LGBTQ Welcoming Congregation

The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Columbus is a Welcoming Congregation as defined by the Unitarian Universalist Association. We welcome and affirm the dignity of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, as well as that of same-sex couples. In addition, we prohibit and speak against discriminatory policies, private or public, which demean the sexual orientation or gender identity of human beings. We affirm that the spiritual and ethical experiences of LGBT people from throughout history are valid markers for our understanding of the depth of our shared humanity.

We harken to the work of other UUA member congregations in their pioneering work for the integration of LGBT people and their spiritual experiences:

  • Rev. James Stoll being the first UU minister to come out as gay (1969)
  • The UUA establishing an Office of LGBTQ Ministries in 1973
  • The first UU ordination of a transgender minister in 1988.
  • The inauguration of the UUA’s “Welcoming Congregation” program in 1989
  • The UUA supporting the officiation of same-sex unions by UU ministers since 1984 and same-sex marriages since 1996
  • The first openly-transgender minister called to serve a UU congregation (2002)

We are Standing on the Side of Love, through which we seek to end repression, including the repression of LGBT people through law.

We also proudly link to a number of local organizations which support and celebrate LGBT experiences, including: