United Church of Christ

[JackD76]

I saw a commercial for this church today and it seemed very interesting. In the message, they said that they won't turn away anyone and everyone is welcome in their church. I am not really into organized religion, in fact I think that it causes more problems then it solves, but this group sounds like something that i could get into. Does anyone belong to this church?

[mzmolly]

1. I've visited a local UCC a couple times and it's really a far cry

from the fundi churches that are so prominent.

I recommend visiting one, they are generally very active politically in a reasonable way. The UCC I visited had pro-environment/anti-Bush lit and many liberal bumper stickers in the parking lot. If they didn't hold service so darned early, I'd go more often. ;)

In fact it's interesting to note that they pretty much endorsed Howard Dean as he is a congregationalist as well.

[noamnety]

2. I love their spongebob page

http://www.ucc.org/news/r012505.htm

[candy331]

3. I'm convinced that all organized religion is a "racket and a snare"

deduced after some almost 50 years of organized religion attending and much soul searching. " Do unto others as you would have them do unto you and "Love God with your whole heart, soul, mind and strength and this will fulfill all requirements set out by Jesus in the bible. Leave the organized religion to those who need someone to tell them what to do every step of the way in life so if it doesn't go well they will have someone to lay blame on. It takes personal responsibility to fulfill the 2 laws above that Jesus stated and most people rather a feel good emotional experience than act. -My take on organized religion-

[El Supremo]

4. Any Church that has Barbara Mandrell as a member can't be bad. n/t

[Amy6627]

5. I attend one here in San Diego regularly. They are wonderful!

I switched there after the election. I just couldn't take my conservative Southern Baptist Church anymore. The UCC really practices what they preach. It is really inspiring to attend. Here is a website that you might be interested in checking out:

http://liberalslikechrist.org/churchstate/index.htm

Here is a snippet from their site:

Are you Jewish, Moslem, Hindu? God bless you! You may even be an atheist or an agnostic. That's fine, too; it matters not to "Liberals Like Christ". You don't have to be a "Christian" to relate to this website. If you are a Liberal who, like us, believes that every little girl or boy born into this world is entitled to a fair shake until the day they die, and especially if you despise what the so-called Christian "Religious Right" represents, then sister, or brother, you are about to learn how vulnerable this phoney front of the Republican Party really is and how their undoing -- and that of the "Greedy Old Party" as well -- may come from a very surprising source!

[formerrepuke]

6. I grew up going to UCC....

There may be considerable differences between individual UCC congregations- and some may not be very liberal at all. But mine was, though I didn't know it at the time. All those years of being 'dragged' to church were worth it, though. There is room to question- and room to be different. Even among the few other UCC churches I have visited, politics seem to stop at the door (as it should be).
As a child who didn't pay much attention in Sunday school, confirmation or church sermons, I began to sense that I had learned more of the 'essentials' than other kids who were attending Baptist churches or Assemblies of God, etc. And, as pious as it sounds- I believe I got more out of the church environment then they did. It was all about following Christ's example- and none of that sinner-baiting, finger-pointing stuff. Check it out.

[JohnyCanuck]

7. Just take note that there is another "Church of Christ"

that has a very similiar sounding name (ie. Church of Christ without the "United" in front of the name) but is very fundamentalist in their approach. So fundamentalist in fact that they do not have fellowship with other fundamentalist Christians because they figure the other churches are heretical as they don't teach full immersion baptism in water is necessary for the forgiveness of sins (of course most other fundamentalist Churches claim that the Church of Christ is heretical for claiming it is necessary). Some of them also don't believe in any form of instrumental music as an accompaniment to singing in church worship services; a capella, unacompanied singing is fine however. You don't want to get the two mixed up. If you decide to drop in for a service expecting the United Church of Christ and find yourself in the other Church of Christ you could be in for a surprise.

[El Supremo]

8. Here is some more information.

The United Church of Christ was established in 1957 as a union of the Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Reformed Church. With a current membership of approximately 1.7 million communicants located in more than 6,400 congregations in 39 conferences (state and regional organizations), the United Church of Christ is the "youngest" of the major Protestant denominations in the United States. Its roots lie in the teachings of the 16th century reformers, particularly Martin Luther and Ulrich Zwingli, and in Congregationalism.

