Covenant of the United Church of Christ

That they may all be one! This was the dream of the these different denominations and churches coming together in 1957. That they may all be one! While many denominations were splitting and continually finding reasons that they couldn't be siblings with those Christians over there, a group of mainline Protestant leaders came together that united and uniting was the future of the Church. Yes, it was mainly four major denominations which are: 1. Congregational 2. Christian 3. Reformed (German) and 4. Evangelical Synod (Lutheran). There were many other smaller groups that joined as well, that included Back, Native, and Hungarian. But if you look at the first General Synod picture, it was pretty much white, middle class men. With global communication becoming easier, travel, television, and the United Nations, they had a dream and vision that all Christians could live together, worship together, and be one as we are one in God with Christ. 

That they may all be one! is the United Church of Christ motto. It is taken from the Gospel of John in our reading this morning, chapter seventeen, verse twenty-one: " that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me." This is Jesus' prayer during his Last Supper with the disciples and probably friends and family. This is the closing after he washed their feet, after he gave them all communion, and after he told them of his new commandment, "That you love each other as I have loved you." Remember that the word 'Logos' at the beginning of John is commonly thought to mean "The Word" which is final, solid, and can't be wrong or questioned. If it really means 'conversation' which the Gospel of John thrives on, for there is seven miracles and all this talking, then to be one with God, Jesus, and each other is to be in conversation. 

Jumping over the Galatians where Paul is writing to lay down some foundations of our Christian ways of being in relationship with God, he tells the church that once we are a Christian, nothing else should matter, especially things that can divide us like nationality, class and race, or gender. We can hear the echoes of "that they may all be one." This does not mean we all speak or think or sound alike, for our differences are what makes us coming together great, each with our gifts, talents, and abilities to be better together than we are as a whole. We are one in love of God, the world and each other. 

So this holy conversation is at the heart of our covenant. Coming together, the United Church of Christ decided that what truly matters is the ongoing conversation, the relationship between local churches and the wider church, between the wider UCC and other churches, and now we are working on the conversation between Christians and other faiths to work together when we can and how to do it honoring our own history and theology while respecting theirs. It is the conversation of resolutions that pass during Conference meetings and General Synods that are not mandates but invitations to engage and let the wider church and world know what we are talking about and what we are working towards. 

In 2008, when Barak Obama was running for President, scrutiny was all the rage on Trinity Church in Chicago, our largest UCC local church in our denomination headed by the Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright at the time. At our Northern Plains conference annual meeting that summer, there were many who heard the snippets of his sermons taken out of context and wondered why the UCC allows him to preach and is there something we can do to get him kicked out. My father, who was the moderator of the conference at the time, was trying to defend him and provide context. I was a little more cynical that the delegates would be able to understand where the Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright was coming from and stated bluntly that each association is responsible for the authorized ministers in their jurisdiction and it was up to them to decide whether or not the Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright was crazy or not fit for ministry and in our denomination, there was nothing we can do about it because each level of our church has a level of autonomy. As you know or can imagine, many churches and people have left our denomination because of certain stands or people or misrepresentations of others wanting to get churches to leave. It happens yet today. But we also have had many churches and people show up and find refuge, life, and God in our local churches as well. Churches across the board are losing members, not just liberal or mainline churches. There is hope and a few signs that we are bottoming out and our churches and denomination may start to grow again instead of decline, though it doesn't change the facts that we are to follow Christ wherever we head God speaking and where the Spirit leads, in our local church, our conference, and at our national levels. 

That they may all be one, may we strive to love all with equity and justice. That they may all be one, may we continue to listen to the voices of the marginalized and offer them a seat at the table. That they may all be one, may we join in covenant to be the body of Christ in this world. Amen.