GIFT joins "Inch Fest" the music and justice festival Friday

By Theresa D. McClellan

Faith Advocacy Coordinator

“Gay Christian? Yes!” Campaign

When you are a small community church with a mission to listen and be heard, what do you do?

If the church is the “Square-Inch Community,” you bring multi-textured music to the masses and raise the bar by highlighting tough social justice issues happening in our community.

So that's exactly what Pastor Steve DeRuiter chose to do by creating the free "Inch Fest" concert. The concert will be 4 p.m to 10 p.m. Friday June 20 in a parking lot in the 1000 block of Wealthy Street SE across the street from the Sparrows Coffee House.

The event features six bands offering music styles from indie alternative, to folk to Christian hip-hop to punk.  And when your not jammin' with the sounds, you have the chance to get more involved with six local social justice groups - including GIFT - that will have information tables and representatives who work on tackling issues of affordable housing, sex trafficking,  safe neighborhoods, and safe and affirming places to worship for the lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender communities.

"We want to promote local goodness," said DeRuiter in explaining how he chose the participating social justice organizations. "Our church is really interested in promoting local business and justice organizations and art" said DeRuiter. His small church community meets Sundays in an upper room at the Inner City Christian Federation Bldg. at 920 Cherry St. SE.

The social justice organizations represented will include the Manasseh Project which is working on educating others on what is called the sex-slave industry occurring right here in West Michigan. The project is an outreach of 

Wedgewood Christian Services which is working to end the sexual exploitation of men, women and children.

"They have stats on how many of these victims are homeless and from the LGBT community, especially when LGBT kids get kicked out of their homes," said DeRuiter.

Too often, LGBT youths and young adults are ostracized by their families - based on church teachings - and wind up disconnected and on the streets. 

GIFT and the "Gay Christian? Yes!" Campaign, which works to spread the message that you can be gay and Christian, will also be present.  Our persistent message of hope and affirmation is crucial for youths and all who are told they are worthless and something to be dismissed just because they are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning.

To be able to spread our message of hope and affirmation in the neighborhoods and on the streets of Grand Rapids is indeed a blessing for GIFT and for all those who will hear. Our website includes a growing list of inclusive churches and more churches are wanting to know how they can embrace all of God's children. We regularly connect with people of faith who attest to the difference it has made in their lives to have found a supportive faith community.

Pastor DeRuiter is a Christian Reformed Church pastor whose small community of believers come from the parent church of Eastern Avenue Christian Reformed Church.

"I want to figure out how we can best be a church for our LGBT brothers and sisters, even though our Christian Reformed Church has miles to travel. How can we approach this as a church? We have gay members, they just want to know how to be a disciple of Christ," said the pastor.

So one way to reach out to multiple communities is to create a festival. He will not be preaching at the six-hour event. He will have free Bibles available and a box for prayer requests and literature about their church. It will mostly be multiple musicians, diverse information and a chance to get to know and learn about each other. There will also be vegan treats for sale.

Other justice groups expected are Safe Haven Ministries, which provides help for women in abusive relationships. The Inner City Christian Federation which helps create affordable housing and the East Hills Council of Neighborhoods which works on community development and building strong, safe, connected neighborhoods.  Square Inch Church is in the East Hills neighborhood.

"We are letting people know we are a Christian community in this neighborhood and we aim to be a safe place for you. My prayer is that people will know who we are and seek out questions about us and the universe in a Christian context," said DeRuiter.

He calls the expected music the 

“the Best local Band Lineup of the Summer”

They are:

Heartside Hooligans:http://heartsidehooligans.bandcamp.com/album/heartside-hooligans-2

Care: http://care.bandcamp.com/

Circle Maybe: http://circlemaybe.bandcamp.com/

Alert (hip hop from Chicago)http://www.facebook.com/thealertlive/app_204974879526524

The Soil and the Sun:http://thesoilandthesun.com/

Cains and Abels: http://cainsandabels.tumblr.com/

Ghost Heart: http://www.ghostheart.com/

--------------------------

Churches tell us of your programs and efforts to include the LGBT community and we will help spread the word on Theresa’s Table.

Send story ideas and church information toTheresa@GayChristianYes.org

Can a Billboard save a life?

Blessings,

I want to thank you for the prayers and support you have given me in my role as Faith Advocacy Coordinator for Gays In Faith Together (GIFT).

