The More Light Committee's purpose is to integrate gay men, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered persons and their concerns into the full life of our congregation, the Presbytery, the denomination, and society. 

We believe that we are succeeding on many fronts. Everywhere you look, in every committee, at every event, where ever you go, you will find LGBT folks carrying on the mission of First Presbyterian Church. Feeding the homeless, fighting for affordable housing, striving to protect the earth, championing peace, repairing church facilities, caring for the sick, playing and praying, LGBT people can be found. Of course we can never rest in our work to ensure that all LGBT people feel and are truly welcome in our congregation and beyond the walls of our church!

Removing Amendment B: That's why we are especially involved in working towards a change in the PCUSA Book of Order to remove language that endangers the ordination of LGBT people. Unlike those who have said they will leave the Presbyterian Church if LGBT people are allowed to openly serve, a tactic which may have worked to defeat Amendment A (a measure to remove Amendment B) we vow to stay in the Presbyterian Church and continue the struggle for justice, as long as it takes!

Jesus told a story about a man who knocks on a neighbors door in the middle of the night to ask for bread. Three times the neighbor yelled down that the man should go away and leave him alone. The man kept pounding on the door and finally, just to get the man to leave him in peace, the neighbor finally gave him some bread. With that story as our guide, we'll just have to keep pounding on the doors.

Additionally... 
     More Light Congregations like ours reach out to those who might be seeking an inclusive church home, to advocate for gay rights within our denomination as well as our local, state, and federal community. 

More Light Sunday

At least once a year we have a More Light Sunday worship service. Check out the promptings from 2001 by clicking below:

• More Light Sunday Promptings (October 14, 2001)
  • Walls that Divide (Dale Bracey)
  • Shall the Terrorists Win? (Derrick Kikuchi)

     The More Light activities at First Presbyterian Church have been very diverse, such as: 

• Working with More Light Presbyterians to eliminate discrimination against LGBT people who seek to be ordained deacons, elders and ministers.
• Supporting That All May Freely Serve, an organization dedicated to opening the Church's doors to LGBT ministers, deacons and elders
• Working with other congregations in the San Jose Presbytery to defeat Amendment O, which would have banned same sex holy unions.
• Sponsoring and hosting a series, called New Visions, examining the role that Christianity and mis-guided biblical interpretations have played in supporting discrimination against homosexuals.
• Joining SoulForce at various denominiational gatherings to protest anti-gay rules and rhetoric (several members of our Church have been arrested at these events during acts of civil disobedience).
• Fighting Proposition 22 (the anti-marriage initiative).
• Supporting AB205, a California Assembly measure that would increase the rights and responsibilities fo domestic partners.
• Spearheading a community-wide advertisement welcoming Ellen Degeneres out to the gay community and the world.
• Sponsoring an ecumenical service honoring Gay & Lesbian church leadership with a Reaffirmation Service.
• Sponsoring, for the past ten years, an ecumenical information booth and marching unit at the San Jose Gay Pride Festival (which won an award in 2001)
• Proudly marching as part of a multi-denominational contingents in the San Francisco Gay Pride Celebration.
• Compiling of a Bibiliography of Gay & Lesbian issues, authors, text, and special subjects.
• Plus - realizing that justice issues beyond LGBT rights need our attention, More Light Committee members actively participate in the Witherspoon Society.

Through CafePress.com, you can buy a Rainbow T-shirt designed by Derrick for wearing at pride events. Click here to see your choices.

You can also make your own T-shirts using the image files below. Remember, most T-shirt transfer paper requires you to print the image in reverse (mirror image), so that it appears correctly when ironed on the shirt.

• JPG
• WMF
• EPS
• WMF In a Microsoft Word document
• EPS in a Microsoft Word document

NOTE: If your computer prompts you to enter a user ID and password, just click cancel. None is needed.

More Light Presbyterians Fundraiser and Event Planning Guide by Bruce Hahne

You may now download a free 50-page online manual suitable for leaders and event organizers working in grass-roots progressive organizations. The guide gives a detailed "worms-eye view" of what it takes to organize a successful community
event on behalf of your organization. The guide is written from the perspective of an organizer with experience producing pro-LGBT events at churches, however the material should be useful for leaders in any progressive organization that wants to produce a local event as part of education, publicity, or fundraising efforts.

This guide intentionally goes into a high level of detail in a variety of areas including how to build a marketing database, how to solicit donations at your event, and how to publicize your event to other organizations and communities in your area. An extended set of appendices reprints written content used during the planning and execution phases of actual events and includes a sample press release, media alert, cover letter to supporting organizations, publicity newsletter article, and other sample content. Plus, the guide is free!

TARGET AUDIENCE:

Leaders, boards of directors, event planning teams, and fundraising teams in organizations working on issues of LGBT rights, same-sex marriage, environmental defense, human rights, civil liberties, transit advocacy, anti-war activism, fair trade, nonviolence, and other progressive causes.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

The author has produced multiple events in the San Francisco Bay Area in support of civil rights and LGBT equality, including an 18-church event series to oppose California's anti-gay proposition 22 in early 2000, and a successful gay rights film fundraiser in late 2002. He's not yet an expert event planner, but feels that he's had to learn enough lessons the hard way that he'd like to save other people the trouble.

WHERE TO DOWNLOAD IT:

www.newvisionsproject.org/event-index.html

SALES PITCH:

I produced this guide at the prompting of leadership within More Light Presbyterians (www.mlp.org), one of the leading organizations working for the full inclusion of LGBT people in the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. If you find that the Fundraiser and Event Planning Guide saves you money, time, and/or grief as you organize your event, please send a donation to More Light Presbyterians. Donation instructions appear on the title page of the guide, or you can sign up at www.mlp.org/join.html

Bruce Hahne
Sunnyvale, CA

Seeking a Welcoming Congregation?

We are working to make lists available here for people searching out welcoming congregations. If you know of other resources we should include here, please let us know!

• More Light Presbyterians list of welcoming Presbyterian Congregations across the United States
  
  
• Santa Clara County Council of Churches Welcoming Congregations List
  
  
• ChristianLesbians.com Affirming Church list

A group of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people of all faith tradtions are invited to meet as friends to support, bless, and pray for one another. We will share stories, ask questions, and seek spiritual companionship and community. First Sunday of each month, 1:30 p.m. at St. Andrew's United Methodist Church in Palo Alto (in the first classroom, immediately to the left of the main entrance). For more information, call Rick at 493-0900 or Joel at 856-2220.

Note: This group is not affiliated with 1st Presbyterian Church Palo Alto.