The Welcoming Spirit June 2026: Pride, Protest, and Public Witness
The June 2026 Pride Edition of The Welcoming Spirit has arrived in the heart of Pride Month with a message that feels both timely and deeply rooted. In a season marked by celebration, protest, and public witness, this issue invites readers to reflect on what it means to live boldly, love truthfully, and create shelter for one another.
As the national voice for LGBTQ+ Baptists, AWAB continues to uplift stories that remind us Pride is more than a moment. It is a witness. It is a practice. And it is one more way welcoming and affirming Baptists embody faith in public.
A Cover Story on Pride and Religious Liberty
This issue’s cover story, written by Katie Callaway of the Baptist Joint Committee, reflects on Pride and religious liberty through a deeply Baptist lens. She names the ways religious liberty has been distorted by Christian nationalism and reclaims it as a shelter rather than a sword. For welcoming and affirming Baptists, that distinction matters. Pride, in this telling, is not only celebration. It is also a commitment to creating spaces where people can live, worship, and belong authentically.
At a time when LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, and other marginalized communities continue to face targeted harm, this reflection offers a clear reminder that faith should never be used to erase people. It should help make room for them.
Pride, Abundant Life, and Collective Witness
This month’s issue also includes strong reflection from AWAB leadership. Board Chair Lauren Ng offers a moving meditation on Pride and abundant life, grounding it in the courage of young people to live as their full selves and in the Christian call to affirm the boundless identities of LGBTQ+ people. Her column is paired with a powerful poem by Canon Kushner, whose words speak honestly about identity, exclusion, and the struggle to be seen beyond stereotypes.
Executive Director Brian Henderson’s column, “Pride, Protest, and Our Collective Witness,” reminds readers that Pride has protest roots and that AWAB’s witness is sustained by churches, ministries, partners, donors, and supporters working together. He reflects on the legacy of Louise Rose, one of the earliest leaders in the movement that helped pave the way for AWAB, and calls readers to keep celebrating, protesting, and standing with one another in this season.
Pride Resources and Public Engagement
The June issue also highlights several important ways AWAB is engaging Pride season in real time. Readers will find the launch of AWAB’s third annual Pride Directory, designed to help people connect with welcoming and affirming Baptist churches participating in Pride events across the country. They will also find an invitation to the joint breakfast AWAB is hosting with Baptist News Global and Good Faith Media during the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship General Assembly.
This issue also includes a full-season recap of Voice of the Turtle, AWAB’s podcast produced in partnership with Good Faith Media. With all eight episodes now available, the series offers listeners a chance to revisit the history, theology, testimony, and witness that continue to shape welcoming and affirming Baptist life.
Updates from Across the Association
Beyond Pride-themed reflections and resources, the June edition offers a fuller picture of AWAB’s life together. Readers will find recommended books by Skye Perryman, Brad Gooch, and Brandon Crowley, reflections on AWAB’s 2026 Board retreat in Puerto Rico, and updates welcoming new member churches into the association. The issue also includes snapshots from around the AWAB community, highlighting ministry milestones, leadership transitions, events, and celebrations from across the network.
At its core, the June Pride Edition of The Welcoming Spirit is a reminder that Pride and Baptist faithfulness are not in tension. In AWAB’s life together, Pride is one expression of what it means to tell the truth, make room, resist erasure, and embody a Gospel wide enough for all of us.
As we move through Pride Month, we hold fast to this truth: the work of welcome is still holy, still urgent, and still worth doing together.
Check out the latest issue below.