Tennessee Memphis Prescott Memorial Baptist Church 499 Patterson Street Memphis TN
38111-5990 Texas Houston Covenant Church
www.covenanthouston.org Virginia Reston Washington Plaza Baptist Church
www.wpbchurch.org
1615 Washington Plaza Reston VA 20190 Washington Seattle Seattle First Baptist Church www.seattlefirstbaptist.org 111 Harvard Avenue
Seattle, WA 98122 University Baptist Church 4554 Twelfth Avenue NE Seattle, WA 98105 Wisconsin Madison First Baptist Church 518 North Franklin Avenue Madison, WI 53705
Broken Walls Christian Community
http://www.forministry.com/Church/Home.asp?SiteId=53204bwcc
617 W. Washington Street 53204 Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America www.bpfna.org MARANATHA, Riversiders for Lesbian/Gay Concerns Brethren - The Brethren/Mennonite Council (BMC) for Lesbian and Gay Concerns http://www.webcom.com/bmc/welcome.html - Supports all people as they seek to know God's will for their lives, including those open to same-sex relationships, those seeking a life of celibacy and those exploring questions of sexual orientation. Believe that God does celebrate the love shared in same-sex relationships. Catholic The Lesbian and Gay Catholic Handbook http://www.bway.net/~halsall/lgbh/ is an attempt to organize and present a great deal of information, discussion, and argumentation that will be helpful to lesbian, gay, and bisexual Catholics. Dignity USA. http://www.dignityusa.org- Believe that gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered Catholics are members of Christ's mystical body, numbered among the People of God. Believe that all people have an inherent dignity because God created us, Christ died for us, and the Holy Spirit sanctified us in Baptism, making us temples of the Spirit, and channels through which God's love becomes visible. Believe it is their right, privilege and duty to live the sacramental life of the Church, to become more powerful instruments of God's love working among all people Axios - www.qrd.org/www/orgs/axios An organization of Eastern & Near Eastern Orthodox, and Byzantine & Eastern-rite Catholic Gay & Lesbian lay Christians to address human sexuality within Eastern Christianity. Christian Science - Emergence International http://www.cslesbigay.org/emergence - Christian Scientists Supporting Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexuals. An association of Christian Scientists, their families and friends, who provide spiritual and educational support to lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals as they deal with homophobia and heterosexism. Disciples of Christ - The Gay, Lesbian and Affirming Disciples Alliance, Inc., http://www.gladalliance.org is a presence working for the full dignity and integrity of gay, lesbian, bisexual and affirming people within the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). GLAD Alliance welcomes all and conducts its activities through the congregations, regions and general agencies and bodies of the Disciples of Christ. Communications with members and friends are carried on through the quarterly publications Crossbeams and Crosscurrents. Episcopal - Integrity, Inc. http://www.integrityusa.org – An organization within the Episcopal Church to provide fellowship, pastoral support, and affirmation for members of the Christian family who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and their friends and family; and continuing the dialogue between persons of diverse opinions within the Episcopal Church. Lutherans - Lutherans Concerned North America http://www.lcna.org - A Christian ministry affirming God's love for lesbian and gay people. As a person who believes in God, you have spiritual needs that are deeply felt. If you understand your orientation to be a sexual minority, you want to be a Christian without having to hide who you are. Methodist The Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN) http://www.rmnetwork.org is a growing movement of United Methodist individuals, congregations, campus ministries, and other groups working for the full participation of all people in the United Methodist Church. As of March, 2001, the RMN encompasses 171 Reconciling Congregations and 24 Campus Ministries. There are over 16,500 Reconciling United Methodists. Affirmation www.umaffirm.org is an independent organization with no official ties to The United Methodist Church. It is an activist caucus of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people organized to speak for themselves. They proclaim a gospel of respect, love and justice; relentlessly pursue policies and processes that support full participation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people in all areas and levels of The United Methodist Church; overcome the barriers that diminish our common humanity by excluding or judging people because of their race, gender, class, or physical abilities, and empower people to undertake works of inclusion and justice where they are. Mormon - Affirmations: http://www.affirmation.org/ Gay and Lesbian Mormons - a fellowship of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, their family and friends who share the common bond of the Mormon experience. Its purpose is to provide a supportive environment for relieving the needless fear, guilt, self-oppression and isolation that LDS gays and lesbians experience in an era where willful