Open Table Network
AbbreviationOTN
FormationJune 2008 (2008-06)
TypeCharity
Registration no.1193868
Legal statusCharitable Incorporated Organisation
Region
England and Wales
Director
Kieran Bohan
Co-chairs
Alex Clare-Young
Sarah Hobbs
Websiteopentable.lgbt

Open Table Network (OTN) is a Christian charity which supports church communities for LGBT people and their allies.[1]

History

In June 2008, the first Open Table community was founded at St Bride's Church, Liverpool; by 2019, the network consisted of 17 communities in England and Wales.[2][3] An article in the book Journeys in Grace and Truth, edited by Jayne Ozanne, describes the founding and history of Open Table.[4][5] In Christianity, "open table" refers to the custom of offering communion to all baptised Christians regardless of denomination.[6]

At the first planning meeting, someone said: 'Will it be "Open Table"?' When she explained that it means all are welcome, all can come as they are, we felt this was so important because we hear too many stories of people who feared exclusion, or were excluded, from their church community, who felt unheard or unable to express themselves or give their talents. So Open Table was born.[4][5]

Open Table began as a fresh expression hosted by the Team Parish of St Luke in the City, Liverpool,[7] which is served by the churches of St Bride, St Dunstan, and St Michael in the City.[8][9] Miranda Threlfall-Holmes, Team Rector at St Luke in the City, advocates offering control of church organisations to marginalised groups, such as LGBT Christians; she describes Open Table as an "electrifying" example of this idea working successfully in practice.[10]

In 2016, Paul Bayes, Bishop of Liverpool until February 2022,[11] called for changes in the Church of England's attitudes to lesbian and gay people; recalling to The Guardian a visit to the Open Table congregation in Liverpool, he said: "I saw their faithfulness as Christians, often in difficult circumstances, sometimes in trying to say who they are within the church. I want to make room for a congregation like Open Table."[12] In 2019, Bayes described Open Table as "one of the fastest growing Church planting movements in England".[3]

In 2018, Open Table Cambridge was established at Downing Place United Reformed Church, Cambridge.[13] Gay Christian co-founder Alison Binney said she had "immediately felt safe to be myself" at the church.[13] Asked about the exclusion of LGBT+ Christians from church life, she said: "I think sometimes people who feel unloved and frightened come from churches which say things like, “We take the Bible seriously” as a way to justify exclusion. And perhaps it would be helpful for you to hear this: We take the Bible incredibly seriously too."[13]

In 2019, Open Table successfully campaigned for the Home Office to grant Yew Fook Sam, a gay Malaysian, asylum for five years.[14][2] The campaign started by Open Table and promoted by the Liverpool Echo gathered more than 5000 signatures to an online petition.[15]

Kieran Bohan is Coordinator of the Open Table Network.[14][16] He broadcast a reflection on Open Table as part of a BBC Radio 4 service led by Rachel Mann in September 2020.[17] In May 2022, he and his partner celebrated the tenth anniversary of their civil partnership, the first in the UK to be celebrated in a religious building.[18]

In 2020, the Open Table Network received a £15,000 grant from the National Lottery Community Fund to fund staff time and technology to help support members of OTN communities during the COVID-19 pandemic.[16]

On 19 March 2021, the Charity Commission registered the Open Table Network as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, whose charitable object is the "advancement of the Christian faith, in particular but not exclusively amongst lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, questioning, intersex or asexual Christians".[19] The trustees are Alex Clare-Young (co-chair), Sarah Hobbs (co-chair), Anne Bennett, Augustine Tanner-Ihm, Lucy Berry, Neil Rees, and Rebekah Greenbank.[20] At the time of registration, there were 18 Open Table communities.[21][22] According to the charity's annual report for 2021, there were 21 communities by the end of that year.[23]

Starting November 2020, new patrons of the Open Table Network introduced themselves on webinars. The new patrons are: Rachel Mann,[24] John Bradbury,[25] Bishop Cherry Vann,[26] Pádraig Ó Tuama,[27] Bishop Paul Bayes,[28] John L. Bell,[29] and Barbara Glasson.[30][31][32]

In July 2021, Civil Society Consulting prepared a report for the Open Table Network,[33] arguing that "LGBT Christians have been adversely affected by national lockdowns" and called for more support.[34]

In November 2021, the Bishop of St Asaph Gregory Cameron blessed the civil partnership of Lee Taylor and Fabiano Da Silva Duarte at St Collen's Church in Llangollen.[1] The ceremony was the first since blessing of same-sex couples was approved by the Church in Wales in September 2021.[35] Kieran Bohan of the Open Table Network said: "It is heartwarming to see a bishop embrace a priest whose civil partnership he has just blessed."[1]

