United Church of Christ

Accessible to All Churches and Disabilities Justice
2022-08-18 15:30 - 16:30 (America/New_York) | Zoom
The United Church of Christ adopted the Accessible to All (A2A) covenant as a denomination in 2005 as part of our commitment to disabilities justice. Barriers to accessibility are both physical and attitudinal. Disability justice intersects with the UCC’s commitments to racial, economic, gender, sexual identies, just peace, and environmental justice. Join representatives of the UCC Disabilities Ministries Board for practical resources for what UCC members and congregations can do to create a more just world for all.
This webinar is part of a special series of Thursdays for the Soul webinars focused on twelve Just World Covenant programs in the United Church of Christ. One the third Thursday of each month, one of these programs will be featured. Learn more at: www.ucc.org/just_world_covenants.

Sharing Leadership in UCC Community
2022-08-11 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
Some mistakenly believe that United Church of Christ faith communities resist leadership by design. The truth is that UCC polity calls on communities to share leadership, voluntarily and covenantally. Sharing leadership is so countercultural, it’s easy to misunderstand.
Join Dean Sarah B. Drummond of Andover Newton Seminary at Yale Divinity School and Rev. Dr. Chris S. Davies for an energizing and timely conversation about Drummond’s new book from the Pilgrim Press, Sharing Leadership: A United Church of Christ Way of Being In-Community.
Davies and Drummond will reflect on questions like, “How can faith communities share leadership well?” and, “How can the UCC help its members to carry the life-giving practices of sharing leadership into their families, communities, and workplaces?”
*Please note this session is pre-recorded.

Building an Endowment
2022-08-10 19:30 - 20:30 | Zoom
7:30pm to 8:30pm Eastern Time (6:30pm to 7:30pm Central)

An endowment can provide support to a congregation and its wider mission. But where do you start? This webinar will provide ideas and policies for creating and growing an endowment for your congregation.
Register in advance for this meeting:
REGISTER

Overdue: Environmental Justice for All
2022-08-10 13:00 - 14:00 | Zoom
The United States has a long history of environmental injustice that has led to undue burdens of pollution on people of color and low-income communities. In this webinar, we will focus specifically on environmental injustice in relation to access to clean water. Our special guest will be Lynn Thorp who serves as the National Campaigns Director for Clean Water Action. She will discuss how we can make strides in reducing water pollution, including exposure to toxic substances such as persistent and pervasive PFAS chemicals also known as “forever” chemicals. She will additionally discuss how to ensure that large new water infrastructure investments are spent equitably and effectively as well as how to modernize our drinking water systems. Finally, she will draw the connections between securing clean water while also addressing the climate crisis and promoting clean energy. Join us as we learn about what reforms are needed (and possible!) from our federal government.
Even if you cannot make the webinar at its scheduled time, still sign-up, and we will send you a link to a recording of it.
This monthly installment of Creation Justice Webinars is co-hosted by the Andy Wells-Bean who serves as the National Environmental Justice Fellow for the United Church of Christ and the Rev. Michael Malcom who serves as the Executive Director for Alabama Interfaith Power & Light and the People’s Justice Council.

Faithful Abortion Access: Then And Now
2022-08-04 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
The Clergy Consultation Service was a nationwide network of getting people access to safe abortion services and resources before it was legal. Hosted by Rev. Dr. Chris Davies, join alongside To Offer Compassion: A History of the Clergy Consultation Service On Abortion authors D.A. Dirks and Patricia Relf to learn more about the extensive network of the time, and hear the testimony of Rev. Donna Schaper about her work along the way. Faith Choice Ohio’s Executive Director Elaina Ramsey will join alongside Dr. Sherry Warren, the United Church of Christ’s Minister for Gender Justice in speaking towards ways people of faith can show up now that we look towards state-led decision making.

