Welcome to ZAO!

It can be daunting to check out a new church. Thanks for taking the chance to get to know us. We've compiled helpful information and FAQs on this page. If you have any further questions, we'd love to hear from you! Connect with us here.

What to Expect on sundays

Zao recently transitioned from a single-site traditional church to a network of digitally-connected house churches, or “harbors”! Learn more about our harbor model here.

We currently have three harbor communities in Milwaukee and two in Illinois. Most of our harbors meet on Sunday mornings at 10am. Our typical harbor service includes music, a sermon, group discussion, ritual, and prayer, as well as community social time! Some harbors also offer childcare and/or children’s programming. If you’re interested in being connected to a harbor, reach out to communications@zaomke.org.

General FAQ

  • That's cool! There is no belief requirement to be a part of Zao MKE Church, and many people here believe different things. In fact, we trust that church starts with belonging, and belief is much more fluid. What you believe might change while you're at Zao, and that's okay too!

  • Nope! We believe that belonging is more important than fitting in, and that belonging comes from having spaces to be authentically you. Come with your wonderful self and discover loving community. You might find lots of people like you, or lots of people not like you, and either way, we hope you find a deep sense of authentic belonging.

  • YES! Lots of churches have a kind of bait-and-switch thing going on when it comes to sexuality and gender. Some churches say that you are welcome, but then expect you to go back into the closet, tell you not to pursue romantic and sexual relationships, or exclude you from leadership. We think that's pretty toxic, and we wish churches would be more upfront about the limits of their "welcome."

    At Zao MKE Church, we don't just welcome, we affirm and celebrate queer people. Our pastors are both queer, our leadership team is majority queer, and we intentionally talk about our faith from a queer perspective. No bait & switch! Though we don’t mind a #ThirstTrap here and there 😉

  • We believe that rooting ourselves in the life and teachings of Jesus requires us to take seriously the call to justice - not just in how we talk about God, but also in how we live our lives and interact with structures of injustice. You can learn more about our justice work here.

  • Zao is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. We love our Wesleyan heritage, and the tradition's call to both personal connection to God alongside the holy work of justice in the world. Being a part of a denomination connects us to history, resources, and community that we wouldn't have if we were independent.

    But it's also hard work, especially when the denomination is struggling to be faithful as an institution - including the call to full queer affirmation in the church. We currently feel that it is our role to keep pushing the United Methodist Church towards a more liberated, queer-affirming, anti-racist future, and so we work hard to model by example while we advocate from within.

  • Zao MKE is a "church plant," meaning that it was started from scratch pretty recently. Church plants are a vital part of growing God's kingdom into a new future, because they have a unique opportunity to ask the question "what should the church look like if we could start over?"

    Pastor Jonah started Zao MKE Church by connecting with folks that were frequently marginalized in church spaces and dreaming together about a Jesus-rooted, justice-centered, radically inclusive spiritual community. Over the years, we've outgrown the living room where we started, but we still have that same questioning, experimental spirit. We hope we never stop asking what church could and should look like and approaching community with prophetic imagination and hope.