We won't let it happen again.

We won't let it happen again. To our gay and lesbian siblings, we love you. You are beautiful. You are special. You are not sinners. You are not failures. We are failures. We have sinned, because we as a religion have failed to protect you and show you love. We're sorry about this. We won't let it happen again-ever.

-Jess

To the twelve year old I used to be

To the twelve year old I used to be,

I'm so sorry. For making you sit in church listening, every day, to things that confused you and that you did not agree with
I'm sorry for telling you that, because of what you were, how you felt, you were an abomination, a mistake that needed to be fixed
For believing that no one could love you, that you were alone
For never realizing that the church isn't perfect, and that blind faith as I had would lead to your destruction
For trying to die; for trying to kill you, because I believed we were worthless
I want to apologize. I want to tell you that you're fine; everyone like you, like me, is perfectly fine, and there is nothing wrong with us.
You don't have to accept a single comment from the church that tells you otherwise. And you don't have to do a single thing the church tells you to that your heart tells you otherwise.
To you, me, and anyone else out there who feels trapped, lost, alone, and unloved by the church, I'm so sorry.
I've changed now, and contrary to what the church told me, I am so much happier than I've ever been.
You'll be fine.