Amid what some analysts have called a “catastrophic” drop in numbers, the United Church of Canada, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, used an Aug. 8 service in Calgary to publicly reaffirm its LGBT stance, formally apologizing to “2S and LGBTQIA+” members.
The “2S” stands for “Two-Spirit,” a modern term promoted in Canada and drawn from certain Indigenous traditions to describe someone claiming to possess both a masculine and feminine spirit.
According to a news release from the denomination, leaders framed the statement as a response to both historic and ongoing harm toward these communities.
General Secretary Rev. Michael Blair told attendees, “We have failed to celebrate and delight in all of your beautiful Creation. We have wounded people instead of seeking wholeness. We are sorry.”
The United Church noted it first voted in 1988 to admit openly homosexual individuals to membership and ordained ministry and that it decided in 2012 that “gender identity” is not to “limit participation in membership or ministry.”
Yet church leaders acknowledged in the apology that “painful stories of exclusion” have continued. The statement lamented “homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia” and pledged “radical hospitality and full inclusion” in all areas of church life, including leadership, worship, and governance.
Proposed measures include revising policies, providing “reparative support,” and ensuring “2S” and “LGBTQIA+” voices are “centered in decision-making.”
“The church should be a place of sanctuary and belonging for all people,” the statement read. “You deserve a church that reflects God’s unconditional and abiding love.”
Membership in the United Church has dropped sharply in recent years. According to census data Broadview reported in 2023, the denomination lost 40% of affiliates between 2011 and 2021, falling from roughly two million to 1.2 million people. In that same period, membership dropped from about 480,000 to 350,000, and weekly attendance fell from over 165,000 to under 120,000.
Historian Kevin Flatt said multiple factors may have influenced the decline but argued that the denomination's theology is the primary cause.
“The more liberal or progressive churches have a harder time answering the question ‘Why do we need to exist?’” he told the publication.
Flatt said that many of the causes such churches champion, such as climate change activism and reconciliation efforts, are already pursued by secular community organizations, which can make religious participation feel less essential.
As reported by Broadview, United Church leaders have announced plans to expand their number of faith communities, with a particular focus on welcoming immigrants. But Rev. Blair admitted the plan is complicated by the denomination’s stance on “LGBT inclusion,” which he said “is not something that sits easy with some of our migrant communities.”