In January 2023, the Church of England decided that same-sex couples could "give thanks" and "receive God's blessing" for their civil marriage or partnerships in church, but that Holy Matrimony continues "unchanged" to be between one man and one woman.[36] Kieran Bohan said: "This is sad news. Other Christian denominations now welcome same-gender couples who wish to be joined in holy matrimony. We regret that England's own established church still denies LGBT+ people this equality."[36]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Chudy, Emily (15 November 2021). "Gay priest and partner make Church in Wales history with same-sex blessing". PinkNews. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  2. 1 2 Shennan, Paddy (20 February 2019). "The man who's 'not gay enough' to stay in the UK - according to the government". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  3. 1 2 Davies, Madeleine (1 February 2019). "A bigger table: an interview with the Bishop of Liverpool". Church Times. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  4. 1 2 Ozanne, Jayne, ed. (2016). Journeys in Grace and Truth: Revisiting Scripture and Sexuality. Ekklesia. ISBN 978-0993294242.
  5. 1 2 Bohan, Kieran (21 June 2016). "A brief history of Open Table – A journey in grace and truth (21 June 2016)". A brave faith: One gay Christian seeking authenticity. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  6. ↑ Wilson, Alan (27 September 2010). "The Book of Common Prayer, part 6: Fencing the table". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  7. ↑ "Faith in schools". Liverpool Echo. 15 August 2008. Retrieved 22 August 2021. THERE is a service at St Bride's Church this Sunday at 8.30pm for LGB&T Christians – and any seeking a more inclusive church – followed by a pub visit.The group, Changing Attitudes, is behind the service and it has a meeting planned with the Bishop of Liverpool next Wednesday. If you would like any points or views expressed to the bishop then please arrive at the church an hour early on Sunday to discuss them. The service, known as Open Table, will take place every third Sunday.
  8. ↑ "THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST. LUKE-IN-THE-CITY, LIVERPOOL". Charity Commission for England and Wales. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  9. ↑ "The Team Parish of St Luke in the City Liverpool". Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  10. ↑ Threlfall-Holmes, Miranda (11 January 2019). "Evangelism isn't just for the Evangelicals". Church Times. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  11. ↑ "'I do not want to die in a Church that will not marry same-sex couples' says Bishop Bayes". www.churchtimes.co.uk. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  12. ↑ Sherwood, Harriet (16 June 2016). "Senior bishop calls for change in C of E attitudes to gay people". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  13. 1 2 3 Bailey, Jesi (4 March 2023). "The LGBT+ church members making Cambridge a more inclusive place to be Christian". Varsity Online. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  14. 1 2 Pidd, Helen (23 December 2019). "Home Office gives man asylum after accepting people can be gay and single". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  15. ↑ Parsons, Vic (21 December 2019). "The Home Office told this man he wasn't 'gay enough' to stay in the UK. Now, he's been given asylum in time for Christmas". PinkNews. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  16. 1 2 "A CHAT WITH: KIERAN BOHAN, OPEN TABLE NETWORK COORDINATOR". LCR Pride Foundation. 21 December 2020. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  17. ↑ "Sunday Worship (27 September 2020)". BBC Radio 4. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  18. ↑ McAuley, Paul (6 May 2022). "Liverpool couple who made history celebrating anniversary". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  19. ↑ "THE OPEN TABLE NETWORK Charity Number 1193868". Charity Commission. 19 March 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  20. ↑ "Meet our team". Open Table Network. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  21. ↑ "UK news in brief". Church Times. 23 April 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  22. ↑ "Charity Commission says 'Yes' to LGBT-affirming Christian network". Open Table Network. 19 April 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  23. ↑ "Trustees' Annual Report for the period from January 2021 to December 2021". Register of Charities, Charity Commission of England & Wales. 10 March 2022. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  24. ↑ "Meet Our Patrons - Rachel Mann in conversation with Alex Clare-Young". Open Table Network. 19 November 2020. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  25. ↑ "Meet our Patrons - John Bradbury in conversation with Kieran Bohan". Open Table Network. 17 December 2020. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  26. ↑ "Meet our Patrons - Bishop Cherry Vann in conversation with Sarah Hobbs". Open Table Network. 21 January 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  27. ↑ "Meet our Patrons - Pádraig Ó Tuama in conversation with Kieran Bohan". Open Table Network. 17 February 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  28. ↑ "Meet our Patrons - Bishop Paul Bayes in conversation with Kieran Bohan". Open Table Network. 18 March 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  29. ↑ "Meet our Patrons - John Bell in conversation with Alex Clare-Young inc BSL interpretation". Open Table Network. 15 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  30. ↑ "Meet our Patrons - Barbara Glasson in conversation with Kieran Bohan". Open Table Network. 20 May 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  31. ↑ Handley MacMath, Terence (30 November 2018). "Interview: Barbara Glasson, President-elect of the Methodist Conference". Church Times. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  32. ↑ Glasson, Barbara (5 October 2019). "The Methodist Church is rethinking its position on identity and sexuality". The Times. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  33. ↑ "Open Table Network: Research & Case for Support 2021" (PDF). Civil Society Consulting. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  34. ↑ "Open Table: LGBT Christians 'need more support'". Church Times. 2 July 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021. LGBT Christians have been adversely affected by national lockdowns, because they have lacked access to in-person emotional and spiritual support, a report from the Open Table Network (OTN) suggests. 'These are all people who have experienced prejudice and exclusion at home, in the workplace, local community, but especially in faith communities,' its report, prepared by Civil Society Consulting, explains.
  35. ↑ Wakefield, Lily (6 September 2021). "Church in Wales to bless same-sex unions after historic vote". PinkNews. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  36. 1 2 McAuley, Paul (19 January 2023). "Chrisitan group 'saddened' after CofE refuse to back gay marriage". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
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