by Rev. Phillip Bass
In our baptismal vows, we commit ourselves to seeking and serving Christ in all persons and loving our neighbors as ourselves. We also promise to strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being. Nativity, these are promises you take seriously. Whether through your dedication to creation care, your work on racial justice, or your love and care for one another, I’ve witnessed your commitment to serving Christ in all people and respecting the dignity of every human being.
If you have been present for or watched any of our recent services online, you will have heard Stephanie and me talk about the frightening statistics regarding queer youth and mental health. According to a recent survey conducted by the Trevor Project, queer youth are in alarmingly high rates of danger.
Some of their findings include:
- 45% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year.
- Fewer than 1 in 3 transgender and nonbinary youth found their home to be gender-affirming.
- 60% of LGBTQ youth who wanted mental health care in the past year were not able to get it.
- LGBTQ youth who live in a community that is accepting of LGBTQ people reported significantly lower rates of attempting suicide than those who do not.
- 45% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered suicide in the past year including more than half of transgender and nonbinary youth and 1 in 3 cisgender youth.
- The Trevor Project estimates that more than 1.8 million LGBTQ youth (13-24) seriously consider suicide each year in the U.S. — and at least one attempts suicide every 45 seconds.
We have an opportunity to live further into our baptismal vows and to support the needs of queer youth. Starting this fall, Nativity will begin offering weekly support groups for queer youth and their parents. We have begun to gather volunteers and build connections with other support networks, such as the LGBT Center of Raleigh. This is a dream in progress, but one we feel strongly represents Nativity’s commitment to all of God’s children.
We need your help! There are many ways that you can support this new ministry. Some of these include:
- Be in prayer! We know that the Holy Spirit is active in our dreaming. The most important thing we can do is to pray for God’s guidance on how we can best use what we have available to help queer youth and families. We ask that you surround this ministry in prayer.
- Dream with us! We will hold a planning/dreaming/information session after the 10:30 worship service on Sunday, July 23. Please join us if you are interested in learning more and/or considering volunteering.
- Be present! We need people to participate in the weekly gatherings. This may include providing snacks, being present for moral support to those in attendance, or helping with set up and clean up.
- Get the word out! Once we have more finalized plans, we’ll need your help in letting families know that we are here for them. (More to come on this later!)
If you are interested in learning more or being involved, please contact me. I will be happy to answer any questions you have. I’m also creating an email list for those who are interested in and/or plan to participate and will gladly add your name to the list.
— Rev. Phillip