Campolo is an advocate for LGBTQ inclusion.
For more than 20 years, Peggy Campolo has been an outspoken advocate for the full inclusion of those who are not heterosexual in the church. Her ministry has taken her to venues around the world as she encourages Christians to welcome people of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) community into a loving, caring, equal relationship within the church and their larger community.
Campolo will bring her message of acceptance in a special presentation at First United Methodist Church located at: 446 Camden Avenue in Moorestown at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 14. Hosted by the Reconciling Team of FUMC, the event will take place in the church’s chapel; nursery care will be provided.
Campolo will explain how she became an advocate for this issue, share experiences of the harm caused by the church’s treatment of people who are LGBTQ and present motivating stories about LGBTQ Christians she has known. Her presentation will be followed by a brief question and answer period and reception.
Since 1994, Campolo has been a strong proponent for openly welcoming and fully including LGBTQ people within the church. She has taken her message from her own community in Pennsylvania to church congregations across the country and has conducted presentations at numerous universities and conferences. She has participated in protests with Soulforce, served on the Council of Welcoming and Affirming Baptist and supports PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) and Evangelicals Concerned. She belongs to Central Baptist Church in Wayne, Pen., which is duly aligned with American Baptist Churches USA and The Alliance of Baptists.
Campolo’s own story of how coming to know Christ led her to stand up for those who happen not to be straight is a chapter in “Homosexuality and Christian Faith — Questions of Conscience for the Churches,” edited by Walter Wink (1999). Her essay on justice for nontraditional families appears in “The Justice Project,” edited by Brian McLaren (2009).
