AWAB Home Page          Associational Issues          Voice of the Turtle Online          InSpiriter Online

The Association of Welcoming & Affirming Baptists
 Associational
A Ongoing eNewsletter from the Executive Director

Issue 14    ~   September 18, 2005

Welcome to Associational
the e-newsletter of the Association
of Welcoming & Affirming Baptists

INSIDE


From the Executive Director

Dear Ones,

I am deeply saddened by recent decision of the Pacific Southwest Region to pull away from the ABC-USA (http://www.christiancentury.org/article.lasso?id=1282, http://www.abpnews.com/news/news_detail.cfm?).

I am disappointed in the region's professed rationale of "irreconcilable” convictions and values. As Baptists we have long believed that it is possible in the grace of Jesus Christ and in the power of the Holy Spirit for people to strongly disagree and to embrace one another in love. In fact, the very diversity we share among the membership of the ABCUSA exemplifies the essence and history of long-held and cherished Baptist principles of freedom and autonomy. I am troubled that this divisive decision by the PSW devalues and disregards these most fundamental Baptist beliefs. One of our great Baptist leaders, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. envisioned the beloved community in which all people embrace the otherness of those with whom they disagree. To that end we have accomplished much in our communities and throughout the world in the “common concerns of gospel ministry” that the PSW claims we share in the ABCUSA. Although the PSW states that its ministry and mission will thrive more strongly outside the tension of differing beliefs among its fellow Baptists, I belief that this is the wrong message for Christians and as Baptists to send in world that needs to see the unity of people bound by the love and grace of Jesus Christ.

At the crux of the PSW decision lies what I find to be most sad, and that is the immediate and the long-term impact their actions will have on God's dearly loved LesBiGayTrans people. Will they not interpret this as one more reason to stay away from church, one more reason to avoid people who call themselves "Christians?" If so, then I find today to be a sad day in the history of a glorious Baptist body who has welcomed, affirmed, and celebrated the myriad creations and gifts among us expressed in the good works of life-changing, world-wide ministries.

Today, I firmly believe Jesus weeps with his LGBT brothers and sisters over this decision. Jesus grieves that convictions have triumphed over compassion and like-mindedness has prevailed over love.

I regret that our sisters and brothers have chosen to make the issue of sexual orientation a reason to break fellowship with a denomination that has a long and proud history of mission and ministry in the world. The PSW is making this the watershed issue and by doing so are cutting themselves off from the very things that make people respect religious institutions -- like doing justice and compassion. 

Grace and Peace,
Ken Pennings
 ken@wabaptists.org


National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Celebrates Black Gay Pride - Sermon by Rev. Dr. James A. Forbes

WASHINGTON, Aug. 19 - The Task Force is proud to support the African-American lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community as it celebrates its rich heritage at Black Gay Pride events being held throughout the country during the summer and fall of 2005. We are especially honored to present as part of our celebration the following excerpts from the sermon by Dr. James A. Forbes, senior minister of The Riverside Church in New York City, on Pride Sunday, June 26, 2005.

During his tenure at The Riverside Church, Dr. Forbes has shown prophetic leadership on issues of peace and justice, including the equality of LGBT people. This sermon shows him to be a true ally of our community. We are grateful to be able to share it, and hope that you will find it as inspiring as we have.

Excerpts from "When the Liberated Become the Liberators", by Dr. James A. Forbes, senior minister of The Riverside Church in the City of New York: A sermon delivered on Gay Pride Sunday, June 26, 2005. For more information or audio recordings of the sermon, please visit www.theriversidechurchny.org.

"I want to say thank you to the Gay Pride movement ... somewhere, you got the courage to say, 'We know that we are God's children. We will stand up and thank God.' Now when you march, you are marching a march that says, 'Once we were paralyzed, but no more.’

The goal of every human being must be to say 'amen' to the givenness of the uniqueness of their own personalities. ... I want the whole world to be able to do that, no matter whether you are gay or straight, black or white, male or   female, traditional or untraditional; to be able to look genuinely at the givenness of who you are, and to be able to say, 'Thank you God, for the gift of a person like me!’

God is so infinite that there are many different ways for people to look, to speak, to think, to love. ... Whether one is heterosexual or homosexual, whether one is transgender, whether one is bisexual. ... And yet all of us are called to be faithful and to live with integrity and with responsibility within the framework of what God has made us.

It has amazed me to see people ... how they relate to other people after they have been set free from the stigma or from the experiences of oppression. ... How can a person be liberated by God, and then find it so difficult to liberate others who are the newcomers to the neighborhood of the victimized?