ignorance about human sexuality is too often a reality. Presbyterian - More Light Presbyterians http://www.mlp.org individual members and congregations of the Presbyterian Church (PCUSA) who are faithful to God's call and believe that God continues to open new understandings of scripture and the Word in the life of Christ. As a Christian community, we believe that the church must seek to live out those understandings in our life together. Mission - Following the risen Christ, and seeking to make the Church a true community of hospitality. Work for the full participation of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people of faith in the life, ministry and witness of the PCUSA. Provide a ministry of care for inclusive congregations. Quakers - Friends For Lesbian and Gay Concerns http://www.geocities.com/WestHollywood/2473/flgc.html an association of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and non-gay Friends (Quakers) who seek spiritual community within the Religious Society of Friends. From this fellowship, we seek to know that of God within ourselves and others, and to express God's Truth in the Quaker and lesbian/gay/bisexual communities as it is made clear to us. Seventh-day Adventist Kinship International, Inc. http://www.sdakinship.org (Kinship) is an organization which ministers to the spiritual, emotional, social, and physical well being of individuals with diverse sexual orientations who have ties with the Seventh-day Adventist denomination along with their families and friends. Unitarian Universalist Interweave - Unitarian Universalists for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Concerns. The Office of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Concerns is guided by the vision that someday we will be able to put ourselves out of business and that oppression against bisexual, gay, lesbian, and/or transgender people, whether it be overt or subtle, will be a thing of the past United Church of Canada - Affirm United www.affirmunited.org is an organization of persons working through education and social integration for the welcoming of diverse peoples, especially the inclusion of gay, lesbian and bisexual persons in the life and work of the church. Affirm United is composed of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities and so it is open to all people within the United Church of Canada who support these goals. The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches www.ufmcc.com is a Christian Church founded in and reaching beyond the Gay and Lesbian communities. They embody and proclaim Christian salvation and liberation, Christian inclusivity and community, and Christian social action and justice. They serve those seeking and celebrating the integration of their spirituality and sexuality. The United Church of Christ http://www.ucc.org/index/ has adopted a denominational view of being Open and Affirming (ONA). Not all congregations have joined. Go to the web site and search for a church. If the church indicates ONA, they are participating in this movement Ministries Bi-Gender http://bi_gender.tripod.com - Birth Gender vs. Spiritual Gender. This site is based on a few beliefs and here is one of the most important. We believe that the plumbing that one is born with is secondary to the person you want to be. Birth Gender may well govern what is put on your drivers license...but it is your spiritual gender that governs how you express your life. Hopefully this site will open dialogue and understanding in this area. The CENTER FOR THE PREVENTION OF SEXUAL AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE www.cpsdv.org is an interreligious educational resource addressing issues of sexual and domestic violence. Our goal is to engage religious leaders in the task of ending abuse, and to prepare human services professionals to recognize and attend to the religious questions and issues that may arise in their work with women and children in crisis. Our emphasis is on education and prevention. Center for Sexuality and Religion http://www.ctrsr.org/ccr.html The primary purpose of the (CSR) is to establish the positive relationship between human sexuality and spiritual health through the meeting of two extremely important goals. One is to provide clergy in their various leadership roles with information, education, training, techniques and skills that foster and advocate the attitudes and values for sexual and spiritual health among their parishioners. The second is to facilitate good sexual and spiritual health among the clergy themselves. ChristGen.Org’s http://www.christgen.org purpose is to provide a resource for support, referral and dialog regarding gender identity struggles, particularly those surrounding traditional Christian beliefs. It also offers support to those who are either exploring their gender identity, confused about gender struggles, hoping to transition and rebuild in their birth-gender role. It also works with those family members, spouses, friends, churches and others who are concerned or affected. Christian Community http://www.churchstuff.com/home.html is a nonprofit research and program development organization. Our focus is the health of local churches and the communities they serve. They affirm and celebrate the diversity of humankind and believe that congregations have a responsibility to share God's love with