A Statement to the church

Advertisement in The Observer Magazine, May 1988

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The present discussion about the ordination and commissioning of gay and lesbian within The United Church of Canada leads us to consider what kind of church we are and are called to be. 

 

We believe that, as a church, we have erected barriers which have caused the exclusion of many people. 

 

In their voices, we hear God’s summons to repent. We need to change, to embrace the ministries, ordered and lay, of all who respond faithfully to God’s call, and who seek to live in relationships of love and trust. 

 

We recall our heritage as a united and uniting church. 

 

We yearn for a church that is open to all who are drawn by God, and to God, through faith in Jesus, the Christ. 

 

We celebrate the Spirit who is alive and at work in the ministries of all God’s people. 

 

We trust that God is faithful, even when leading us into new and unfamiliar ways. 

 

We believe, therefore, that we must ensure that there are no barriers to ministry based on race, colour, age, disability, economic status, gender or sexual orientation. 

 

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Signed by,

455 persons of The United Church, and supportive persons and groups