Happy Pride Month, everyone!
This June, Grace is “coming out of the closet” as a congregation that is open, welcoming, supportive, and inclusive of all.
In the mid-1990s, shortly after Mac became rector, members of the Grace community engaged in substantial theological and biblical study, wrestling with questions about the full inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in the life of the Church. At the time, this was a major topic of discussion throughout the Episcopal Church. The result of that discernment was that Grace became a congregation welcoming and inclusive of the LGBTQ+ community, one of the first congregations in the Napa Valley to do so.
Since then, the Episcopal Church has approved liturgies for same-sex blessings and marriages and has elected multiple partnered openly gay and lesbian bishops. While these issues remain far from settled across the wider Anglican Communion, the Episcopal Church is widely known as one of the most welcoming and inclusive Christian denominations in the United States.
For nearly thirty years, Grace has quietly welcomed and fully incorporated LGBTQ+ members and their families into every aspect of congregational life—even before other Episcopal churches in the Napa Valley were ready to do so.
A few years ago, I put a small rainbow sign in the window of my office that says, “All Are Welcome.” Over time, I have become aware of how important that message is—not only to members of the LGBTQ+ community, but to many people seeking a spiritual home.
The other day, I watched a young man and woman exploring our campus stop at my office window, point to the sign, and smile. Recently, Calie Candia, who was baptized at Grace several years ago, shared in her farewell testimony how important that sign was to her. She felt that if the LGBTQ+ community was welcome, then she—with her diverse religious background that included Jewish heritage, Buddhist spirituality, and Hindu yoga training—would be welcome too.
It’s as if the rainbow symbol helps people understand that “all” really means ALL, and “welcome” really means WELCOME!
This month, in conjunction with St. Helena’s first-ever Pride Festival, Grace’s rainbow of welcome is getting a little bigger. While we have welcomed, loved, and supported all people for three decades, that love, welcome, and support are becoming more visible. You’ll see a rainbow feather flag—passed on to us from the former Episcopal mission in Monte Rio—flying on the corner of Oak and Spring throughout the month, along with a rainbow banner affirming, “God Loves You. No Exceptions.”
Grace will also have a presence at the St. Helena Pride Festival on Hunt Avenue on Saturday, June 20. Along with the pastor from the Methodist Church and my own child, Jacob—who has served for the past two years as president of the Gender and Sexuality Alliance at St. Helena High School—we will be offering “glitter blessings.”
Glitter blessings combine a bit of glitter with holy oil and a blessing affirming the beauty of the full person God created you to be. These blessings are for everyone!
God created all that is: the full rainbow expressed in creation, in the diversity of human cultures and ethnicities, and in the beautiful and natural diversity of whom we love, how we are made, and how we express our authentic selves in the world. Our pride month banner quotes Psalm 139: “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
For me, it is a joy to stand beneath that rainbow and welcome all of God’s children with Holy Spirit sparkles. As I say each Sunday, “This is God’s holy table… no matter who you are or where you are from, you are welcome.”
In Christ’s deep peace,
Rev. Amy
P.S. If you would like to have a conversation with me about any of these issues, I would love that! Just email me at revamy@grace-episcopal.org, and we’ll find a time to get together.
P.P.S. The Rev. Susan Russell, a longtime leader in Integrity, the LGBTQ+ organization within the Episcopal Church, has created excellent resources on the full inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in the Church, including discussion of biblical passages that have often been misunderstood or misused to justify exclusion.
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