In a few paragraphs, provide a brief overview of your organization. Include their history, mission, and current initiatives or challenges. Why do they exist? How are they working to effect change in the community? Also give a short description of the project you are working on, including why it is important to the organization. Post this to Moodle under the thread Organization Description.
Then, read and comment on at least two other posts. What do you find interesting? What questions do you have?
Highlands United Methodist Church (UMC) was founded in 1907, and is located in five points, Birmingham Alabama. In the year 2016, at an international conference, the methodist church decided that members of the LGBTQ+ community could not serve in prominent roles in the church, and could not be married within the methodist church. This caused a huge divide amongst the individual churches in the denomination itself. This information is important to note as Highlands UMC is one of the Reconciling Ministries churches. These churches affirm LGBTQ+ people, and work to raise awareness and change the view of the Methodist Church in general.
Highlands has always been an inclusive church, which is extremily interesting as they also offer very traditional services. They blend a mixture of tradition and progressivism to make a church environment one in which anyone can feel welcome and at home, no matter how they identify, or who they love.
This idea of inclusivity is where the Open Table Project comes into play.
This is the main project that I will be working on during my time at Highlands UMC. the concept of an open table is an integral one to the Methodist Church, and christianity in general. There are references in the Bible to Jesus referring to different things, sometimes literal, others figurative, as an “open table”, and the act of taking communion in the Methodist Church is also referred to as an “open table”. This idea, no matter what is being discussed, means that everyone is welcome. This project will focus on a facebook group that is meant to educate church members on LGBTQ+ issues and inclusivity. Through a combination of research and social media work, this project will compile a multitude of resources that people can look over to help them become a better ally, understand what it means to live in the LGBTQ+ community, and how LGBTQ+ relationships and identities can work together with both tradition and the bible.