A Prayer for Sundays:

Almighty God, who hast given a day of rest to Thy people, and, through Thy Spirit in the Church, hast consecrated the first day of the week to be a perpetual memorial of Thy Son's resurrection: Grant that we may so use Thy gift that, refreshed and strengthened in soul and body, we may serve Thee faithfully all the days of our life; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Do you go to church on Sunday?

I am. It has been a roller coaster week, and I go to an Anglo-Catholic (Anglican church that has very Catholic-style worship) parish that does Mass every Sunday. My church friend and I are trying to start regular Rosary prayer before Mass, and it's the one Day when I can participate in the Divine Liturgy, feast upon the Scriptures, and worship and love Christ in the Blessed Sacrament (the Eucharist).

It's a blessing for me to have this parish because it keeps traditional Christianity and can be theologically conservative, and yet it is socially liberal: it is queer affirming, female affirming, and does not take regard on social or economic statuses of anyone.

I love going to Mass. It actually invigorates me!

Happy Sunday, y'all!

I go with my grandmother sometimes and sit next to her.  Makes her happy in her old age. 

Quote from: Darkie on May 26, 2013, 02:42:27 AM
I go with my grandmother sometimes and sit next to her.  Makes her happy in her old age.

That is so sweet of you to do that! I find that those grandparents who ARE accepting of such persons as us, tend to be the most accepting! Such are the little blessings in life!

I do go to church but it's more complicate for me.  I know first hand that the pastor of my church doesn't affirm me being transgender.  I know this because my sister is the head pastor and I came out to her last year and she wasn't supportive. I go to my church because I am one of the children's teachers.  I always joke with her that since I rarely pay attention to the main service (and on some occasions even bring comic books or magazines to read), that she has me over the children  since I can actually get the Word in by teaching them.

It's to the point where if i don't have to teach class, then I won't go and if I do go it's either because I thought I was teaching or my mother forces me to go. 

This may sound horrible, but it's just hard for me to listen to her preach since I know she doesn't accept me and it hurts since it's family. 


To make up for it, I do try to listen to some preaching on Youtube. 

Also, I've always wanted to go to a mass.  I love the beautiful Catholic churches I see on tv and online.  I have seen one on live streaming and it was very peaceful.

Do you go to church on Sunday?

No

Congratulations Rahel. I am very involved with the Catholic Church and attend Mass regularly. Why not say the Rosary daily at home like me ? Unfortunately many of the members here are non believers but I keep praying for them

Quote from: JoanneL on May 26, 2013, 04:27:21 AM
Congratulations Rahel. I am very involved with the Catholic Church and attend Mass regularly. Why not say the Rosary daily at home like me ? Unfortunately many of the members here are non believers but I keep praying for them

I do say the Rosary every day, although I am beginning to pray the Daily Office (or the Divine Office... it is integral to Anglican spirituality, but pretty sparse with Catholic laity). My friend and I, former Roman Catholics, are trying to foster devotion to the Rosary amongst other Anglicans. At the moment our parish only does the Rosary during Lent and during May, before Mass.

I used to be a Roman Catholic since my family deeply entrenched me in its culture and spirituality. However, there are Anglican parishes that are supportive of people like us, and since then I have adopted Anglican Christianity as my vehicle for sacramental life.

That is so sweet of you to pray for the members of this forum! Since Christ is for all, His Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, is also our Mother, and thus she has compassion for those who desire acceptance and love in this life. May she bless us and guide us to her beloved Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Quote from: Malachite on May 26, 2013, 04:07:45 AM
I do go to church but it's more complicate for me.  I know first hand that the pastor of my church doesn't affirm me being transgender.  I know this because my sister is the head pastor and I came out to her last year and she wasn't supportive. I go to my church because I am one of the children's teachers.  I always joke with her that since I rarely pay attention to the main service (and on some occasions even bring comic books or magazines to read), that she has me over the children  since I can actually get the Word in by teaching them.

It's to the point where if i don't have to teach class, then I won't go and if I do go it's either because I thought I was teaching or my mother forces me to go. 

This may sound horrible, but it's just hard for me to listen to her preach since I know she doesn't accept me and it hurts since it's family. 


To make up for it, I do try to listen to some preaching on Youtube. 

Also, I've always wanted to go to a mass.  I love the beautiful Catholic churches I see on tv and online.  I have seen one on live streaming and it was very peaceful.

There are some Catholic parishes in the United States that are welcoming and affirming, but most are not. It can be difficult at times.

