FCCSJ Open and Affirming Statement of Inclusion
“Open and Affirming (ONA)” is an official designation of congregations within the United Church of Christ (UCC) that publicly declare a covenant of Open welcome of LGBTQ+ persons and Affirming their full inclusion into all aspects of the life and ministry of the church
As a church that welcomes and promotes diversity and acceptance, First Congregational Church of San Jose voted to become Open and Affirming in 1998 and officially adopted our Open and Affirming Statement of inclusion. Our Church Council recently voted to revise the statement to be clearer and more explicitly inclusive and to be more consistent with the current UCC Open and Affirming Coalition Guidelines. This proposed Open and Affirming statement will be presented to the congregation for official approval at our January 2023 annual meeting:
We are an Open and Affirming congregation, which means that we value and affirm every human being as a unique Child of God, including persons of any race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, socio-economic status, or physical, mental, or emotional abilities.
We are a diverse and accepting community that welcomes everyone of any or no faith to participate fully in all facets of the life and ministry of our congregation.
The ONA Coalition of the United Church of Christ
The Open and Affirming Coalition of the United Church of Christ advocates for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in the UCC, and equips UCC congregations to become effective witnesses to Christ’s extravagant welcome. The Coalition’s core ministry is the growing movement of Open and Affirming (ONA) churches in the United Church of Christ. ONA is now the largest and fastest-growing LGBT-welcoming movement in the Body of Christ. We welcomed ONA church #1 in 1986 and church #1,000 in 2012. Today there are more than 1,700 ONA congregations in the UCC.