Discrimination is Not a Way to Grow a Church

I’ve been ordained for over 40 years. I’ve served 14 churches in various roles, from senior pastor, to simple pulpit supply, from MA to NC, WA to FL, NC to OR, and now NM. I’ve read too many books and articles to count about church growth. And none of them, zero, and no author has advocated excluding people as a way of growing a church numerically, let alone in the faith. And yet individual churches and denominations do this as a whole, and then wonder why they aren’t growing. This includes The United Methodist Church (you’ve changed nothing so far), to the Christian Reformed Church, Southern Baptists, Church of Christ. Include, of course, Church of God and the Roman Catholic Church, along with Orthodox churches. All of these churches are losing members and churches. And if they wonder why, one big reason is because of their exclusionary practices. 

The first story is about the Church of God, based in Anderson, IN. A smaller denomination, it tends to be conservative theologically and in its polity. There was a small movement within the church that wanted to be welcoming of LGBTQIA2S+ people, called CHoGAffirm, which was a statement of inclusion standing for "Church of God Affirm.” This was started a few years ago, slightly pre-COVID. You can bet this movement that was created by Church of God clergy was quickly investigated. Currently there are investigations upon investigations, and there is a committee assigned within Church of God to figure out what is sex, otherwise known as a study on human sexuality, as if we don’t already know what it is.

Here’s a link to an article about CHoGAffirm, posted by Kathryn Post of religiousnews.org: https://religionnews.com/2024/03/27/17-lgbtq-affirming-ministers-face-church-investigations-for-signing-belief-statement/

The second story has to do with the Vatican and the Roman Catholic Church, in which there are too many priests to count who are closeted gay men. Alex Cooper reports on advocate.com the latest moves in the Vatican, and Pope Francis, in which while Francis seems to like and support his gay friends, he is not wild about people who are transgender or non-binary gender, even though he washes their feet now and then on Maundy Thursday. Why? Because if a person is transgender and seeking gender affirming care, then they are going against the will of God and natural law (ethics) that made them that way. Even though there is plenty of qualitative and quantitative research to say that gender affirming care, gender dysphoria, and transgender is objectively a way of being in the world, the Vatican is no go. No blessing for transgender people, please, though we know there have been more than one transgender priests, female to male. 

Here’s a link to the article: https://www.advocate.com/news/pope-francis-gender-affirming-surgery

Until individual churches and denominations open up the doors wide and welcome one and all equally, churches will continue the downward spiral of decreased membership. Why? Because of their exclusionary habits, in large part. Who wants to join or keep attending a church in which one is simply second class?

Who?


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