This time of year, I count day by day until the hours of light increase. In December and January, my morning dog walk is in darkness and my arrival home in the evening is often at dusk. Starting December 22, though, the days begin to lengthen. January’s morning dog walk and arrival home are also in dimness, but the promise of light encourages me. In the meantime, we illuminate our lives with by candlelight.

I know that I’m not alone because so many traditions observe the coming of the light. Both Kwaanza and Hannukah observances involve lighting candles daily. During the four weeks of Advent, many Christians light candles each of the four weeks of the season. As the weeks of Advent pass by, our homes and churches get brighter.  Those of us who celebrate both Advent and Kwaanza spend five weeks gathered around the light of candles.

The season of Advent honors anticipation and preparation. Just as we look forward to continuing daylight, we look forward to celebrating once again God’s appearance in human form. Before we launch a new year, before we are caught up in the busy-ness and joys of Christmas, we pause. This time of year gives us an opportunity to listen deeply, both to our longings and to what God says to us. Experiencing our deepest yearnings prepares us for the gifts God offers. 

The anticipation fills me with hope. I look forward to the coming year for The Coalition as eagerly as I await the brightening days. Our accomplishments this year make me excited about the year to come. Here are a few highlights:

• We added 57 new churches to the list of Open and Affirming settings, along with four congregations that are new church starts in the process of formal affiliation with the UCC or Congregations in Conversation with the UCC, two new church starts, and two campus ministries.

• Volunteers and staff we trained in suicide intervention have saved lives, intervening in four suicides this year.

• We gathered in June with members of The Fellowship for inspiration and challenges as we explore the ways our communities can extend our relationship.

• Hundreds of members of Open and Affirming churches in California mobilized in the campaign against Proposition 8.

We anticipate much more in 2009: Will you join us in this work? Your contribution is an affirmation of our ministry, our experience of offering life-giving leadership in the UCC and in secular society.

Most of us—organizations and individuals—are challenged financially right now. Your gift, of whatever size, supports us as we anticipate sharing the experience of God with us.  Join us in the anticipation of the light and hope our ministry brings.

God bless you in this Advent season and in the year ahead.

Ruth Garwood
Executive Director

Tabernacle United Church (Philadelphia, PA)—"Tab" for short—was the first ONA church in the Philadelphia or the entire state of Pennsylvania (1991) and has been instrumental in the development of LGBT advocacy efforts. However, like many early ONA churches, Tab's ONA statement does not include gender identity or gender expression. 

In November, 2008, Tab began its first discussions about transgender issues, by dedicating four Sunday adult-education periods to the topic. Normally called "Tab.edu," November's "Trans.edu" was a hit.  Led by two transgender-identified members of the church (Chris Paige and Chris Purdom), conversations covered biology and intersex, the transgender umbrella, and gender variance in scripture.  The UCC-produced film, Call Me Malcolm, was also shared.

Tab's pastor, Patricia Pearce, shared, "The Trans.edu series was an enlightening, stereotype-shattering experience.... I believe it helped our community move a little closer to the compassionate inclusivity that Jesus taught, and reinforced for us the magnificent diversity of God."

Once the congregation as a community has had some more chances to wrestle with the ramifications, the church council will likely revise the ONA statement to include gender identity and expression.

To read the full article, please visit www.ucccoalition.org/programs/ona/who/list/ona_celebrations/200812/.

TransFaith Online (http://www.transfaithonline.org) is working with the 8th Annual Philadelphia Trans Health Conference (PTHC) to incorporate an extensive spirituality track in the 2009 rendition of this nationally acclaimed conference. 

PTHC Providers Day is Thursday, June 11, 2009, and will feature a new clergy-training track, suitable for all clergy, seminarians, and church leaders who are interested in learning more about transgender concerns.  One CEU of continuing education credit will be available through a partnership with Lancaster Theological Seminary (affiliated with the UCC) for participants who complete Providers Day.

PTHC Community Days are Friday and Saturday (June 12–13, 2009), featuring free registration, special programming for children and families, a career fair, film festival, after-party, and expanded people-of-color track. Trans-friendly religious observances will also be available. 

For more information, please visit http://www.transfaithonline.org/transhealth.

Pioneering author, Virginia Mollenkott, has been working hard recently to update some of her writings. These are both available from Pilgrim Press.

Omnigender:  A Trans-Religious Approach is now available in a revised and updated edition (2007).  It sports a new preface, an interesting new section on the sexuality of Jesus, lots of up-to-the-minute information, and insights from more than 36 recent sources. Through an examination of the Hebrew and Christian scriptures and church history as well as the exploration of other religious traditions and cultures, Mollenkott honors the experience of people who do not fit within the traditional binary concept of gender: intersexual, transsexual, or otherwise-gendered individuals.

Sensuous Spirituality, originally published in 1992, is about integration—of sexuality and spirituality, of social activism and personal peace, of males and their "feminine" component, of females and their "masculine" component, and of transgender people within society in general. The revised and expanded edition (2008) features, in addition to a new preface and conclusion: nearly 60 new sources; new sections and discussions on numerous controversial issues regarding sexuality, gender, and religion; and an index. It discusses the Bible, the erotic, the gender continuum, the human imaging of God, procreative self-direction, interpretive communities, family-church parallels, and much more—all in an autobiographical context and "generic feminine" language.