all people. Christian Community works with Roman Catholic, Protestant, Anabaptist and Jewish congregations, as well as with people who are not involved in any religious faith. Emergence Ministries www.emergenceministries.org is dedicated to serving the spiritual and physical needs of the transgendered community. It is a ministry of hope supported by Evangel Praise Center Assembly of God Church Fresno CA. (559)222-4EPC and headed by Rev. Terri Main. Heartstrong www.heartstrong.org exists to provide truthful information and support to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered persons who have attended, are attending, employed by, or associated with religious educational institutions through support, education and advocacy. Joy and Martha's Home Page http://members.home.net/marthajoy7/index.html - Dedicated to Married Couples with a GID Mate. The Religious Institute on Sexual Morality, Justice, and Healing www.religionproject.org was founded in 2001, to promote the vision and promise of the Religious Declaration on Sexual Morality, Justice, and Healing. The Religious Declaration is a consensus statement created by theologians and ethicists from a broad range of religious traditions and currently endorsed by over two thousand religious leaders across the United States, including denominational leaders, seminary presidents, deans, and faculty members, and clergy from more than twenty-five religious traditions. Rev. Vicky Kolakowski's Rainbow Christian Site. http://www.angelfire.com/ca2/revvicky An ordained minister of the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches Soulforce http://www.soulforce.org is an organization that is determined to help end the suffering of God’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered children... determined to help change the minds and hearts of religious leaders whose anti-homosexual campaigns lead (directly and indirectly) to that suffering... and determined to be guided in our every action by SOULFORCE the principles of relentless nonviolent resistance as lived and taught by M.K. Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr... And in the process of bringing hope and healing to our society find redirection and renewal for our minds and spirits. Through The Cracks Ministries www.throughthecracks.org - God's love covers everything! If you have sought or are seeking God and yet have found organized religion to be a continual hindrance, I have plenty of good news for you starting with this: You have come to the right place!! It is my goal to share the awesome Love and commitment God has toward you when you entrust your life to Him, and help you toward entrusting Him with your life if you have not already done so. Witness Our Welcome www.wow2k.org (WOW) is an ecumenical forum for Christian congregations, communities and individuals that welcome and affirm persons of all sexual and gender orientations. WOW 2000 was the first-ever diverse assembly of Christians to address the concerns of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered persons and their families. Over 1,000 persons gathered in August 2000 outside Chicago for this historic event. The next WOW Conference is being planned for the summer of 2003. Communications Opportunities The mission of the Aramaic Bible Society www.aramaic.org is to preserve and distribute the writings and translations of Aramaic-English Bible scholars, such as Dr. Lamsa and the Yonan Codex Foundation writers. During the past 50 years the Society has kept many of these writings in publication and available to readers worldwide. Since 1995 additional printings with new formats and covers have been done for six English Language Biblical works having interpretations from original Aramaic phrases. While spending most of his adult life writing Bible commentaries, Dr. Lamsa based them not only on his training at theological schools but on his first-hand knowledge of Middle East customs and manners that hadn't changed since the time of Jesus and even to back the time of Abraham. He also translated the whole Bible from the ancient Aramaic scriptures during a 30 year period, culminating in the publishing of his New Testament translation in the 1930s and his translation of the whole Bible by the mid-1950s. Good News! Jesus Loves Us T*00! http://members.tripod.com/michelledee A Christian Resource for the Transgendered. Whether you are a Christian who is also transgendered (transsexual, transvestite, or other T* status), or someone asking, "Who is Jesus Christ," there's good news! Jesus loves us, too! Christians will find information about who Jesus truly is, and why there is no fear that he loves us all, no matter what our gender presentation. Sexuality is secondary to the saving power of Jesus Christ. GRACE & LACE LETTER INTERNATIONAL http://hometown.aol.com/gnlnews/index1.html AN EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN NEWSLETTER FOR CROSSDRESSERS, TRANSGENDERED AND TRANSSEXUALS TG-Christians http://www.christiancrossdresser.homestead.com/files/christian.html is an electronic mailing list of Christians who are transgendered (transsexuals, crossdressers, etc.) It is intended as an instrument of God's love to bolster each of us in our faith and to be a blessing in our lives in general through fellowship with one another. It's simply a mechanism by which email gets sent to a group of people at the same time so you can share your thoughts with roughly 150 other Christians. Welcome to Transcriptions, http://www.geocities.com/WestHollywood/Village/8295/main.html dedicated to the topic of Christianity and gender identity disorder (GID), also known as gender dysphoria. Whosoever www.whosoever An Online magazine for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered Christians. Recommended Reading List The