We have some exciting programs planned in the coming months. And as you consider spending your tax refund, I want to share with you how you can help our "Gay Christian? Yes!" Campaign based on just one call to our office. I  want you to know this is long. But the message is important and worth your time, so please, continue reading and know that your help will make a difference.

The young one on the other end of the phone line just wanted another voice, another perspective from a spiritual source.

So she called our GIFT office and left a message for Chaplain Jim Lucas. For some reason, her pastor decided to stand at the pulpit decrying all things homosexual. He got to the point where he said if there were any homosexuals in his congregation they should leave. Now.

The young one sat in her pew. She didn't want to move and be noticed. She didn't want to stay for a spiritual beat down. Her parents knew, but never talked about, their daughter's sexuality. They were enmeshed in their own shame fed by cultural and religious messages. So she stayed and felt alone, unheard, unseen, unwanted.

We have seen the news reports of what happens to youth who feel this way with no where to turn. Chaplain Jim returned the teen's phone call, but her angry father suggested we not call again

Imagine what that Sunday afternoon car ride home from church was like for that family driving past cornfields in silence. Heavy silence. Imagine if while driving they passed a billboard stating "Gay Christian? Yes!" and beneath those words was the web address www.GayChristianYes.org with the tagline "you are not alone."

Imagine if she went to her computer and found the site filled with sermons from local pastors whose faith journey showed them that God says yes to all God's children. What if she found pastors willing to talk to other pastors that have not yet embraced this message of hope? What if she found testimonies from young ones like her who had been in the same circumstances? What if she found others who moved from the depths of despair to the joy that comes from accepting their gayness and Christianity?

What if her mother, who dared not have the courage or know how to address the elephant in the room, went to our website and connected with other parents of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender children? What if she found essays and books and movies and meeting spaces to engage in conversation with others like her?

What if her father, who hung up on the chaplain, decided to watch the videos on the website in his own time? The series of brief, pointed and Spirit-filled videos ask if you really know what the Bible says about homosexuality. Other videos show honest discussions of the struggle and how others came out whole.

 What if he saw and read testimonies from other fathers, mothers, pastors, like him, who are on a journey of discovering how they can honor their faith while loving and affirming their non-conforming child? What if after reviewing the entire site, the father called his pastor and said, we need to talk.

What if you could help make this happen?

YOU CAN!!!!

 We need your financial support to make this billboard campaign a success. We are preparing the website and resources for an early spring release. We are collaborating with others and creating programs and projects under the "Gay Christian? Yes!" campaign that will nurture families, churches and individuals who want to help express the welcome message that there are no mistakes, we ALL are God's children and loved.

We want to have billboards across West Michigan in the spring of 2012 announcing the good news that yes, you can be gay and Christian and directing people, who have been spiritually bullied, to places of comfort.

We don't want another young one to hear from the pulpit that they are going to hell because of who they are attracted to.

We don't want anyone to sit in silence when they hear such a message without having the spiritual and educational resources to challenge such statements.

We believe that you, too, want a world, where everyone who wants a church home, can find one where they are not condemned or ostracized because of who they love.

I believe that you want to help with this campaign and you understand that this is a tough sell and requires a lot of work. I am committed to the work and weekly give much more than the 20 hours I am paid. I just ask for your financial help to make this Campaign successful.

  A few people have supported us with major donations of $500 or more, but we also need donations of $10, $25, $50, or $100. Whatever amount you give, we greatly appreciate your partnership and your willingness to share this message with at least 10 other friends.

As an added benefit, if you send your donation before April 15, you will have an easy reminder of your wonderful tax deduction for 2012. (GIFT is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization.)

We welcome your donation by check or online. If you would like to donate with a check, please make it out to GIFT and send it to our office with the Gay Christian? Yes! Campaign in the memo.

GIFT
207 East Fulton
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

If you would like to donate by credit card online, please go to our website www.GaysInFaithTogether.org and click on the Donate Now button which uses the secure Just Give service..

Would you like to learn more about GIFT’s growing ministry? We invite you to read our autumn newsletter by following this link: http://gaysinfaithtogether.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/GIFT-RAP-Autumn-2011.pdf

I think often of the young one who called and I pray that she continues to seek messages of hope regarding her faith and sexuality.  My faith tells me that since she sought us, she will continue seeking. But I worry about all of those who don’t have it in them to make such a call. They are the ones most in need. They are the ones we can reach with your help. We start by sending the message clearly and boldly:  

GAY CHRISTIAN? YES!

