SAFe (Sexuality and Faith)

There is a growing group of St. John's parishioners who seek to create safe space in which to consider human sexuality and how we can live our lives as faithful Christians. The group focuses on creating a climate of welcome and affirmation of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) persons and their families at St. John's while also addressing the broader challenges of contemporary Christian sexual ethics and of welcome and hospitality.

Through the Adult Education Commission, the SAFe group has recently begun a series of facilitated conversations by groups of St John’s parishioners of the book by J. Neil Alexander, Bishop of Atlanta, entitled This Far by Grace, A Bishop’s Journey Through Questions About Homosexuality. This very readable and accessible text traces the Bishop’s evolving understanding of human sexuality in the context of the authority of Scripture, relevant passages in Scripture, the importance of prayer and relationship in the lives of Christians, his experience of homosexual people in his life, and of the importance of these matters in the life of the Episcopal Church today. The book discussions are conducted in the spirit of "Ubuntu", the African process and philosophy which was so successful for reconciliation in post-apartheid South Africa and at the 2008 Lambeth Conference.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu defined a person with Ubuntu:

“A person with Ubuntu is open and available to others, affirming of others, does not feel threatened that others are able and good, for he or she has a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or she belongs in a greater whole and is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, when others are tortured or oppressed.”

Copies of the book are available at reduced cost through the Church office.

The SAFe group meets periodically at the Church or in member’s homes. All members of the St. John's family are welcome to participate in SAFe meetings and programs. Please consult Church calendars or contact Father Mark, Mother Robyn, or Jean and Larry Rankin (717-243-1387) for further information or if interested in joining a book discussion group.

• We are one of the “Circles of Relationships” within the community of St. John’s Episcopal Church.
• We welcome as participants any teen, adult, family or single members of our Parish family.
• We are a component of the Education Commission.
• We are committed to:
• Exploring and promoting a policy of welcome by St John’s Episcopal Church of all people who desire to know and celebrate the love of God in their lives.
• Creating “Safe Space” for respectful conversation about human sexuality and related issues within our Church, the Anglican Communion, and society.
• Welcoming, nurturing, and advocating for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people, families and friends, and for all others who seek to understand their sexuality in the context of the Christian life and community.
• Exploring and understanding “Sexuality and Faith” within the context of contemporary society, traditional and emerging responsible Christian sexual ethics, and traditional gender roles.

Adopted  8/12/07

  REFERENCES

1. This Far by Grace: A Bishop's Journey through Questions about Homosexuality, by J. Neil Alexander, 2003, Cowley Publications.
2. Homosexuality and Christian Faith: Questions of Conscience for the Churches, edited by Walter Wink, 1999, Augsburg Fortress.
3. Coming Out Within: Stages of Spiritual Awakening for Lesbians and Gay Men, by Craig O'Neill & Kathleen Ritter, 1992, HarperCollins Publishers.
4. Gifted by Otherness: Gay and Lesbian Christians in the Church, by L. William Countryman and M.R. Ritley, 2001, Morehouse Publishing.
5. Disclosures: Conversations Gay and Spiritual, by Michael Ford, 2005, Cowley Publications.
6. Jesus’ Family Values by Deidre Good. 2006. Church Publishing, Inc.
7. DVD “Voices of Witness: The Witness of Faithful Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgendered Episcopalians in the Christian Tradition” produced by Claiming the Blessing (study guide).
8. DVD “For the Bible Tells Me So” produced by Daniel Karslake, 2008.
9. Integrity. An organized affirming group for sexual minorities within the Episcopal Church: www.integrityusa.org.
10. The Provincial Task Force on the Counseling of Same-Gender Couples click here