UCC Board Nominations

Donyale Copeland

Staff to the General Synod Nominating Committee

On behalf of General Synod Nominating Committee Chair, Rev. Rachel MaeRose and Vice-Chair, Rev. June Boutwell, acting on the Bylaws of the United Church of Christ, you are invited to submit names for consideration as General Synod Moderator and Assistant Moderator for General Synod 35 in 2025, as well as individuals to serve a six-year term, as Members At-Large to the United Church of Christ Board (UCCB), Class of 2029. Your personal knowledge of talented members of your conference is very important to finding the best pool of candidates for consideration for the UCCB.

Names are also being solicited from Historically Underrepresented Groups, other entities, and organizations within the United Church of Christ, as well as self-nominated church members. Election for selected nominees will occur during the Thirty-Fourth General Synod in Indianapolis in July of 2023.

Moderator and Assistant Moderator Overview

• Preside at all sessions of the Thirty-Fifth General Synod in 2025.
• Serve as Ex-officio members of the United Church of Christ Board for a two-year term with voice and with vote.
• The Assistant Moderator may be considered for elevation to the position of Moderator at the end of their two-year term.

At-Large Members of the UCC Board of Directors

12 At-Large members will be elected at General Synod 34 to serve a six-year term. In line with UCC Bylaws paragraph 229, the Nominating Committee will ensure that the United Church of Christ Board meets or exceeds the following diversity requirements:

• A majority shall be persons of color.
• A majority shall be persons who identify as women, both transgender and cisgender; non-binary persons; or gender non-conforming persons. The remaining members may be persons who identify as men, both transgender and cisgender.
• One-third shall be authorized ministers or persons with Ordained Ministerial Partner Standing.
• Two-thirds shall be laypersons.
• Twenty percent shall be under 30 years of age. To the extent possible, the under 30 years of age members shall include both youth of high school age and young adults. All such members shall be voting members except as legally proscribed.
• At least one member shall be a person who self-identifies as having a disability.
• At least one member shall be a person who self-identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or asexual. At least one member shall be a person who self-identifies as transgender, non-binary, or gender non-conforming.

You or the candidate(s) should complete and return the electronic nomination form, found here. The deadline to submit a nomination form is October 13, 2022.

Just Peace Sunday

September 18

Just Peace Sunday 2022 falls on September 18 and the theme is “Breaking Through: The Disruptive Power of Just Peace.” As people of faith, we believe that “Peace is Possible” and that hope can and will emerge in surprising places if we look for it, and struggle toward it. This Just Peace Sunday, we invite you to look for places where hope is emerging, where peace is breaking through in our world. We invite you to bring that hope to places where it is needed, and be open to finding it in unexpected places. Together, let us reflect on the disruptive power of Just Peace as we work and pray for a breakthrough!  

MissionInsite Webinar

September 27, 12 PM CST

Join us as we show you how to converge data into actions. Reveal insights about communities around your ministries, so you can move from data to decisions. This webinar will cover a variety of topics and is made specifically for churches in the Illinois Conference of the United Church of Christ. Sign up here.

As a church in the Illinois Conference, MissionInsite is FREE for you to use. If you are not already using this amazing tool in your church, email Sarah Lohrbach to learn how to become a user and get started.

Church Mental Health Summit

October 10, 2022

Sponsored by Hope Made Strong.

There are four tracks of the summit:

Global health: Cultural perspectives and supporting those who serve in missions around the world

Community health: Equipping churches to support those struggling with mental health in their community

Church health: Building a church culture that supports and serves mental health through programs and ministries

Leadership health: Strengthening leaders' mental health and addressing impacts of ministry

Learn more/sign up here.

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FAITHFUL FRIDAYS is published by the Illinois Conference of the United Church of Christ, 1840 Westchester Blvd, Suite 200, Westchester, IL 60154. The Rev. Molly Carlson, Conference Minister; Sarah Lohrbach, Editor. Copy may be sent to: SarahLohrbach@ilucc.org.