www.ucc.org

Basic History
The UCC was formed in 1957 when two denominations with long historic roots in the Reformation were merged. One of those denominations was the Congregational Christian Church (already a merged denomination) whose roots trace back to England and those who left for the "new world" seeking religious freedom. They have been called the Pilgrims and Puritans. The other was the Evangelical and Reformed Church whose roots were in Germany, Switzerland, and other parts of Europe. The new church embodied the essence of both parents, a complement of freedom with order, of the English and European Reformations with the American Awakenings, of 17th-century separatism with 20th-century ecumenism, of Presbyterian with congregational polities, of neo-orthodox with liberal theologies. Two million members joined hands. While different in many ways, these two groups formed a common covenant of unity (hence the UCC slogan, "United and Uniting") and respect for theological freedom.

The United Church of Christ and its forebears are among the most progressive of denominations. Its General Synod, a representative body composed of local and national church leaders, meets biennially to study, debate and vote for resolutions. Resolutions come from local churches, individuals, and its national setting. In accordance with its "free church" model each congregation can decide whether or not it supports any given resolution. This provision allows the church to sustain unity in the midst of divergent opinions in a denomination with a knack for "being early" to support many positions. The UCC and its forbears:

• Authored the first anti-slavery tract in America more than 300 years ago
• Organized the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Mission, first foreign mission agency in North America in 1810
• An interracial group was formed in 1839 to free the Amistad captives
• Founded colleges like Harvard, Yale, and eight historically African American colleges, six of which remain to this day
• Moved anti-slavery members into Kansas to keep it a free state
• Ordained Antoinetter Brown in 1853, the first woman ordained to ministry
• Formed innovative health care institutions throught the Midwest
• Crafted powerful civil rights resolutions in 1963
• The 1967 General Synod that social justice be considered along with security and yield in the investment of funds
• Supported the Wilmington Ten with bail in 1973
• The 1985 General Synod voted to become open and affirming to gay and lesbian person

Basic Beliefs
The United Church of Christ embraces a theological heritage that affirms the Bible as the authoritative witness to the Word of God, the creeds of the ecumenical councils, and the confessions of the Reformation. The UCC has roots in the "covenantal" tradition-meaning there is no centralized authority or hierarchy that can impose any doctrine or form of worship on its members. Christ alone is Head of the church. The UCC seeks a balance between freedom of conscience and accountability to the apostolic faith. The UCC therefore receives the historic creeds and confessions of its ancestors as testimonies, but not tests of the faith.

Covenant is also an essential part of the Church's theological understanding. Just as God initiated a compact of mutual promise and obligation with Israel, and just as Christ is the promise and bond of obligation for Christians, so the Church is organized as a community built upon mutual promises and obligations among diverse people. Covenant is also a way of describing relationships within the whole created order between nature and humanity, nature and God. These covenants are expressed sacramentally through Baptism and Holy Communion, or the Lord's Supper.

Dialogue continually renews covenant. It is in dialogue with one another and with God that UCC members seek to comprehend a constantly changing world. As the UCC Constitution makes clear, each generation of the Church is responsible for making its historic faith its own. This means that the Church is always in dialogue -- among its members in a wide variety of meetings, with God in worship and prayer, and with the wider community within which it lives. A Church that is called to be the servant of all finds its ministry in dialogue with all.

That is why the United Church of Christ places a high priority on establishing fellowship with other churches, but not on the basis of agreement in the various articles of the Christian faith. It is in full communion with churches such as the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the Reformed Church in America. Because of these ecumenical arrangements, clergy from the UCC are permitted to serve in ELCA, PC-USA and RCA congregations.

Leadership - The UCC Collegium of Offices
General Minister and President - The Rev. John H. Thomas
Associate General Minister - Mrs. Edith A. Guffey
Executive Minister, Justice and Witness Ministries - Ms. Bernice Powell Jackson
Executive Minister, Local Church Ministries - The Rev. José Malayang
Executive Minister, Wider Church Ministries - Mr. Dale L. Bishop

Basic Facts
There are approximately 1.4 million members and 6,000 congregations in the UCC nationwide. UCC churches divided into 39 mostly regional groupings that are called "conferences."

Location
United Church of Christ
700 Prospect Av.
Cleveland, OH 44115
Phone (216) 736-2100