This is the Divine Dream: So far as I can tell, studying the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, this principle is constant, that God who blesses us expects us to become channels of blessing.

It is not the Divine Dream that some of us who are chosen for specialness will receive our liberation, and then, liberation stops with us. So some of us are the last of the liberated - 'As soon as I get liberated, then I close the door on the liberation of anybody else.' There are some people in high places like that!

It is a fundamental principle that God expects you, when you are blessed, to bless another. It becomes a nightmare for God when God's people, who have been recipients of God's special grace, sit and horde the blessing, whether it is economic, psychological, social, emotional or political blessing. When you get blessed, sure enough, God is waiting for you to pass it on. 'All right, let the next shoe fall.' And that is about blessing the other.

That's why I want to say thank you to the Gay Pride movement, because there you were dying, families rejecting you, churches rejecting you, government rejecting you. But somewhere, you got the courage to say, 'We know that we are God's children. We will stand up and thank God.' Now when you march, you are marching a march that says, 'We were paralyzed, but no more.’

When people get free and are liberated themselves, but they do not turn to help liberate someone else, it is because there is a missing dimension in their liberation. If a black man gets his freedom and doesn't want to help free anybody else, he needs a deeper deliverance; when a woman gets her freedom and  doesn't want to deliver anybody else, she needs a deeper imension of  liberation; when straight people get delivered from whatever bothers them and they cannot help liberate their gay brothers and sisters, they need a deeper experience of liberation; when Americans are so prosperous yet they can't think about liberating the third world, they need a deeper level of liberation.

Nelson Mandela was like a leper; he was called everything but a Child of God. They put him in prison - 27 years of a leprous existence. In fact, when he got out, he had a right to hate everybody. Everybody that he saw that didn't look like him, he could have hated. But God kept him 27 years. 'What were you doing with him, God?' 'I'm deepening his liberation. I want to liberate him from the prison, but if I do not liberate him from hatred, he will be as bound as the people who are oppressing him. I'm going to set him free!'

And if God calls you, go tell somebody. If you have found the love of Jesus, go liberate somebody. If you have found the power of God's love, go set somebody free. That's what God is calling us to do!

As you see these marchers go (to the Gay Pride parade) offer them your prayer, your blessing, that they will embody the love of God as they go forth to say, 'All we want is equal rights. You have rights to make contract? We want rights to make contract. You have the right to marry? We want the right to marry. You have the right to adopt? We want to have the right to adopt. If you have the right to receive benefits and blessings, we want nothing less, nothing more. We just want to be fully liberated with you.'

We are standing here in the chancel of a church, a church that says God is love. And we have the audacity to believe today, that that means each of us. In fact, we are confident that that means especially those who like Jesus were despised and rejected, but are now becoming chief cornerstones of affirmation and of faith.”

Brought to you by the National Religious Leadership Roundtable of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force with the permission of The Riverside Church.

For more information on the Roundtable, visit www.thetaskforce.org/religion.

First convened in 1998, the National Religious Leadership Roundtable of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is an interfaith collaboration of more than forty denominations and faith-related organizations. The Roundtable seeks to reframe the public religious dialogue on issues involving the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community by amplifying the voices of LGBT-affirming people of faith, countering religious voices of bigotry and intolerance, and working to advance full equality for all.

Founded in 1973, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Foundation (the Task Force) was the first national lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights and advocacy organization and remains the movement's leading voice for freedom, justice and equality. We work to build the grassroots political strength of our community by training state and local activists and leaders, working to strengthen the infrastructure of state and local allies, and organizing broad-based campaigns to build public support for complete equality for LGBT people. Our Policy Institute, the community's premier think tank, provides research and policy analysis to support the struggle for complete equality. As part of a broader social justice movement, we work to create a world that respects and makes visible the diversity of human expression and identity where all people may fully participate in society. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., we also have offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Cambridge, Mass., and Miami. The Task Force is a 501(c)(3) corporation incorporated in Washington, D.C. Contributions to the Task Force are tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law.


Push Underway for ABC Counter-Resolution
 Proposed Standing Rules Amendment Needs More Signatures

By the Rev. Alan Newton, Executive Minister, American Baptist
 Churches of the Rochester/Genesee Region

One of the outcomes from the Rochester Summit held in February was a proposal to amend the General Board Standing Rules to include a formal appeals process for dismissed cooperating churches which desired to remain a part of the ABCUSA.

This initiative is intended to provide an alternative to the proposal initiated by the Indiana/Kentucky region board, which would virtually eliminate a dismissed congregation's opportunity to either appeal or remain in the denomination by restricting application into a region which is not geographically contiguous.

