Oak Lawn United Methodist Church is inviting the community to attend the ceremony to consecrate the church’s newly-painted Rainbow Steps at noon on Sunday, Nov. 2, following morning worship services.
The church, located at 3014 Oak Lawn Ave. at the intersection of Oak Lawn and Cedar Springs Road, began painting the concrete steps at the front of the building in the rainbow colors on Oct. 21 in response to Gov. Greg Abbott’s order to Texas cities to remove any rainbow crosswalks by Nov. 8 or risk losing federal funds.
OLUMC pastor the Rev. Rachel Griffin-Allison told Dallas Voice painting the steps was not a political statement but rather “a bold statement of sacred resistance” intended to send a message to her congregation and anyone who passes by: “You will not be erased,” and “God calls love to be visible, and love belongs in public.”
Griffin-Allison said, “Our rainbow steps are more than paint. They’re a prayer of sacred resistance, declaring that God’s love will not be silenced, [that] God’s love can’t be erased.
“We’re painting our steps because we want every person who approaches our doors or passes through the neighborhood to know: There’s a place for you here, and the love of God meets you exactly as you are,” she said.
Sunday morning worship begins at 11 a.m. at OLUMC, and the consecration will begin around noon, depending on the length of the service.
A Facebook post announcing the ceremony also notes that Nov. 2 also marks OLUMC’s All Saints Sunday and invites those who have lost someone in the past year to email the names of their lost loved ones to ryan@olumc.org so their names can be included in the list to be read during worship.
“As with all services at Oak Lawn UMC, everyone is welcome,” the post says. “Come for worship, stay for the consecration, and celebrate this moment of gratitude and hope with our community. The neighborhood has given us the gift of gratitude, and we return that gift with open hearts, color, and community on the front steps.”
— Tammye Nash