Welcoming
As Christians we carry ancient stories of a God who reaches out, calls unlikely people, and befriends and loves those who are on "the outside." Today, this trend continues. God continues to reach out, offering gifts of acceptance, forgiveness, new life, and hope.
Relationships can be redeemed, lives transformed, possibilities expanded, and communities formed and reformed. We invite people to share these experiences when we welcome them to our congregations.
We live in a world that is rapidly changing. At times, it can be difficult to know the best way to help people with little or no church experience feel welcome when they visit our congregations. Some welcoming initiatives are effective with some guests but not with others. And sometimes we may assume newcomers to our church have an understanding of the basic dimensions of faith, but, in fact, this may be just what they are thirsting to learn when they arrive.
Congregations of The United Church of Canada can rise to the challenge of welcoming people to join us on the journey of faith. The signs are there that this is the right time to invite and welcome guests.
Join with others here to share your best practices for welcoming ministries. There is also a Welcoming Wiki Guide under development that you may want to take a look at. New welcoming tools and resources are being added to the Toolbox all the time, so be sure to check it out often.
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