2022 Grant informational Meeting
2022-08-03 13:00 - 14:00 | Zoom
This is to register for an informational meeting to learn about the 2022 Justice and Local Church Ministries grant
Justice and Local Church Ministries of the United Church of Christ has decided to take a bold step in creating a common application that streamlines our granting process. The hope and goal is to ensure granting is made easier for congregations in the United Church of Christ as we honor the intentions for funding for seven funding areas.
1. Operational Support (Rolling Monthly deadline until November)
2. CASA New and Rebirthing Church grant (October 3,2022)
3. Neighbors in Need Grant (October 3,2022)
4. Pension Board New Church Benefit support grant (September 12, 2022)
Interested individuals and churches can find out more information and apply for the grant here:
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

A Conversation with Franklinton Center at Brick’s Rev. Elly Mendez Angulo
2022-07-28 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
The mission of Franklinton Center at Bricks is to provide a nurturing home to local, national, and global programs and organizations seeking liberation. (FCAB’s website).
Come join us as for a conversation with Rev Elly Mendez Angulo, Program Manager and Interim Executive Director who will share the history, the UCC connection and current vision of Franklinton Center to manifest a world where systemic oppression does not exist; the whole divinity of a person is realized; the memory, contribution and resilience of our ancestors is embraced; and the environment is healed.
Today, Franklinton Center at Bricks programs continue to focus on living up to the legacy of our ancestors and our predecessor institutions by serving the people of our community, through the following broad program areas:

Center for Rural Community Development and Education
Center for African American Historic Preservation
Center for Land-based Innovation
Social Justice Conference and Retreat Center.

Our Faith Our Vote 2022: Faithful Engagement in a Time of Increased Voter Suppression
2022-07-21 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
Throughout Scripture and in the teachings of Jesus, we hear the faith call to be in just, compassionate right relation with each other. So discipleship draws us to engagement with our common life, what we call the political process, as the way we order our relationships.
Join this webinar and learn how the UCC Our Faith Our Vote campaign can be integrated into congregational life and shape congregational identity, complementing and amplifying other congregational covenants like ONA and Just Peace.
We will hear from several members of congregations that have participated in the Our Faith Our Vote campaign and learn from their stories.
This webinar is part of a special series of Thursdays for the Soul webinars focused on twelve Just World Covenant programs in the United Church of Christ. One the third Thursday of each month, one of these programs will be featured. Learn more at: www.ucc.org/just_world_covenants.

Witnesses with the World's Workers
2022-07-20 14:00 - 15:00 | Zoom
Join us as we hear the testimonies of Union Workers and workers in the “informal” economies of the world. We will be joined by leaders representing informal economy workers in Zimbabwe, migrant workers, union workers, and more. Learn key ways you and your church can help support and educate about worker Justice rooted in the UN Sustainable Development Goals, to include participation in this year’s Labor in the Pulpit.

The Flag in The Sanctuary
2022-07-14 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
One of the most difficult and theological conversations a congregation may have is about the flag in the sanctuary. Join alongside Rev. Roberto Ochoa, Rev. and Rev. John Gage to discuss what considerations go into this conversation, as well as how your congregation might engage it with grace and care for the people involved. Hosted by Rev. Dr. Chris Davies, this program does not prescribe an outcome, but will provide resources for engaging the conversation.

Blessed Youth
2022-07-07 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
Join Rev. Dr. Chris Davies as she interviews Rev. Dr. Sarah Lund, Minister for Disabilities & Mental Health Justice, Health & Wholeness Advocacy at the United Church of Christ and author of the newly released book, Blessed Youth: Breaking the Silence about mental Health with Children and Teens. They will discuss challenges, hope, and practical resources.

