Be brave enough to start a conversation that matters. This was the aim of last week’s two-day conference Open Church: The church, sexuality, mission and the future hosted by Steve Chalke, Baptist minister and founder of international charity the Oasis Trust. Steve hit the headlines two years ago when he called for an ‘open conversation’ around same-sex relationships and …
Before I had said a word: Challenging my own expectations in Sri Lanka
WHAT DOES IT MEAN to encounter Christians whose context is very different from our own? That was one of the questions behind my visit to Sri Lanka in July as part of the Mutual Encounter …
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- 29th September 2026
- Appreciation, Christianity, identity, LGBT rights, Methodist, relationships, sexuality, Spirituality, Theology, YMCA
- abravefaith
Common ground is spiritual currency: Sharing good news differently
WHAT MIGHT CHANGE if we approached conversations about faith not as opportunities to persuade, but as invitations to listen, learn and encounter one another? A reflection on what happened when I set out to share my faith and found myself listening instead. Along the way, I discovered new questions about belonging, grace, authenticity and the kind of communities we are called to create.
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- 15th September 2026
- Christianity, Methodist, Open Table, Spirituality, Theology
- abravefaith
No time to die: Mortality, vulnerability and the gift of life
Have you ever thought you had so much to do that you couldn’t get ill? I have. What began as several weeks of recurring chest discomfort eventually led me to NHS 111, a walk-in centre and a hospital Emergency Department. The reassuring results brought relief and gratitude, but also prompted some unexpected reflections on asking for help, receiving care, and not taking life for granted.
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- 9th September 2026
- Christianity, Gratitude, Liverpool, Meaning of Life, relationships, Spirituality, Theology
- abravefaith
When God is already there: Learning through interfaith encounters
AS PART of my training for Methodist ministry, I have reflected on how encounters with people of different faiths have changed my understanding of where God is at work. From separation to encounter, I explore what interfaith engagement has taught me about listening, difference and faith.
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- 17th August 2026
- Christianity, Liverpool, Methodist, Spirituality, Theology
- abravefaith
To be rather than to seem: The moral compass I want to carry
What would my moral compass look like? An unusual Christian Ethics assignment led me from family history and an old Latin motto to a coat of arms representing four themes that shape my writing, ministry and faith: authenticity, inclusion, peace and kindness.
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- 11th August 2026
- Christianity, identity, Kindness, Methodist, Open Table, relationships, Spirituality, Theology, YMCA
- abravefaith
Transfiguration and Hiroshima: What is mine to do for peace?
This week Christians celebrate the Feast of the Transfiguration, while the world also marks the eighty-first anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. At first glance these events could hardly seem further apart. One is a story of dazzling glory on a mountain; the other of unimaginable devastation beneath a mushroom cloud.
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- 3rd August 2026
- Christianity, Methodist, Spirituality, Theology
- abravefaith
Where vocation begins: St Martin and the origin of a calling, chapels, and chaplaincy
St Martin of Tours is remembered for sharing his cloak with a beggar, but his story has much more to teach us about vocation, ministry and recognising Christ in our neighbour. Reflecting on his life again while preparing to preach, I found fresh encouragement for the call to follow Christ in everyday life.
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- 5th July 2026
- Chaplaincy, Christianity, Methodist, Spirituality, Theology
- abravefaith
Good news worth sharing?
AS PART of my ministry training, I’m exploring what happens when we share stories of faith and invite others to respond. I’d love to hear your perspective, whatever your beliefs or background.
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- 2nd June 2026
- Christianity, Coming Out, identity, Liverpool, marriage, Marriage Equality, Meaning of Life, Mental Health, Methodist, Open Table, sexuality, Spirituality, Theology
- abravefaith
Pride, shame, and the possibility of life
JUNE is celebrated around the world as Pride Month, remembering the long struggle of LGBTQIA+ people to live openly and safely, free from fear, shame, and discrimination. Last Sunday, as part of my training as a …
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- 1st June 2026
- Christianity, Coming Out, Hate Crime, Homophobia, identity, LGBT rights, Liverpool, Michael Causer, Open Table, sexuality, Spirituality, Theology, Transphobia
- abravefaith
Grace before agreement: What living ecumenically has taught me
What does it mean to practice Christian unity today? Drawing on my own journey across Christian traditions and the story of the Open Table Network, I explore unity, grace, and the courage to stay at the table – especially when we don’t agree on everything.
