BuildingFaith

"Perhaps most importantly, Parent Night Out reshaped the way we think about formation itself. In many churches, family ministry can unintentionally communicate that belonging is tied to participation, productivity, or performance. Families often feel pressure to volunteer more, attend more, and do more. But Parent Night Out reminded us that the gospel does not begin with productivity. It begins with belovedness."

Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary

Parent Night Out: A Ministry of Rest and Belonging Parent Night Out: A Ministry of Rest and Belonging At St. Ann’s Episcopal Church, one of the most impactful formation ministries in our parish does not happen in a classroom or around a formal curriculum. It happens on Saturday evenings when tired caregivers drop their children off at church, exha...

"Exposing community members to the stories and perspectives of LGBTQ+ people, especially LGBTQ+ people of faith, is necessary for moving toward authentic welcome. For one thing, encountering these stories and perspectives can familiarize participants with the lived experience of members of parts of the LGBTQ+ community they may have never personally known—or have not been aware that they personally knew. It also broadens the range of individual perspectives on a given identity or way of being that participants are familiar with, which helps reduce stereotypes."

Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary
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Equipping Faith Communities to Offer Authentic Welcome to LGBTQIA+ Persons Equipping Faith Communities to Offer Authentic Welcome to LGBTQIA+ Persons Faith communities that belong to LGBTQ+ affirming denominations are often excited to extend a welcome to the LGBTQ+ community. After all, with “more than 1 in 5 Gen Z adults . . . identify[ing] as LGBTQ+,” according to Ga...

"Use expansive language in worship and communications. This can be a challenge, as much of our liturgy is gendered, especially with reference to God. It is possible, though, and can even start as an experiment to stretch our brains and break us out of the binary words we’re used to using in worship and exclusive use of male pronouns for God."

Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary
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What Does Welcome Look Like? Welcoming and Affirming Transgender and Gender Non-conforming Folks in our Churches What Does Welcome Look Like? Welcoming and Affirming Transgender and Gender Non-conforming Folks in our Churches “I saw you were accepting of people like me and I wanted to find out how I could join.” A simple email from a local transgender high school student was enough to quiet the few murmuri...

"Parents were navigating exhaustion, financial stress, overscheduled calendars, social isolation, and the lingering emotional impact of the past several years. In family ministry, it can be tempting to respond to these realities by creating more programs, more curriculum, or more opportunities for participation. But we began wondering if what caregivers actually needed was not another obligation, but space to breathe."

Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary

Parent Night Out: A Ministry of Rest and Belonging Parent Night Out: A Ministry of Rest and Belonging At St. Ann’s Episcopal Church, one of the most impactful formation ministries in our parish does not happen in a classroom or around a formal curriculum. It happens on Saturday evenings when tired caregivers drop their children off at church, exha...

"Our theme and callings were to care for those who have been forgotten. The enslaved people of Galveston were not only forgotten in 1863, but they continue to be ignored today. The task that lay before us was this: How could we best bring their story to light in liturgy? We felt their eyes upon us and didn’t want to disappoint them."

Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary

Illuminating Enslaved People’s Story in Liturgy: The Creation of the Juneteenth Liturgy Illuminating Enslaved People’s Story in Liturgy: The Creation of the Juneteenth Liturgy The Juneteenth Diocesan Feast Day and liturgy grew out of a Diocese of California Resolution passed in 2021. The resolution championed promoting understanding and inclusion of every human being, working toward ...

"The celebration of Juneteenth acknowledges the 'rise of racist and oppressive actions and behaviors that directly conflict with our beliefs and values as Christians.' The Diocesan Feast Day brings attention to this issue. It also brings greater awareness to 'the precious meaning of freedom for all people,' as the resolution states, and provides us, as Christians, an opportunity to show our support of freedom and to work for change."

Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary

Juneteenth: A Day of Celebration, Reflection, and Repentance Juneteenth: A Day of Celebration, Reflection, and Repentance Editor’s Note: This article was written by the Northern California Vivian Traylor Chapter of the Union of Black Episcopalians and originally published in the Diocese of California newsletter on May 28, 2024. We are republishing it here w...

"All of us, created in God’s image and likeness, are both-and creatures. Trying to fit human beings in all their glorious diversity into either-or boxes does everyone a disservice."

Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary

Gender Inclusive Children’s Ministry: Where To Start Gender Inclusive Children’s Ministry: Where To Start Gender, like so many other aspects of human identity, exists on a spectrum. I’m a non-binary trans Episcopal priest, and thankfully, at this stage in my life, I’m not often told I need to do things like “sit boy-girl-boy-girl crisscross ap...

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Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary

Are you curious about intergenerational worship? Do you have questions about what it might look like and how to begin conversations about it in your community?

In this Building Faith Toolkit, Roots & Wings Project Director Sarah Bentley Allred offers responses to some of the most frequently asked questions she gets about intergenerational worship. Check out the articles in the link below to learn more:

Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary

Building Faith Feature Toolkit: Intergenerational Worship FAQs

"We invite you to check out the books that speak to you and return to this list in the future when you’re looking for resources. If you have read or do read one of these books, we’d love to hear about your experience in the comments below!"

Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary

New Books for Formation Leaders New Books for Formation Leaders It’s almost summer in the northern hemisphere, and we at Building Faith want to share with you some new resources to help you rest, reflect, and recharge yourselves during these months and beyond. We searched through the new releases for 2025 and 2026 at some of the...