Unsubscribe
View in your browser
Inclusive Church logo
Inclusive Church Newsletter September 2022

The Inclusive Church Newsletter is a digital publication produced every month. It aims to provide supporters and members with the latest news and information from the life of Inclusive Church and our partner organisations.
From the National Coordinator

Hello everyone, and welcome to your monthly newsletter.

Many people in the country were hit hard by the death of Queen Elizabeth II at the age of 96 this month. Even people who don't take much interest in the monarchy were moved by the enormity of the loss of someone who had been a very important cultural and spiritual leader for so long. I am not myself a royalist, but I appreciate the gifts and qualities of the late Queen, and I have listened with an open mind and heart to friends and family who have been moved to real grief in recent weeks, several of whom joined the now famous Queue. There are some interesting blogs in the newsletter below if you are interested to read more about this.

One thing that I have learnt from my own perspective of feeling a little on the outside of all of this is that it is important for churches to remember, be sensitive to and include all people at times such as these - some of us are grieving the Queen, some of us are sympathetic to those grieving but would prefer not to have a monarchy, some of us may feel legitimate pain at some of the things done to other countries and peoples in the past in the name of the Crown, and some of us may be grieving losses of loved ones which happened on the same day or in the same period as the death of the Queen (this happened to my Mum twice in the same week, for example). Let's not only be there for one section of our congregations and parishes, but for everyone. God bless you all.

Thank you for all your support. Enjoy the newsletter!

Ruth Wilde, National Coordinator
Wholly, Holey, Holy: Conference on Disability and Church 2022

There are still tickets available for this year's Conference on Disability and Church, in partnership with St Martin-in-the-Fields. It is going to be a really excellent conference again. This year, it will once more be entirely online and we will be looking at a theme of how we can be wholly ourselves, with our weaknesses (holes) and how we are God's Holy people. Wholly, Holey, Holy.

To find out more about this year's conference and to book tickets, go to the Eventbrite page.
A Message from our partner Equal: The Campaign for Equal Marriage in the CofE 

Priests: Would you marry a same-sex couple in church?

If you are a serving Church of England priest (with licence or PTO), we invite you to add your name to our list of those who would be willing to solemnize the marriage of same-sex couples in church, when it becomes possible to do so within the laws of England and its established Church.

The list is fully secure and confidential, and will be used solely to calculate diocesan and provincial totals for use in the Equal Campaign. Your personal data, including your name and email address, will never be shared with bishops or other senior clergy, or indeed with anyone else (apart from our trusted independent auditor, who will check that those on our list are in the C of E National Register of Clergy).

To add your name to the list, please click this link, fill in your details in the form, and click the ‘Add your name to the list‘ button to submit the form. See the Quick Guide in the panel for more information.
Blogs and News

Blogs on Queen Elizabeth II

The famous long wait in 'The Queue' to pay respects to the Queen became iconic and, for many, a gruelling but spiritual experience of connection with others. Here's a great blog about it from Modern Church's new General Secretary, Alison Webster.

Rowan Williams wrote this reflection for First Things on the anointing of Queen Elizabeth and what that might have meant to her and how it might have affected the way she approached her role.

And finally, Marina Hyde asked the 'big question' in the Guardian: what if the Queen was bigger than the monarchy itself?

Partner news

Inclusive Gathering Birmingham have moved their meeting place from Edgbaston Quaker Meeting to The Loft in the heart of the Gay Village in central Birmingham. To find out more, read this blog from pioneer minister Danielle Wilson.
Events

Every Wednesday, between 6 and 6.30pm, OneBodyOneFaith are hosting an online space for prayer and community called 'Rhythm'. Find out more on the website. Drawing on monastic patterns, Rhythm includes resources to download and a rule of life for people to embrace.

For anyone living in the UK's second city, Christians at Pride are meeting to march in the parade at Birmingham Pride at 10.30 on the 24th September at Carrs Lane Church. Alternatively, you can meet the group at 11.30 outside Starbucks Colmore Row and be ready to join the march there.

Also for Birmingham Pride, there is a Pride Service on Sunday 25th September at 10.30 at Carrs Lane Church.

From the 26th September to the 21st November, there is a lecture series at St Martin-in-the-Fields on the theme 'What am I living for?' with some world-renowned and very exciting speakers. For more information, visit St Martin's website.

From the 14th to the 16th October, there is a 'Coping with Loss through Poetry and Prayer' retreat at Holyrood House. For more information, see this flyer.

On the 17th October, the St Bride's Public Theology Lecture is taking place with Revd Dr Ash Barker speaking on the topic 'How do we make our neighbourhoods safe, inclusive and empowering so that everyone can thrive?' More info here.

St Bueno's annual LGBT+ Retreat is back for 2022. The retreat is led for and by LGBT+ Christians and takes place from Friday 28th October to Sunday 30th October at St Beuno's Jesuit Spirituality Centre Tremeirchion Saint Asaph LL17 0AS. Kieran Bohan, Open Table Network National Co-ordinator, is part of the team leading the retreat, along with Sarah Hobbs OTN Co-Chair, Cate Jacobs and others. For more information and to book, visit this page.

To ensure that you continue to receive this newsletter, please make sure you let us know if you change your email address.

The content of the newsletter is drawn from a number of sources including individuals and partner organisations. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect a 'formal viewpoint' of the Inclusive Church trustees, individual members of Inclusive Church or registered inclusive churches.

You can see an online version of this newsletter and previous newsletters by going to the newsletters page of the IC website.

office@inclusive-church.org

07935 374877