What does it mean to be in full communion with another denomination?

The United Church of Christ has long had a commitment to reconciliation among the many branches of the Body of Christ that includes its relationships of full communion. In line with tradition in years past, the 35th General Synod of the UCC, July 11-15 in Kansas City, Missouri, which is the church’s national gathering, will invite heads of full communion to join in witness, and continue to live into our vision that “all may be One.”

For vote by the 35th General Synod delegates are two resolutions that will recognize full communion between the UCC and the Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland (EKD) and the Iglesia Evangélica Unida de Puerto Rico (IEUPR). Both churches have long-standing relationships with the UCC, with IEUPR joining the UCC back in 1961, and separated from the denomination in 2006. In 2019, at the 32nd General Synod, a new resolution was adopted, which initiated an ecumenical relationship with IEUPR, seeking to establish the closest possible relationship between the denominations. 

All of this begs the question, what is a full communion?

The official definition of a full communion, in a Christian ecumenical context, signifies a relationship of mutual recognition and shared faith between two or more denominations. Recognizing each entity as part of the universal Christian church, while recognizing and honoring each other’s sacraments, this agreement is not a merger, however a commitment to deeper unity and cooperation in ministry. 

History of UCC’s full communion agreements 

One of the core aspects of a full communion is that denominations recognize each others’ sacraments and provide for the orderly transfer of ministers from one branch of Christ’s body to another. There are many non-UCC ordained clergy that serve UCC affiliated congregations, with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ, DOC) being one of the main denominations the UCC has maintained this sacred agreement. 

In 1989 at the 17th General Synod, the UCC and DOC entered into an historic partnership of full communion. At the time, it was a unique experiment in US ecumenism. Essentially, in every setting of the two denominations, UCC and DOC members are serving Christ side by side. With more than 30 federated congregations affiliated with both denominations, it’s common for both DOC and UCC ministers to serve congregations of the other denomination. The most evident piece of work of this partnership is Global Ministries, formed by the UCC’s Wider Church Ministries, and the DOC’s Division of Overseas Ministries, which united the international work of the two denominations. 

In addition to the DOC, the UCC holds full communion agreements with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and the Presbyterian Church (PCUSA), both since 1997, the Reformed Church in America (RCA) since 1997, and the United Church of Canada since 2015. 

“Think about us as your best first cousin that you didn’t know,” said Rev. Karen Georgia Thompson, General Minister and President, but then serving as the Minister for Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations at the official signing of the full communion agreement with the United Church of Canada at its 42nd General Council in 2015. “We have a lot of similarities [with the UC of Canada]. We’re a very justice oriented church, a diverse church, and we’re a church that is built on living into the commitment of Christian unity.”  This agreement was solidified in a unanimous vote at the 30th General Synod in June 2015. 

Be sure to bookmark the General Synod 35 livestream page to watch worship services, and plenaries, including the resolution votes on the two new full communion agreements. 

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