Say More: Talking About Why LGBTQ+ Inclusion Matters (Workbook and Facilitator Guide)

Say More is a resource meant to support you and your community as you engage in thoughtful reflection and conversation around LGBTQ+ inclusion. We hope to empower you to share your story with others to further the causes of inclusion and justice both within the United Methodist Church and your own local context.

Say More is for communities and congregations who want to begin or continue facilitating conversation around LGBTQ+ inclusion. Whether this is your first time, or one opportunity among hundreds, we all benefit when we allow the stories of others to touch us deeply while also sharing our own reflection, testimony, and witness.

Participant Workbook

Facilitator Guide

Written by LGBTQ+ youth ministers and church leaders and awesome youth advisors, this Toolkit covers major topics a young person might encounter while learning about their sexual and/or gender identity. This is a great resource for any LGBTQ+ teen but especially for those who are new on their journey.

Parents Reconciling Network and United Methodist Alliance for Transgender Inclusion, both extension ministries of RMN, teamed up to host three sessions together. These three Virtual Porches cover Gender Identity 101, what transgender, gender fluid, gender non-conforming individuals would have wanted from their parents, and open conversation with several individuals who share their stories and journeys.

This article/guide might be a good starting place for your congregation to open discussion on ways of understanding and supporting trans people in your church and community. Guided by scripture, this three-part guide, provides an opportunity for a church to evaluate priorities and welcome of all people. 

All are made in the image and likeness of God. If this is what we believe, then trans people, like all people, reflect something of God, and not just in the ways that they share in common with others, but also in the ways that they are different.

Are you LGBTQ+? Not sure? Whether you’re queer or questioning, understanding sexuality and gender identity can be confusing. God loves you exactly as you are. No matter your identity or where in your journey of self-discovery you find yourself, you got this.

What does nonbinary really mean? What is gender nonconforming? And isn’t they a plural pronoun? In this charming and disarming guide, a real-life they-using genderqueer writer unpacks all your burning questions in a fun, visual way. No soapboxes or divisive comment-section wars here!

Transfigured offers a 40-day exploration of scripture through the lens of a God who is the designer of gender in all it’s magnificent variety.

Talking with your child about gender identity can seem overwhelming–but with the right guidance, you can have healthy conversations and create an affirming environment for them as they grow. Whether your child is cisgender, gender expansive, transgender, or still unsure, this guide provides practical advice and strategies to help you embrace them for who they are and support them as they approach puberty.

Transforming: The Bible and the Lives of Transgender Christians provides access into an underrepresented and misunderstood community and will change the way readers think about transgender people, faith, and the future of Christianity.

National Center for Transgender Equality offers this guide for allies. They supply readers with great reminders of what it means to be a good ally including tips and guides on multiple topics.

Whether you are a ministry leader, the family member of a transgender person or a trans person of faith yourself, this page seeks to serve as a brief overview of the Bible’s precedent for affirming the full inclusion of transgender, non-binary and other gender-expansive people in the full life of Christian community. Human Rights Campaign article.