What We Do
- Advocate for the federal Equality Act and the WV Fairness Act: A Statement from the Session of Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church, February 11, 2020 (see below)
- Inform and provide resources
- SPC Rainbow History brochure
- ML resources https://mlp.org/
- Well Chosen Words, a brochure that explains why inclusive and expansive language is important. Produced by the PC(USA) Racial Equity & Women’s Intercultural Ministries in collaboration with the Advocacy Committee for Women’s Concerns (ACWC) https://www.presbyterianmission.org/resource/well-chosen-words/
- Celebrate inclusion
- More Light Sunday Pride Week services; including June 7, 2020 https://vimeopro.com/spcworks/live/video/429361269
Pass the Fairness Act
A Statement from the Session of Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church
Passed February 11, 2020
As a congregation dedicated to radical hospitality and proclaiming “We choose welcome,” we believe that each and every individual is created in the image of God, with inherent worth and sacredness. As an open and affirming congregation, with many LGBTQIA+ persons as members, friends, and community partners, we affirm that they are “beautifully and wonderfully made.” Moreover, welcoming their spiritual gifts has been a blessing to our community. Yet we understand that even as we make this confession as a church, we know that LGBTQIA+ persons in our state often face discrimination in employment and housing. They are often made to feel as if they do not belong simply because of their inherent sexual orientation and/or gender identity.
The current laws of our state do not provide basic protections from discrimination against persons of the LGBTQIA+ community in areas of employment, housing, and public services. The Fairness Act, which is being proposed in the West Virginia legislature this year, would be a crucial first step in providing statewide protections for some of our citizens who are particularly vulnerable to discrimination.
As the Session of Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church, we encourage our legislators and all people of West Virginia to support the Fairness Act because every person deserves to know and feel that they belong in our beautiful state, and that they can be protected from needless discrimination based on who God has created them to be. We affirm that “perfect love casts out fear,” and believe that all West Virginians are entitled to freedom from fear of discrimination and maltreatment.
Our faith, our experience of community, our love of scripture, and our commitment to the Gospel of Jesus Christ compels us to support this action as a display of hospitality for the members of LGBTQIA+ persons and their families in our state. We look forward to the day when all people are truly free to be the beautiful individuals that God has created them to be.