Page 12

GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE August, 1990

THE GOOD NEWS

This space has been donated to Emmanuel MCC by the Chronicle, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Chronicle staff or management.

We at Emmanuel Metropolitan Community Church trust that all of you are enjoying this beautiful summer. We certainly have been enjoying the weather. On July 1 we had a picnic at Edgewater Park followed by a Vesper Service. It was a wonderful time of singing and sharing

nally.

The Beach Party Dance is sure to be fun on July 29. I've never been to an indoor Beach Party before. We will have a DJ, lots of food, fun, good music, and an alcohol-free environment.

Now, I bet you want to know why I'm telling you about all the wonderful times we had in July. They're already past and you missed them. But now that you know that church is not just serious stuff, you'll be ready for all the wonderful times coming up.

On Sunday, August 12, we will be having a Sunday Sundae from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. We'll have all kinds of ice cream and

other goodies for everyone to enjoy at a super low price. We also will be having a name the choir contest next month.

"Find Who You Are In Christ" is the theme of the North Area Retreat. The retreat will be held this year in beautiful Tecumseh Woods, Michigan. We will be leaving on Friday evening with the first service of the retreat scheduled for 8:00 p.m. There will be all kinds of games and fun, workshops, and a special baptismal service in the lake. The entire weekend costs only $49.50 which includes housing in cosy cabins and all meals and snacks. This is a wonderful get away weekend. If you would like more information, please contact the church office.

We are interested in starting a study of the book, The Twelve Steps-A Spiritual Journey. This study is open to all people working 12-step programs of any kind or from dysfunctional families. It is a study of the 12 steps of A.A. as they relate to the Scriptures. It is a twenty-

eight week program. We would like to start meeting on Thursday evenings in late August or early September. If you are interested in this program, please contact the church office.

Summer is a wonderful time to relax and forget about the many problems that come our way. We can be outside enjoying all of creation in all of its beauty. While you're out on the lake fishing, or summing down at the beach, or just relaxing in your own backyard, take a minute to say thank you to the One who created all this beauty in the first place. And take a few minutes on Sunday to stop by Emmanuel Metropolitan Community Church and worship with us. We still meet every Sunday at 10:45 a.m. at 10034 Lorain Avenue, and our phone number is 651-0129. Remember, God doesn't take vacations.▼

God's love with each other very inforReform rabbis vote to accept gay leaders

A very special part of the evening was when we each received a balloon. We wrote on the balloon the one situation hat we had had the most trouble turning over to God. For some of us this was a oved one who had died, for others it was a broken relationship or a new relationship, for others it was a job situation. There were many different needs listed on those balloons. When we had finished we stood in a circle and prayed about hose needs. As each person felt ready o, they let go of their balloon, letting go also of the situation. It was a wonderful time of releasing those difficulties in our ives.

The park board told us we could not have a baptism in Lake Erie without a permit which would take 28 days to get, so we concluded the evening by "playing n the water." Five people were baptized ncluding one couple who were baptized ogether. It was a beautiful evening which we plan to do again the on last Sunday in August. We hope you will all come and join us at that time.

We have had many other fun times this month including a car wash and a raffle at the Five Cent Decision. We want to again thank the folks at the Five Cent Decision for all their kindness and their generosity towards the church. They are very supportive of us and we always have a great time when we go there. Be sure to tell them thanks for all their help the next time you see them.

At the Seattle conference of Reform Rabbis in June, an overwhelming majority voted to adopt a resolution to accept acknowledged gays as spiritual leaders.

This is a far-reaching decision for Reform Jews in particular and American Jews in general.

The Jewish movement is made up of four branches: Reform, Conservative, Orthodox, and the newest, 60-year-old Reconstructionist. The latter agreed long ago to accept qualified men and women into their Rabbinical College regardless of sexual orientation. Several Reconstructionist lesbians and gays have already been ordained and have pulpits. The Conservative movement quietly acknowledges that there are gay and lesbian Jews, but does not quite know how to handle the subject. Orthodox Jews are firm in the belief that homosexuality is a sin against God. To paraphrase one Orthodox rabbi: "It is all right to think about it, but a sin to act on it."

