Monday, October 26, 2015

Integrity in the Diocese of Indianapolis

Diocesan Coordinator John Steele
and his husband John Cutter
The Diocese of Indianapolis celebrated two events this weekend.

The new Diocesan Coordinator, John Steele, made Integrity's presence known at its second half convention (the dioceses held two half conventions this year). John is a Delegate to the Convention and a newlywed to John Cutter. At the convention, seven resolutions passed: review alcohol policies for church events, study parental leave issues, strengthen greater cooperation among dioceses, commit to greater study around racism, respond to the work of the church-wide task force on the study of marriage and their resources, engage in more Bible study, and commit to work toward food security issues in local communities.

Moreover, Integrity's newest chapter celebrated its inauguration at Trinity Church, Bloomington. Convenor Ed Brandon invited Province V Coordinator David Fleer to speak at Trinity's adult forum on Sunday, October 25. David spoke about Integrity's history and its future to a friendly audience of parishioners. He also stressed the grass roots nature of Integrity, emphasizing the importance of local initiative in directing the attention of Integrity on matters of interest to the church.

Join us in celebrating the ways Integrity proclaims God's inclusive love throughout the Church.

Friday, October 9, 2015

Join us on Spirit Day this October 15

Join us on Spirit day this October 15th. Integrity's forty year support of LGBT Episcopalians includes our youth, and we wholeheartedly encourage efforts to make the public aware of the suffering of those whose lives are made miserable, or worse ended, as a result of bullying.

According to GLAAD, "Spirit Day began in 2010 as a way to show support for LGBT youth and take a stand against bullying. Following a string of high-profile suicide deaths of gay teens in 2010, GLAAD worked to involve millions of teachers, workplaces, celebrities, media outlets and students in going purple on social media or wearing purple, a color that symbolizes spirit on the rainbow flag. Spirit Day now occurs every year on the third Thursday in October, during National Bullying Prevention Month, and has become the most visible day of support for LGBT youth."

We invite you to wear purple on October 15th, and be willing to tell people why. Show your support for our children, and let them know that you support them. Feel free to tweet and Facebook your purple with the #SpiritDay hashtag. Turn your Twitter and Facebook profile photo purple using this link.

For our Bishops and Priests, we ask that you wear purple on October 18th, and designate it Spirit Sunday. Use purple as your liturgical color that day, and make it clear that we, as Christians, need to support our LGBT youth - some of the most vulnerable in our society.

Pledge to go purple!