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- 2nd March 2026
- Appreciation, Chaplaincy, Christianity, Civil Partnership, Gratitude, identity, Liverpool, Methodist, Open Table, relationships, Spirituality, Theology
- abravefaith
‘All Are Welcome!’: How a surprising witness is inspiring a national church
FEBRUARY is LGBT+ History Month, an annual celebration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and non-binary history. This year the Methodist Church in Britain asked me to connect them with a minister who could tell the story of a church that had walked the sometimes difficult journey to becoming truly inclusive and hosting an Open Table community.
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- 22nd February 2026
- Christianity, Coming Out, Gratitude, identity, LGBT rights, Methodist, Open Table, Pride, relationships, sexuality, Spirituality
- abravefaith
Standing together in the gap: Migration, identity, and the search for home
AS PART of my training for ordained ministry in the Methodist Church in Britain, I have been invited to situate my own experience of migration within global theological perspectives, particularly those emerging from African and Latin American contexts. Engaging with migration studies has revealed my story as part of a much larger global, political and theological pattern of power, privilege, and displacement. Migration, therefore, is not an abstract concept for me; it has shaped my family, my childhood, and my ministry.
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- 18th February 2026
- Christianity, Human Rights, identity, Methodist, Theology
- abravefaith
Apr 14
A conversation that matters: #OpenChurch2015 conference
- By abravefaith in Bullying, Christianity, Civil Partnership, Coming Out, Marriage Equality, Spirituality
-
14th April 2015
- Christian, church, Church of England, coming out, current-events, England, Gay community, Gay Lesbian and Bisexual, gender identity, God, homophobia, Jesus, LGBT, LGBT social movements, Marriage, Mental health, pastoral care, Place of worship, Same-sex marriage, Sexual orientation, sexuality, spirituality, theology, Youth
- Leave comment
Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2015/04/14/a-conversation-that-matters-openchurch2015-conference/
Mar 23
Reflecting on our identity as LGBT people of faith and as an LGBT faith community
- By abravefaith in Christianity, Coming Out, Hate Crime, LGBT rights, Liverpool, Meaning of Life, Spirituality
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23rd March 2015
BY POPULAR REQUEST, members of the community that meets monthly at St Bride’s Church, Liverpool for the Open Table LGBT service spent a day away again this month, six months after our first away-day last October. Following the theme of identity and individuality we explored in last month’s service, we developed and deepened this at …
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- Christian, church, Church of England, coming out, creativity, England, Gay community, Gay Lesbian and Bisexual, gender identity, God, homophobia, Jesus, LGBT, LGBT social movements, Liverpool, Liverpool Pride, Marriage, Mental health, Merseyside, pastoral care, Personal development, Place of worship, Same-sex marriage, Sexual orientation, sexuality, spirituality, theology, transphobia
- 3 comments
Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2015/03/23/reflecting-identity-lgbt-faith-community/
Feb 21
LGBT History Month: What’s your story? #LGBTHM15
- By abravefaith in Bullying, Christianity, Civil Partnership, Coming Out, Hate Crime, LGBT rights, Liverpool, Marriage Equality, Spirituality
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21st February 2015
FEBRUARY is LGBT History Month in the UK – marked every year in the UK since 2004 to remember and celebrate the lives and achievements of LGBT people past and present. It was set up by Sue Sanders, founder of Schools Out, a group for LGBT teachers since 1974. LGBT History Month is a wonderful opportunity to …
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- Catholic, Catholic Church, Christian, church, civil partnership, Civil union, coming out, current-events, England, family, Gay community, Gay Lesbian and Bisexual, God, homophobia, LGBT, LGBT History Month, LGBT social movements, Liverpool, Marriage, Mental health, Merseyside, Place of worship, Roman Catholic Church, Same-sex marriage, Sexual orientation, sexuality, spirituality
- 1 comment
Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2015/02/21/lgbt-history-month-whats-your-story/
Jan 27
WATCH: Project Triangle – LGBT youth visit Auschwitz
- By abravefaith in Hate Crime, LGBT rights
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27th January 2015
TODAY is the seventieth anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the Nazi concentration camp in Poland where around 1.5 million people died because they were different. In September 2009, I accompanied ten young lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people from Merseyside on a five-day cultural exchange trip to Auschwitz and Warsaw working with a group of young …