There are four gay and lesbian congregations in the United States affiliated with the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC), the umbrella organization of Reform Judaism. UAHC is not a governing body; its resolutions are guidelines that are generally followed by member congrega-

tions.

UAHC has been accepting of gays. At their regional and national conferences they have had separate workshops on gay Judaism and AIDS. Resolutions have been passed and acted upon that are favorable to gays and lesbians. A regional executive of UAHC said: "We

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learn from you, you learn from us."

The Reform rabbinical colleges (Cincinnati, Los Angeles and New York) operate autonomously from the UAHC. They never made an issue of accepting openly gay and lesbian students, but quietly did not accept them. This resolution in Seattle will solidify the Reform movement into one positive direction.

The Cleveland Jewish News conducted a telephone survey of area rabbis. The majority were in favor of the decision. Some accepted with certain reservations and a small group was negative. One of the negative responses: “unless a man is Torah observant he cannot teach or

חברר תקוה

חקוה

Chevrei Tikva

The Cleveland Religious and Social nization for Gay and Lesbian Jews This space has been donated to Chevrei Tikva by the Chronicle, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Chronicle staff or management. Rosh Hashonah and Yom Kippur (Jewish New Year and Day of Atonement)

Chevrei Tikva, Cleveland's gay and lesbian synagogue, will celebrate the High Holidays in a customary family manner Wednesday, September 19 at 6:30 p.m. On Erev Rosh Hashanah we will have a dinner as a family at a local restaurant (call the hotline for details) following at 8:30 p.m. with a service led by Gregg at our place of worship, the Unitarian Society at 2728 Lancashire Road, near Coventry in Cleveland Heights.

Thursday September 20 at 10:30 a.m. Rosh Hashanah services will be led by Mark, with a Honey-cake oneg to follow. A 1:00 p.m. luncheon will be held that same day at a local restaurant, call for details.

On Friday September 21, there will be no services due to High Holiday schedule. Friday September 28, we will meet at 6:30 for dinner at local restaurant, and at 8:30 that evening services will be led by Paul.

Saturday September 29 at 10:30 a.m. services will be led by Mark. On that same day an afternoon service and pot luck breakfast will be held at Paul's house.

As we gather to thank God for the new year we are also mindful of others that might not have a family here to celebrate

lead." His masculine terminology is highlighted here as he seems to exclude women from being qualified to be Torah observant. The Torah is the first five books of the Old Testament, or the Five Books of Moses. It is here that the infamous passage about homosexuality appears.

However, reading both Old and New Testaments, there is no law that says you may observe one law and ignore others. There have been no reports in the media stating that God spoke to someone through a burning bush and said it is okay to ignore laws that are not convenient, but go get those gays and lesbians.▼

High Holidays with. We invite any one who might wish to join us to please call our hotline at 932-5551 for more information.

May you be inscribed for a good year, L'Shanah Tovah Tikosevu.

Chevrei Tikva was founded almost seven years ago by a handful of men and women who believed in their religion and their lifestyle. During those years the membership has grown significantly. However, more importantly, the stature of the group has grown. There have been three guest rabbis in the past few years (with a fourth scheduled for August). Several guests have spoken at services or educational seminars. At a recent weekend, a lesbian Reconstructionist rabbi conducted a seminar and two services interspersed with warm social events. Many rabbis in the community support our efforts to bring Judaism into the lives of people who may not feel comfortable celebrating their religion in a mainstream congregation.

Chevrei Tikva's own outreach program has included boat cruises in conjunction with Dignity to raise money for gay and lesbian causes; sponsoring a Cleveland performance of the Detroit Gay Men's Chorus in 1987; a Midwest regional conference of gay and lesbian Jews in 1988; and food drives for persons

with AIDS in 1989 and 1990.

Chevrei Tikva is a member of the World Congress of Gay and Lesbian Jews, an umbrella organization for more than 40 groups around the world. From a handful of people seven years ago, Chevrei Tikva has become a well established, complete synagogue meeting the spiritual, social, and educational needs of the gay and lesbian community.▼

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