Popular culture often presents being LGBTQIA+ as being somehow incompatible with belonging to a faith community, which can cause many people from a faith background to feel increasingly isolated. However, there are actually many LGBTQIA+ affirming resources and communities available! Regardless of your faith background, there’s a way to find a welcoming, LGBTQIA+ affirming community for you!

 

We’ve collected a few links to already-existing resource pages, and have chosen to highlight a (non-exhaustive) list of communities, organizations, and resources to help you get started. If you’re looking to find a local community, some of these pages list affirming communities in different areas. If you can’t find a community listed on this page, a good search strategy is to google “LGBT friendly *community name* *name of state/city*”. An example search might be “LGBT friendly Methodist Philadelphia.”

 

A good way to tell if a community is affirming (if it is not explicitly stated, or if you are unsure) is by visiting their website and looking for a section titled something like “Statement of Faith,” “Mission and Values,” or “What We Believe” will probably either state their position outright, or at least give you a better idea. Looking for a “FAQ” section may also prove useful. Depending on where you live, it may be difficult to find an affirming group that meets locally, but there are many ways to reach out online as well. 

 

PFLAG has an FAQ for loved ones of LGBTQIA+ people regarding faith and the LGBTQIA+ community.

 

Faith resources for a variety of communities via the American College Personnel Association:

http://www.myacpa.org/csgi-ally-safezone-spiritual-resources

• Heartstrong (Religious, no specific religion, aimed at students attending religious educational institutions) http://www.heartstrong.org/

• Kinship (Seventh-Day Adventists) https://www.sdakinship.org/

• World Congress of GLBT Jews (Jewish) http://glbtjews.org/

• Axios (Eastern and Orthodox, WARNING: last updated 1997) http://www.qrd.org/qrd/www/orgs/axios/

• Emergence International (Christian Science) http://emergence-international.org/

• Canyonwalker Connections http://canyonwalkerconnections.com/ “The mission of Canyonwalker Connections, founded in 2011 by Executive Director Kathy Baldock, is to repair the division existing between social and Christian conservatives and the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community through education, training, encouragement, and dialogue in both secular and religious environments.”

 

Faith resources via PFLAG:

• Jewish: https://www.pflag.org/jewish

  • JQ Youth https://www.jqyouth.org/

  • Keshet https://www.keshetonline.org/about/

  • Reform Judaism https://reformjudaism.org/

    • https://reformjudaism.org/practice/ask-rabbi/how-does-reform-judaism-welcome-lgbtq-community

    • https://reformjudaism.org/social-justice-advocacy/civil-rights-0

 

• Non-Judeo-Christian/Abrahamic Denominations: https://www.pflag.org/blog/faith-resources-non-judeo-christianabrahamic-denominations

  • Friends for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Concerns (Society of Friends/Quakers) https://www.flgbtqc.org/

  • Galva-108 (Hindu) https://www.galva108.org/

  • Sarbat (Sikh) http://www.sarbat.net/

  • Unitarian Universalist https://www.uua.org/lgbtq/welcoming/program

  • A Common Bond (Jehovah’s Witness) http://gayxjw.org/about/

  • Gay/Lesbian Baha’i Story Project http://gaybahai.net/

  • Brethren Mennonite Council for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Interests https://www.bmclgbt.org/

  • San Fransico LGBT Sangha Resources https://www.sflgbtsangha.org/dharma-resources.html

  • Affirmation (LDS/Mormon) https://affirmation.org/who-we-are/our-vision/

 

• Muslims: https://pflag.org/resource/faith-resources-muslims

  • Arabs for Tolerance (archived page) https://web.archive.org/web/20161024180255/http://www.arabs4tolerance.org/

  • Muslims for Progressive Values http://www.mpvusa.org/

 

• Christians: https://www.pflag.org/blog/faith-resources-christians

  • Q Christian (Interdenominational) https://www.qchristian.org/

  • GayChurch.org (Interdenominational, has a interdenominational list of affirming congregations) https://www.gaychurch.org/

  • Open and Affirming Coalition (United Church of Christ) https://openandaffirming.org/

  • Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists (Baptist) http://www.awab.org/

  • Dignity USA http://www.dignityusa.org/ (Catholic--the FAQ section is particularly useful: http://www.dignityusa.org/page/frequently-asked-questions)

  • Fellowship of Reconciling Pentecostals International (Pentecostal) http://www.rpifellowship.com/

  • Integrity USA (Episcopal) http://www.integrityusa.org/

  • More Light Presbyterians (Presbyterian) https://mlp.org/

  • Reconciling Ministries Network (Methodist) https://rmnetwork.org/

  • Reconciling Works (Lutheran) http://www.reconcilingworks.org/ 

 

• Interfaith and Non-Denominational: https://www.pflag.org/nondenominational

  • Interfaith LGBTQ Toolkit (PDF, aimed at “Michigan faith groups”) http://www.uujustice.org/LGBTQ_Toolkit_Final_1-12.pdf

  • Center for LGBTQ and Gender Studies in Religion https://clgs.org/ (aimed at “three distinct but overlapping constituencies: the world of academic religious scholarship; faith communities; and lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer and transgender people and organizations. For each of these constituent groups, CLGS is committed to providing programming and support for research, resources, education for leadership, and community-building/advocacy. All programming is devoted to carrying out the Center’s fundamental mission: To advance the well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and to transform faith communities and the wider society by taking a leading role in shaping a new public discourse on religion, gender and sexuality through education, research, community building and advocacy.” https://clgs.org/about-clgs/)  

  • Institute for Welcoming Resources (“Towards a Welcoming & Inclusive Church”; interfaith) http://www.welcomingresources.org/

 

• Atheists and Humanists: https://www.pflag.org/athiesthumanist

  • LGBTQ Humanist Alliance (extension of the American Humanist Association) http://lgbthumanists.org/ 

  • Sunday Assembly https://www.sundayassembly.com/

 

LDS and Suicide Prevention Resources (has some Utah-specific ones): https://www.pflag.org/blog/lds-church-and-suicide-prevention