27 As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is no longer Jew or Greek; there is no longer slave or free; there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. ~Galatians 3:27-28
This week, we celebrate PRIDE Sunday. While there are passages in the Bible that have been used to “clobber” our LGBTQIA+ siblings, there are also beautiful verses like the ones above that invite us to consider how the family of faith grows as God continues to speak to us. Paul writes to the church in Galatia about the inclusion of people not of Jewish faith in the early church. “There is no longer Jew or Greek,” he writes, challenging the binaries we impose on people.
In 2025, our call to be an inclusive family of faith continues to grow as we listen to our still-speaking God, especially our growing need to affirm our LGBTQIA+ siblings. On Sunday, we will read Paul’s passionate plea for inclusivity as we reflect on what it means for First Congregational Church to be an increasingly inclusive and affirming family of faith.