Introduction to Beloved Community: Welcome as a Spiritual Practice
In this session you’ll learn tools and practices for congregational culture shift, brainstorm next steps for creating trans-affirming culture shift in your congregation or faith group, and find out about additional resources that can support you in your next steps.

Trans Inclusion in Congregations
This course is for individuals, groups, and congregational teams who want to take their knowledge and skills to the next level in terms of trans identity and how to create congregations that are fully inclusive and affirming of the full breadth of gender diversity. Over six 2-hour sessions you will deeply explore the intersection of trans identity, spirituality, and faith community, and gain the grounding, context, and skills to transform yourself and your congregation.
The course is for everyone from novices on trans identity to those with decades of life experience. Rather than simply offering a “trans 101,” this class pushes participants to the next level of congregational welcome, relationship-building, and skills-building. It counters mainstream narratives about who trans people are; supports understanding of non-binary identities (such as genderqueer, agender, and Two-Spirit); and employs a deeply intersectional approach. Congregational teams are particularly encouraged to participate.
Watch this video to hear course leaders Rev. Mykal Slack and Zr. Alex Kapitan share more about the course, why and how it came to be, what to expect from taking it, who the course is for, and how it works when a congregation purchases it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEU5Ri8lxQ4

Course details
The course is composed of six 2-hour sessions, each of which includes a 45- to 55-minute lecture by Rev. Mykal Slack and Zr. Alex Kapitan, as well as reflection questions and resources for discussion that take the conversation deeper. Rev Rita will facilitate each session, which will be offered both in-person at UCM (Tuesdays at 4:00p, Room TBA) and on Zoom (Thursdays at 7:00pm, on Zoom).

The program is most impactful if you attend all the sessions, but you can switch between in-person  and Zoom to meet your scheduling needs.