Building Capacity for Justice

Racial Justice and Dismantling White Supremacy

Advocacy for LGBTQIA+ Communities

Lutheran Guide to Advocate for LGBTQIA+ People in Church and Society 
ReconcilingWorks Resource

This book is a starting point for you and your Lutheran faith community as it seeks to advocate for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual/aromantic (LGBTQIA+) people in church and society. It is ReconcilingWorks’ hope that tools and answers in this guide will give your community the boldness to proclaim Christ’s gospel of radical inclusion and hospitality to your neighbors, our church, and our world. Christ and Lutherans are called to care for everyone, against discrimination and marginalization, and work for justice.

Purchase the physical book or a printable PDF.

Lutheran Introduction to Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, & Gender Expression
ReconcilingWorks Resource

This is a basic introduction to sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. ReconcilingWorks offers this resource as a way to deepen and expand your community's welcome. From the book: People Over Definitions - If you don’t know which identity terms, pronouns or titles to use, and find yourself getting “stuck” on terms, re-center yourself on the fact you are talking about a person. It is also ok to ask which pronouns one prefers, or just avoid using gendered terms. Remember, all you need to welcome someone is their name.

Purchase the physical book or a printable PDF in English or Español.

Aging and the LGBTQIA+ Community
ReconcilingWorks Resource

Aging and the LGBTQIA+ Community by Rev. Heather Thonvold, BCC, discusses the important considerations for those who identify as LGBTQIA+ people as they age. This free ReconcilingWorks resource helps accompany family, friends, and caregivers as they navigate conversations around care needs for their loved ones. While walking through documentation, choosing care settings, and legacy planning, this resource can provide the tools needed for these meaningful conversations.

Clunky Questions: LGBTQIA+ Lutherans and Pastors Answer Common Questions
ReconcilingWorks Resource

In the work of full inclusion, people with good intentions often feel that they can’t ask any questions about what it means to be LGBTQIA+ because they are afraid of offending someone or they don't have the right words with which to ask. If this sounds familiar, or if your faith community is interested in learning more about LGBTQIA+ people so they can figure out how to better support LGBTQIA+ people, then the Clunky Questions video series is for you.

Advocacy for People Living with Disabilities & Neurodiversity

Allies Against Bullying

Where All Can Safely Live (Revised and Expanded)
ReconcilingWorks Resource

This anti-bullying curriculum is an introduction to what bullying is, how it functions, and why we as Christians are called to prevent it from happening in our communities. It was developed with the help of the staff at the Pacific Violence Prevention Institute, from the pioneering research on bullying by Dan Olweus, and materials created by the United States government. This curriculum is not intended to be a comprehensive guide to stopping bullying. However, this guide provides a basic understanding of how bullying works and offers suggestions for steps in creating a congregational bullying prevention plan.


ReconcilingWorks Racial Equity Plan

ReconcilingWorks is making a public commitment to increase our intersectional work dedicated to anti-racism and racial equity. ReconcilingWorks Board of Directors along with staff will continue to create a Racial Equity Plan of how we will examine the Four Dimensions of Racism as defined by Raceforward, and how they impact our organization’s racist actions and behaviors. Read more about our Racial Equity Plan here.