Sunday August 20th, 2017
Today, in worship and in conversation, we reaffirmed our commitment to stand in solidarity with people who are victims of discrimination and hate, outwardly and subversively, in our country today. We praised a God who loves all people. People of all skin tones, races, cultures, sexual orientations, and gender identities. And we explored ways that we can bring more of that healing, unconditional love into this still painfully divided world.
In her sermon, Deacon Abby Ferjak, lamented the overt displays of hatred and racism shown earlier this week in Charlottesville, Virginia. As people who proclaim God's love for all people, we proclaim that racism, overt or covert, is antithetical to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As people called to love all our neighbors, we commit ourselves to reject and dismantle white privilege, white supremacy, and racially biased systems and institutions.
In our Adult Conversation, Ross Murray (both an Advent member and program director at GLAAD) spoke with us about recent events related to LGBTQ advocacy, and the best actions we can take now to support the LGBTQ community. Among the most important things we can be doing now are:
- Helping movements that share common goals stay united,
- Showing up at marches and rallies,
- Calling your elected officials to share your support of LGBTQ people
- Supporting businesses with LGBTQ friendly policies
- Following action-oriented LGBTQ organizations (which we will list below)
- Reaching out to people you know to challenge cultural assumptions, familiarize them with the LGTBQ community, and advocate for your LGBTQ friends and neighbors
Some LGBTQ action-oriented organizations worth following and supporting include: HRC, National LGBTQ Task Force, Lambda Legal, PFLAG, GLSEN, Trevor Project, National Black Justice Coalition, National Coalition of Anti-Violence Project, Immigration Equality, Audre Lorde Project (NYC), Fierce (NYC), Housing Works (NYC)
After worship, many stayed and conversed in the pews.
More gathered downstairs after Spanish-language worship.