The initial hope was that both the Rochester Summit group's amendment petition and the IN/KY petition would arrive simultaneously. Given the limited time to gain the sufficient signatures, the Appeals Petition was not submitted in June; however, the hope is that the required signatures could be obtained by
the November General Board meeting.

If your congregation would (1) want an appeals process should for any reason they be dismissed and (2) desire to remain an American Baptist Church if dismissed, it is important that your church consider signing the appeals petition.

The Appeals Petition text can be found on the ABC Rochester/Genesee website: www.abcrgr.org.  The petition must be voted on by your congregation in a manner consistent with your congregation's constitution and bylaws, signed, and sent to the Office of the General Secretary, P.O. Box 851, Valley Forge, PA 19482-0851.

The Office of the General Secretary has received 110 petitions from 25 regions. Two hundred petitions from 5 regions are required.

Please spread the word to congregations you feel might be concerned about the very restrictive IN/KY proposed amendments and encourage them to sign the Appeals petition.
 

General Secretary Rev. Dr. A. Roy Medley of the ABC/USA Response to the Hurricane Katrina Disaster

The devastation and destruction of Hurricane Katrina has taken its toll on our country in ways that we cannot yet begin to imagine. Thousands have been killed, tens of thousands left with nothing, countless more are lacking the basic needs of humanity, unable in the chaos to find shelter, food, or water.

As American Baptists, we have long been a people of compassion and kindness, rising to the occasion whenever there is need. The devastation of Katrina is beyond what many of us can fathom, yet American Baptists are asking what they can do to help.

  a.. National Ministries has developed a Katrina Response page to highlight the ways that ABCUSA, with its partners, are ministering in the aftermath of this storm, and what American Baptist churches and individuals can do to help. This will be a dynamic "work in progress," being updated regularly with relief needs as they arise. Please visit the site at www.nationalministries.org/katrina/index.cfm.

  b.. The outpouring of generosity from American Baptists has already been incredible. But financial assistance is still needed. Donations can be submitted through American Baptist online giving at Give Now by selecting One Great Hour of Sharing and, after logging in, using the "Instructions" field to designate that the gift should be used for Hurricane Katrina relief. Donations can also be made through your church, or by making checks out to American Baptist Churches and using the memo line to signify OGHS Katrina Relief. Mail checks to:  American Baptist Churches USA, OGS Accounting Office, PO Box 851, Valley Forge, PA 19482-0851.

  c.. The One Great Hour of Sharing website (http://www.abc-oghs.org/) has information about disaster relief and how ABCUSA works with various partners to respond to needs that arise.

  d.. Through the General Secretary's PrayerNet, the Office of the General Secretary and other national staff members are covenanting together with American Baptists to pray for various needs in our denominational family. The prayer content over the next weeks will focus on the relief efforts and circumstances surrounding Hurricane Katrina.


News

 Same Sex Marriage Wins Vote in California

Sept. 6 - California lawmakers on Tuesday became the first in the country to legalize same-sex marriage, with the State Assembly narrowly approving a bill that defines marriage as between "two persons" instead of between a man and a woman.

Unlike Massachusetts, where gay men and lesbians are permitted to marry because of court rulings, the legislators in California voted to amend the state's family code without the threat of legal action.

"Do what we know is in our hearts," Assemblyman Mark Leno, an openly gay Democrat from San Francisco who sponsored the bill, said Tuesday night in a debate on the bill. "Make sure all Californians, all California's children and families, will have equal protection under the law."

The measure now goes to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican, who has supported domestic partnership legislation in the past but has not taken a public position on the marriage bill.

Story: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/07/national/07california.html?th&emc=th
More: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/06/AR2005090602076.html?referrer=email&referrer=email

Note: the day after the California legislature passed the same sex marriage bill, the governor announced he would veto it.
 

Majority Married to Equal Marriage in Massachusetts

If there was any doubt about how far Massachusetts has come since same-sex couples began marrying last year, that doubt was shattered Sept. 14 when a joint session of the state legislature delivered a resounding defeat to a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. By a staggering 157-39 vote, lawmakers killed an amendment that had won a healthy majority of support just one year earlier. Following the final vote Rep. Byron Rushing, D-South End, told reporters outside the House chamber that the vote was a decisive win for same-sex marriage supporters.

"We did this with a majority of legislators who support same-sex marriage, and who support not changing the Constitution to exclude anybody. Those two groups of people coming together formed this majority, this overwhelming majority today," said Rushing, who was one of the lead lawmakers strategizing to defeat the amendment.

