Creating vitality together: Manual on Local Church now available, feedback sought

After five years in the making, a draft of the Manual on Local Church (MLC) — along with all of the resources that go along with it — is now available.

The 32nd General Synod resolved that a working group, representative of the whole denomination, would be convened to produce a Manual on Local Church for the United Church of Christ. This is akin to the Manual on Ministry, for use by churches in all settings to fully live into their covenantal responsibilities and privileges under the Constitution of the UCC.

Review, revision, editing

After much work and research — interviews, case studies, writing, review, revisions, editing, more review, more revisions and more editing — the MLC working group is confident this is a faithful and usable draft for local churches and the entities in covenantal relationships with them, including Associations and Conferences, according to the Rev. Tracy Howe, minister and team leader of Faith Education, Innovation and Formation (FaithINFO).

“There were more than 200 readers of MLC as we worked to bring it to life. This draft is meant to be a resource toward faithfulness and vitality,” said Howe. “We have a responsibility to each other, so what does autonomy in a church look like? This is a life-giving assessment tool.”

UCC churches can watch a video webinar that has been recorded to help guide them through each section of the MLC. There is also a PowerPoint presentation to help share the document in an understandable format. There is even a “Grow Your Church” board game that can help as congregations make their way through the document.

Looking forward to feedback

In the lead-up to the 2025 General Synod in Kansas City, hopes are that churches will engage the Manual on Local Church and make it their own.

“We are really proud of this document,” said Howe. “It offers clarity around covenantal relationships, as living faith through local churches looks different for everyone. It’s not the church size or budget that determines these things. The MLC is a guide, and we look forward to getting feedback.”

The Manual on Local Church includes:

• The Congregational Code, a three-part covenantal framework centering local churches;
• Marks for Faithful and Vital Local Churches — the marks can be explored through the Grow Your Church game, available from UCC Resources;
• Local Church Governance, which include practical tools for building and sustaining healthy leadership;
• And, Standing Support and Accountability processes.

The MLC is still marked as a “draft” because the the wider church now has the opportunity to review it and submit feedback through the end of 2024.

---

Content on ucc.org is copyrighted by the National Setting of the United Church of Christ and may be only shared according to the guidelines outlined here.