For our polity class we had to prepare a brief history of landmarks and milestones in the development of MCC.
The following chronology is by no means authoritative. It speaks only of dates and milestones, not of the spirit that animated and propelled our movement forward. It only touches on the deep suffering and loss that lies at the heart of our experience of grace as a community. And even in queer history, the story is often written by the "winners". This means that important minority stories may be undervalued or even forgotten. So I ask for forgiveness in advance...
- July 27, 1940 — Birth of Troy Perry in Tallahassee, FL. As a young man, Troy was a pastor in the (pentecostal) Church of God of Prophecy. After Troy was excommunicated by the church for being gay, he separated from his wife and moved to Los Angeles in 1963, where he came out as a gay man.
- October 6, 1968 — First MCC worship service held in Troy Perry’s living room in Huntington Park, CA, attended by 12 people. Rev. Perry’s sermon was entitled “Be True to You.” This took place one year prior to the NY Stonewall riots.
- 1968 to 1970 — MCC congregations started in nine US cities, leading to the convening in late 1970 of the first General Conference and the establishment of the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (UFMCC).
- July 1970 — 12 people established an MCC in Dallas, TX, which later became the Cathedral of Hope. Growing to a membership in 2006 of 3,500, the Cathedral of Hope (no longer part of MCC) is the world’s largest GLBTQ church.
- March 1971 — MCC Los Angeles (the “Mother Church”) purchased and dedicated its first church building.
- 1972 — Publication of Rev. Troy Perry’s seminal book and autobiography, The Lord is My Shepherd And He Knows I’m Gay.
- 1973 — Mother Church destroyed by arson in January, followed by a fire in MCC Nashville in March. and then the destruction of the Upstairs Lounge in New Orleans, where the local MCC church met. 32 people died in New Orleans, including the MCC’s pastor, assistant pastor and half the congregation. Most of the city’s churches denied Rev. Troy Perry’s request to use their buildings for memorial services for the dead. In the first 30 years of MCC there would be more than thirty firebombings and other hate crimes perpetrated against MCC churches, congregations and clergy.
- 1973 — Rev. Freda Smith was the first woman ordained as MCC clergy (and elected to the UFMCC Board of Elders). The same year, Rev. June Norris was the first heterosexual licensed as MCC clergy. Today, 51% of ordained MCC clergy are women, a higher percentage than any other Christian denomination.
- 1973 — First non-US church established at MCC Toronto in Canada.
- 1974 — Churches established in Sydney, Australia and London, UK. The 70’s were the first major period of international expansion and growth (MCC now has churches in 22 countries worldwide).
- 1975 — Rev. Heather Anderson was the first transgendered MCC clergy.
- 1977 — Rev. Troy Perry invited to the White House by President Carter to discuss GLBT civil rights.
- May 1982 — Rev. Nancy Wilson attended the first of many meetings and consultations with the National Council of Churches (NCC-USA).
- 1982 — The beginning of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. At least 6,000 MCC members (almost a third of the current membership, and including a significant proportion of the gay male clergy) have died of HIV/AIDS, having an untold impact on the development of MCC during the 80’s and 90’s.
- 1986 — The first World AIDS Day organized by Rev. David Farrell as a collaborative initiative between MCC and 5,000 other churches and faith communities. By 1988 its observance had become an international event sponsored by the UN and World Health Organization (WHO).
- 1987 — 20 MCC congregations participated in the 600,000 strong National March on Washington for Gay and Lesbian Rights, forming a contingent stretching several city blocks. Rev. Troy Perry presided at a commitment ceremony for over 2,000 same-sex couples on the steps of the IRS building.
- 1987 — Establishment of the UFMCC AIDS Ministry, led by Rev. Steve Pieters, a long term HIV/AIDS survivor.
- 1991 — MCC granted official observer status in the World Council of Churches (WCC).
- November, 1992 — MCC denied observer status in the US National Council of Churches (NCC).
- 1995 — Rev. Troy Perry invited by President Clinton to the first White House Conference on HIV/AIDS.
- 1997 — UFMCC AIDS Ministry eliminated. For nearly a decade there would be no denominationally funded HIV/AIDS ministry within MCC.
- July 1999 — MCC celebrated its 30th year World Jubilee and dedicated a new world headquarters and Mother Church building complex in West Hollywood, CA.
- January 14, 2001 — First legal same-sex marriage in the world (between Kevin Bourassa and Joe Varnell) was conducted by Rev. Brent Hawkes at MCC Toronto in Canada. The subsequent court battle with the government of Ontario led in 2002 the legal recognition of same-sex marriage throughout Canada.
- January 1, 2003 — UFMCC transitioned to a new denominational structure, replacing the old district-based polity with new Bylaws and a global regional structure designed to support ministry in the new millennium. By this time the UFMCC had grown to over 43,000 members and adherents in 250 churches in 22 countries, with a combined denominational and local church operating budget of $23 million, making it the largest and most significant GLBTQ-oriented organization in the world.
- July 2003 — MCC’s largest congregation, the Cathedral of Hope in Dallas, voted to disaffiliate from the denomination.
- July 2005 — Retirement of Rev. Troy Perry and election of Rev. Nancy Wilson as the new Moderator of the UFMCC. Adoption of the first UFMCC Strategic Plan. MCC is the only Christian denomination of any size whose spiritual leader and a majority of senior denominational leadership are women.
Other useful references:
- How Did MCC Begin?
- Metropolitan Community Church (GLBTQ Encyclopedia)
- Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (Religious Movements Homepage Project)
Leave a comment