By The Rev. Marilyn Kendrix, Transitional Conference Minister, Rhode Island Conference, UCC

Since coming to the Rhode Island Conference in July, I have traveled around the state, visiting with RICUCC churches, meeting folks and sometimes preaching the Word ... I spend a good deal of time talking about our new Together, As One Conference because this is also work that I am passionate about. That we are in the midst of birthing a new conference is both exciting and daunting work but it is work that is well worth all of the hours that many folks are pouring into it. 

One of the most frequent questions that I get from folks who are curious about our joining with Connecticut and Massachusetts is “Why?” And my answer is always the same one you will hear from all of us who are working to make this new conference a reality: “We seek to be a conference in which local churches make disciples, live the love and justice of Jesus, embrace adaptive change, and build covenant partnerships with those who work for the common good.”

We are putting into place structures and processes to accomplish this vision at the conference level, but the real dream is for this to become the way that all our churches do church in the years to come. And I know that it is possible because on one of my visits to a Rhode Island church, I saw this vision in action at the Riverside Congregational Church in Riverside, RI.

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More feedback is being sought about what the name should be for the new conference being formed by the  Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island conferences.

The conference, which General Synod is being asked to approve in June, is provisionally being called the Together As One Conference.

A task team from the Together As One Board of Directors has been working on a process for naming the new conference. That process will be discussed by the full board this weekend.

In the meantime, the task team is asking people to choose their top three choices from the names that have been suggested thus far, and asking for short explanations about their choices. Those filling out the survey may also make new suggestions.

Take the survey here

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Seven Best Practices for Supporting Interfaith and Ecumenical Partners in Challenging Times

By The Rev. Gail Wright is a member of the MA Conference Interfaith and Ecumenical Task Team and an ordained minister of the MACUCC. Even before I became a member of the Interfaith and Ecumenical Task Force Team, I noticed that some of the most difficult times for Christian witness are when we see our interfaith and ecumenical neighbors attacked or hurt. Sometimes the incidents occur right in our own town: church fires, LGBTQ hate crimes, or painted swastikas. Sometimes the incidents occur far away but still directly or indirectly painfully impact communities of faith in our backyard. In either case our neighbor’s pain and our pain mingle in the moment.  We want to do something, but we struggle with the right actions for each neighbor, each tragedy, and each community.  Out of a recent workshop on how to respond, the task team has fashioned a resource: “Seven Best Practices for Supporting Interfaith and Ecumenical Partners in Challenging Times.” Find it here, with other resources