A collection of personal stories, articles, resources etc. about bisexual identity, experience, and Christian faith, developed with the help of BAMN!, the bisexual network within the United Church of Christ.

A packet of materials including theological background, five sample services, liturgical resources, and “Personal Witnesses” by those who have been part of such services.

An embossed certificate to be presented to a couple at their covenant service. Comes with envelope. (6½" high by 5" wide)

Called to Equality: Considering Marriage Equality is a resource in the Just and Loving Relationships Series. It includes two 1-hour sessions created to encourage ONA settings and lgbt-supportive communities to live into God's call for justice in the public sphere. It is free to download or $15.95 for a bound copy from The Coalition office. To download a PDF of this resource, please click here.

Part of the QUEER ACTION series, edited by Michael Bronski. An inspirational and effective guide to grassroots LGBT organizing.

Come Out and Win will educate, engage, and agitate LGBT and straight activists to become involved in the political movement to win full equality under the law and sexual/gender freedom. Spurring a new generation of activists to positive social action, it not only tells the history of gay liberation but, crucially, offers guidance and practical advice for building organizations and taking concrete action to eradicate homophobia.

From starting a gay-straight alliance in your high school to the most effective way to lobby your state representative face-to-face, Come Out and Win explains how to organize and become politically engaged in a clear and user-friendly manner. Other issues explored include youth organizing, marriage equality, legislative change, public relations, having a voice in the mainstream press, putting on a street demonstration, and political organizing from local to national levels. Grappling with the complexity of grassroots political interactions, Come Out and Win suggests ways for LGBT communities to form coalitions with women's organizations, communities of color, and faith communities.

A resource designed for Christian clergy meeting with same-gender couples prior to a blessing or marriage ceremony. This collection includes reflections of the meaning of covenantal relationship, unique issues which arise when working with same-gender couples, questions to explore with couples, and more. Contributors include the Rev. Yvette Flunder, Dr. Scott Haldeman, and the Rev. Leanne Tigert.

In Gay by God: How to be Lesbian or Gay and Christian, Rev. Michael S. Piazza updates his bestselling book, Holy Homosexuals: The Truth about Being Gay or Lesbian and Christian for a new generation struggling with shame, guilt, and fear as they come out to family and friends. The homo-hatred of the Religious Righthas driven so many beautifully gifted women and men into the arms of suicide, alcoholism, promiscuity and self-destruction. It is impossible to overstate the damage done in human lives when people are made to believe they cannot be children of the God who created them. If just one mother or father reads this book and is better able to accept her or his daughter or son, then this effort has been of value. Faith should not be a barrier between parents and their children.

REV. MICHAEL S. PIAZZA is a pastor, author and social justice activist. He is the founder and President of Hope for Peace & Justice, and serves as Dean and National Pastor of the Cathedral of Hope in Dallas, Texas. A graduate of Candler School of Theology at Emory University, Rev. Piazza has been the pastor of churches in Texas, Georgia, Oklahoma and Florida. The Advocate magazine named Rev. Piazza one of the most influential people in the gay and lesbian movement. He and his partner Bill have been together since 1980 and have two daughters.

Homosexuality is not a problem: heterosexism is, and heterosexism is often supported by religious statements and practices against sexual minorities. This book seeks to draw out strands in each major religion that are antidotal to such practices and attitudes.

The contributors to this volume, all of whom are authorities in their religious traditions, include:

• Ghazala Anwar (Islam)
• Kelly Brown Douglas (African American Christianity)
• Marvin M. Ellison (Protestant Christianity)
• Ann-Marie Hsiung (Taoism and Confucianism)
• Mary Hunt (Roman Catholicism)
• Yu-Chen Li (Buddhism)
• Daniel C. Maguire (Roman Catholicism)
• Judith Plaskow (Judaism)
• Anantanand Rambachan (Hinduism)

MARVIN M. ELLISON is Willard S. Bass Professor of Christian Ethics at Bangor Theological Seminary in Bangor, Maine. He is the author of Same-Sex Marriage? A Christian Ethical Analysis (2004).

JUDITH PLASKOW, a Jewish feminist theologian, is professor of religious studies at Manhattan College in New York City. She is co-founder of Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion and wrote the first full-length Jewish feminist theology, Standing Again in Sinai: Judaism from a Feminist Perspective (1990).

