Metropolitan Community Churches: Commitment to Equality

Our celebration of 44 years of Metropolitan Community Churches during the month of October continues. The final selection of MCC's early history...commitment to equality.

Equality is a core commitment within Metropolitan Community Churches, and the journey from vision to reality has been both fascinating and hopeful. Women participated in the first General Conference in 1970 as both deacons and attendees. The following year, two women, Rev Alice Naumoff of San Francisco, California, USA, and Rev Ruth (Rob) Shivers of Dallas, Texas, USA, attended the General Conference as "licensed ministers," a position that, at the time, had much less authority than it carries today.

By 1973, the number of women in leadership had grown significantly. Rev Freda Smith made a major impact on the 1973 General Conference, where the number of women attending had grown to 10 percent.

An outgrowth of Rev Elder Freda Smith's leadership was a Women's Commission report to the 1974 General Conference. The commission's work resulted in a recommendation that every church work toward the use of inclusive language. The inclusive language debate climaxed at the 1981 General Conference, when the report of the Task Force on Inclusive Language was approved.

The first General Conference action on behalf of transgender members came in 1979, with the adoption of a denominational resolution.

Throughout its history, MCC has increasingly challenged itself to achieve equality by race and ethnic background. More than a dozen people of color attended the General Conference in 1971, including those of Latino, African and Asian heritage.

Today, MCC continues to embrace and live the words of Galatians 3:28: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus."

Metropolitan Community Churches: International Growth

Our celebration of 44 years of Metropolitan Community Churches during the month of October continues. The third selection of MCC's early history...international growth.

MCC's mission as a church for all people has led to the founding of MCC congregations around the world and to the development of an increasingly global vision throughout our Fellowship.

In 1972 -- just four years after the first MCC worship service -- the Board of Evangelism and World Mission (renamed World Church Extension in 1975) was founded with Rev Lee Carlton as its first executive secre­tary. Its earliest mission was "the implementing of new churches, conservation of existing missions, encouragement of spiritual renewal in congregations, and establishing special ministries to prisoners and other particular groups."

MCC welcomed its first churches from outside the United States in 1973. That year marked the founding of the first Canadian congregation, MCC Toronto, and the first British church, MCC London.

MCC's international growth is the story of "firsts." The first elder from outside the United States, Rev Elder Jean White, was elected in 1979. The 1983 General Conference in Toronto was the first held outside the United States. The 1985 conference was the first with equipment to translate sessions into Spanish.

International growth and ministry continue to be at the forefront of MCC's vision. According to Rev Dr. Nancy Wilson, moderator of MCC, "Today, we're engaging the vital question of what structures and systems will best support MCC's growing and emerging international ministries for the coming decades....We need a world vision that honors cultural differences, with mutual accountability, autonomy and connection at its core."

Metropolitan Community Church: A Passion for Justice

First MCC service was held in 1968

We continue our celebration of 44 years of Metropolitan Community Churches during the month of October. Our second selection of MCC's early history...commitment to social action.

Since its very first worship service in October 1968, MCC has preached a message of Christian justice and Christian social action as core components of our faith. MCC's commitment to social action was put into action for the first time in April 1969, when Rev Perry led a group of eight MCC Los Angeles members in a peaceful demonstration in front of the Los Angeles offices of State Steamship lines, a company which had fired one of their employees for publicly declaring his homosexuality.

MCC has also embraced fasting and marches as non­violent means of achieving social justice. On June 28,1970, shortly after Los Angeles' first lesbian and gay pride parade, which Rev Perry helped organize, he sat on the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Las Palmas Avenue and began a public fast for meaningful dialogue about changing unjust laws that discriminated against lesbians and gay men.

Today, social justice continues to be at the heart of our faith, as exemplified by MCC's establishment of the Global Justice Institute, in partnership with The Fellowship of Affirming Ministries, and Rev Nancy Wilson's service as a member of President Obama's White House Advisory Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

Metropolitan Community Churches: The Founding

During the four Sundays of October we will be celebrating 44 years of MCC. We will begin by sharing MCC's early history...the date and make-up of the first worship service.

The story of Metropolitan Community Churches begins with one individual, defrocked by his Pentecostal church for homosexuality and recovering from a suicide attempt, who dared to believe God's promise of love and justice for all people. MCC was conceived when Troy Perry, then 27 years old, shared his faith with a friend who had just been arrested during a police harassment of a gay bar.

"Nobody cares!" his friend Tony Valdez lamented. "God cares," Troy responded. This is the essence of MCC's message, an idea so powerful that over the next 44 years it would birth churches and ministries circling the globe.

MCC was born several months later, on October 6, 1968, when Rev. Perry led 12 worshipers in the first worship service of what was to become Metropolitan Community Church of Los Angeles. Foreshadowing the diversity that was to blossom over the next four decades, the congregation that first morning included a person of color (Latino), a Jewish worshiper and a heterosexual couple, their backgrounds both Catholic and Protestant.

The church quickly outgrew its first meeting space, a pink duplex home in Huntington Park (a suburb of Los Angeles) where Rev. Perry lived.

Within months of the first worship service, Rev. Perry began receiving letters and visits from people who wanted to start Metropolitan Community Churches in other cities.

Today -- 44 years after MCC's first worship service -- Metropolitan Community Churches has grown into a worldwide denomination with churches, programs and ministries touching 37 countries around the world.

Feel Good Sunday

Stephanie Leavins

After all of the hard work in getting our Growth Groups going, it's time to celebrate. This Sunday we will be blessed with the ministry of Stephanie Leavins. Her singing and testimony will be uplifting to all. I will preach a short sermon on "Intentions". My text comes from Genesis 50:14-21, in which Joseph speaks to his brothers after they have mistreated him. He tells them that what they intended for his harm, God intended for his good.

No matter what's happening in your life today, especially if someone means you harm, know that God's intention for you is good and God will lift you high above the intended harm. Just keep holding the hand of Jesus, who will guide you through times both good and bad. Join us Sunday, and be refreshed and renewed as we worship together. It's Pot-luck Sunday, so make me something good to eat and know that You belong at Cornerstone!

Rev Sandy, Interim Pastoral Leader

Stepping Out and Stepping In

Each of us has been given a measure of faith, and we are being called to use it to step out of loneliness and isolation and into connection and belonging through our new Growth Groups. We’re not always eager to try new things and that's where faith comes in. If faith can move mountains, then surely it can move you to sign-up for a group.

In developing this new ministry, we set what seemed to be a bold goal:  a ministry coordinator, two coaches and ten group leaders. Yesterday after church we reached our goal as two people stepped forward to serve as coaches. Now all that's left is for more of you to step out in faith and join a group. I have no doubt that over the next two weeks; our groups will be filled and ready to begin the first week in October.

Our first study with be on Healthy Church Systems. For eight weeks we will be evaluating what we're doing now and asking your ideas on how we can improve eight important systems in our church. There is also an opportunity to suggest how we might expand each area in new ways. Your voice is important and it will be heard. So join a group and participate in this unique opportunity to make Cornerstone MCC even better than it is today.

You are personally invited to step out of yourself and step into a group. Sign-up today!  And I'll be looking for you in church this Sunday.

Rev Sandy, Interim Pastoral Leader