Story: http://www.baywindows.com/media/paper328/news/2005/09/08/News/Majority.Married.To.Equal.Marriage-985169.shtml?mkey=1232754
More: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/15/national/15amendment.html?th=&adxnnl=1&emc=th&adxnnlx=1126796405-uyEQthVVDg4yChzowcSvLw

 

Calendar of Events

Progressive Baptists Meet

SEPTEMBER 22, 2005 ---  beginning at 1:00 p.m. REAWAKENING BAPTIST VOICES: A TIME TO THINK WISELY AND ACT WELL IN RESPONSE TO WAR – Judson Memorial Baptist Church, 239 Thompson St. (between Washington Square South and W. 3rd St.) in New York City, NY.  We are gathering to develop a progressive Baptist voice in opposition to the war-mongering, empire-building conservative agenda prevalent in the U.S. political and religious cultures (and among its allies), and plan specific actions that will inspire, energize, and guide individuals and congregations to resist the dominant powers and to work for justice, mercy, and peace. We plan to develop a pastoral/prophetic letter that will guide our conversations toward organizing meaningful actions to make our voices heard. Please RSVP to paulchayes@juno.com if you plan to attend.  If you cannot attend, but would be interested in organizing your own local or regional gathering similar to this based on the "letter," please do so and we will forward the draft(s) and any other information we have. 

Ken Pennings’ Speaking Engagements:

 October 5, 2005…Informal Evening Dessert Dialogue with Ken Pennings, sponsored by First Baptist Church (ABC), Dewitt Park Mall, Ithaca, NY 14850, 607-273-5800. For anyone in the Ithaca area interested in expanding local ministries of inclusion for LGBT people. Contact Barbara Fry baf6@cornell.edu.

October 6, 2005, 7 pm…Informal Dessert Dialogue with Ken Pennings, sponsored by Emmanuel Baptist Church – Friedens United Church of Christ (ABC / UCC), Schenectady, NY, and Emmanuel Baptist Church (ABC / BPFNA), Albany, NY. For anyone in the Tri-City area (Albany, Troy, Schenectady) interested in expanding local ministries of inclusion for LGBT people. Contact Larry Phillips: 518-374-4114, ebcfried@crisny.org.

October 9, 2005, 10 am...Ken Pennings will be preaching at Emmanuel Baptist Church – Friedens United Church of Christ (ABC/UCC), 218 Nott Terrace, Schenectady, NY 12307, 518-374-4114, ebcfried@crisny.org,

November 6, 2005…Lake Avenue Baptist Church (ABC / BPFNA), Rochester, NY, will celebrate 10 years of AWAB membership November 5-6, 2005. Ken Pennings will be preaching at 10 am on the 6th.  (Lake Avenue Baptist Church, 57 Ambrose St., Rochester, NY 14609, 585-458-5765, lakeabc@rochester.rr.com ).

February 19, 2006, 10 am…Ken Pennings will be preaching at Woodside Church (ABC/UCC), 1509 E. Court St., Flint, MI  48503-6202 (810-767-4911, info@woodsidechurch.net).  Dialogue Discussion with Ken 11:15 am.

AWAB’s Big Event for 2006:

June 26-29, 2006…Joint National GLBT-Allies Gathering, sponsored by AWAB, UCC Coalition, and GLAD (Disciples of Christ), at Indianapolis University, Indianapolis, IN. Check the AWAB website, www.wabaptists.org, for updated information on the gathering. The theme for the gathering is Live, Laugh, Love and Learn. There will be worship, discussion and worship lead by each of the convening groups. Chris Boisvert and Kevin Rose are AWAB's representatives on the planning committee.

Regional AWAB Gatherings:

October 28-29, 2005…9th Annual Gay and Lesbian Baptist Retreat. Join us for a guided discussion into the abundant life of Christians who just happen to be gay, lesbian, bisexual, and/or transgender. The Open Circle Gay and Lesbian Baptist Retreat is an ecumenical event, open to all faiths.

Attendees are invited to share their experiences or just listen to others. Together we’ll explore the power of testimony and truth. Expect to find strength in our stories! Lunch and Childcare are included! Registration Form at: www.wabaptists.org/opencircle2005.htm. Or contact Bill Cox bcoxal@yahoo.com .

February 24-26, 2006…We are in the early stages of organizing a Northeast  (NY, CT, MA, ME, NH, VT, RI, PA) regional gathering for AWAB churches and individuals at Madison Avenue Baptist Church in NYC.  If you are interested in attending and/or if you have thoughts, or can help in the planning, please email Susan Sparks, Associate Pastor at Madison Ave. Baptist Church suegrace1@aol.com. 