In Faith,

Theresa D. McClellan

GIFT's Faith Advocacy Coordinator

Gay Christian? Yes! Campaign

Special GRITS gathering Wednesday Nov. 30 You're invited!

"Ahh the holidays. Time for family, friends, the food. Sometimes Thanksgiving can be stressful. Were you and your relationship served up as the main course? Relax. Breath. Come to the next GRITS meeting 7 p.m. Nov. 30 where we'll all unwind, share holiday stories, laugh, pray, eat, support one another AND bring your dreams as we make plans for the 2012 future GRITS sessions and create a team to make it happen.

Things we're considering:
-Growing GRITS to twice a month meetings with speakers from area churches.

- GRITS outings: dinner anyone

-GRITS church visits: hey we are gay Christians, some of us don't have a church and are kinda shy about finding one. Go as a group.

-GRITS study sessions: what keeps you strong in the storm, how have others before you?
We'll be reading,learning and discussing the works of strong gay Christians including Rev. Melanie Morrison, Rev Candace
Chellew Hodge and your choices . . .

-GRITS action:
The idea of GRITS (God Rocks In The Stream) is creating and nurturing vocal, visible, strong LGBT Christians and allies. Standing strong in heavy currents. Being the one that stays and changing the course of the difficult conversations. Are there community projects we want to tackle/support as gay Christians in 2012?

Who we are:
We are in our 20s to 80s. We are churched and unchurched. We are struggling and solid. We are part of GIFTs "Gay Christian? Yes!" Campaign.

We provide unconditional love and support to one another through prayer, study, fellowship, fun, connections and collaborations. We are preparing ourselves for the reactions that will come in April 2012 as the "Gay Christian? Yes!" billboards are unveiled and we are letting the world know that yes, you can be gay and Christian. Yes, you can be an ally. Yes, you can be person of faith and LGBT.

Join us, see how much better we can be together!

GRITS meetings are held in The Vine, enter the rear southwest door of the First Place Bldg, 207 E Fulton Street, beneath the GIFT offices.
For more information call Theresa at 774-0446.

What is the future for Gay Christians in West Michigan?

By Theresa D. McClellan
Faith Advocacy Coordinator
Gays In Faith Together


On Thursday night, crowds will pour into the Loosemoore Auditorium on the downtown campus at GVSU to watch the free premier screening of the People's History of the LGBTQ community in Grand Rapids.

From the trailers and descriptions posted on the Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy, (GRIID)website, we will hear interviews, see archived Grand Rapids Press news clippings, and television news broadcasts about the struggle for justice and equality by the LGBTQ population in Grand Rapids.

We will see familiar faces from Grand Rapids' past and hear stories that make us cringe in pain over the blatant discrimination, dismissal and demonization of who we are. We will rise up in our seats in recognition of those who paved the way before us. And if we are really listening and not just socializing, we will ask ourselves what is my role, what can I do?

The faith community is an important piece and continues to be an important piece of that struggle. We will see how people of faith wielded their religion to restrict, and we will also see how people of faith stepped up and reclaimed a vision of a God of love and hope.

As we watch our history, as revealed on this screen, consider where you fit in and consider how you represented your faith? Also consider, how do you want to be seen in the future? And before and after the movie, stop by our Gays In Faith Together (GIFT) table and see where you can fit in in making West Michigan a beacon of hope for all with our "Gay Christian? Yes!" Campaign that will launch publicly in 2012.

Our mission is to "proclaim the love of Christ for lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender (LGBT) people and their allies and to affirm their presence and inclusion in the Christian community."

For some, that mission is pretty radical. As followers of Christ, we see it no other way. Which is why we are launching a bold, exciting, blessed and Spirit-filled Campaign that will launch publicly during the 50 days of the Easter season 2012 and continue at least through 2013.

We are forming a collaboration of churches, other organizations and individuals to lay the groundwork for this exciting campaign. There is a lot of movement in Grand Rapids and West Michigan on LGBT concerns that will affect the history and future of who we are and how we are in this community and beyond.

So make sure you also visit the tables of others such as Holland is Ready and TEAM as well as the gay-friendly churches present. And after the movie, some of you will consider joining the fundraiser at the neighborhood pub The Meanwhile Bar where the Until Love is Equal group has gathered.

Let us create a groundswell of hope and support and action.

In creating this work, GRIID creator Jeff Smith explained it this way.