Yes, the Mass (or its better name, the Divine Liturgy) is beautiful and sacred. It centres on the veritable Presence of Christ in the Eucharist (the Bread and Wine consecrated as the Body and Blood of Christ), and union with Jesus through the Eucharist. I was taught that if you are participating in the Divine Liturgy, you are worshipping as the saints have done in times past, and in the presence of the angels. It causes us to meditate upon Christ in the Scriptures, in prayer, and in the Blessed Sacrament (the Eucharist).

I hope that your situation improves eventually! It must be so difficult to deal with a family member who is a clergyperson, and yet the same is not able to fathom tolerance and acceptance towards queer people!

If you have mobility and you want to check out what Mass is like, you can check out an affirming or welcoming Anglo-Catholic (Anglican) parish, and who knows, you might like that!

But seriously, I hope things get better.

Quote from: Rahel on May 27, 2013, 12:52:41 AM
There are some Catholic parishes in the United States that are welcoming and affirming, but most are not. It can be difficult at times.

Yes, the Mass (or its better name, the Divine Liturgy) is beautiful and sacred. It centres on the veritable Presence of Christ in the Eucharist (the Bread and Wine consecrated as the Body and Blood of Christ), and union with Jesus through the Eucharist. I was taught that if you are participating in the Divine Liturgy, you are worshipping as the saints have done in times past, and in the presence of the angels. It causes us to meditate upon Christ in the Scriptures, in prayer, and in the Blessed Sacrament (the Eucharist).

I hope that your situation improves eventually! It must be so difficult to deal with a family member who is a clergyperson, and yet the same is not able to fathom tolerance and acceptance towards queer people!

If you have mobility and you want to check out what Mass is like, you can check out an affirming or welcoming Anglo-Catholic (Anglican) parish, and who knows, you might like that!

But seriously, I hope things get better.

Quote from: Rahel on May 26, 2013, 02:55:26 AM
That is so sweet of you to do that! I find that those grandparents who ARE accepting of such persons as us, tend to be the most accepting! Such are the little blessings in life!

Well, no one in my family know anything of my gender issues.  But even if my grandma did, I am pretty sure she would still love me for who I am.  She's starting to go a little so at this point she is happy just to be with the ones she loves.

I work shift work as a landlady/manager/barmaid of a guest house and hardly ever have a Sunday off.I was a bus driver before and had very few Sundays off but I used to go to the local Methodist church.I enjoyed it,it was a beautiful Art Nouveau styled building 100 years old at the time with ornate wood carving and lots of stained leaded glass the atmosphere was so peaceful and tranquil.There was another MtF and an Ftm went there,I used to make food for the homeless and needy people on Wednesday at the drop in centre there.

I DO go to church, almost every Sunday. However, I do not enjoy it as much as I used to.

My pastor is what I'd call "trans/homophobic," and I actually lost my faith in the church after a comment he made regarding my state's attempt to allow transgender/transsexuals to use the bathrooms they are most comfortable with.

I think Catholic churches are really pretty. I don't understand all their rituals, being a non-demoninational...thing.

Sundays I'm usually at one church or another. My home church is the Congregational Chruch of San Mateo, but I've also recently gotten involved with the Center for Spiritual Living in Menlo Park. I'm out and accepted at both places, and I find being there with them to be a truly helpful thing to me.

Quote from: big kim on May 27, 2013, 02:11:06 AM
I work shift work as a landlady/manager/barmaid of a guest house and hardly ever have a Sunday off.I was a bus driver before and had very few Sundays off but I used to go to the local Methodist church.I enjoyed it,it was a beautiful Art Nouveau styled building 100 years old at the time with ornate wood carving and lots of stained leaded glass the atmosphere was so peaceful and tranquil.There was another MtF and an Ftm went there,I used to make food for the homeless and needy people on Wednesday at the drop in centre there.

That sounds pretty beautiful. I do like old churches, and Methodism is kind of close to Anglicanism as well. My parish is quite stripped of its decor (but that is only because we had so many vandalisms and things stolen at our church... it's situated in the ghettoes of the city), but the people and the liturgy is beautiful! As far as I know, I am the only transsexual in the parish, but we have plenty of cis-male gays there. 

High Mass at St. James Anglican Church

There is a United Church in the city that is a remnant of the Methodist tradition; it is such a beautiful church, with hard stone slabs and decorated glass windows!

Quote from: VenomGaia on May 27, 2013, 03:39:51 AM
I DO go to church, almost every Sunday. However, I do not enjoy it as much as I used to.

My pastor is what I'd call "trans/homophobic," and I actually lost my faith in the church after a comment he made regarding my state's attempt to allow transgender/transsexuals to use the bathrooms they are most comfortable with.

I think Catholic churches are really pretty. I don't understand all their rituals, being a non-demoninational...thing.

