We know that too many people and their families live with the pain of having believed that “everyone” meant them, only to discover otherwise. We know that church can feel like a risky place to walk into for the first time and be filled with questions like, “Will I really be accepted here?” The answer is yes.
Come see for yourself what it's like to be part of an open and affirming church.
In the UCC, churches that are explicit about their extravagant welcome adopt a process of learning, discernment, and ultimately a public statement that guides their ministry. The UCC calls these Open and Affirming Churches, or ONA for short.
When Decorah UCC became an ONA congregation, we declared:
With God’s grace, we welcome all persons, affirming differences of faith background, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, age, and mental and physical abilities, as well as racial, ethnic, economic, and social status. We welcome all to share in the life and leadership, ministry and worship, sacraments, responsibilities, and blessings of participation in our congregation.
Click below to learn some of the ways we live into these ONA commitments:
All people attending worship are encouraged to create and wear a name tag. While it may seem odd to do so, we do it because wearing a name tag allows everyone to learn and use people’s correct name, aids people experiencing issues with memory to quickly see names without having to ask, and helps us foster community where people are known for who they are.
Folks are encouraged also to add a sticker indicating their pronouns. There are preprinted stickers for the pronoun sets of she/her, he/him, they/them, as well as blank stickers on which people can write in other pronouns they want people to use.
Name tags and pronoun stickers are available in the room just before walking into the sanctuary.
All the bathrooms in our church building are single-stall and gender-free; equipped with mobility-assistance bars; have wide doorways; and have space for wheelchairs to move easily in and out. Simply put, anyone can use any of the bathrooms in any of our buildings.
The church has a ground-level entrance located under the covered walkway on the middle of the block. That entrance takes you into was is known as the Congregational Center. The Congregational Center has two red banners on the outside that may be helpful to identify the building.
To access the Sanctuary building from the accessible entrance, turn right after entering the building, and use the elevator located to the right of the stairs.
The sanctuary is equipped with technology for hearing assistance. Assistive listening devices can be picked up from a basket on the back table just inside the main sanctuary entrance.
Large-print bulletins and hymn music are available on the table just to the right as you enter the sanctuary. A greeter would be glad to point them out to you.
The pastor officiates weddings for people of all sexual orientations, gender identities, and gender expressions. All people desiring to be married meet with the pastor for conversation—for premarital counseling and to plan the ceremony. To inquire about getting married at Decorah UCC, contact the church office.