When the Basis of Union (Faith Statement) for the soon-to-be United Church of Canada was being developed in the early 1900s, a majority of those on the committee voted for each theological statement. However, no one voted in favour of every one of the statements. Each person could find something in the Basis of Union in which they whole-heartedly believed, but no one claimed to whole-heartedly believe every single statement. From the very beginning, our church has made room for diversity of belief and being. From the very beginning, the United Church has understood that each individual is responsible for their own relationship...

       Through this year, we have held supportive gatherings for people and families in the LGBTQ+ community, provided educational and letter writing materials, made PRIDE buttons, served pie on PIE (Public, Intentional and Explicit) Day, worked with High River Pride to host a Rainbow booth for the Little Britches parade and supported their initiative for the Rainbow Crosswalk by The Venue. We have lived our commitment to be an oasis of inclusion in this community: Rooted in the love of God & grounded in the teaching of Jesus, High River United Church is a community of help, home, hope and...

Much is being said about those who choose to “de-transition” as a reason for enacting the proposed Alberta Government’s gender policies. Here are the facts: For those who go through transitioning, the regret rate is less than 1%, and for some that regret is temporary and they then embrace the transition. Keep in mind that all of us may regret some decisions in our lives, especially ones that involve significant changes (such as moving houses, switching or quitting a job, marriage, not taking an offered job, etc.)  That also means that 99% of those who transition are happy with their decision....

Diversity makes the world go round. We have diversity all around us. Think of the variety of flowers, trees, birds and animals. We delight in the mountains and prairies, rivers, creeks and fields. In our community, think of the variety of sports opportunities, bike paths and roads for all sorts of vehicles, music events from classical to country and more, art galleries, rodeos, parades, festivals and more. There is something for everyone! Think of the variety of faiths – Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Baha’i, Wiccan and more all in our community. Think of the variety of people – all sorts of colours, genders,...

To all those who offer mothering love in so many ways, to birth mothers, adopted mothers, stepmothers, foster mothers, chosen mothers, grandmothers & godmothers, to soon-to-be mothers and those yearning to be mothers, to those of all genders who offer tender care and understanding to children, to all who are missing their mothers and those grieving for their mothers, to broken-hearted mothers grieving for their children, gone too soon, and to all who carry pain in their hearts as mothers or because of mothers,   we pray that you will know God's presence with you as you mark this day, whatever it...

       As human beings, we are naturally more comfortable with those we consider the same as us. “Samesies” is one of the first ways of forming a relationship with another human being. This is also a survival instinct. We feel we can trust someone who is the “same.” Yet we must also remember that what we consider the ‘same’ is a learned concept. As human beings, we are able to move beyond “samesies” in our relationships and discover the wonder of diversity and the richness it brings to our lives and relationships. While we might not feel we understand another person, because...

As Paul wrote in Galatians 3:28, “There is no longer Jew or Greek; slave or free; male or female, all of you are one in Christ.“ Jesus was not afraid to interact with, eat with, and welcome into his band of disciples those who were rejected, cast out, considered inferior/untouchable and judged by the rest of his society. The love of Jesus is unconditional. Radical inclusion is necessary when following the Way of Jesus.  That's why we include people of the LGBTQ+ spectrum in all of our work and worship as a community of Jesus. ...

  Here are some important statistics related to trans youth:             (from a 2019 Canadian Medical Association Youth Health survey)  -77% of trans-youth have avoided using public washrooms for fear of being harassed, assaulted or outed as trans -66% do not feel safe in school washrooms -58% are not comfortable talking to their health practitioner about gender care -transgender youth are 5 times more likely to think about suicide and 7.6 times more likely to attempt it, compared to other youth. -only 47% of trans and non-binary youth live in their felt gender full-time, 38% live it...

Did you know that approximately 1% of the world’s population are transgender? In the 2021 census in Canada, of those age 15 and older, less than 1% identified as transgender/non-binary: 0.19% identified as transgender and 0.14% identified as non-binary. The data shows that out of the 4.2 million Albertans aged 15 and older, 99.63 per cent are cisgender, meaning they identify the same as their sex at birth. That means that only a fraction of one per cent of Albertans, 7,305, are transgender Albertans — 3,420 transgender men and 3,880 transgender women. Another 5,170 Albertans are non-binary, meaning they may identify as gender-fluid,...

The process toward gender transition is a long and thoughtful one right now, based on current medical and mental health practices, with no new legislation needed. First, the trans youth and their parent(s) need to come out to their family doctor, if they have one. The family doctor then needs to agree to refer them to the gender care clinic. The gender care clinic team accompanying a trans youth and their parent(s) includes nurses, therapists, doctors, and a psychiatrist. Currently, the psychiatrist, who has to sign off on any hormone therapy, has a one year wait list. If there is...