Unanimously approved by the Council of Old South Church on March 9, 2004:

1. Celebrating the inclusive dimensions of God's grace, which are fundamental to our community, the Old South Church asserts that all people are loved by God and, accordingly, they shall have full and equal access to all sacraments, rites and ordinances offered by the Old South Church in Boston;

2. Pursuant to our legacy of social justice and inclusivity, the Old South Church in Boston proclaims the equal rights of all people including the legal right for individuals to marry the person of their choice.

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Please join us on
Sunday, March 28 at 4:00 p.m.
at Old South Church,
645 Boylston St.,
for a service  of prayer and celebration.

Click Here for Service Flyer (PDF format)

Episcopal Bishop, The Right Rev.-D Thomas Shaw, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, Rabbi Ronne Friedman, senior rabbi of Temple Israel in Boston, and Rev. Kim Crawford Harvie, Senior Minister of Arlington Street Church, United Church of Christ Reverend Carl Schultz, Interim Minister of Old South Church along with other colleagues, will lead us as we gather together to pray for freedom, confront
oppression and celebrate justice on this last day before the next Constitutional
Convention.

The Gay Men's Chorus will be participating, blessing us with their inspiring music.

Please make sure to invite your congregants colleagues and friends.  Spread the word.  You can download a flier for the service at the link below.

http://www.ftmc.org/rcfm/oldsouth.pdf

WE EXPECT THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AND THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT TO HOLD MAJOR EVENTS, RALLIES, SERVICES ON THE SAME DAY, SO IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT WE COUNTER THEIR PRO AMENDMENT, ANTI-GAY MESSAGE IN LARGE NUMBERS.

Our legislators still don't get it.  After everyone's hard work, they still don't know that there are hundreds of clergy and hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people of faith who support same sex marriage.  They need to see us
in large numbers as we pray and deliver our message again.

They need to know that we will continue to follow our prophetic traditions and fight this oppression until justice prevails.

This is not another rally with many speeches.  This is a day of prayer and inspiration.  And this time, we have all of the resources of MassEquality behind us, which means that MassEquality is asking their 15,000+ members to join us on Sunday afternoon.  This will be the main Freedom to Marry event of the entire weekend.

PLEASE WEAR YOUR COLLARS AND/OR BRING YOUR OTHER VESTMENTS AS WELL AS YOUR CONGREGATIONAL BANNERS.  WE WILL ALL PROCESS DOWN THE AISLE. PLEASE ARRIVE AT OLD SOUTH CHURCH BY 3:30 FOR ROBING AND LAST MINUTE DETAILS

BRING AS MANY MEMBERS OF YOUR CONGREGATION AND COMMUNITY AS POSSIBLE.

LET OUR VOICES BE THE LAST ONES OUR LEGISLATORS HERE BEFORE THEY RECOVENE ON MONDAY!

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Monday, March 29 Constitution Convention

If you can come to the State House on Monday, please do!!  Our visibility
continues to be important.  We made a big impression inside the State House
during the last session and we would like to do that again.  We also want to
have a more visible presence outside the building, along Beacon Street.

Some of you suggested that we have a service outside in the Commons or near the
State House. That sounded like a very good idea.  But, as we talked with many
people, we realized that the service would not get the attention we would want
or need.  We will be more effective if we have RCFM, clergy and faith community
supporters and banners along Beacon Street.  The media always show a Beacon
Street shot.

If we get there early, as early as 6 or 7 am and take a position along the
street, it will be clear to everyone approaching the State House, including the
legislators and media, that people of faith support same sex marriage.

Your presence in the State House is also very helpful. You can get online as
early as 7am at one of the three entrances to the building. You can enter
throughout the day although the building will close to new entrants if capacity
is reached. Our "in House" presence last time was wonderful. RCFM Co-Chair,
Maureen Reddington-Wilde led supporters in song and chanting for 16 hours.  I
was in the gallery and everyone, legislators and visitors alike, could hear
their voices.

We need more clergy, especially those with collars, to participate in this
effort because reporters will naturally come and talk to you. We'll have RCFM
stickers for clergy and please also wear a MassEquality sticker.  Again, this
puts people of faith up front and center. For more information
about the con con you can check the websites of the Freedom to Mary Coalition,
www.equalmariage.org and the MassEquality website, www.MassEquality.org.

WE DON'T EXPECT MANY PEOPLE CAN STAY ALL DAY.  ANY TIME YOU CAN GIVE WILL HELP.  YOU CAN ALWAYS JOIN OUR SUPPORTERS, AND KEEP OUR
NUMBERS UP OUTSIDE.

A CALL FOR CONCON VOLUNTEERS

We need volunteers for the Con Con on Monday and the service on the 28th. If you
are interested volunteering at the Con Con  please call Robyn Maguire at
617.256.4746. If you know folks who can volunter at the service or
Constitutional Convention please also call Robyn.

Thank you all for your continued support and advocacy.

See you Sunday and Monday.

Rabbi Devon Lerner, RCFM Co-Chair
617-308-8158
Rabbilerner@equalmarriage.org