Jesus was one of the most inclusive and loving people I have ever learned about.  He reached out to the outcast, the oppressed, the ones we might consider “other.”  With Jesus as my example, I believe strongly that we are called to be advocates for human rights, that we must be involved in justice issues and speak God’s prophetic word to those who abuse power and privilege. 

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Inclusivity has many levels.  It means welcoming people who might be different from you.  Sometimes that means people of another race or ethnicity, but often it means people of a different class or social background.  Sometimes is means making sure that those who are differently abled are welcomed and included.

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Often Churches are not accessible to all people.  My current church has worked very hard to raise $175,000 to put a lift onto the building so that all people can access the second floor sanctuary and the basement where the bathrooms, Sunday School classes, kitchen, dining hall and pastor’s office are found.  This has been a massive project and I can’t say enough about the faithfulness of the people who believed that together we could “Throw Open the Doors” to make our church inclusive and accessible to all.

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Inclusivity has many faces.  Our congregation went through a process of determining that we feel God’s call to be an inclusive community of faith.  They were not ready to become “Open and Affirming” because some felt that this faith statement about people of all sexual orientations being welcome would exclude those who are not accepting of all people. This year long process of exploring who were are as a congregation and how to best include everyone culminated with the writing of our mission statement which follows:

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MISSION STATEMENT OF THE NELSON CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH

We gather as an inclusive and loving community of faith to worship God and pray. We challenge ourselves to live the teachings of Jesus. We seek to be thankful and responsible stewards of all that God has entrusted to us. On our journey we accept God’s call to render loving service toward humankind and strive for righteousness, justice and peace. We welcome all who seek community with us under the blessing of the Holy Spirit.

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I am personally open and affirming and I hope someday to serve an open and affirming church, but I also value and am committed to group process.  I believe that the movement to become open and affirming must be a grass roots movement from the congregation.  I have seen too many churches torn apart by pastors trying to push through their agenda.  I believe in the work of the Spirit and that when a congregation is ready to move toward inclusivity that the spirit will well up in members of the congregation to lead the way.

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