The UCC Newsroom

Two economic activists from the United Church of Christ are trying to help tens of thousands of coal miners and their spouses who face the loss of their health benefits.

United Church of Christ advocates are urging congregations to make their voices heard one last time before the Boy Scouts of America vote next week on whether to revise its discriminatory policy against LGBT members.

United Church of Christ advocates expressed opposition to proposed cuts to the 2013 Farm Bill that would reduce funding for programs that provide food to underprivileged families at a rally in Washington, D.C., May 16.

United Church of Christ General Minister and President the Rev. Geoffrey A. Black is traveling across China for two weeks with the Rev. Sharon E. Watkins, general minister and president of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

A small group of neighbors in Western New York, with inspiration from the United Church of Christ's Mission 4/1 Earth, banded together to clean up one of the area's few remaining natural habitats –– the Great Baehre wildlife refuge in Amherst.

As the culmination of his congregation's Mission 4/1 Earth efforts, the Rev. Frank Rodgers of St. Paul Community Church UCC in Homewood, Ill., will preach from the limbs of a buckeye tree, more than 30 feet above the ground.

W. Mark Clark, associate general minister for the United Church of Christ, is one of several Christian leaders working to change the tone of politics in this country by “stopping the angry rhetoric and trying to come together."

UCC pastor the Rev. Aaron Ban felt the need to honor a slain teenager in southwest Illinois and bring his community together in a peaceful demonstration of solidarity against street violence.

In a symbolic gesture of solidarity, more than 3,000 New Englanders will formerly reclaim the shore that was decimated by last year's Hurricane Sandy and recognize the hard work that has gone into repairing the beachfront in time for all to enjoy this summer.

The finish line for the United Church of Christ’s all-church environmental campaign is approaching, but the conclusion of Mission 4/1 Earth on Pentecost Sunday, May 19, doesn’t signal the end of the denomination’s earth care and advocacy focus.

United Church of Christ General Minister and President the Rev. Geoffrey A. Black is traveling across China for two weeks with the Rev. Sharon E. Watkins, general minister and president of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

Taking a public stand to stop the impending pollution, the Pacific Northwest Conference voted nearly unanimously for a conference resolution opposing the proposed construction of coal export terminals and the transport of coal via trains that spew toxic dust throughout the region.

UCC General Minister and President the Rev. Geoffrey Black signed his name to a letter to the White House, joining other faith leaders in calling on President Barack Obama to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba and end a dark chapter in the inhumane treatment of prisoners.

The community of Park Hill Congregational UCC, in Denver, Colo., has spent a lot of time working 4/1 Earth this Eastertide. In fact, 3,950 earth care hours to be exact, mostly worship and project preparation, as noted in the pastor's first Mission 4/1 Earth report May 2. But all of the advance planning in the world couldn't prepare the Rev. David Bahr for a curve ball from Mother Nature.

Immigration reform advocates from the United Church of Christ joined other faith leaders for a vigil in front of the Russell Senate Building on Thursday, May 9, during the debate over immigration reform now underway in the U.S. Senate.

On Thursday, May 9, Minnesota cleared its biggest hurdle in becoming the next state to support marriage equality when the Minnesota House voted in favor of a bill that would permit same-sex marriages. The rapid shift of public opinion shows how quickly change can happen, said the Rev. Obadiah (Oby) Ballinger, a United Church of Christ minister in St. Paul, Minn.

Two of the UCC's executive ministers took the lead on behalf of the UCC national officers and asked the Coalition for LGBT concerns for a more formal covenantal bond this spring to strengthen the historic work that both have done in some 40 years together.

Promise UCC in Dallas and ANEW UCC in South Dakota are just two of several congregations that have joined the United Church of Christ or have been planted in the last 12 months. That number is sure to grow as the UCC's Local Church Ministries continues to tally the total as conferences report new churches following annual meetings this spring.

Another state has voted against discrimination, choosing love and inclusion for all couples who want to marry, with leaders from the United Church of Christ celebrating another historic moment in the movement for full marriage equality. On Tuesday May 7, Delaware became the 11th state to pass a law extending marriage equality to all citizens.

Before Mission 4/1 Earth even began, the Social Justice Ministry Team at Heritage United Church of Christ in Baltimore had 50 days of activities ready for the congregation.