BELIEVE
Religious
Information
Source
web-site
Our List of 1,000 Religious Subjects
E-mail
The basic unit of the United Church is the local church, which is guaranteed autonomy, or freedom, in the decisions it makes. That freedom is the "freedom of the gospel," however, and every corporate body within the church, whether a local church or a conference or the General Synod, is supposed to make its decisions in the light of the gospel and out of a sense of responsibility to the whole fellowship.

The General Synod of the United Church of Christ, which meets biennially, is the representative, deliberative body composed of 675 - 725 delegates elected by the conferences. The officers of the church and the General Synod are the president, secretary, and director of finance and treasurer. The national program agencies include the United Church Board for World Ministries, United Church Board for Homeland Ministries, Office for Church Life and Leadership, Office for Church in Society, Office of Communication, Stewardship Council, United Church Foundation, and Commission for Racial Justice. The United Church of Christ is a member of the National Council of Churches, the World Council of Churches, and the World Alliance of Reformed Churches.

Avery D Post

Bibliography
L H Gunnemann, United and Uniting (1987); H P Keiling and F L Battles, eds., The Formation of the United Church of Christ (1977); B B Zikmund, Hidden Histories in the United Church of Christ (1984).

[Tux]

9. Ad is old

But still powerful. Another group that is has acceptance of people is UUA. Like UCC, they accept gays, women, free thinkers, and professors. Unlike UCC, they can't afford airtime but at least one Christian group stood up, cried foul, and reminded people that Jesus never ran anyone off (even Judas if I remember right). I seen thier Web site and thier great. No spyware at all coming through.

[LiberalEsto]

10. UUA means Unitarian Universalist Association

in case some of the thread readers don't recognize the acronym

[Tux]

11. Whoops

Sorry about that. Got caught up in UCC's efforts.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

12. Unity is another

Christian church that is open. I have led the Dances of Universal Peace in Unity churches in 3 states, and was never required to attend services or join or anything. All that was asked was a love offering to cover the fee for the heat, electric, etc.

Unity has a more mystical approach than the other churches mentioned, I believe, so be aware of that.

[fla nocount]

14. Philosophical.....not mystical

Unless of course you mean metaphysical. After several years I've never felt particularly "Christian" either. I have felt more and more responsible for the state and quality of my own thoughts though.

To me it's about re-programming my software........the Unity movement is something that should be checked out and experienced. It's not for everyone, especially those who think that FatherMother God broke the mold with the Jesus dude.

Jesus' last name wasn't Christ, this a basic tenant. Unity does seem to be a comfortable return point for those new agers who journeyed to far into the fringe without adequate spiritual backup.

Check it out just for the basic tenants.......it's not a religion.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

15. And some Episcopal churches have statements (as mine does)

"Wherever you are on your faith journey, (name of parish) welcomes you."

We have lots of educated people, lots of ex-fundamentalists, lots of GLBT people. It's a good fit for people who like ritual but don't want to be drilled on their exact beliefs.

[cosmicdot]

13. an UCC church which has adopted 'ONA' might further guide you

What does "ONA" mean in the UCC church listing?

"ONA churches have adopted an "Open and Affirming" covenant welcoming all people, without regard to sexual orientation, into the life and ministry of the congregation. However, many UCC congregations that for various reasons have not adopted an ONA covenant are nevertheless welcoming and safe communities for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Christians."


"The churches listed on this page have chosen to participate in The Stillspeaking Initiative."
http://www.stillspeaking.com/find/ Search 'hits' will show the church's name, location, website (if one), a 'Click to see Map' feature, etc., and will indicate a 'Y' or 'N' for ONA status.

Individual church's websites provide additional info.

I have a former school mate who is pastor at an UCC church in Nebraska, and it's not ONA ... but I know she is ONA; and, her church does show up when using the 'Still Speaking' search engine.


http://www.ucc.org/index4.html
http://www.ucc.org

Some historical info:

http://www.therestorationmovement.com/okelley,james.htm
http://www.ucc.org/aboutus/shortcourse/christia.htm