Why are ucc members involved

In order to vote in a congregational meeting, you must be a member of the church. This is my spiritual home. These are my people. This is where I want to anchor my journey. That said, the United Church of Christ has a Statement of Faith that seeks to describe the beliefs of many though not all who consider the UCC a church home.

Many in our community find these statements to be meaningful and an important part of our shared identity. There are no specific requirements or timelines for joining. Some have chosen to join within a month of coming here for the first time. Others have waited more than 10 years before deciding to join the church. Some are baptized as infants, others as adults. Some are sprinkled.

Others are immersed. Some reclaim their baptism from a previous church life. For each of us, however, baptism is big enough, strong enough and cleansing enough to last forever. We believe that everyone — old, young, straight, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, physically or emotionally challenged, rich or poor, sure or unsure, lost or found, Democrat or Republican has a place in the body of Christ.

The most important relationship is our relationship with God. Second most important is our relationships with the rest of the human family. It looks to the Word of God in the Scriptures, and to the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, to prosper its creative and redemptive work in the world.

It claims as its own the faith of the historic Church expressed in the ancient creeds and reclaimed in the basic insights of the Protestant Reformers. It affirms the responsibility of the Church in each generation to make this faith its own in reality of worship, in honesty of thought and expression, and in purity of heart before God.

We believe in the triune God: Creator, resurrected Christ, the sole Head of the church, and the Holy Spirit, who guides and brings about the creative and redemptive work of God in the world.

We believe that each person is unique and valuable. It is the will of God that every person belong to a family of faith where they have a strong sense of being valued and loved.

We believe that each person is on a spiritual journey and that each of us is at a different stage of that journey. We believe that the persistent search for God produces an authentic relationship with God, engendering love, strengthening faith, dissolving guilt, and giving life purpose and direction.

All persons baptized — past, present, and future — are connected to each other and to God through the sacrament of baptism. Just as many grains of wheat are gathered to make one loaf of bread and many grapes are gathered to make one cup of wine, we, the many people of God, are made one in the body of Christ, the church. It is a great mystery; we claim it by faith. We believe the UCC is called to be a united and uniting church.

The UCC has no rigid formulation of doctrine or attachment to creeds or structures. Its overarching creed is love. UCC pastors and teachers are known for their commitment to excellence in theological preparation, interpretation of the scripture and justice advocacy.

Even so, love and unity in the midst of our diversity are our greatest assets. We believe that the UCC is called to be a prophetic church. As in the tradition of the prophets and apostles, God calls the church to speak truth to power, liberate the oppressed, care for the poor and comfort the afflicted.

We believe in the power of peace and work for nonviolent solutions to local, national, and international problems. We are a people of possibility. In the UCC, members, congregations and structures have the breathing room to explore and to hear … for after all, God is still speaking, …. UCC- What we believe. We can tell you more about the United Church of Christ with the help of seven phrases from Scripture and Tradition which express our commitments. That they may all be one. We are a uniting church as well as a united church.

In essentials unity, in non-essentials diversity, in all things charity. The unity that we seek requires neither an uncritical acceptance of any point of view nor a rigid formulation of doctrine. It does require mutual understanding and agreement as to which aspects of the Christian faith and life are essential.