SALZBURG GLOBAL LGBT* FORUM LGBT* and Faith: How Can We Advance Inclusion and Equality?

From August to November 2020, Fellows of the Global Online Forum on LGBT and Faith published weekly blogs, exploring this rich history and what is needed for religious communities and leaders to be instrumental in promoting the wellbeing, equality, and inclusion of LGBT people in faith communities and society. [...] Through the blog series and subsequent online gatherings, the Global Online Forum on LGBT and Faith strived to showcase and document that a respectful, humane and global conversation on LGBT equality and inclusion in and across faith communities is not only possible, but indeed has already begun in many places. [...] As a faith leader who has accepted the LGBT community, Ninan believes that learning through listening is the most important action faith leaders can take when interacting with the LGBT community: “Listening results in change of attitude, in healing, in receiving truthful information, and in creating safe spaces for the marginalized in the long run.” The NCCI provides an interfaith, interchurch pla. [...] We have to act fast most of the time and save people when we are in a situation in which people are constantly persecuted and their lives are put in danger.” The danger posed by political and cultural exclusion is not unique and can be found across the globe, particularly in locations where religion plays a key role in politics. [...] By bridging divides between religious and LGBT communities, the Salzburg Global LGBT* Forum aims to strengthen inclusive cooperation between these communities and their leaders, and to expand global connections for support and knowledge-sharing within and beyond the program, supporting the next generation of LGBT leaders.