WASHINGTON D.C. – The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Institute for Welcoming Resources, Keshet, COLAGE and Family Equity Council released a curriculum designed to help Jewish congregations support and embrace LGBT members of their families.

The title of the curriculum is “Koi B’mishpachat Elohim / All in God’s Family: A Jewish Guide for Creating Allies for Our LGBT Families,” and is a multimedia curriculum that provides tools to support Jewish congregations in their efforts to create inclusive institutions for LGBT people and their families.

“Our work to secure basic rights and full equality for LGBT people has advanced thanks to the commitment and compassion of our faith leaders and communities of faith,” says David Lohman, Faith Work Faith Resource Manager at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. “For people of faith, their religious community is the bedrock of their work for fairness, justice, and equality. We believe that LGBT people and their families deserve the same love and honor as all of God’s beloved families. This curriculum will help congregations extend God’s extravagant welcome to all of God’s families — particularly LGBT families.”

“Koi B’mishpachat Elohim” includes tools to help leaders including a step-by-step guide to supporting LGBT families of faith and frameworks for facilitating group learning, community dialogue, text-study and community action planning to highlight LGBT families in Jewish communities. The curriculum will utilize “Families Like Mine,” a book about adults with LGBT parents, written by Abigail Garner whose father is gay; the youth-produced documentary “In My Shoes: Stories of Youth with LGBT Parents;” and photo-text exhibit “That’s So Gay: Portraits of Youth with LGBT Parents.”

“LGBT families are a part of every Jewish community,” says Idit Klein, Executive Director of Keshet. “We are thrilled to make this new resource available together with our partners and look forward to seeing our families embraced and honored. Full inclusion makes a community stronger and more vibrant for all of us.”