Reverend Gordon Wiersma has been a pastor at Hope Church, a Reformed Church in America (RCA) congregation in Holland, MI, since 1999. Earlier this year, Hope Church made the decision to become a Room For All Church.

Room For All is a non-profit organization advocating for the full participation of LGBT persons in the life and ministry of the RCA.

Reverend Wiersma reflects on the importance of publicly becoming a fully inclusive congregation:

Hope Church has been a welcoming and affirming congregation in practice for some years now, but recently taking the more formal step of becoming a “Room for All Church” has been important and energizing for us.

The decicision has freed us to be more publicly intentional about expressing this aspect of our congregation’s identity, and it has motivated us to find ways to use this designation as both witness and invitation to our community.

Within our congregation, while the decision of approving the Room for All Church designation has been a significant source of joy and celebration, the decision process has also continued to teach us the importance of listening to and valuing all perspectives and voices.

We believe that through a faithful process and deicision, the Spirit has blessed us with a fruitful way of living out our witness to God’s grace and gifts for all people.

To find a welcoming & affirming congregation in your area, check out our Welcoming Church Map.

Photo via Hope Church