Gateway Open and Affirming Coalition – Convocation 2023

If you are an Open and Affirming congregation, talking about Open and Affirming, or thinking about starting the conversation, if you want to explore how to be effective allies, there will be something for you and your church. Come, be in conversation with others, learn what it means to be Open and Affirming and how to fully express extravagant welcome to all God’s children.

Open and Affirming (ONA) is the United Church of Christ’s (UCC) designation for congregations and other settings of the UCC which make a public covenant of welcome into their full life and ministry to persons of all sexual orientations, gender identities, and gender expressions.

This year we have some new workshops and some new leaders, as well as some returning leaders.

We welcome Lisa M. Brennan as our keynote speaker. Lisa Brennan is the proud daughter of a United Church of Christ minister. She and her husband Mike and dog, Charlie, reside in a small Illinois community at the border of St. Louis, Mo. They have two grown children, Connor and Deirdre. Lisa attended college at the University of Evansville, Indiana and spent some time working in England before settling down with her husband. Lisa is the marketing director for a small group of nursing facilities throughout Missouri. The rest of her time is spent reading, hiking, playing with her dog, and educating others on the beauty and magic of the transgender community.

In January of 2018, Lisa started a new chapter of life, as her youngest child shared with the family that she is a transgender woman. After some adjustment, the Brennan family has found that when you treasure someone for who they are, it is magical and sacred. Lisa wrote a beginner’s guidebook for family and friends (shared in this book), and to her surprise, it was widely shared, with churches, hospitals, and schools asking her to share her family’s adventure of love and acceptance. This prompted Lisa to write a book about her family’s journey. She hopes that it will spread some education and love into the world.
In addition to the workshops, we are excited to have the Eden Theological Seminary Bookstore, a Community Resource Table, and many other displays, as well as fellowship, food, and fun!

The morning worship includes the sacrament of Holy Communion. An offering will be received on behalf of the (National) United Church of Christ Open and Affirming Coalition and AllianceQ: The Disciples of Christ LGBTQ+ Alliance.

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