Our justice and witness work covers a wide range of experiences.
Here are some examples:
Summer 2010 Immigration Worship and Study Resources
Here is a bilingual sample worship (as a Text Document, as a PDF Document) created by Rev. Jeanette DeLeon, a member of Grace Congregational Church and the Metropolitan Association.
If you wish to organize educational forums or nonviolent demonstrations in your local church and/or community, resources and information can be found at www.ucc.org/justice/.
Return to top of page
You Can Help in the Haiti Disaster Response
Clare Price, Coordinator for the NY Conference UCC Disaster Response Team, reports your dollars given through the UCC to help in the Haiti Disaster Response can go to work immediately; the UCC has a close relationship with the National Spiritual Council of Churches of Haiti (CONASPEH), an umbrella organization of 5,000 churches.
Gifts made online get there quickest. Go to www.uccny.org. On the right is “Give On-Line” with a “click here” that takes you right to the donation form.
Or you may send your checks to:
New York Conference UCC
5575 Thompson Road
Dewitt, NY 13214
Clare writes, “Unfolding details of the vast numbers of the dead, dying and injured are startling, only to pale with the thought of the challenges facing those that have survived…We CAN help. We can help through our prayers; we can help with our financial donations.
“For more information, go to the Global Ministries Haiti Earthquake Response page. On this page are links with more information about the crisis, letters from our missionaries and denominational leaders and ways to help.
“There are churches in the New York Conference with connections with Haiti. The Church of Lord, whose pastor is Yves Pierre, is a Haitian congregation (Metro Association). St. Albans Church (Metro Association), whose pastor is Henry Simmons, has an ongoing mission presence in the Haitian refugee camps in the Dominican Republic. First Congregational Church, Albany (Hudson Mohawk Association) has a relationship with a medical missionary (Dr. Alan Kerr) who also works in the Haitian refugee camps in the Dominican.
“One of our former churches, the United Church of DeRuyter, sent a three-person mission team that included pastor Vern Groves, that arrived the day before the earthquake struck. After a day or two of
great worry, the church heard that they are okay.
“Please pray for our sisters and brothers in Haiti. And, please give generously.”
Return to top of page
Join the Justice and Witness Listserv
Friends,
I invite you to join a listserv developed and administered by the
UCC Metro-Suffolk Association Committee on the Church and the Metropolitan
Community.
The listserv is called UCC Metro-Suffolk Churches in Action ,
with an e-mail address of UCCMetroSuffolkChurchesinAction@yahoogroups.com.
It is our hope that all of our Metro-Suffolk churches will participate,
along with as many members as are interested.
Please send the e-mail addresses of everyone from your
church who would like to be part of the listserv to Martha Gotwals ,
who is administering it for the Committee. Write her or have members
contact her with their names and e-mail addresses at uccnymetro@aol.com.
You may also e-mail her with questions about what postings would
be appropriate.
Purpose of the listserv allow our churches and members
to share information about justice and witness issues and events
in which we are involved . These could include:
- Forums, special speakers, workshops, Bible study and events
- Demonstrations and other public witness activities
- Legislation and public policy advocacy affecting the Metro-Suffolk
community
- Church or ecumenical services with a justice and witness emphasis
- Model projects that could be replicated by other churches
- Service programs such as soup kitchens, homeless shelters,
etc.
Church involvement means that the event or action or issue is
organized or endorsed by your church or that it involves a group
of members. In other words, it should be viewed as part of your
church's witness or ministry. Anything listed should be
an activity which other UCC church members may attend, participate
in or replicate . Because we all get so many e-mails,
the listserv is for information-sharing only; it is not a forum
for discussion.
The reason for a listserv, as opposed to developing a mailing list
and sending out notices, is that anyone who is a member of the
listserv can post issues and events on it. The listserv is private
so that it cannot be used by people outside of the Metro-Suffolk
Association. That's why you need to join through Martha.
Once Martha has your name, church and e-mail address, you
will receive a confirmation that you have been added to the listserv.
After that, you can post messages by putting UCCChurchesinAction@yahoogroups.com in
the subject line of your e-mail.
One of the things that is special about the UCC is our dedication
to justice and witness in action and service. The listserv is intended
to give our churches the opportunity to support each other and
learn from each other in our activities and ministries that serve
the metropolitan community. The committee and I look forward to
your church's participation.
Faithfully,
Michael Caine
Return to top of page
|
