Ocean City LGBTQ+ Dinner Church

A small, LGBTQ+-affirming worship gathering centered on connection, prayer, restoring right relationship, and belonging.
Especially for:

• LGBTQ+ folks & allies
• Those hurt or excluded by church
• The spiritually curious or those wanting spiritual connection

Thursday, January 29 - 6:30 PM
St. Paul's by-the-Sea Episcopal Church
302 N. Baltimore Ave. Ocean City,MD

What Is Tzedakah Table?
Tzedakah is a Hebrew word often translated as "charity," but its deeper meaning is justice-the work of repairing what has been broken and restoring right relationship within community. It names a responsibility: justice lived out through dignity, care, and mutual responsibility.
The table is where relationship is restored. It is a place of shared meals, honest conversation, and radical welcome. At the table, hierarchy fades, stories are honored, and belonging is practiced. This is where justice becomes embodied-in presence, listening, and community.

Why We Gather
There was a time when members of our community gathered wherever we could find one another-bookstores, gay bars, living rooms, and backyards. In those spaces, sacred things happened. We felt safe enough to come out to one another, to talk honestly about our struggles, to grieve those who could not accept us, and to celebrate those who did. We were not only a community; we were one another's chosen family.
For many LGBTQ+ people, church has not traditionally been that kind of space. Instead, it has often been a place of harm: rejection by family or faith communities, pressure to hide or deny identity, spiritual abuse disguised as love, exclusion from leadership or sacraments, and shame carried in God's name. Over time, trust was broken. Voices were dismissed. Belonging became conditional. We know-because we have walked this road too.

At St. Paul's By-the-Sea Episcopal Church, we believe healing begins with relationships. Tzedakah Table is a gentle, trauma-aware gathering where no one is asked to defend their identity or explain their story. It is a place to share a meal, spend time together, and listen to brief reflections rooted in justice, dignity, and love. Participation is always optional. Presence is enough.

What To Expect
When people sit together and share a meal, something changes. Walls soften. Conversations begin. There is room to talk about identity and isolation, grief and joy, and what it means to live as a queer person in a rural community. Shared meals have always been places where trust grows and belonging begins.

At this table, peace is not just something we say; it is something we practice. You are invited to be seen and known without fear of judgment or correction. Belonging is not earned-it is assumed.

You Are Welcome
Whether you have never stepped foot in a church and have no desire to, or whether you once loved church but lost trust because of bigotry, shame, or exclusion-you are welcome here.
The LGBTQ+ community has always survived by gathering-by telling the truth of our lives and drawing strength from one another. Tzedakah Table seeks to reclaim that shared strength and place it once again around a table, grounded in the Gospel.

Tzedakah Table is one way St. Paul's By-the-Sea Episcopal Church chooses to live out justice-not by erasing harm, but by staying with those who have endured it.

Join us.
Share a meal.
Build a transformational community together.