Gospels (No link is needed - Check out your local Bible) –
What I’m learning about the true good news of the gospels is that their
message is about love and acceptance. About everyone not just those who think
they are holy. About showing mercy and forgiveness. About avoiding judgment and
condemnation. About relying on God for strength and guidance. About being salt
and light to the world. About being a good neighbor like the Samaritan. About
shunning the self-righteous hypocrisy of the Pharisees. About welcoming back
strays like the Prodigal Son. About using God’s gifts to me faithfully. About
being a servant to all. About exercising the humility of the Publican. About
having a childlike faith in God. And about His grace that frees me from the
bondage of legalism. What’s So Amazing About Grace - Philip Yancey's incredible book convinced me that grace is the ingredient that will enable us to love those we consider unlovable. He said, "Grace is the church's great distinctive. It's the one thing the world cannot duplicate, and the one thing it craves above all else -- for only grace can bring hope and transformation to a jaded world." He sees legalism as the greatest threat to grace and envisions churches as places where grace is "on tap" and readily available to everyone who needs it. Isn't that what Jesus would do? The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse - My catechism experiences and battering because of cross-dressing aren't unique. For those who have felt the sting of legalism, shame and guilt in a religious context, help is available. A good place to start is this book by David Johnson and Jeff VanVonderen. For those religious leaders who find themselves trapped in the role of the abuser, the same source offers help in breaking that role. God loves us all and His healing is always available. My book, The Bliss of Becoming One! is a powerful guide for members of the gender community, their friends and family, and those interested in understanding transvestism and gender issues. It describes a vision of an open society and steps that can be taken to turn that vision into reality. It is a challenging book that dispels many of the myths surrounding transvestites (cross-dressers), encourages them to integrate their feminine and masculine traits, advocates joining mainstream society and promotes emotional health, wholeness and unity. It teaches cross-dressers how to understand themselves better, accept what they find, share what they learn with loved ones and help others, all by applying the Golden Rule! Informational Resources Carpenter Program in Religion, Gender, and Sexuality http://divinity.lib.vanderbilt.edu/carpenter/ Established in 1995 the mission is to foster conversation on the subject areas of religion, gender, and sexuality. The Program is neither partisan in theological and political orientation nor targeted solely to the academic community. It seeks to encourage communication within and across religious affiliations, ideological bases, and cultural contexts. Other Sheep http://www.othersheep.org/AnobiblPart5.htm - A huge reference list of books on Sexual Orientation and Civil Rights, The Ex-Gay Movement, Homophobic Works, Transgendered, Bisexuality and Transvestites. QueerMe.com http://www.queerme.com/table_of_contents.htm The quest: To write theology for queer youth (and adults) that's actually an enjoyable read. The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S. www.siecus.org (SIECUS) is a national, nonprofit organization which affirms that sexuality is a natural and healthy part of living. Incorporated in 1964, SIECUS develops, collects, and disseminates information, promotes comprehensive education about sexuality, and advocates the right of individuals to make responsible sexual choices. The TGPortal www.susans.org Links to a wide assortment of transgendered resources. TGWire www.tgguide.com/tgwire A resource for transgendered news articles! Tri-Ess - http://members.aol.com/rachelmill/tfm.htm The world's largest organization dedicated to the needs of the cross-dresser. I heartily recommend them and their programs. The referenced page on my transgendered web site contains links to many of their sites. Link Sources I developed this site to describe how to find a church that will nurture you and strengthen your relationship with God. It includes: How to do further research Denominational support groups Openly accepting & affirming denominations Approaches that are dependent on the pastor Magic Woman Petticoat Directory - Among many other things, the site contains some churches throughout the country that are open and receptive to transgendered people. Christian Transgendereds: Sandra Stewart - The Gender Tree Articles A Christian response to the Transgendered Condition by Mharia Mitchell Christian Cross-dresser’s Confession by Jade Catherine Devlin Coming Out Christian by Pat Conover
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