"There is an underside to every age about which history does not often speak,

because history is written from records left by the privileged.

We learn about politics from the political leaders, about economics from the entrepreneurs,
...
about slavery from the plantation owners, about the thinking of an age from its intellectual elite."

Howard Zinn

Following the model of radical historian Howard Zinn, this project involves the documentation of the history of the LGBTQ movement in West Michigan.

By doing interviews and collecting archival material, this project has produced a documentary film and an online archive of material about the struggle for equality and justice by the LGBTQ community in West Michigan. The screenings of “A People's History of the LGBTQ Community in Grand Rapids” will allow for continuing dialogue about the LGBTQ movement and provide a forum for current and future organizing.

This is a project of the Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy. The LGBT Resource Center is proud to be a co-sponsor along with GVSU’s Kutsche Office of Local History.

Come join us Thursday 6:30 p.m. Nov. 17 at the Loosemoore Auditorum in downtown Grand Rapids on the GVSU campus.

We will be there. I hope you will also. Because our vision for West Michigan is "that every LGBT person may walk freely in the love of Christ."

That has not been our history. May it be our future.

GIFT announces LOGO contest for "Gay Christian? Yes!" collaborative campaign

Are you creative?

Artistic?

Want to make a difference?

At West Michigan Pride today, GIFT announced the start of the GIFT LOGO contest for our "Gay Christian? Yes!" collaborative campaign.


GIFT LOGO CONTEST DETAILS

OVERVIEW

The purpose of the GIFT Logo Contest is to design a logo for GIFT’s “Gay Christian? Yes!” collaborative campaign.
We want an original, unique (no clip art) and dynamic image that represents the joy, hope, and energy of what it means to say Yes! to being gay and Christian. By participating in the contest, the artist accepts and agrees to comply with the official rules.
- All entries, images and artwork become exclusive property of GIFT (Gays In Faith Together).


The logo will be used online, in print, and on merchandise. The final version of the logo will need to be suitable for high quality printing.


How to Enter:
1. All entries must fill out the “Logo Entry” form found on the website. This form requires that you list the name, address, phone number, age and email address of the entrant.

2. Entries may be submitted by email to Theresa@GaysInFaithTogether.org with the subject line “logo contest” no later than 7:31 p.m. on 7/31/2011.

3. No more than 3 (three) entries may be submitted by any one entrant

4. Entries must conform to the Submission Guidelines set out below. Entries which fail to do so will be rejected.

5. Deadline for Entries is 7:31 p.m. July, 31, 2011.

6. There is no fee to enter the contest.

Required elements:
- The design must contain the words “Gay Christian? Yes!”
-We want an original, unique (no clip art) and dynamic image that represents the joy, hope, and energy of what it means to say Yes! to being gay and Christian.

Submission Guidelines:
The purpose of the Gays In Faith Together Logo Contest is to design a logo for the “Gay Christian? Yes!” campaign collaborative. The winning design will appear, in some form, on all promotional materials for the collaborative. This includes posters, mugs, programs and t-shirts.


-Entries must be original.

-Care should be taken to ensure that Entries are not in any way similar to
existing logos or other copyrighted images.

-After you create the logo, convert the design into a usable web version and print quality version of the logo. The logo must adapt well to electronic and print media, to reproduction on small and large surfaces, and to use in color and grayscale.


Eligibility:
Contest is open to everyone. If you are between the ages of 13 and 17, your parent or legal guardian must sign the consent block on the official entry form to ensure that you have your parent or legal guardian’s permission.


FORMATTING:
For purposes of submission, please submit the design in .png, .jpg or .psd for (Resolution of 300 dpi) AND as a .pdf file (less than 10MB). If the logo incorporates non-standards fonts, you must be able to provide us with the font should your logo be selected. If you are chosen as a winner, you MUST be able to provide a high-resolution vector file.

Prizes:

1. One crisp $100 bill
2. Artistic credit for your winning design on www.GaysInFaithTogether.org and an article on you in the Theresa’s Table blog.
3. The opportunity to be featured in an online interview.

Selection of winners:
All entry designs will be screened and those that comply with the contest rules and guidelines will be judged by our staff and volunteers of GIFT and be made available for a public vote.
The winner will be notified by phone, email or regular mail at the end of the contest.
In the event that no entry is selected, GIFT reserves the right to declare no winner and to run the contest again at a later date.

Please contact the GIFT office 616-774-0446 or send questions to Theresa@GaysInFaithTogether.org