GLBT Welcoming Congregation
The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Elkhart invites all individuals to be a part of our liberal religious community, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or national origin. We are a Welcoming Congregation and are in the process of obtaining the official UUA designation.
Please contact Rev. Amy or Pam Kramer with any questions about this committee, the workshops, attending the meetings, whatever!
The Process...
We are now a committee of 10 with hopes of adding many more of you who may be curious, interested and/or committed to helping UUFE become designated as a Welcoming Congregation - a safe place for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender people in our community.
Info about the Program...
The Welcoming Congregation Program is a voluntary program developed by the Unitarian Universalist Association in 1989 for congregations seeking to be inclusive toward gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) people. It is in keeping with Unitarian Universalism's first principle, "We covenant to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of all persons," we believe that it is essential to welcome, affirm, and support GLBT people.
How will we become an official "Welcoming Congregation?
Congregations who publicly and successfully welcome bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender people have the following qualities:
- Includes and address the needs of b/g/l/t persons at every level of congregational life—in worship, in programs, in social occasions, and in rites of passage—welcoming not only their presence, but the gifts and particularities of their lives as well.
- Assumes the presence of b/g/l/t people and celebrates this diversity by having inclusive language and content in their worship.
- Fully incorporates the experiences of b/g/l/t persons throughout all programs, including religious education.
- Includes an affirmation and nondiscrimination clause in our by-laws and other official documents affecting all dimensions of congregational life, including membership, hiring practices, and the calling of religious professionals.
- Engages in outreach into the b/g/l/t community in its advertising and by actively supporting b/g/l/t affirmative groups.
- Offers congregational and ministerial support for union and memorial services for b/g/l/t persons, and for celebrations of...family definitions.
- Celebrates the lives of all people and welcomes same-sex couples, recognizing their committed relationships, and equally affirms displays of caring and affections without regard to sexual orientation.
- Seeks to nurture ongoing dialogue between bisexual, gay, lesbian, transgender, and heterosexual persons and to create deeper trust and sharing.
- Encourages the presence of a chapter of Interweave.
- Affirms and celebrates b/g/l/t issues and history during the church year.
- Attends to legislative developments and works to promote justice, freedom, and equality in the larger society.
- Speaks out when the rights of bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender people are at stake.
- Celebrates the lives of all people and their ways of expressing their love for each other.