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Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2015/01/27/watch-project-triangle-lgbt-youth-visit-auschwitz/
Jan 01
2014: A big year for UK marriage equality
- By abravefaith in Christianity, Civil Partnership, LGBT rights, Marriage Equality
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1st January 2015
2014 was a big year for marriage equality in the UK. Same-sex marriage is now possible in the United Kingdom, with the exception of Northern Ireland. As marriage law is devolved to the governments of each country in the Union, the status of same-sex marriage is different in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The UK …
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Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2015/01/01/2014-uk-marriage-equality/
Dec 25
WATCH: The REAL Christmas story
- By abravefaith in Christianity, Christmas
-
25th December 2014
If you need some Christmas cheer, watch this amazing a capella retelling of the first Christmas story in only four minutes…
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Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2014/12/25/watch-the-real-christmas-story/
Dec 24
Loving from the bottom of the heap – A gay Christian reading for Christmas
- By abravefaith in Christianity, Christmas, LGBT rights, Meaning of Life, Spirituality
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24th December 2014
At a carol service last Sunday, hosted by Open Table, an LGBT Christian community in Liverpool, I read one of the readings, which I found moving, inspiring and too good not to share: The most powerful place from which to renew the face of the earth is the bottom of the heap. I often think of …
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Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2014/12/24/loving-from-the-bottom-of-the-heap-a-gay-christian-reading-for-christmas/
Dec 22
Diversity Role Models – Challenging prejudice one story at a time
- By abravefaith in Bullying, Christianity, Civil Partnership, Coming Out, Hate Crime, LGBT rights, Liverpool, Marriage Equality, Spirituality
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22nd December 2014
A YEAR AGO I trained as a volunteer with Diversity Role Models, a charity which offers workshops in schools featuring positive LGBT or straight ally role models who speak directly to young people about their experiences, to challenge bullying by promoting empathy. They began in London in 2011 and are now expanding across the UK, including …
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- Catholic, Catholic Church, Christian, church, civil partnership, Civil union, coming out, England, family, Gay community, Gay Lesbian and Bisexual, God, homophobia, LGBT, LGBT social movements, Liverpool, Mental health, Merseyside, Personal development, Place of worship, Roman Catholic Church, Same-sex marriage, Sexual orientation, sexuality, spirituality, Youth
- 1 comment
Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2014/12/22/diversity-role-models/
Dec 10
Speak OUT: Fight back against homophobia and transphobia
- By abravefaith in Bullying, Coming Out, Hate Crime, LGBT rights
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10th December 2014
Wednesday 10th December is Human Rights Day. In celebration, the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission is launching Speak OUT: 5 ways to fight back against homophobia and transphobia. Watch and share the video with your friends and family. Unchecked prejudice often leads directly to discrimination, violence and the denial of basic human rights to lesbian, gay, …
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Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2014/12/10/speak-out-fight-back-against-homophobia-and-transphobia/
Dec 05
Would Jesus save the railways?
- By abravefaith in Christianity, Civil Partnership, LGBT rights, Marriage Equality
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5th December 2014
LAST WEEK a YouGov survey won the booby prize for the most stupid question in an opinion poll: Do you think Jesus would support or oppose renationalising the railways, so they are run in the public sector rather than by private companies? It’s unlikely Jesus would have held a view, given that public transport had not been …
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Permanent link to this article: https://abravefaith.com/2014/12/05/would-jesus-save-the-railways/
Recent posts
- Before I had said a word: Challenging my own expectations in Sri Lanka
- Common ground is spiritual currency: Sharing good news differently
- No time to die: Mortality, vulnerability and the gift of life
- When God is already there: Learning through interfaith encounters
- To be rather than to seem: The moral compass I want to carry
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