Conference Minister Franz Rigert drew on a metaphor from Stephanie Spellers’ book “The Church Cracked Open: Disruption, Decline, and New Hope for the Beloved Community” in describing the state of the Wisconsin Conference. Although external forces like COVID-19 and racial and political tensions have produced cracks in the Church, Franz said, the Spirit of Pentecost will continue to “refashion and renew this Church . . . to transform us, to empower us to transcend all that limits us, and ultimately to transition us into the next expression of Christ in the world.” Read the text of Franz’s State of the Conference Address. A video of the address will be available later this week at wcucc.org/annualmeeting.

Delegates to the Annual Meeting on Saturday unanimously approved a resolution declaring the Wisconsin Conference Welcoming, Inclusive, Supportive and Engaged for Mental Health. The resolution followed a year of discussion by a critical mass of Wisconsin UCC congregations. On Saturday evening, Vicki Harvey of the UCC Mental Health Network emailed Associate Conference Minister Lisa Hart with the news that Wisconsin is the fourth WISE conference in the denomination. WISE is an official designation awarded by the UCC Mental Health Network. “We are so impressed with the unprecedented effort you have made to get a large number of Wisconsin churches entering this process,” Vicki wrote. “These churches are aflame with excitement over beginning their journey.” Email Lisa for more information about how to join the WISE movement.

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the decline of trust in institutions, including the church, yet it also accentuated individuals’ appreciation for community as loneliness and mental health challenges proliferated, said keynoter Sarah B. Drummond, founding dean of Andover Newton Seminary at Yale Divinity School. That presents an opportunity for the UCC. “”We learned that chronic loneliness is bad,” she said. “The church has something to say about this. The idea that communities that check in on each other and provide spaces for moral meaning-making, I’m not sure how long that will last.” Click for a copy of Sarah’s presentation.

In her sermon at Saturday’s closing worship, Damascus Project Director Stephanie Perdew preached about the importance to faith communities of “extraordinary, improvised plans” during uncertain times. “We can improvise our plans, excessively and abundantly, with courage and hope and not just the way we’ve always done it,” Stephanie said. “We can plan and God may laugh, but only in order to ask us to expand our imaginations toward the flourishing God intends for all of us.” Read Stephanie’s entire sermon.

The way the church spends money is a statement about how we are responding to God’s call in this time and place “to create a beloved community wherein lives get transformed,” said the Rev. Andrew Warner, development director for the Wisconsin Conference. “Through budgets we make decisions about how we will embody God’s love in the world.” Examples include the Conference’s investments in leadership development and congregational development. Support from congregation’s through Our Church’s Wider Mission makes most of this work possible. Beyond gifts to OCWM Basic Support, individuals in the Conference over the past year have donated generously to refugee relief in Ukraine, earthquake recovery in Syria and Turkey, and tornado recovery in Mississippi and Alabama. Read Andrew’s complete report.

The Wisconsin Conference UCC is an Open and Affirming Conference, and an Immigrant Welcoming Conference.