The UCC Newsroom

The Rev. Dr. Carol Vaccariello clearly appreciated the validation she received in sharing her perspective at the New Church Leadership Institute 2010 conference Aug. 9-13 in Decatur, Ga.

UCC theologian, the Rev. Donald G. Bloesch, died Aug. 24, 2010, at the age of 82 in Dubuque, Iowa.

How can the global church challenge racism when its manifestations take on such different forms in various places around the world?

The Rev. Paul Nixon spoke with a passionate clarity during his visit to the UCC national offices in downtown Cleveland last week when he said bold vision and unwavering witness require an unmistakable sparkle. “The bright-eyed people are the ones,” said Nixon, speaking before 75 people in the Church House Meeting Room during The Pilgrim Press’ presentation of The Igniting Leadership Series. “Their eyes sparkle as you talk about it – whatever ‘it’ happens to be,” said a smiling Nixon. “They have a way of energizing you. When the bright-eyed people outnumber the rest, that’s when your church has turned the corner.” Citing their ability to connect, nurture and empower, Nixon says they are great apprentices to others – invaluable allies during challenging times. “If you can get even five of these people, good things will happen. Your church will survive.” Nixon, an ordained Methodist minister and pastor of Foundry Church in Washington, D.C., authored the best-selling book “I Refuse to Lead a Dying Church!” (2006), which was Pilgrim Press’ top seller in 2007. He also wrote “Jesus on the Metro: and Other Surprises Doing Church in a New Day” (2009). “We’re moving toward new territory, a whole new place,” said Nixon. “And not just mainline churches – everyone. Evangelical, big and small, we’re all scrambling. In this decade, the churches that succeed will be those making active, intentional choices.” Nixon cites “Six Key Choices” needed for churches to survive: Life Over Death; Community Over Isolation; Fun Over Drudgery; Frontier Over Fortress; Bold Over Mild; Now Over Later. Using a projector to display an image of sparse-but-vibrant vegetation rising from parched soil, Nixon hailed two Florida women whose misbehaving grandsons prompted them to begin an after-school latch-key program. “It began with a few volunteers, and the state soon said, ‘We’d better give this some water.’” The program has flourished into an operation that receives state grants and serves over 100 trouble-prone youths. Nixon invited attendees to consider ways for their churches to provide a warmer welcome. “When people drive by your church, are the lights off? Are the doors locked? Are there signs prohibiting skateboarders – or parking spaces marked ‘For Church Members Only?’ A lot of times, when people drive by your church, they see it as a club.” A healthy place of worship also appreciates and promotes its lighter moments, said Nixon, citing a church that showed a reel-to-reel “Laurel and Hardy” film after one of its Sunday dinners. “The popped popcorn and everything, and when the lights went down, designated people began tossing kernels at the person in front of them. By the time it was over, everyone was throwing at everyone. It was all-out hysteria. You can’t downplay the importance of fun and laughter.” In his morning message before a near-capacity gathering in the Amistad Chapel, Nixon offered a sermon titled “Your Conversation in the World,” based on the text of II Corinthians 1:12. Nixon relayed how his church’s recent need to fill a part-time position resulted in a large field of well-qualified applicants. “It came down to two, and the question was, ‘Who would be the better community shepherd?’ We threw them into a setting, mixed them in with other people, stood back and watched what happened.” The successful applicant, said Nixon, was the one who could “ride like the wind” while engaged in conversation. Nixon was quick to note that messy conversations are as important – if not more so – than feel-good dialogue. “Look at Apostle Paul. He did some hurtful things but he really wasn’t a bad guy. Paul was often placed in messy contexts and had messy conversations. He got run out of town by more than anyone. If you are truly going to have conversation in the Cosmos, you WILL get push-back.”

Just over a month after its rollout, Faith Practices is drawing enthusiastic reviews from subscribers praising the simplicity of its use and the depth of the reflection it provides. To date, 73 churches have subscribed to the resources.

Expanding its seven-year partnership with Grand Valley State University, St. John’s United Church of Christ in Grand Rapids, Mich., opened its doors this summer to the university’s School of Communication.

After seven years of worship, The Villages (Fla.) UCC now has a building to call home.

Although 25,000 participants and 2,500 media members gathered last month in Vienna, Austria, for the 28th International AIDS Conference, the numbers are just not adding up, according to one UCC executive.

Members of the World Council of Churches will convene at UCC national offices in Cleveland Aug. 26-29 to discuss rationale for continued ecumenical engagement in churches' attitudes and responses to racism.

The youth of the Florida Conference’s Southeast Region will be among members of the state’s 100 UCC churches holding community worship Sunday, Aug. 22, which has been designated “Disaster Recognition Day” in support of those affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The UCC’s five-person Collegium of Officers issued a statement today urging members and churches to “affirm and support the processes by which we order our common life” in response to information that the Rev. John H. Thomas, former general minister and president, and wife Lynda Thomas have separated and that he is now in a committed relationship with a woman with whom he worked while he was general minister and president.

UCC leaders are joining an ecumenical call for greater respect for the Muslim community after “voices of intolerance and fear” have challenged the building of a mosque and learning center near the site of the former World Trade Center in New York City.

A modern-day David-meets-Goliath is playing out in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia and, to date, David – in the form of a UCC church known for its compassionate outreach among poor and homeless persons – is holding his own.

The Rev. Dr. George W. "Bill" Webber, 90, one of the vanguard of 20th-century Protestant advocates of social justice that included Martin Luther King Jr. and William Sloan Coffin Jr., died July 10 in Maplewood, N.J. He was 90.

UCC leaders continue to lift up last week’s decision by a federal judge in California to overturn Proposition 8, passed by state voters in November 2008 to ban same-sex marriage. U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled that the ban amounts to unconstitutional discrimination and should be immediately struck down.

From Boston to Billings, nearly 1,500 UCC youth, staff, advisors and volunteers convened this summer at six regional youth events geared toward exploring faith formation and expanding leadership horizons.

With the monsoon season only half over, more heavy rains are expected to affect Pakistan’s already water-logged lands. The worst natural disaster in the nation’s recent history has killed more than 1,400 people and displaced more than 1.5 million.

The United Church of Christ has announced its support of First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” campaign to engage parents, families, schools and communities in eradicating childhood obesity and ensuring access to affordable and healthy food.

The unassuming hillside church building that houses the UCC's Centro Romero ministry in San Ysidro, Calif., looks like many of the homes in its expansive neighborhood save the stuccoed steeple and white cross.

Members of Florida’s 100 UCC churches will gather for beach-side worship Sunday, Aug. 22, at 7 p.m. to celebrate and reflect how individuals can play — and are playing — a role in protecting the Gulf of Mexico devastated by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.