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2005 Our Church's Wider Mission
Association Totals
By Michael Caine, Regional Conference Minister
Suffolk outdid the other 8 Associations in the NY
Conference in the ratio of actual OCWM giving to the amount it
had committed to, sending 110% of what it promised for 2005. As
well, with 75% of its congregations contributing, its total giving
grew by almost 10% in one year!
Metro -- the NY Conference Association with the most
people -- continues to have the largest OCWM gift by dollar amount.
But Metro also has the highest percentage of congregations that
contribute nothing to OCWM, nearly 43%.
With all we know that God's expecting of the United
Church , thanks for your generous support: OCWM giving is possible
because of gifts individuals make every Sunday in church. And imagine
all we could accomplish if we did even better with our 2006 giving.
Advent 2005 Letter
From Regional Conference Minister Michael Caine
December 2005
Dear People of the Metropolitan Association,
"Therefore, keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour." -- A lesson from the Wise Maidens
"And.they saw the child with his mother and fell down and worshiped him. Then opening their treasures, they offered him gifts."-- A lesson from the Wise Men
"Thanks be to God for the indescribable gift." -- A lesson for the Wise among Us.
Advent is waking up to grace breaking into our lives. Christmas is being changed by gratitude that we might live as generously as God has given to us.
In this holy season, I trust grace to get us through. This Association faced tough budget choices right before Thanksgiving. The spiritual maturity and love exhibited in the Fall Meeting's tense business were heartening. I'd wonder if the church didn't worry when changes cause disruption in its servants' lives. But I'd lose hope over a church that was unable to make hard decisions for its future and to further its mission. We struggled faithfully and stayed together. And didn't we all walk away knowing more than we did before we gathered to do the work of the church? Thanks be to God!
I am thankful for difficulties if they wake us up to the financial realities in the UCC. Sometimes church finds it too easy to pretend we don't see what's right before our eyes. Many didn't notice the dire situation when the Association passed a $37,000 deficit budget last year. Maybe I haven't perceived how much more our local churches are willing to support UCC ministry beyond their four walls.
As we prepare for the Christ coming into all the harsh realities of our world-- so none of us can say, "But we didn't know--" here is a summary of some of the stewardship dynamics in our beloved United Church :
Vital ministry unapologetically costs real money, and it's worth every dollar.
The national setting of the United Church , the New York Conference and the Metro. Association are all facing steep financial challenges.
So are many of our congregations, even some of the most affluent.
Without significant changes, financial support will get tighter, not more plentiful.
There's not enough money in our church coffers, but there's plenty in our pockets. UCCers are among the wealthiest North Americans,
but we're not the most generous in supporting our church's ministries.
The United Church better start proclaiming loud and proud
all that our stewardship dollars accomplish,
locally, across the church and this country, and around the world.
Because God's waiting on us for even greater deeds,
and they're going to take even more than OUR generosity:
we need to reach out and invite MORE people to help us.
And we need to teach "all the people" to be generous every Sunday.
Let's stop fooling around and start raising more money for ministry!
Could you tithe 10% of your income to support your local church?
Could your congregation tithe 10% of its total budget to fund
UCC service beyond its four walls?
(Schedule an "OCWM presentation" to show your church
why it could want to be that generous.)
"Covenant responsibility" calls us to share any "new dollars raised"
with all UCC settings for ministry.
And "UCC freedom" promises you alone discern the financial support
God is directing you to.
But trust your generosity will make a "good news" difference
and be a source of great gratitude.
What if everyone who was frustrated with the budget situation before the Fall Meeting:
- increased her or his giving to the local church, and in turn.
- began advocating for that local church to increase its giving
to the wider ministries of the UCC (membership
dues to Metro. and OCWM for the Conference
and the national UCC)?
God IS with us.even, maybe especially, in tough times. Coming into our world as a helpless baby was no little trust on God's part. It is a sign of how important human efforts are in the Divine story. What if the United Church is like a newborn you need to support and to raise and to help grow strong, showing the way to a faithful adulthood and all the productivity that promises?
How many people are waiting on your efforts helping the United Church might be for them "a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel ." How many people might your dedication and your dollars touch?
May you and yours know not only the Blessing and Promise but also the High Calling of this Holy Season.
Faithfully yours,
Michael
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Stillspeaking's 'Bouncer' Receives 'Biggie' Advertising Award
Written by J. Bennett Guess
Friday, 11 November 2005
The UCC's "bouncer" television commercial, which aired nationally in December 2004 and March 2005, has received one of the advertising industry's most significant honors.
The Association of National Advertisers awarded the United Church of Christ with its 2005 Multicultural Excellence Award for its 30-second commercial that touted the denomination's insistence that "Jesus didn't turn people away. Neither do we."