August 2006…Contact Rev. Dr. JoAnne Juett (pastor of First Baptist Church [ABC], Eau Claire, WI), if you would like to help in the planning of a Wisconsin/Minnesota AWAB Regional Gathering to be held in Eau Claire, WI (JoAnne Juett, 715-832-0642, jcjuett@sbcglobal.net).

Events Sponsored by AWAB’s Partners:

September 23-25, 2005…Winona State University, Winona, Minnesota, will be the host site for the conference Reclaiming Morality: Sexuality, Politics and Faith – Speaker: SoulForce Founder Mel White. Funded in part by the Philip Knutson Endowment. Any group -- political, social, and/or religious -- which advocates for justice and liberation for LGBT folks -- is invited to attend. Contact John V. Carrier, Lutheran Campus Center, 451 Huff Street,Winona  MN 55987-3276, lccwin@hbci.com, www.lccwinona.org 507-452-8316

October 16-18, 2005, Holy Relationships – A Conference on Theology and Sexuality (www.holyrelationships.org) in New Brunswick, NJ, sponsored by the Buchanan Group in association with New Brunswick Theological Seminary. Speakers: Rita Nakashima Brock, Virginia R. Mollenkott, David Myers, Letha Dawson Scanzoni, John Selders, Miguel De La Torre, Mel White, Judith Hoch Wray. Contact info@holyrelationships.org, 800-284-0142.
 

AWAB Wish List

Volunteers who will give two hours a week, two hours a month, or two hours every other month to create and expand AWAB's ministries of inclusion, to work in one of the following areas:

Data entry
Resource development, storage and distribution
Volunteer coordination
Grant writing
Donor development and follow-up
Organization of local fundraisers and/or phone-a-thons, on-line silent auction coordination
Organization of regional gatherings
Organization of work parties
New member development, coordination and follow-up
Phone-calling,letter-writing
Advising (legal, financial) etc., etc., etc.

 Also needed:
Office supplies
Office equipment
Auction items and give-always
Laminating machine (for laminating membership cards, certificates, etc.
(Call Ken at 608-255-2155, or ship items to Ken Pennings, P.O. Box 259257, Madison WI  53725).


Resources

1) www.TruthSetsFree.net was launched in March 2005 to help educate the Christian Church through the free distribution of the Bible study, "The Bible, Christianity, and Homosexuality." This study shows how the Bible has been misinterpreted and in fact distorted to condemn and marginalize gays, often leading them away from the Church and sometimes to such extreme measures as suicide. It concludes, "We need to embrace and support this group of people, not despite scripture and tradition, but in light of scripture and tradition. We need to open the doors of the church setting aside our own human prejudice, so that we can truly live according to the law Christ taught us." If you own a website and would be willing to link to www.TruthSetsFree.net  that would be most appreciated. Contact Justin Cannon, justin@truthsetsfree.net.

2) AWAB is a proud supporter of the Institute for Welcoming Resources (IWR),
www.welcomingresources.org.

3) The LGBT Religious Archives Network News is an occasional email newsletter for persons interested in supporting the preservation of the history of LGBT
religious movements. Copies of previous newsletters can be found at www.lgbtran.org/news.htm. To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBCRIBE or change your email address, contact mbowman@lgbtran.org.

4) For information on the excellent video, Coming Out - Coming In, visit www.coming-out-coming-in.net.
 

AWAB Need Your Help

Because of the high cost of the Denver Biennial, AWAB’s resources are greatly depleted. Now would be a fantastic time to make a donation to AWAB! Donations and membership requests can be made online. Since AWAB is charged a small transaction fee by our credit card processor, whenever possible, please mail donations to ensure the maximum amount goes toward our work and ministry http://www.wabaptists.org/donations.htm. Send donations to AWAB, PO Box 259257, Madison, WI  53725.


Mailing Address & Phone Number

Please note that the Association has a new mailing address and phone number:

AWAB
P. O. Box 259257
Madison, WI  53725
608-255-2155

Associational is a periodic e-newsletter of the Association of Welcoming & Affirming Baptists, a network of 50 churches and hundreds of individuals who have joined together to advocate for the full inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons within Baptist communities of faith.  Please forward this e-newsletter to interested friends.  To subscribe, send an e-mail to subscribe@wabaptists.org with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.  To be removed from this list, send an e-mail to unsubscribe@wabaptists.org with REMOVE in the subject line.  To read back issues of Associational, go to: www.wabaptists.org/associational.htm.

To learn more about the Association, go to: www.wabaptists.org.

The Peace of Christ be with you.

AWAB Home Page     Back Associational Issues

 Voice of the Turtle Online     InSpiriter Online