Friendly Non-biased Mpls/St. Paul churches? (Minneapolis, Plymouth: neighborhood, high school, homeless)

[trendycat]

Hi everyone. My husband and I are looking for a upbeat welcoming church to attend regurarly. The only problem is that I'm white and my husband is black, and we're sick of the judgemental looks we still recieve at most church's we've attended in the suburbs, and just quit going all together.

We don't seem to have a problem in churches with an all black congregation, only the churches where the congregation is primarily white.

Can anyone suggest any local churches in the twin cities area where we can go and feel welcomed and at peace with ourselves and our interracial family?

[ajwillet]

Upper Room - a community loving God and others in the rhythm of Jesus

[Ben Around]

Two Catholic churches that would probably fit the bill are St Cecelia's in St Paul and St Joan of Arc in south Minneapolis.

[MplsTodd]

I'd suggest looking into UCC churches (United Church of Christ), which tend to be very progressive, including the following:

Mayflower
Linden Hills Congregational UCC
Lynnhurst
Plymouth Congregational

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by Ben Around

Two Catholic churches that would probably fit the bill are St Cecelia's in St Paul and St Joan of Arc in south Minneapolis.

St. Cecelia's is a great church. We used to belong to that parish-we moved out of the metro area and are now back and attending a church closer to home. We have several couples at our current church that are black/white with no issues. We lost a very prominent member of our church to the 35W bridge collapse who was half of a black/white family. His wife still attends our parish and the family is very active.

[iamthepowerhouse]

Hey my wife and I are in the same boat! Looking for a good church. We came from a very "come as you are, we love you no matter what" church in Tennessee. So far i've found these churches. Haven't visited them all yet though"

Eaglebrook Church- Lino Lakes and 2 other campuses. I really liked this one.

The Upper Room- Went last week. Was another good one.

Woodland Hills Church

City Church of Minneapolis

Church of the Open Door

Solomon's Porch

Horizons Community Church of Ham Lake

They all have websites, you can just google them and they will pop up.

[BarbaraMN]

I would think just about any church in the city would be welcoming. My church, Bethlehem Lutheran on Lyndale (at 41st) would definitely be non-judgemental as would its spin-off church, Jacob's Well. St. Peter's Lutheran on France/54th would be a good one too. All of these churches have other interracial couples--it just shouldn't be a bit deal. Sorry you've been having trouble!

[Boomerbiker]

I would also suggest Plymouth Congregational church in Minneapolis - the senior minister, Jim Gertmainan is very progressive and a strong advocate of racial and sexual orientation diversity in the church. The church is very much involved with the surrounding neighborhood - providing k-12 eduction for the homeless and a food pantry. Church also prides itself on reaching out to new immigrants to the community and other religions. There is also strong emphasis on educational programs and the arts.

[Double]

In St. Paul, I would recommend two churches right near 94/Dale.

St. Peter Claver (Catholic) and Camphor Memorial (United Methodist).

Both are predominantly black, but in MN white people are always in the mix. Our family is like yours and everyone is totally cool with us.

[skylarkmn]

Hi...I attend Substance Church, a non-denominational church, which currently meets at Fridley High School. There are so many people from different ethnic and racial backgrounds and all walks of life and each of them are equally loved and respected by the church. The music is passionate and powerful and they are absolutely rooted to the whole truth of the Bible. The pastor is painfully authentic and truly in love with the Lord. They do not judge people and they are filled with great love for all who walk into the doors. There's tons of ways to get involved and meet people.

I am so sorry for your experience. There's a reason God made people in different colors...its beautiful. It breaks my heart that people would somehow lack the eyes to see the beauty of His creation. But...I think there's a great chance you'd enjoy Substance. Granted, I don't know you but I do know Substance attracts people from so many different types of people from foreign-born persons to growing families to kids with tattoos all over. Anyone and everyone is welcome.

The meet at Fridley High School at 8:00, 9:45, and 11:30 on Sunday mornings. You can get any information you'd like from the website at www.substancechurch.com. I've also included a link below to a video of the senior pastor, Peter Haas, giving a virtual tour. He just talks to you as he does, like a person, and gives a background, overview, and description of the passion behind the church. Its totally worth checking out. If you need more information, directions, someone to sit with--whatever, please don't hesitate to ask.

Substance Church | Viritual Visit

I know this was long...sorry, I have a tendency to use more words than less most days. But, though I can't know what you've been going through, I do know that going from church to church with disappointing results can really break your spirit. The frustration is almost unbearable at times. But I love Substance. Its real, its truthful, and its dang fun. I'll be praying for your search...wherever God would land you.