A NEW Open Table community is coming to Warrington next month, thanks to Pam Gold, former Co-Convenor of the Evangelical Fellowship for Lesbian and Gay Christians (EFLGC), who has supported the first Open Table community in Liverpool since it began in 2008.

Pam explains why she plans to start a new community:

So why am I doing it? Well Let me tell you a little of my background and introduce you to this new community.

I have lived in the Warrington area almost all of my life, and for the last 20 years as an out and proud lesbian. Finding out I was gay was quite a revelation for me, as I’m sure many could also say for themselves.

Coming out for me, though, was a double-edged sword. As well as being a mum to three lads, life became very difficult for me in church and within a short time I was told that if I wasn’t prepared to be prayed with and healed then I should leave…

I LEFT… Why would I want to change? No way.

Since then I have been involved in the national EFLGC group and the European Forum of LGBT Christian Groups, and it’s been great fun and a great way to meet people.

So why start an Open Table community now in Warrington?

Well for the first time I have been totally accepted for who I am in a Warrington church. St John’s URC is a great place for me to be.

I have also been going to the Open Table community in Liverpool, which is attended by LGBT+ people from all over the area.

My church minister is very pro-LGBT, and so we have decided to start a similar community in Warrington.

It can be really tough if you are LGBT+ and have faith, whether that is Christian or other religions. We aim to provide a safe space for people to come along. We are not aiming to throw religion at folk, merely to offer the chance to meet like-minded people, to have some time for a service, refreshments and time of sharing.

Please share this with your friends, even if you are not a person of faith yourself. You never know who might want to hear about this group.