ALL Are Welcome
/
Many years ago, during one of the first dinners Dennise ever had with my family, she and my Father shared a moment we talk about still.
It was after dessert. We all had delicious pie. And the table was being cleared. My Father, as was his habit, was in the kitchen washing the dishes.
Dennise walked in with her plate of half-eaten pie, and asked him “Where do you want this pie?”
Without looking up from the sink, Dad replied, “Just put it there on the counter…”
Dennise paused. “You want the pie right here on the counter?”
Dad responded, “Yes…yes, just put it right there on the counter,” nodding to his left.
Dennise thought for a moment, and said “OK…”
She then proceeded to slide the half-eaten pie off of the plate, and on to the kitchen counter.
Dad looked at it for a moment and realized that, while it wasn’t what he MEANT, it was exactly what he had told her to do.
A moral of the story: It’s always important to be sure the message you send is clear.
I think about that story when I see our new sign on Colorado, that reads: “All Are Welcome.”
This sign is the result of your Church Council’s vote last year, and the ensuing hard work of our Building Trustees for several months after. I thank them for their creative thinking on this issue. I hope you will too.
The reality is that this sign communicates a much more clear and unambiguous message than covering the word “United” ever did, as understandable as that decision was at the time.
It’s important for us not to forget that while our congregation is absolutely welcoming of the LGBTQ community, far too many churches still are not. (This is, of course, a self-obvious and major part in the potential split coming soon to United Methodism…)
Some churches are even still openly hostile. Others, while not hostile, are “don’t ask, don’t tell” where at any moment some negative word about gay people can still be heard. Queer people often are left to “wonder” whether they are truly welcome or not. I have heard this from them privately many times.
They are looking for “signaling” that sends a message that they and their families will be safe and welcomed. That need will be true into the foreseeable future. Especially if the UMC *does* split, clear “signaling” to our local community about where we stand on the issues will continue to be important.
This sign makes the message crystal clear: “All Are Welcome.”
Period.
The sign also contains the symbol of the Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN), which Kessler Park has affiliated with for some years now. I realize that some of you may worry that in putting up this sign, we might put too much emphasis on the LGBTQ community, to the exclusion of other groups or issues.
So, it may be helpful for you to learn that while RMN began as advocates for the inclusion of the LGBTQ community in the United Methodist Church, they are also very clear that their vision extends to an “intersectional” understanding of welcome and justice for ALL God’s children.
In fact, in their strategic objectives, they commit to “creating full inclusion of all people in the UMC regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ability, race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status.”
That makes the message “All Are Welcome” truly clear, don’t you think?
We welcome…the LGBTQ community…their families and friends…people of all races…people of all ages, gender identity, economic status. We welcome young people who will never again step inside a church that wavers, or is unclear, on these issues.
So, when I see our new sign, this is the kind of clear message I believe it sends to our diverse and thriving North Oak Cliff Neighborhood. A message that truly welcomes all, in a time when fewer and fewer people —especially younger people— feel welcomed within the walls of any church.
I’m grateful that so many of you feel passionately about becoming a diverse and welcoming church. For example, after church this past Sunday, a member wrote me a Facebook message about watching the congregation take Holy Communion. She said:
“I realized as the congregation was lined up, just how diverse we were becoming. I was a little teary-eyed. All--in--all, a very good day at KPUMC.”
We have a long way to go still, of course.
But, I’m grateful for your continuing desire to become more diverse, to invite all of God’s children, and to make that welcome clear through the message of our new sign.
Grace and Peace,
EF