Warren Hartley, Co-Faciliatator of the first Open Table community in Liverpool, and his husband Kieran Bohan, the Open Table Network Co-ordinator, speakers at this event.

Two:23 is a network of Christians, connected by LGBT issues, who meet five times a year, usually at Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church. Since March 2020 the first part, with a speaker, prayers and worship, starts at 2.30pm on the Two:23 YouTube channel and the Two:23 website.

The second part is a structured Zoom chat, where we break off into smaller groups and have time to get to know each other. You can get access to the Zoom code by emailing hello@two23.net.

This month’s meeting includes an interview with Open Table Network Coordinator Kieran Bohan. His husband Warren Hartley will share a reflection inspired by his experience of supporting the first Open Table community in Liverpool, called: ‘Made in God's image: a person-centred spirituality ‘.

What about the name?​

The name Two:23 refers to a verse from the Old Testament prophet Hosea, who uses his own life as an allegory for God’s promise of love to the outsider, the excluded, the person considered a 'nobody':

I will say to those called ‘Not my people’, ‘You are my people’; and they will say ‘You are my God’.

- Hosea 2:23

You can read a meditation on the passage which you can read here.

Where did Two:23 come from?

Two:23 was established in late 2012, emerging from a variety of groups and individuals, who share a common experience of having had to seriously engage with personal issues of faith and sexuality. Some were involved with Courage, an LGBT-affirming ministry run by Jeremy Marks. Jeremy retired in 2012 but his pastoral work with LGBT people continues – read his story here.