STATEMENT OF OUR OPENNESS & AFFIRMATION

The faith community, Beneficent Congregational Church, United Church of Christ, of Providence, Rhode Island, affirms the worth and dignity of all persons as beloved children of God.

We accept, celebrate, and give thanks for the great variety of God’s gifts among us. With open arms and grateful hearts, we welcome into full membership and participation in the Body of Christ and affirm persons expressing the multitude of those gifts: of every age, culture, economic status, gender and gender expression, language, nationality, physical or mental ability, race, and sexual orientation. In this spirit, we declare ourselves, before this our earthly community and our loving God, to be an Open and Affirming congregation.

We acknowledge that, as persons loved by God, we are called to accept the fullness of self, including our sexuality. Sexuality, in its many manifestations, is a gift which enriches our lives and deeply touches the reality of our own and others’ humanity; it is a channel through which we experience the abundant life.

We recognize, however, that throughout history the Christian church has often condemned and excluded gay, lesbian, bisexual and trangendered persons from the community of faith, or has condoned such condemnation and exclusion by its silence. We hold that such discrimination is incompatible with the gospel of Jesus Christ and seek to include and support those who, because of society’s fear and prejudice, find themselves in exile from a spiritual community.

As we affirm all relationships founded on the principles of God’s love and justice, we commit ourselves to live as an inclusive community, working diligently to open hearts and minds, and to end all oppression and discrimination. We promise that our words will be accompanied by our continuing shared efforts to support one another as we seek to break down barriers that deny each of us the respect, dignity, love, compassion and understanding that will bring us closer to each other and to God.

We pledge ourselves to be a wellspring of faith for a diverse people in the heart of the city that is called Providence.

Voted to accept on 6/24/2001 at the Beneficent's Annual Meeting

 

For more information on the Open and Affirming process
visit the UCC Coalition for LGBT Concerns.