by the Rev. Richard Huleatt, First Church in Windsor
Readings: Psalm 133 John 17:6-11
TODAY, OUR DENOMINATION, the United Church of Christ, celebrates its forty-third birthday. We don't mention the importance of our denomination very much these days, primarily I suspect, for two reasons. First of all, in keeping with the tradition of our Congregational roots, we tend to think of the local church as the most important cog in the ecclesiastical machinery. Secondly, the importance of denominations in American church life, has been greatly diminished over the years (the fact that someone is a Methodist rather than a Presbyterian no longer seems like a big deal).
Nevertheless, it is our birthday, and whether we like it or not, we belong not only to this local church, but also to a wider body of faith known collectively as the United Church of Christ. It seems fitting therefore, that on this Sunday, as we celebrate the forty-third birthday of our church, that we pause to reflect upon who the UCC is, why it was formed in the first place, and where it is going.
Let me begin by saying that twenty-two years in the ministry have taught me to assume nothing as far as a local congregation's understanding of the United Church of Christ is concerned. When one of our Sunday school classes was asked, for example, to which denomination we belonged, only one child could identify us as belonging to the United Church of Christ.
But why pick on the kids? A lot of the adults are equally ignorant. There was a woman in my former church who thought the initials, UCC, stood for, "Unitarians considering Christ", and there was another person I know who thought the proper pronunciation of UCC was "Yuck." There are some things about our denomination that can be "yucky", but I think we do a disservice to both to ourselves and to our church by casting our denomination in that light!
The United Church of Christ, for those not familiar with the story, was formed in l 957 as a result of a merger between two denominations--the Congregational Christian Church and the Evangelical and Reformed Church. The Congregational Christian Church had strong roots in New England and the Evangelical and Reformed Church had strong roots in Pennsylvania and throughout the Midwest. The Congregational and Christian Church came out of the English side of the Reformation and the Evangelical and Reformed Church came out of the Gerrnan side of the Reformation. In essence, these two denominations, which had pretty much been regional churches, combined to give the newly merged communions a national presence.
Forty-three years later, many people who belong to the United Church of Christ, still think of themselves in a regional way. Here in New England, most churches have retained the name "Congregational" putting on their signs something like, "First Congregational Church" (underneath in letters so small you need a magnifying glass to see them, are the words, United Church of Christ).
The Evangelical and Reformed side of the denomination seems to have done better with the identity issue primarily because they come out of a tradition that is more "connectional" than the Congregationalists. Even so, until the day she died, my mother who grew up in an E&R Church in Pennsylvania, could not seem to get it through her head that her home church and the church I was serving belonged to the same denomination. Old habits die-hard!
Problems of identity aside, what was it that enabled these two churches to come together and share a common ministry? The answer to that question is primarily two-fold. First, they both believed that each local church should be self-governing. Both the Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Reformed Churches felt that each local congregation should have the right to govern their own affairs. That means that each UCC church owns its own property, formulates its own by-laws, and is free to call and release its own clergy.
Secondly, both of these denominations strongly felt that the church should be involved in the affairs of the world. That may seem like no-brainer to most of us, but we have to remember that historically that has not always been the case with many Christian churches. The Amish, for instance, are an extreme example of a church that feels that Christianity should not be involved in the affairs of the world, and to a lesser extent, many evangelical congregations feel the same way too.
That has never been the case, however, with either the United Church of Christ or its predecessor organizations. Both of these communions felt that far from shying away from the problems of the world, the church had a responsibility to try and transform the world into a more Christ-like place. Hence the decision to declare us "open and affirming" to the gay community is really nothing new. Both the Congregational Christian Church and the Evangelical and Reformed Church have had a long history of speaking out and speaking up for people and issues of social concern.
For example, The Congregational Church took the lead in the movement to abolish slavery in the nineteenth century. It also played an active role in working to give women the right to vote and for establishing child labor laws. The Congregational Church was also the first denomination to ordain a woman to the ministry. That happened, by the way, back in 1853. Both the Congregational Christian Church and the Evangelical and Reformed Church believed strongly in the importance of higher education and both churches founded many schools and colleges throughout the country. The Evangelical and Reformed Church also founded many hospitals and orphanages across the country and the Congregational Church founded the American Board for Foreign Missions, the forerunner of our United Church Board for World Ministries, which was the first board for world mission of any kind.
Theologically, the United Church of Christ is a non-creedal church, which means that while we are free to use any creeds we want in worship, we do not feel that there is any one creed that speaks for all of us. While the United Church of Christ does have a statement of faith, it is understood that that statement serves only as a "testimony" and not as a "test" of faith. We are not the kind of church where people have to believe A, B, and C to belong to the church. Some may only believe in A, others in B and C, but that does not really matter. In the churches of our faith and order it is important that each person follow the dictates of his or her conscience.
But if there is no "test" of faith to belong to the United Church of Christ, than what do we believe? We believe in God, of course, and in Jesus Christ as God's revelation on earth. We believe in the Holy Spirit's ability to guide the church and to instruct us in the way that God wants us to go. We also believe that Jesus Christ is the Head of the church (not the pope, or the bishop, or the minister) and that the Bible is our rule and guide. We recognize two sacraments--baptism and communion--but beyond that there is room for a wide range of diverse theological beliefs.
The United Church of Christ has always been a church that seeks unity amidst diversity. In our tradition, it's o.k. to disagree, and it's o.k. to be different. The UCC recognizes that the people of God will never agree on a common theology; therefore we seek to unite ourselves around those things that form a common mission. The love of God, the compassion of Christ, a concern for a world guided by justice and governed by peace, these are the bedrocks of belief upon which our denomination is founded.
The United Church of Christ is not only a "united" church, but also a "uniting" one. We seek to unite with other denominations, churches, and religious societies, which share our common faith in God and our hope to create a more just and caring society. The passage that we read today from John's Gospel was not only the passage that was read at the founding of the United Church of Christ, but it also serves as the motto of our denomination: "That They May All Be One."
Speaking for myself, months go by and I never give our denomination any thought, but in the back of my mind I remain grateful that I belong to a church such as this one, a church that seeks to make faith meaningful and relevant for the age in which we live. A church that affirms the historic creeds but feels beholden to none. A church that begins but does not end with the local church and a church that allows for freedom of thought and action based upon the teachings of Christ as they are revealed through the dictates of our own conscience.
There is no such thing as a perfect church and the UCC is far from perfect. I have not always agreed with everything the denomination has done but I do agree with what the denomination stands for. Winston Churchill once said that, "Democracy is the worst form of government except for all others." That pretty much sums up the way I feel about the United Church of Christ. It is the worst form of church government except for all others!
Not having come from a strong church background myself, I will always be grateful to the United Church of Christ for taking me in. There probably are not too many other churches that would allow my eclectic theology and put up with the "love-hate" relationship I have always had with the church. Over the years, the UCC has always been there for me, and now in this age of declining denominational importance I hope that I can always be there for it.
Shortly before he died, George Tyrrell said, "God will not ask us, What sort of church have you lived in? but, 'What sort of church have you longed for?" Despite all of its faults and shortcomings, the United Church of Christ has always been a lot less interested in what it is than it what it yearns to be.
That is a good thing for every church to remember. Our real task is not to tell the people of the world what to do, but to remind them what it is we may one day yet become.
This morning, as we celebrate the forty-third anniversary of our denomination's founding, and reflect upon all the UCC is and hopes to be, let us sing with one voice from the bottom of our hearts,
"Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday, dear UCC, Happy birthday to you."
Richard Hanna Huleatt
First Church in Windsor
June 25, 2000