A lot of the Anglo-Catholic (Anglican), Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Eastern Orthodox, etc. rituals are part of ancient Christianity and have been passed down since the early Church.

We bow at the name of Jesus when it is heard during the service. We genuflect towards the altar to show that every knee shall bow to the Lord.

We do the Sign of the Cross because it is not only a prayer to the Trinity, but also to show that God incarnated down to Earth, was raised in Ressurection and Ascension, and granted us the Holy Spirit. The two extended fingers represent the nature of Christ being True God and True Man, and the three other fingers also represent the Trinity.

These are a few... there are many signs and symbols in these Churches, and deeply enrich prayer life.

I feel terribly sorry that you have to deal with a queer-phobic pastor. Would you be able to move to another church instead? That is what I did, as I do believe in congregational worship, but not in one where people assume gender or sexual orientation to be a sin!

Quote from: Constance on May 27, 2013, 11:23:49 AM
Sundays I'm usually at one church or another. My home church is the Congregational Chruch of San Mateo, but I've also recently gotten involved with the Center for Spiritual Living in Menlo Park. I'm out and accepted at both places, and I find being there with them to be a truly helpful thing to me.

That is so lovely! I am glad that you are practicing spirituality and prayer in places that accept you! I find the United Church of Christ (or United Church of Canada, as we have it here) very inspiring places of worship. Some of the more rural United Churches I have been to have been quite Jesus-centered, and the more urbanite congregations tend to be more 'God-centered' churches. If it wasn't for the Anglican Church of Canada, I would have been worshipping in a United Church instead!

Thank you, Constance, for sharing your church; the website seems to be pictured with happy people!

As a former Anglican, I was under the impression that transubstantiation was not recognised by that church.






Asuote author=Rahel link=topic=141538.msg1148876#msg1148876 date=1369633961]
There are some Catholic parishes in the United States that are welcoming and affirming, but most are not. It can be difficult at times.

Yes, the Mass (or its better name, the Divine Liturgy) is beautiful and sacred. It centres on the veritable Presence of Christ in the Eucharist (the Bread and Wine consecrated as the Body and Blood of Christ), and union with Jesus through the Eucharist. I was taught that if you are participating in the Divine Liturgy, you are worshipping as the saints have done in times past, and in the presence of the angels. It causes us to meditate upon Christ in the Scriptures, in prayer, and in the Blessed Sacrament (the Eucharist).

I hope that your situation improves eventually! It must be so difficult to deal with a family member who is a clergyperson, and yet the same is not able to fathom tolerance and acceptance towards queer people!

If you have mobility and you want to check out what Mass is like, you can check out an affirming or welcoming Anglo-Catholic (Anglican) parish, and who knows, you might like that!

But seriously, I hope things get better.
[/quote]

I used to look forward to every time I went to church and was heavily involved but I'm no longer attending.  I've thought about going to this one church which is LGBT inclusive but my parents, although they can't do anything about it really, would be very upset if I went.  I wish I could just go to church without having to worry about anything.  I miss my old church, a lot, but I don't feel as though I can go back :/ It's been a year and a half since I've attended anywhere. 

Quote from: JoanneL on May 28, 2013, 06:15:03 PM
As a former Anglican, I was under the impression that transubstantiation was not recognised by that church.

Absolutely not true. Anglican Christians believe in the 'Real Presence' of Christ in the Eucharist, but Real Presence is not defined. So those at my parish have a much more 'Apostolic understanding' than the more evangelical Anglicans who define it differently.

This allows for difference of opinion, and is a very similar stance with the Orthodox Church and how they view the Eucharist: as a mystery that can not be defined. Some Anglicans believe similarily to transubstantiation, while others, consubstantiation, and yet others different theories.

The Book of Common Prayer is not definitive, but it is a historical witness to the flux of the time period between the Roman Church rule and the Puritans and Reformers.

Quote from: Asa on May 29, 2013, 09:34:59 AM
I used to look forward to every time I went to church and was heavily involved but I'm no longer attending.  I've thought about going to this one church which is LGBT inclusive but my parents, although they can't do anything about it really, would be very upset if I went.  I wish I could just go to church without having to worry about anything.  I miss my old church, a lot, but I don't feel as though I can go back :/ It's been a year and a half since I've attended anywhere.

That sounds so terrible for you and having to deal with parents! I would have just gone to the other church, but some have more respect in dealing with their parents than others. I see it more as a form of maturation of agency for a person: eventually a child will become an adult and can make eir own independent choices.

I know that God loves you and everyone, and you don't really need church to worship or love God, but it still is nice to be in association with like-minded souls who want to grow spiritually together. I hope things get better with your own self and with the difficulties that may surround your life!