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.

by Roger

Hello gay and lesbian Cleveland.

Have any of us stopped and noticed how the words "gay" and "lesbian" are packing more and more of a meaning and notoriety than ever before? Both words, together or separate, evoke quite a stirring among the mainstream society. Perhaps one day I may understand why "straight" people get so riled up so easily concerning us, but for the life of me, I cannot understand why our own community can get so torn up and critical of each other.

Recently, "Emmanuel Metropolitan Community Church" has been publicly criticized for not having the words "gay and lesbian" or reference to homosexuality within our church's title. Why anyone in our community would want to question our title is puzzling indeed.

First of all, the primary word to look at should be "church". Emmanuel is a church, not a function, not a coffee klatsch, not a social gathering, nor anything like that. It is a church. It does not play at being a church. It is a church. A church does not need to be labeled, for it stands for one thing only. It is a gathering place for people of all walks of life to join together to worship God. When we get to heaven, God will not say, "Which church are you from? That gay one? That straight one?" No, God will say, "I am only concerned that you were in a church, and there for the right reason. The reason of Faith, and of Christianity."

There are no Baptists or Catholics in heaven, or homo or heterosexuals there; just washed in the blood, Christ born-again chil-

dren. Amen!

Second key point is the word "community" in our name. We serve a whole community. True, 98 percent of our attendance is from the homosexual community. We are the ones who founded the church for our own spiritual needs, joining with the Fellowship later. Even so, we do not turn someone away because they are not homosexual. We have children in our service who cannot know what preference means, as well as, parents and friends of our community, too. Anyone who

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GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE

enters through our doors will know we serve a gay-lesbian community, but all are welcome equally.

So, if there is any doubt we are a church, who we serve, or why, your answer is: Emmanuel Metropolitan Community Church is a church serving the gay-lesbian community with the intent to allow the freedom of expression among ourselves, of any denomination, to the one God on high. Emmanuel is a home. So, on behalf of my

NORTH COAST MEN'S CHORUS

Our fourth season has begun and it promises to be an exciting one. The holiday concert date has been set for Sunday, Dec. 15th, at 7:30 p.m. We have booked the auditorium at the Metro campus of Cuyahoga Community College for the holiday show.

Invitations have gone out to four gay men's choruses to join us at our Invitational Concert in March, and we hope to hear from them soon. Check the Chronicle next month for details on our June concert.

Regular rehearsals began Sunday, Sept. 15th, and will continue each Sunday through the season. Our booths at Dancin' in the Streets and the NOCI picnic were successful in attracting new members to the group. We will continue to accept new members for the December performance through the first week of October. If you want to share your musical talent with your community and have a lot of fun as well, come join us. Stop by Judson Manor, at E. 107th St. and Chester, on Sunday, Oct. 6th for voice placement.

You've all heard about the talent show being sponsored by the LesbianGay Community Service Center on Nov. 16th. The Coastliners, the chamber performance group of the NCMC, auditioned in September and will be performing along with many wonderful acts at the Civic in Cleveland Heights. This is for a good cause and will be a great time, so mark your calendars and don't miss it.

As we start our fourth concert season, we look back on a lot of growth and hard work, and we'd like to thank our supporters for their time and enthusiasm. We look forward to providing another season of good music for our audience, and a reason to be proud of our community.

For information on membership, tickets to the upcoming season, ad space in our concert program or becoming a patron, please write to the NCMC, P.O. Box 15181, Cleveland, OH 44115, or call 473-8919. ▼

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family, I invite you to our doors at 10:45 a.m. on Sunday mornings for a worship service, and at 7:00 p.m. Wednesday nights for a time of prayer, solitude if desired, or just to talk to someone from the church if you need it. For more information call 651-0129.

Until next month, peace and God bless.▼

Center

Continued from page 19

Scholars take Note! The Center is now welcoming applications for Internships (on-site practicums) which will be available, for college credit, to students in these and related areas: Gay and Lesbian History, Adolescent Sexuality, and Not-for-Profit Management. Please contact the Center for further information, 522-1999.

Report from the Front: The "Stop Hate Radio" campaign is progressing: the management of WMJI needs to hear from each one of us, that we will be turning their station off until they stop serving up such large helpings of ugly prejudice against gays and lesbians in the form of tasteless and vulgur humor. We need to keep the letters coming. Write today, to:

Dean Thacker

Station Manager, WMJI 310 Lakeside Ave. Cleveland, OH 44114

Position Opening

Adminstrative Assistant for the Lesbian/Gay Community Service Center. Full-time, 9:00am-5:00 p.m., Monday-Friday. Salary-high teens. Call Leigh Robertson at 522-1999. The Center is an equal opportunity

ployer.▼

em-

GLET.

PRESENTS

HOWL AT THE MOONLIGHT BOWL

166 3

THAT MOONLIGHT MADNESS

IS BACK IN SEASON!

DOORS OPEN 10:30

BOWLING BEGINS 11:00

SATURDAY, OCT. 19, 1991

You'll Howl,

You'll Laugh,

You'll Want to Come Back!

Door Prizes

Music

Bar

Raffles

•$7 per person/ 3 games

• Free shoe rental

• Guarded parking

FUTURE MOONLIGHT BOWLS: DEC. 7

JAN. 18

MAR.14

1500 Superior Avenue

Ambassador Superior Lanes

WATCH FOR OUR

ROLLERSKATING

PARTIES!

ON:

7:30pm to 10pm,

NOV. 21

AT UNITED SKATES OF AMERICA

FEB. 6

6677 Pearl Road

APR. 16