Wartime Threat: Increased Fossil Fuel Production at Home
2022-07-06 13:00 - 14:00 | Zoom
The fossil fuel industry is using the war in Ukraine to push for ramping up production in the United States. As a result, communities on the frontlines of the industry face the wartime threat of more pollution and more harm to their health. In this webinar, we will learn about the history that shapes the threats faced, and we will hear directly from those fighting at the grassroots to protect their families and communities. Featured speakers will include Roishetta Ozane from Healthy Gulf, Lois Bower-Bjornson from the Clean Air Council, and David J.X. González from the University of California-Berkeley.
Even if you cannot make the webinar at its scheduled time, still sign-up, and we will send you a link to a recording of it.
This monthly installment of Creation Justice Webinars is co-hosted by the Rev. Dr. Brooks Berndt who serves as the Minister of Environmental Justice for the United Church of Christ and the Rev. Michael Malcom who serves as the Executive Director for Alabama Interfaith Power & Light and the People’s Justice Council.

OWL Taking Flight: Amazing Amaze!
2022-07-06 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom
Dr. Rachael Gibson, Amaze Education Senior Program Manager at Advocates for Youth will join us for a lively conversation about their amazing resources. Join us as we explore the challenges and rewards of providing public-facing sexuality education.

An Afternoon of Theatre with the Just Peace Players
2022-06-30 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
The Just Peace Players are a group of interfaith religious leaders who write and perform plays on peace and justice themes. They perform live and virtually for local congregations and Association gatherings throughout the New England area and beyond. Join us as the Just Peace Players perform and discuss their ministries for the wider church and interfaith communities.

Digital Ministry Summit
2022-06-27 | Zoom
We need digital ministry leaders today…
As we enter the third year of a worldwide pandemic we continue to realize that digital ministry is real ministry and it is essential for the future of the church in our world. As faith leaders we can naively hope to return to “the way things used to be” or we can intentionally and strategically create digital ministries that engage our congregations and the world around us with the good news of love and justice. The Digital Ministry Summit provides an in depth look at hybrid worship, online church, virtual community, and more. Through interviews with leading digital ministry faith leaders, the Digital Ministry Summit equips faith leaders and congregations with the ideas, inspiration, philosophy, and theology to start or enhance the digital ministry in your context.
Join us for this five day summit, learn with 20 leading digital ministry experts, and explore new possibilities for digital ministry, hybrid worship, and online church in your context.
The Digital Ministry Summit is for you if…

You want to learn the “how to” and the “why to” of digital ministry.
You want to hear best practices from digital ministry leaders.
You want to create a sustainable digital ministry for your congregation.
You want to improve your online/hybrid worship experience.
You want to proclaim the good news of love and justice by any media necessary.

Register

Prayer and Preparation: Introduction to Rapid Response and Embodiment Practices
2022-06-23 19:00 - 21:00 | Zoom
As the legislative attack on trans and queer persons continue, hate groups have been emboldened to act publicly. In recent weeks armed militias, neo-nazis and violent white supremacists have disrupted public PRIDE festivals and library programing featuring queer people. We anticipate this kind of organized and armed disruption to continue. Join Rev. Tracy Howe, Minister for Congregational and Community Engagement for an introduction to rapid response and embodiment practices to help local church members prepare and respond for this kind of violence. Topics such as risk assessment, intervention, communication and organizing in these scenarios will be addressed.
Audience: Local church lay leaders and authorized ministers. ONA congregations.
Trainer: Rev. Tracy Howe, Minister for Congregational and Community Engagement

Manual on Church Update
2022-06-23 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
Join Rev. Dr. Chris Davies and members of the Manual on Church Working Group for a conversation on where we have been, and where we are going with the document of Best Practices and Covenental Connections. Attendees of this conversation will get a sneak peak into the newly developed Marks of Faithful and Vital Congregations, and be invited into the trials of “how will this work for your setting?”

Juneteenth: Revealing Hidden Histories
2022-06-17 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom
Remembering the day that news of emancipation reached the last outpost of enslaved people in Texas, Juneteenth acknowledges God’s sacred people of African descent. Sacred acknowledgment is recognition of birthplace—the cradle of civilization on the continent of Africa. Sacred acknowledgement is celebration of cultural expressions as first peoples, free people, multilingual, multiethnic, and multi-talented artisans, scientists, creators, builders, navigators, writers, thinkers, and orators. Sacred acknowledgement is remembering and honoring the generations of untold stories that are waiting to be revealed within these sacred bodies.
Amidst growing efforts to suppress the truths of our history, join the United Church of Christ for our Juneteenth 2022 Celebration as African and African American descendants
— geniuses of spoken word and cultural oral traditions—reveal hidden histories so we might take up our roles in the unfolding story of God’s liberating love.