In response to the question, "Now that we're ONA, what do we do?" This seventy-five page publication offers ideas about outreach, education, and celebration from ONA settings around the country. Includes an extensive resource section.

A seven session study packet for use in local congregations. Prepared by the Open and Affirming Task Team of the Massachusetts Conference, UCC, and the UCC Coalition. Materials on sexual orientation, youth issues (video included), family and relationships, heterosexism/homophobia, scriptural interpretation, the ONA process in the local church, and more. This packet includes both the Bisexuality Pocket and the Transgender Pocket listed below.

This film depicts three UCC congregations going through the ONA study process. It includes a 72-page resource book. 55 minutes.

A response to frequent questions about the meaning of being “affirming,” the resource provides opportunity for seventeen lesbian, bisexual, and gay United Church of Christ members to speak for themselves about what it means to be affirmed by local churches.

If you (or others you know) have ever wondered if the Open and Affirming movement matters, if it makes any difference when it comes to sharing the good news of Christ or shaping the lives of individuals and faith communities, this is a must-read! More than fifty UCC folks share how ONA has blessed and challenged them and their settings in the UCC.

Growing a Community from the Outside In

Cheri Divono

This book chronicles a minister’s attempts to expand the membership of a rapidly shrinking congregation in a poor, inner city Toronto neighborhood. When members decided to evangelize among the marginalized and "queer" at their gate, church members are radically changed. It answers the question of how do we understand evangelism biblically and in a completely new way.

A Spirited, ecumenical collection of prayers, liturgies, blessings, music, essays, sermons, and more, produced by the Welcoming Church Movement (programs like “Open and Affirming” in various denominations). Includes a study guide and resource lists.

Karen P. Oliveto, Kelly D. Turney, and Traci C. West

First book in a new series– Holy Conversations – that addresses the often difficult to discuss topics in church as well as society.

Eight same-gender couples’ joyful, historic, legal marriages in faith communities in Massachusetts. At least one person in each couple is a member of the UCC. The resource includes photos of the couples and their reflections on marriage, with additional comments by officiants, family and friends.

Horace Griffin

This book provides a historical overview and critical analysis of the black church and its current engagement with lesbian and gay Christians, and shares ways in which black churches can learn to reach out and confront all types of oppression - not just race - in order to do the work of the black community.

Every clergy person counsels parishioners who are struggling with sexual issues. Every faith community knows that the sacred gift of sexuality can be abused or exploited: congregants experience domestic violence, adolescent pregnancy, sexual abuse, sexual harassment, homophobia, sexism, and other ways that people's sexuality has been broken. Many denominations have recognized the importance of sexuality education for teenagers and some have made a commitment to lifelong sexuality education, from kindergarten through the elderly years.

A "sexually healthy faith community" is committed to fostering spiritual, sexual, and emotional health among the congregation and providing a safe environment where sexuality issues are addressed with respect, mutuality, and openness. A sexually healthy faith community promotes the integration of sexuality and spirituality in worship, preaching, pastoral care, youth and adult religious education, and social action programs in the community. It makes a commitment to a sexual ethic that is not based on a double standard and understands that dealing with sexuality is an issue of spiritual wholeness. By addressing sexuality openly and holistically within the faith community, it models that sexuality and spirituality are inextricably connected.

The building blocks of a sexually healthy faith community are:

• Sexually healthy religious professionals
• Worship and Preaching
• Pastoral Care on Sexuality Issues
• Lifespan Sexuality Education
• Education for Youth
• Adult Education
• Welcoming and Affirming Congregations
• Safe Congregations
• Social Action

Personal stories, articles, resources, etc. about transgender identities, experiences, and Christian life.

Helminiak, a Roman Catholic priest, has done careful reading in current biblical scholarship about homosexuality. While cautioning against viewing biblical teaching as "the last word on sexual ethics," he stresses the need for accurate understanding of what the biblical "facts" are and concludes that "the Bible supplies no real basis for the condemnation of homosexuality." Using the studies of Yale historian John Boswell (Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe, LJ 7/94), New Testament seminary professor L. William Countryman, and others, Helminiak examines the story of Sodom (where the sin was inhospitality), Jude's decrying sex with angels, and five texts-Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13, Romans 1:27, I Corinthians 6:9, and I Timothy 1:10-all of which, he concludes, "are concerned with something other than homogenital activity itself." Highly recommended for all libraries.