"This is a biggie," exclaimed Marilyn Dubasak, project manager for the UCC's Stillspeaking Initiative.
Besting advertisements by award finalists MasterCard and Microsoft, the UCC was presented the award on Nov. 8 at ANA's multicultural advertising conference in Miami , FL.
"I have been in the business for 26 years and you don't have too many moments like this," said Michael Jordan, creative director for Gotham, Inc., the UCC's New York- based advertising firm that has helped produce the denomination's commercials.
Ron Buford, coordinator and team leader for The Stillspeaking Initiative, received the award on behalf of the church.
"The church has been given this multicultural excellence award because we didn't take the brand and make it multicultural, we took multicultural and made it a brand," Buford told United Church News. "This is the essence of non-conformity with the world."
The ANA's recognition is significant, Buford emphasized, not only because ANA's members include the biggest names in advertising - such as Coke and General Motors - but also because the award's multicultural emphasis gives hope and credence to the kind of multicultural church that the UCC claims and wants to be.
"This award is a victory for every person who contributed to this effort," Buford said. "Every nickel donated, every minute given makes all of us partners in this work."
The ANA prize is the third significant recognition in 2005 for the UCC's bouncer spot which also received a New York Addy Award for best single national spot as well as the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation's outstanding advertising award.
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Good News from General Synod (G.S.25):
"God Is Still Speaking; Come Listen, Go Serve."
By Michael W. Caine, Southeastern Regional Conference Minster
New York Conference, United Church of Christ
The Apostle Paul wrote his congregations about issues they faced. On some topics Paul admitted, "Jesus never spoke on this; instead I share what I believe." Over the years other churches came to appreciate Paul's "faith interpreted in context." And in time the Church Universal agreed on the holy witness of Paul's Epistles.
General Synod is like an interpretative letter to the United Church . It isn't legislative. But it is contextual: bringing faith to bear on the day's questions.for our study. And its decisions demand our respect, even as its actions await local recognition. General Synod (G.S.) calls us to ask what God is saying to us and our church. Listening, the whole United Church can be more effective, faithful & joyous.
G.S.25 in Atlanta , July 1-5, is Good News for the United Church :
- Daily worship was vital and varied, spiritual "deep water" and incredibly beautiful (ahh, the music!), and --whether traditional or less familiar-- always refreshing and relevant. We can be wholly UCC, accessible to the human need for a Divine Word, and worship worthy of our Still Speaking God!
- Deliberations on resolutions and the work of the G.S.25 began with Bible study and faith sharing in smaller Community Groups. This mode of "worshipful work" transformed the proceedings: they felt more like church (and less like a super-sized congregational meeting!) and graced people for new possibilities around the more contentious issues.
- Still Speaking , a source of great pride and joy, continues to gather us in a renewed and renewing sense of who we are and what God is asking of us. Extravagant welcome is becoming organic to our life together. The Collegium has challenged the church: if we raise $1.5 million for the Advent '05 ad run, it will approach the national ministries for a matching gift. That "full buy" of ad time promises "All the People" would see and hear the message of God's grace and our welcome.
- G.S.25 again provided far-sighted and forward-looking leadership on justice issues within the church and in the world:
- Charging associations and conferences with opening alternative preparations for ordained ministry, including 1) traditional college/seminary education; 2) regional theological formation programs; and 3) mentoring apprenticeships.
- Urging Israel to remove the separation barrier being constructed on Palestinian territory in the occupied West Bank , and bringing political and financial power to that end;
- Declaring the UCC a "fair trade" denomination that purchases items grown, manufactured and distributed by businesses following fair trade practices.
- (Last, but most publicized!) Standing up for marriage equality: advocating ecclesiastical changes and legislative efforts to extend the rights to same-sex couples that opposite-sex couples enjoy in church and society.
There is much more to experiencing the heady, spirited, exasperating mix of thousands of good UCC people opening themselves to one another and to God. You really have to experience G.S. to believe it!
For more on G.S.25, check out http://www.ucc.org . Or you might talk with your G.S. delegates or ask them to speak to your congregation (I can put you in contact with them. Just e-mail me at office@uccmetrosuffolk.org) Or order the G.S.25 Highlights Video at http://www.ucc.org/synod/gs25video.pdf.
You could even go to G.S. 26: June 22-26, 2007 in Hartford, CT when the United Church will celebrate its 50th Birthday. Regular business will be set aside to welcome, thank, minister to and celebrate with people from our 6000 congregrations nationwide. Begin making plans for a whole group from your congregation to attend.
Finally, because web traffic is a barometer of public visibility and interest, G.S.25 is causing a surge in hits on the ucc.org, stillspeaking.com and "find a church" websites.
May we continue to spread the Good News! Amen.
Michael W. Caine, Southeastern Regional Conference Minster
New York Conference, United Church of Christ
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