Open and Affirming: the Power of Covenant
2022-06-16 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
This webinar is for UCC congregations taking their first steps towards an Open and Affirming covenant, and for existing ONA churches looking for new ways to live into their ONA commitment. We’ll focus on “covenant” as the basic value of our movement, and the reason we’ve become the largest and fastest-growing LGBTQ-affirming church movement in the world. We’ll share best practices we’ve learned from growing ONA churches, including intersectional advocacy, and ways a church can design an ONA conversation that builds consensus and strengthens relationships.
This webinar is part of a special series of Thursdays for the Soul webinars focused on twelve Just World Covenant programs in the United Church of Christ. On the third Thursday of each month, one of these programs will be featured. Learn more at: www.ucc.org/just_world_covenants.

Faithful Election Engagement in a Time of Increased Voter Suppression
2022-06-09 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
The United Church of Christ’s Our Faith Our Vote Campaign is our ongoing commitment to equip you with the tools for nonpartisan faithful engagement in our democratic process. The campaign is made up of three main components; voter registration, issue education, and voter empowerment.
Join us as we explore faithful election engagement in a time of increased voter suppression. This session will offer a variety of resources as you support your community and congregation.

Discerning and Deciding: Bold Climate Action
2022-06-08 13:00 - 14:00 | Zoom
According to a recent report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the world has less than three years for its greenhouse gas emissions to peak and head into a relatively rapid decline. Careful discernment is needed on where people of faith and conscience should place their time and energy in organizing for the policies that will lead us to a more just and hospitable world. Should the focus be on climate legislation currently being considered in Congress? Should the focus be upon presidential emergency powers? To help answer these questions, this webinar will feature three leaders in the climate movement:

Keya Chatterjee, Executive Director of U.S. Climate Action Network
Miranda Ehrlich, Federal Field Director for the Sierra Club
Jean Su, Energy Justice Director for the Center for Biological Diversity

Even if you cannot make the webinar at its scheduled time, still sign-up, and we will send you a link to a recording of it.
This monthly installment of Creation Justice Webinars is co-hosted by the Rev. Dr. Brooks Berndt who serves as the Minister of Environmental Justice for the United Church of Christ and the Rev. Michael Malcom who serves as the Executive Director for Alabama Interfaith Power & Light and the People’s Justice Council.

All Together: Insights from Strengthening the Church
2022-06-02 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
Gleaning wisdom and possibilities from new church planters and revitalizing churches on how to adapt and do ministry through shifting times. This webinar sets out to explore how “All Together” we can strengthen our church. This webinar will engage new church planters that have received grant funding from Strengthening the Church offering, we will hear the impact of Strengthening the Church offering from a Conference Minister and gain insights from a church coach who supports the work of new church plants in the United Church Of Christ through Strengthening the Church funding.

World Refugee Day Ecumenical Worship Service
2022-06-01 14:00 - 15:00 | Zoom
June 20 is World Refugee Day. UCC Refugee and Migration Ministries, in collaboration with the Presbyterian Church USA and the Disciples of Christ, will host a live, ecumenical online worship service June 1 at 2 p.m. (Eastern), then make the recording and related resources available to local congregations June 20 or another day of their choice. This service will include litanies, prayers, and reflections on global mass migration and bring us together to inspire in us a faithful and loving response.

Autism-Inclusive OWL
2022-06-01 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom
Join Amy Johnson, Melanie Davis, and OWL trainers Shellie and Ramon Selove to learn how to make OWL programs welcoming and inclusive of neurodiversity. Ramon is autistic, and he and Shellie have a young adult autistic son who attended OWL programming. The Seloves will share first-hand experiences that will help facilitators lead OWL programs that are enjoyable and meaning for all participants.

