May/Pentecost Special Offering: Galileo Church
Something happened at Galileo Church that we did not expect in this season of post-pandemic emergence. What we did expect was the tsunami of grief, loneliness, and anxious fear that built up in our two years apart. Yes, we worshiped and prayed and tried to do life together through our screens; but it was hard, especially on spiritual refugees who had just found their community, their safe space, and then had to go home and stay home, alone.
What we did not expect was that another wave was building, ready to crest on our shores: a tide of pent-up energy to do something wildly beautiful for this world God still loves.
You might know that Texas is a battleground over the worth and dignity of human beings, and that the LGBTQ+ community has been under particular assault in public spaces. Galileo Church has raised our collective voice to protest the scapegoating of our beloveds, many times over many years. But it feels fruitless sometimes: all this protesting, all this pleading with powerful people to pick on somebody their own size. Or stop picking on anybody at all.
So we decided to do something Big, something Good, something Helpful in this world God still loves. With the gift of 2,200 rent-free square feet from our landlord, and some money we had squirrelled away for a rainy day, we opened Finn’s Place in April.
Finn’s Place is a bright, beautiful community center for use by any non-profit org or person that serves the trans and gender-diverse community. It’s not a religious space, but the gospel is happening there every day, when our community partners embody God’s love for people who aren’t getting a lot of love anywhere else. Take a look at finnsplacetx.org. We think you’ll love it.
We’re so glad for the partners who keep making this work possible, and so grateful to be in ministry alongside WACC!
Katie Hays
Lead Evangelist
Galileo Church