Some congregations go non-liturgical to encompass LGBTs

It's been at least five years since Gary has set foot inside any church. The Tampa man, who asked that his last name not be used, was raised in a Baptist Church in his home state of Tennessee and had always considered himself a believer. But when he came out in his mid 20s, he says he was ostracized and asked not to return to the church he had called home for two decades.

â┚¬Å”I was devastated,â┚¬Â Gary recalls. â┚¬Å”I had always had a church family and suddenly I was all alone just because I had finally come to terms with my sexuality. I was angry at my pastor, angry at the congregation and I was angry at God. I think part of me is still angry at God. Not because I'm gay, but because the people who supposedly follow him have created a message He never intended.â┚¬Â

Many LGBTs find themselves in situations similar to Gary's, where fundamentalist Christian churches take a literal interpretation of a few Bible verses to voice their hatred toward a â┚¬Å”lifestyleâ┚¬Â they do not understand. Eventually, many find their way to the Metropolitan Community Church. Others, who are not interested in so much structure, turn to other alternativesâ┚¬â€and there are plenty.

â┚¬Å”There is no hurt worse than church hurt,â┚¬Â says Pastor Joe Parramore of New Journey Fellowship and Ministries in Ybor City. â┚¬Å”Church hurt is the worst hurt a person can experience. Many times what we see people reconcile their sexuality rather than their sexuality and spirituality together. Their spirituality and beliefs get left behind.â┚¬Â

New Journey Fellowship and Ministries is a relatively new church, formed by the merger of Prevailing Word Fellowship and Breath of Life Ministries. The congregation varies by week but can have up to 50 worshipers in attendance at once.

While many in the LGBT community see churches as â┚¬Å”the enemy,â┚¬Â Pastor Steve Andrews of Tampa's The Connection Church says that more churches are evolving to be affirming toward LGBT people. The challenge, however, is to not become labeled as a â┚¬Å”gay church.â┚¬Â

â┚¬Å”It's a challenge to get congregants,â┚¬Â says Andrews, who became pastor of the Pentecostal-leaning Connection, formerly called Potter's House Fellowship, in 2006. â┚¬Å”We are the gay alternative, or the Pentecostal alternative to MCC. However, we've recognized that to be radically inclusive we can't just focus on LGBT folks. We want to be a safe place for LGBT peopleâ┚¬â€I'm gay, so it's an oxymoron if I said we didn't want gay people hereâ┚¬â€but we want straight congregants too.â┚¬Â

In both Parramore's and Andrews' congregations, a growing number of heterosexual attendees appear at services each week.

Same beliefs, different practice
According to Andrews, one thing that sets his church apart from the MCC denomination is that its non-liturgicalâ┚¬â€meaning there's a â┚¬Å”free movement of the spirit.â┚¬Â

â┚¬Å”Music and traditional hymns are big for usâ┚¬â€we have a full band,â┚¬Â Andrews said. â┚¬Å”Sometimes we also have spontaneous testimonies. Our services start at 11 a.m. and we're out by 1 p.m.â┚¬â€so we're not a quick drive through service. But we are an exciting service.â┚¬Â

Parramore's services are similar to Andrews, he says, adding that his congregants seem to appreciate the less structured way in which messages are presented.

â┚¬Å”I think the world of (MCC Moderator) Nancy Wilson,â┚¬Â Parramore says. â┚¬Å”But I think one of the biggest differences in our services and those of MCC are the formalities of the service. We are more charismatic in nature.â┚¬Â

While Andrews and Parramore may practice the deliveries of their messages differently than the larger MCC denomination, there are plenty of commonalities. Both men said congregants come from many different Christian backgroundsâ┚¬â€Baptist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostalâ┚¬â€and that they follow the teachings of Jesus.

â┚¬Å”We understand that Jesus said â┚¬Ëœwhosoever,'â┚¬Â Parramore says. â┚¬Å”A lot of the principals we practice and teach are the principals of unity and oneness. It's just the style of worship where we differ to some degree.â┚¬Â

At The Connection, Andrews teaches that the Bible is the Word of Godâ┚¬â€but that it needs to be read within the context of who it was spoken to and by what the original languages were.

â┚¬Å”We don't have people around who go back to 500 B.C., so what we do is take the principals that are there and learn,â┚¬Â Andrews says. â┚¬Å”But we don't take everything on a literal basis. Our church believes in divine creation, but not that it took a literal seven days to create the world or that the world is 6,000 years old.â┚¬Â

Too many Christian churches practice what Parramore calls â┚¬Å”tortured theology,â┚¬Â meaning that propagating a message of hatred and condemnation rather than love and acceptance is the norm.

â┚¬Å”That message is engrained it congregants subconscious and too often they come to the notion they are doomed to hell and might as well enjoy life,â┚¬Â Parramore says. â┚¬Å”It's sad. God doesn't see us as a genderâ┚¬â€he sees us as a creation he as made. And there's a big difference between a creation and a gender.â┚¬Â

Other alternatives
Connection and New Journey are just two of many LGBT-affirming congregations within Florida. Finding a list of welcoming churches can be done with a simple Google search or by browsing ads in newspapers. St. Dorothy Catholic Community in Orlando is an example, as is Dignity Orlando, Dignity Sarasota and the Gulfcoast Interfaith Affirming Network. The United Church of Christ launched a campaign in recent years declaring its â┚¬Å”Open hearts, open mindsâ┚¬Â philosophy and the Lutheran Church and Episcopal denominations have also reached out to LGBTs.

â┚¬Å”It's good to know that there are more and more churches welcoming us into their congregations,â┚¬Â says Gary, who is considering a return to a church. â┚¬Å”But I know I'm apprehensive because of how I was treated before. At least there are choices out there and maybe these congregations will prevent someone from going through the hurtful experience I had in Tennessee.â┚¬Â

For a detailed list of LGBT-affirming churches in Florida, visit GayChurch.org and select the link for Florida.

For more information on New Journey, visit NewJourneyFellowship.org. For details on The Connection, visit Connection5100.com.