Make Visible II: Queer Singers Unite!
2022-05-26 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
In a world with increasing vulnerabilities and an onslaught of public messaging and policy making coming against trans and queer youth, womxn, and people who love and support them, celebration and affirmation will continue to be one line of resistance. Join Minneapolis based artist Rachel Kurtz as she shares her new single “All the Gay Kids,” and Tucson based artist Tracy Howe with their new single “I Am Becoming.” The two will talk about touring churches, celebrating journeys and being queer womxn artists. This will be a delightful Thursday for the Soul.

Matching Gift Challenges
2022-05-25 19:30 - 20:30 | Zoom
7:30pm to 8:30pm Eastern Time (6:30pm to 7:30pm Central)
A major gift from a single donor, or a small group of donors, can be leveraged to inspire gifts from a wider circle of donors. Learn practical ways to use a gift to issue a “challenge” to your congregation to support your own ministry or that of a partner organization of your congregation.
Register in advance for this meeting:

Living Out Contemplation and Action
2022-05-19 15:30 - 16:30
Come hear about and join in the movement of UCCers beginning to become a church of “contemplatives in action,” inspired by the General Synod 2021 resolution. Presenters include Rev. Matt Carriker and Rev. Darrell Goodwin. Rev. Carriker is co-author of the “Becoming a Church of Contemplatives in Action” Resolution, Pastor of Agape Spiritual Community in Waltham, MA, and just released his first book, “Giving Christianity Back to Agape Love.” Rev. Darrell Goodwin is the Executive Conference Minister in the Southern New England Conference of the United Church of Christ. As the chief vision-keeper, communicator and strategist, Rev. Goodwin is responsible for guiding the Conference in its positive and transformative impact in our world. He also represents the Conference in ecumenical, interfaith and public gatherings and events.

Refugee Sponsorship, Asylum Accompaniment, and Sanctuary Church: How Can My Church Practice Responsible Hosting?
2022-05-18 15:30 - 16:30 | Zoom
Participants will learn the key differences between types of migrant hosting and be invited to consider what gifts their church offer contextually to host a migrant family as they transition to life in the United States.
This webinar is part of a special series of Thursdays for the Soul webinars focused on twelve Just World Covenant programs in the United Church of Christ. On the third Thursday of each month, one of these programs will be featured. Learn more at: www.ucc.org/just_world_covenants

Resisting Apartheid: Promoting Justice and Planting Olive Trees
2022-05-18 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
In 2021 and 2022, major human rights organizations such as B’Tselem, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International have documented and named Israeli practices and policies as Apartheid. Palestinians, including some Disciples and UCC partners such as the Joint Advocacy Initiative of the Palestinian YMCA and YWCA, have been speaking in these terms, for much longer. As more and more institutions and people are identifying Israeli practices and policies as apartheid, what does it look like on the ground, and why is important for the global church community to speak about the legal and ethical aspects in these terms?
Mr. Nidal Abu Zuluf, Director of the Joint Advocacy Initiative, will share about how Israeli policies are consistent with the international legal definition of the crime of apartheid, the ways that Palestinians are affected on a daily basis, and how you can support creative Palestinian non-violent resistance to those policies.
Nidal Abu Zuluf is the Director of the Joint YMCA/YWCA Advocacy Initiative (JAI). Nidal is a co-author of the Palestinian Kairos Document and serves as a member in its Steering Committee and in the Executive Committee of the Global Kairos of Justice Collation. He is the Founder of the Palestinian Youth Ecumenical Movement which is a member of the WSCF (World Student Christian federation). Until recently Nidal served as the Coordinator of the National Coalition of Christian Organizations in Palestine (the NCCOP).

Mental Health Sunday
2022-05-15
May is Mental Health Month. Celebrate this on Sunday, May 15th.
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