The Vitality Practice of DIVERSITY
For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.
— 1 Corinthians 12.12
The apostle Paul reminds the church in Corinth that our bodies are made up of different parts and that we need each part to function. He compares that to the body of the church and emphasizes that different people have different gifts, and that the church needs them all to function. Because no one has the same experience, diversity is a vitality tool. The church is strengthened when varieties of perspectives are shared and each person’s place in the body of Christ is celebrated. To be diverse, we must first wonder if we lack diversity and strive for ways to bring new, treasured people to our midst.
Recommended Curriculum to help you learn more about the Vitality Practice of DIVERSITY
SACRED GROUND
Produced by the Episcopal Church, Sacred Ground is a film- and readings-based dialogue series on race, grounded in faith. Small groups are invited to walk through chapters of America’s history of race and racism, while weaving in threads of family story, economic class, and political and regional identity. The 11-part series is built around a powerful online curriculum of documentary films and readings that focus on Indigenous, Black, Latino, and Asian/Pacific American histories as they intersect with European American histories.
EQUITY-BASED HOSPITALITY STUDY
This 11-week study series explores biblical hospitality from an equity lens, expanding on the values Rev. Liz Testa outlines in this article on equity-based hospitality. Each session includes a topic, scripture, theological underpinning, and discussion questions. This comes from the Reformed Church, and though it covers quite a lot about equity-based hospitality, it omits LGBTQIA+ inclusion. Despite this obvious flaw, there is still a lot of worthwhile material here which needs to be supplemented with the resources in the next suggested curriculum.
BUILDING AN INCLUSIVE CHURCH:
A WELCOMING TOOLKIT
This toolkit comes from Reconciling Works: Lutherans for Full Participation and includes lots of great resources on the website to download or purchase. This toolkit takes churches through steps of understanding true LGBTQIA+ inclusion and then living into that as a Christian community. Tools along the way help teach and reinforce the pathway to becoming an inclusive church. Online training to supplement this material is also available for a fee.
Read more about the Vitality Practice of
DIVERSITY
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BECOMING BELOVED COMMUNITY WHERE YOU ARE - An Episcopal Resource for Individuals, Congregations& Communities Seeking Racial Justice, Healing and Reconciliation. Developed by the Episcopal Church office, this resource lays out many resources, tools, and actions for engaging in the work of Racial Reconciliation.
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EVERYBODY BELONGS, SERVING TOGETHER - This is a Guide for Churches on Inclusive church ministry with people with disabilities. It includes ways to improve your church's accessibility, reflect on biblical foundations of inclusive ministry, and hear directly from those with disabilities about what an inclusive church means.
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BEYOND LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT: A GUIDE - Created by the Native Governance Center, this guide is very helpful in understanding the limitations of a land acknowledgement, and suggests great steps toward education and action. Though written for individuals, it is very applicable to church communities.
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ANTI-RACISM DAILY - Founded by entrepreneur and author Nicole Cardoza, the Anti-Racism Daily (or weekly digest email) has scaled to a trusted platform providing targeted, tangible ways for readers across the country to rally for racial equity issues. The newsletter has created a powerful and lasting mark on conversations on race, gender, class and other socioeconomic inequities.
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INCLUDING DISABLED PEOPLE IN THE NEW YEAR PLANNING - a guide to creating true inclusion in church programs.
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TRUST THE PROCESS - ECF article with tips for being a diverse and multi-cultural church. Also has a lot to say about INVITATION.
EN ESLPANOL
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LGBTQ+ RESOURCE HUB - ECF has collected LGBTQ+ resources from around the Episcopal Church and beyond.
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BECOMING BELOVED COMMUNITY - an article from ECF about the practice of Racial Justice and Reconciliation in a church. By Miguel Bustos
EN ESPANOL
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OUR HISTORY TEACHES, NOT HARMS US: REFLECTIONS ON BLACK HISTORY MONTH - written by the Rev. Eric Metoyer for the Office of Racial Reconciliation in the Episcopal Church.