Open Hearts and Open Doors at Bethel United Church of Christ

If you’ve driven down St. Charles Rd. in Elmhurst in recent days, a row of brightly-colored full-sized doors displayed on a church lawn may have caught your eye. This special art installation was created by members of Bethel United Church of Christ’s Open and Affirming Committee who, in celebration of Pride Month, have transformed wooden doors into a rainbow, the universal symbol of LGBTQ pride. The church’s rainbow doors project recognizes its commitment to “be a Christian community that includes all persons, embracing differences of age, ethnicity, gender expression and gender identity, mental and physical ability, race, sexual orientation, as well as marital or socio-economic status,” words from the congregation’s Open and Affirming Statement adopted in 2007. Doors were selected because they symbolize the invitation to enter, no matter who you are or where you are on life’s journey.

The history of the gay flag, whose colors are on the doors, dates to 1978 when Gilbert Baker created the first flag in San Francisco as a symbol of pride for the gay community, believing that flags are the most powerful symbol of pride. Baker saw the rainbow as a natural flag in the sky and adopted its colors for the stripes, each color with its own meaning: red for life; orange for healing; yellow for sunlight; green for nature; blue (turquoise) for art; and violet for spirit. The first versions of the flag were flown in June, 1978.

The doors will be displayed on the church lawn throughout the month of June. Bethel is located at 315 E St. Charles Rd. For more information please contact the church office at 630-279-4040 or office@bethel-ucc.org.