“Reflections on the Changing Face of American Denominationalism”   /  02.24.10

Dear Friends,

A season of tidal shifts is reshaping the UCC. I am deeply aware of these shifts in this season. There are many parts of the church in which these new and unwelcomed tides are bringing decline in giving and membership. 

Southeast Conference has faced challenges from its very beginning.  We have always been a corner of the larger church that has been shaped by adversity.
The four traditions that came together to be the United Church of Christ were voices advocating for Christian unity, justice equality and inclusivity.  These were always minority voices in a South, the religious traditions of which are very different
from ours. 

The very qualities that have made our presence in the South a struggle are qualities that have strengthened us in the Southeast Conference for the living of these days.  We have been a people who have prevailed through the years, not because of numerical strength or affluence, but because we have been strengthened by our calling as a people of God.  We have found sustenance in our dreams of a “new heaven and a new earth, where every tear will be wiped away”, and have been grounded in a Gospel that will not let us go, and calls us to “do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God.” 

As I have listened to the reports of those who have been visitors for our Campaign for the Future of the Conference, I have been encouraged, because so many of you in our pews and pulpits understand the power of the visions that guide us, and are preparing to say “yes!” I am not surprised, because I know that we will continue to find our strength in the right places and our sustenance in the right hopes and dreams.

Peace,
Tim Downs 
Timothy C. Downs