All Are Welcome. Really.

As the Senior Pastor of Central Christian Church in Dallas, I’m pleased to welcome The Gathering and provide space here for you to hear directly from the founders. If you want to know more of my thoughts, those can be found here in another post.

​Preachers:
Rev. Yvette Blair-Lavallais
Rev. Kamilah Hall-Sharp
Rev. Dr. Irie L. Session
 
Guiding Scriptural Foundation: Luke 4: 18-19
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
 
The Gathering has the following Social Justice Priorities:

1. Racial Equity
2. Dismantling PMS (Patriarchy, Misogyny, & Sexism)
3. LGBTQ Equality

 The Gathering has the following Missional Priorities:

1. Create worship experiences that address social justice issues through womanist preaching and action 
2. Be an authentic and compelling faith community for people who feel a disconnect with the institutional church
3. Be a healing, learning, and growing fellowship for persons marginalized in society
4. Dismantle Patriarchy one womanist sermon at a time
5. Discover together how the ministry of Christ calls us to welcome all, really.

Theological Claim: Black women are the most oppressed group on the planet. Consequently, when black women are liberated, all marginalized groups are liberated.
 
Womanism:

• Is rooted in the experiences of black women solving everyday problems
• Is against all forms of oppression, against all people
• Is situated at the intersection of race, class, and gender oppression; and seeks to empower women by emphasizing their strengths, resourcefulness, ingenuity and creativity
• Exposes patriarchal oppression in the biblical text and names it evil   

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Our desire in this ministry partnership is to uplift, to seek justice, and to form beloved community where all are welcome. Innovation in ministry enables us to expand the reach of God's embrace and bless those who have not yet found a place of belonging. We believe that we move closer to God's vision of Shalom by highlighting underrepresented voices and holding space for new communities of worship to form.​