LAST WEEK Methodist Conference, the governing body of the Methodist Church in Britain, passed significant resolutions with far-reaching consequences for its members, and the wider Christian community.

THIS MORNING BBC Radio Merseyside spoke to Bishop of Liverpool Paul Bayes about his speech last week advocating a change to the laws of the Church of England to permit same-sex marriage. In the same week, Bishop Paul announced his retirement. He plans to step down in February 2021.

THIS WEEK's Church Times has a summary of our research into the impact on the well-being of Open Table communities on the well-being of LGBTQIA+ Christians.

OTN TRUSTEE Augustine Tanner-Ihm, who has trained for ministry in the Church of England but faced challenges in finding his first ordained ministry role, has been granted a UK visa just in time for his ordination this weekend.

A COMPLAINT against the leader of the Open Table London community has been dropped, according to the Church Times.

THE BISHOP of Liverpool, Right Revd Paul Bayes, a Patron of the Open Table Network, has said the Church of England should recognise marriage between people of the same sex and allow such ceremonies in church.

THIS SUNDAY 27th June, OTN Coordinator Kieran Bohan will speak to BBC local radio stations about our work with LGBTQIA+ Christians, how it makes a difference, and the significance of this year’s Methodist Conference for same-sex couples.

IN A SPECIAL Q&A webinar for Pride Month, It’s A Sin actor and HIV activist Nathaniel Hall was in conversation with Steven Hilton from Manchester Cathedral who wrote his MTh thesis on the lived experiences of gay men living with HIV.

CHURCHES, which should be loving communities, are often responsible for pain, trauma and dangerously low self-esteem for LGBTQIA+ people. But new research shows that LGBTQIA+ people reported hugely improved well-being after joining an Open Table community.

THIS WEEK it was the 13th birthday of the first Open Table community in Liverpool, and the sixth anniversary of Open Table becoming a network. Our whole team met in person for the first time at St Werburgh's, Spondon, the church which hosts Open Table Derby.

OTN CO-CHAIR Alex Clare-Young has created a resource to help churches and Christian organisations to consider trans and non-binary identities in their safeguarding policy and practice.

JUNE 1st-7th is Volunteers’ Week, and this year’s theme is ‘A Time To Say Thanks’. The Open Table Network wouldn’t - and couldn’t - exist without the volunteers who give energy, time and talents, across England and Wales. All of our Trustees and Patrons do the same. So we want to thank them all for making OTN what it is today.

IN THE SEVENTH of our Q&A webinars with our new Patrons, Barbara Glasson, former President of the Methodist Conference in Britain, was in conversation with our Co-ordinator, Kieran Bohan.

THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND House of Bishops met this week to discuss ‘the formation of a working group on gender identity and transition’ despite extensive work already included in the Living in Love and Faith (LLF) resources on Identity, Sexuality, Relationships and Marriage. Our Co-Chair Alex Clare-Young responds.

A COMPLAINT has been made against the leader of the Open Table London community, who supported a young woman ousted from a lay leadership position at a neighbouring church, after she came out as a lesbian. Our Coordinator Kieran Bohan responds.

AS IT’S Deaf Awareness Week (3rd-9th May 2021) we’ve invited Rev Cathy Nightingale, Deaf Chaplain in the Church of England Diocese of Manchester, and co-founder of Open Table North Manchester, to step into the spotlight.

ON THURSDAY 6th May 2021, the parish where Open Table began joins international movement for reconciliation whose priorities are: - Healing the wounds of history, - Learning to live with difference and celebrate diversity, & - Building a culture of peace.

OPEN TABLE NETWORK (OTN), a growing partnership of church communities hosted by and for LGBTQIA+ people, has just been awarded charitable status.

IN THE SIXTH of our Q&A webinars with our new Patrons, John Bell, hymn-writer, Church of Scotland minister, and member of the Iona Community, a dispersed Christian community working for peace, social justice, rebuilding community and renewal of worship, was in conversation with our Co-Chair Alex Clare-Young, also a trans Christian minister.

THIS MONTH’s issue of Reform, the United Reformed Church (URC) magazine, features an interview with Open Table Network Coordinator Kieran Bohan, since the URC is one of five national church traditions whose churches host our Open Table communities.