Supportive Congregations NetworkPress Release Reporting on the "Dancing at the Table" GatheringFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 28-30, 1996 N. Manchester, Ind. "DANCING AT THE TABLE" ATTRACTS YOUNG AND OLDMore than 300 people, from infants to elders, gathered together in North Manchester, Indiana the weekend of June 28-30, for two days of worship, workshops, storytelling and music. The Supportive Church Network (SCN) Conference, entitled "Dancing at the Table: Re-Imagining the Church," was an event which invited participants to imagine and celebrate an inclusive church. Filled with powerful Scriptural imagery, Biblical stories of rejection and redemption, original musical compositions, and stories from congregations and individuals, the conference evoked expressions of joy and grieving from those in attendance. The conference began on Friday evening with a gathering service of worship. At the center of the worship space stood a block wall covered with graffiti, symbolizing the barrier that many have felt because of their individual or congregational welcome of gay, lesbian and bisexual Christians. During the service the wall was converted into a table of welcome as participants reflected upon a dramatic reading from the Acts story of Peter and Cornelius and heard stories from members of Germantown (PA) Mennonite Church and La Verne (CA) Church of the Brethren. Saturday morning during worship, the story of the Syro-Phoenician woman's encounter with Jesus was presented through drama and Lee Krahenbuhl led the congregation in a rousing rendition of "We Are Not Going Away." Participants then heard the story of the St. Paul (MN) Mennonite Fellowship, an urban congregation which lost all conference mission funds one year ago because of their welcoming of gay, lesbian and bisexual people. Participants were invited to reflect upon the crumbs of rejection while dancers brought plates of hard crumbs through the rows of worshippers. Some participants reached out and took the rock hard crumbs in their hands, visibly moved and shaken by the imagery of inadequate nourishment which the crumbs represented. Then the dancers came forth with baskets of round rolls. Accompanied by the song, "Bring the Feast to Every Hillside," the dancers threw bread out to the worshippers, who reached up to grasp the rolls and turned to spontaneously share fresh bread with those nearby. Worship concluded with this joyous experience of being fed nourishing bread by a God who is Host of every good feast, where none sit under the table, but all have a place of honor. The remainder of Saturday morning was devoted to "New Models for Dialogue," a time of learning and small group work led by Sharon Knechel and Dennis Koehn. Despite the hot, sticky weather and un-airconditioned facilities, participants worked together for an hour and a half on sharing models for healthy dialogue. Saturday afternoon, conference participants had the opportunity to attend one caucus group and two workshops. Workshops ranged from Dale Brown's "What in our Anabaptist and Pietist Traditions Leads us to be Radically Welcoming," to "Dances of Welcome," led by Linda Schlabach Miller. "Stories of Rejection and Redemption" was the theme of Saturday evening's gathering. Biblical stories of rejection and redemption were woven together with music and personal stories which illustrated the pain of being on the margins of the church and which also reminded participants that the Spirit of God is powerfully present where the rejected and dejected lay their heads. The evening was concluded with caramel popcorn and cold watermelon on the lawn outside the worship facility. Sunday morning worship left worshippers with an anointing and a blessing at the conclusion of conference. Bowls of water were brought to the table and participants were invited to be anointed and to anoint one another with water: on the cheeks to symbolize the tears of rejection, on the lips to represent the power of speaking the truth, and on the hands to symbolize our unity with one another. Participants, young children and gray-haired grandparents alike, filled the floor of the worship space in a time of anointing that brought forth tears, hugs of assurance and promises to pray for one another as time drew near for parting. DANCING AT THE TABLE was more than an event. It became a home of the Spirit for two days--an experience which will enable many of those who gathered there to live on in courage and in faith. A conference participant reflected, " This is the first time I have been able to fully participate in worship without feeling like an impostor. I didn't realize how much I have been missing until I was able to feel the effect of being fully celebrative - both of God and of myself." Many participants noted that the times of sharing, and the worship planned by Deanna Brown, Anita Smith Buckwalter and Bertha Landers were highlights of the weekend. One participant commented, "If this is what the people of God can come up with, what will heaven be like!" There are currently forty-eight Mennonite and Church of the Brethren congregations which welcome gay, lesbian and bisexual members and an additional fifty-two congregations are listed as "Exploring Congregations" through SCN. Several hundred individuals who may or may not be members of supportive congregations have recently identified themselves as "Friends of SCN." For more information about the Supportive Congregations Network, or to order an SCN resource materials write to PO Box 6300, Minneapolis, MN 55406. Phone (612) 305-0315. Address e-mail requests to scnetwork@aol.com Press release written by Pastor Helen Wells Quintela, a participant at Dancing at the Table. Visit the BMC Home Page |
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