• WE ARE UCC

WE ARE A PART OF THE UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST

The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a distinct and diverse community of Christians that come together as one church to join faith and action.  With over 5,000 churches and nearly one million members across the U.S., the UCC serves God in the co-creation of a just and sustainable world.  The UCC is a church of firsts, a church of extravagant welcome, and a church where “…they may all be one” (John 17:21).

Since 1957, the United Church of Christ has been the church of firsts, weaving God’s message of hope and extravagant welcome with action for justice and peace. Together, we live out our faith in ways that effect change in our communities.  The UCC’s many “firsts” mean that we have inherited a tradition of acting upon the demands of our faith.  When we read in Galatians: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus”—a demand is made upon us. And so we were the first historically white denomination to ordain an African-American, the first to ordain a woman, the first to ordain an openly gay man, and the first Christian church to affirm the right of same-gender couples to marry. We were in the forefront of the anti-slavery movement and the Civil Rights movement.  Our response to the demands of our faith is woven into the history of our country.

Today, we continue to change lives throughout the world. We work alongside more than 200 mission partners. We labor ceaselessly to fight injustice, in the United States and abroad. We instill our vision into our youth and young adults, forging leaders who will imagine new dreams. And we sustain and develop church leaders, pastors, and our local churches to live their faith in exciting new ways.  We believe in a God that is still speaking, a God that is all-loving and inclusive.  We are a church that welcomes and accepts everyone as they are, where your mind is nourished as much as your soul.

We are a church where Jesus the healer meets Jesus the revolutionary, and where together, we grow a just and peaceful world.

WHY THE COMMA?: STILLSPEAKING

It’s the shorter form of “God is still speaking,” a campaign by the United Church of Christ to remind us that God still has a lot more to say. Since 2004, Stillspeaking has worked with thousands of UCC churches and individuals across the country to make religion relevant again and to extend an extravagant welcome to all…

because no matter who you are, or where you are on life’s journey, you’re welcome here. Here at the United Church of Christ.

There’s a lot to the UCC Comma.

The comma was inspired by the Gracie Allen quote, “Never place a period where God has placed a comma.” For the UCC the Comma is a new way to proclaim “Our Faith is 2,000 years old, our thinking is not.” The Comma invites us to believe that God speaks through other people, nature, music, art, a theorem, the Bible, and in so many other ways.

The Comma logo reminds us of the unusual religious freedom and responsibility to engage the Bible with our own unique experiences, questions, and ideas. The Comma reminds us to balance our rich religious past with openness to the new ideas, new people, and new possibilities of the future. It says God is still speaking.