We are not as alone as we think
This past weekend I was thrilled to attend, in person, the Evolving Faith conference in Minneapolis, MN. Normally a conference of over 50 people would send me into a deep compulsion to hide in a blanket fort! But not this one. Evolving Faith is an online community of almost 12,000 people, with about 1,000 attending the conference in person and I don’t know how many online. And I couldn’t wait!
Evolving Faith began 5 years ago in the imaginations of Sarah Bessey and the late Rachel Held Evans. In their writing, speaking, and social media engagement, they were meeting people from all over the world who were sharing the same experience: their spirituality was expanding beyond what the church could contain.
They had questions, and nowhere to go to seek answers. They were, for the most part, LGBTQIA+ or allies, and could no longer stomach the outright rejection of their being or were no longer happy to receive the crumbs under the table. They wanted a faith that lived in their hands and feet, feeding the hungry and living in justice. And, most critically, they longed for community. Sarah and Rachel called these people “wanderers.”
Now, if you are reading this post, whether you have attended a Harbor gathering or not, I have a hunch that this sounds a lot like you. It certainly sounds exactly like me!
I am an Anglican priest and I still serve in that capacity in my region from time to time. I am at home in Anglicanism, and I have a family here. Still, my attachment to the national and international institutions that govern my vocation and community has diminished considerably in the past few years. I’m tired of Church being the one place where my sexuality faces the most opposition. I can no longer stomach the death and torture wrought by our leaders against Indigenous children right up into the 1980s. I am fed up with appealing to the hearts of leaders to help abuse victims—hearts that are intentionally hidden behind a wall of liability protection.
Thus began my second deconstruction. Thankfully, I had followed Harbor on Twitter, and so found a community of wanderers just like me.
Harbor is unique. I don’t know of any other online community quite like us, ministering to folks all over the world primarily through online gatherings in a pseudo-church setting with a co-learning approach to teaching the Scriptures and a commitment to walking diverging paths together. We cannot be blamed for thinking we are alone. Many of us are. Many of us come to Harbor because we live in a place where there are no churches that will accept us, or our children, or our questions.
Evolving Faith reminded me that unique does not mean alone. There are leaders, thinkers, writers, artists, musicians, and caregivers who are ready to listen to us, share with us, support us, advocate for us, and welcome us. There are more and more churches that welcome people like us opening all the time.
Friends, we are not as alone as we think. People are starting to join Harbor from all over the world. There are new books and podcasts, even new music, coming out all the time that support our lives as we follow the questions God lays on our hearts. If you want a good introduction, check out the speakers at this weekend’s conference. At Harbor, we are starting more small group studies to take deep dives into mindfulness, atonement, the women of the Bible, and more. And that’s just the beginning.
What are your questions? What is burning in your mind and heart that you’d like to share? Are you looking for a person or a few folks to dialogue with? I’d love to meet you and talk with you more. You can contact me at dawn@onlineharbor.org or simply book a time with me here.
