The overwhelming message of the Bible, in story after story, is that of God's radical love and welcome. Every time we think we know who's in and who's out, God does something to challenge those assumptions, to unbind our hearts and minds from old ways of understanding, and to draw the circle ever wider.
HEARTS UNBOUND invites you to explore ten of those inspiring stories of radical love and welcome. Entertaining, thought-provoking, and participatory, each session looks in-depth at the story, the historical context out of which it came, and some of the insights to be gained.
Designed to be used as a small-group Bible study, HEARTS UNBOUND uses the format of Reader's Theater. But fear not... no costumes, sets, or refined acting chops needed! All you need are six to eight people around a table, reading the script, having fun, all the while learning a great deal in the process.
All ten sessions are available for free download below.
In an effort to foster a dialogue with Latino/a families and churches on sexual orientation, gender identity and the Bible, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation and UNID@S, unveiled today a new bilingual guide, A La Familia: A Conversation About Our Families, the Bible, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity at a press conference during the League of United Latin American Citizens' 82nd National Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people often face unique challenges in Latino/a families and churches. To help in the process of acceptance and inclusion, A La Familia is born out of a profound desire to faithfully integrate an excluded group of people back into the life of their churches and families. This guide is written for two primary audiences: heterosexual people honestly struggling with LGBT issues and the Bible, and those whose sexual orientation and gender identity have marginalized them within their family or church or even both.
In 2011, the Task Force’s Institute for Welcoming Resources, in close collaboration with Unid@s, the national Latin@ LGBT Human Rights Organization and the Human Rights Campaign’s Religion and Faith Program, jointly released A La Familia, a bilingual conversation about our families, the Bible, sexual orientation and gender identity. See the preview below.
For more information about Before God, We Are All Family, click here.
Giving you opportunities to gather with other members of your congregation to pray, to learn, to share, and to work together to transform your lives, your congregation, and your world into a loving place in which God's lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender families can thrive.
Inclusive Bible Translations | |
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Priests for Equality, The Inclusive Bible: The First Egalitarian Translation, [Plymouth, UK: Sheed & Ward/Rowman & Littlefield, 2007; 799 pp., ISBN-13: 978-1-58051-214-5].
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Now available on DVD! Purchase at 25% off through the Human Rights Campaign's Religion and Faith Program
The much anticipated For the Bible Tells Me So: A Study Guide and Advocacy Training Curriculum by Rev. Chris Glaser is now available through HRC's Religion and Faith Program online and free of charge.
While this new Bible is certainly an inclusive-language translation, it is much more: it is a re-imagining of the scriptures and our relationship to them. Not merely replacing male pronouns, the translators have rethought what kind of language has built barriers between the text and its readers. Seeking to be faithful to the original languages, they have sought new and non-sexist ways to express the same ancient truths. The Inclusive Bible is a fresh, dynamic translation into modern English, carefully crafted to let the power and poetry of the language shine forth - particularly when read aloud - giving it an immediacy and intimacy rarely found in traditional translations of the Bible. Priests for Equality is a movement of women and men throughout the world - laity, religious and clergy - who work for the full participation of women and men in church and society. A project of the Quixote Center in Brentwood, Maryland, Priests for Equality is a grass-roots organization committed to creating a culture where sexism and exclusion are left behind and equality and full participation are the order of the day.
These translations...are as poetic as they are inclusive, as lyrical as they are faithful. - WATERwheel
Join Pastor Lowell O. Erdahl as he presents "Testimony Time! Sharing My Present Convictions Concerning a Positive Perspective on Homosexuality." Rev. Erdahl has been a strong advocate for LGBT people and their families for many years, and he brings his years of experience to this video. Also included is an introduction by Pastor Anita Hill of St. Paul-Reformation Lutheran Church (St. Paul, Minnesota). Great for congregational adult forums. Rev. Erdahl is Bishop Emeritus of the St. Paul Area Synod of the ELCA, having also served 20 years as a parish pastor and 5 years on the faculty of Luther Seminary. He also is the author and co-author of several books on love, marriage, and relationships, including Sexual Fulfillment for Single and Married, Straight and Gay, Young and Old (with Rev. Herb Chilstrom).