"On the Varying Meaning of "Open and Affirming

Bibliographic Data

ID3656337
AuthorsC P Scheitle (0000-0001-5966-4133, Pennsylvania State University), Stephen M Merino (0000-0003-0710-7903, Pennsylvania State University), Andrew Moore (0000-0003-3185-1599), A Milton Moore (West Chester University)
Year2010
Volume57
Issue10
Pages1223-1236
Publication date2010-10-29
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Homosexuality (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0091-8369 • E-ISSN: 1540-3602
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00918369.2010.517064
PMID21058144
OpenAlexW2031670871
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited10

Some religious denominations offer programs where member congregations can signal their acceptance of all gender identities and sexual orientations. The United Church of Christ (UCC) created one of the earliest of such programs in the mid-1980s by which congregations can adopt an "Open and Affirming" identity. However, there has been little research examining this program and how it has evolved over time. Research suggests that organizational innovations like the Open and Affirming program often become institutionalized over time, leading to changes in how the program is expressed or conducted. We examine Open and Affirming (ONA) congregations in the UCC to see if the manner in which they express their ONA identity depends on when they adopted the identity. We find that early adopters of such programs are more likely than later adopters to focus on sexual orientation. While this could be seen as a troubling pattern, we argue that it could represent greater awareness of the Open and Affirming program's meaning, which has allowed for greater flexibility in its expression

Aesthetics · Business · Early adopter · Flexibility (engineering · Focus (optics · Homosexuality · Identity (music · Lesbian · Management · Meaning (existential · Sexual orientation · Sociology · Transgender · Gender Studies · Marketing · Psychology · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Society, and Development · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology · Social Psychology

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