Siblings in Christ,
I write today on behalf of the UKirk Collegiate Ministries Association Board of Directors to share our strong support for the Olympia Overture (POL-01). We believe the overture calls each of us to value the beautiful diversity of the Body of Christ, while also inviting all of us called to serve in ordered ministries to imagine how our welcome can be as full and complete as God’s welcome to each of us in Jesus Christ.
For generations, collegiate ministries across the country have been where the gospel and culture intersect at state schools, private college and university campuses, and PC(USA)-related schools. A hallmark of each of these ministries has been the radical welcome of Jesus Christ to both Presbyterian students and all those who seek to experience and explore God’s all-inclusive love so that they may be empowered to use their gifts for the flourishing of themselves, the church, and the world. Today, many UKirk Network Ministries embody this value of welcome and inclusivity by being the only, or one of only a few, Christian ministries on their college campus that are open and affirming to LGBTQIA+ students on campuses with 20 or more Christian ministries that often seek to undermine the full inclusion of our LGBTQIA+ siblings in the church.
We believe that adding gender identity and sexual orientation to the list already articulated in F 1.0403 of “race, ethnicity, age, sex, disability, geography, or theological conviction” strengthens our witness that our unity in Christ transcends any difference we may have, and calls the whole church to live into God’s vision for a church where we are all children of God through faith. (Galatians 3:26)
In addition to articulating the PC(USA)’s commitment to non-discrimination in F 1.0403, we believe the Olympia Overture offers all who are called to serve in ordered ministries throughout the church an opportunity to intentionally imagine how they, in their context, may be called to live into God’s vision of a church whose witness is one of welcome and inclusion of all.
As a 501c3 organization born from our own General Assembly Overture 98-63 at the 219th General Assembly in 2010, the mission of the UKirk Collegiate Ministries Association is to connect, equip, and empower local collegiate ministries and the broader church to co-create beloved communities with students on campuses across the United States for the restoration and transformation of the world.
We believe the adoption of Overture POL-01 is an opportunity for the whole church to live out our call to co-create beloved communities of faith where each person has a place, and where we can all strive to be witnesses of Christ’s ministry of love, justice, and peace.
We are deeply aware of the immense amount of work that commissioners, OGA and PMA staff, PC(USA) leadership and volunteers will put in over the coming weeks to discern the Holy Spirit’s guidance, and are grateful for the time, energy, and prayerful consideration of all involved in the 226th General Assembly. Please be in prayer for all GA commissioners and PC(USA) leadership in the coming weeks as they offer their gifts and time in service to the greater church.
In Christ,
Rev. Gini Norris-Lane, Executive Director, UKirk Collegiate Ministries Association