POTOMAC ASSOCIATION
UCC Polity Institute
June 12, 2009 10:00 am to 3:15 pm
June 13, 2009 all day until the end of the evening business session

Location:
Central Atlantic Conference UCC Annual Meeting
University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware
Friday sessions in Clayton Hall
Bring a lunch, we will only take a short break for lunch

Please pre-register for the CAC Annual Meeting by going to http://www.cacucc.org Do this before May 1, 2009 to avoid an extra fee.

This Institute is part of a sequence of four Institutes offered each year in History, Polity, Theology and Ministry of the UCC by the Potomac Association, following the guidelines prepared by History, Theology and Polity teachers on the essentials of a basic one semester course. (see the Essentials list at). They will all meet from 10 am to 4 pm on a Saturday, with the exception of the Polity Institute which will meet on Friday from 10 am to 4 pm and require Saturday attendance at the CAC Annual meeting at the University of Delaware.  The Institute format is designed to serve the needs of persons who cannot enroll in a regular semester length seminary course to cover this material.

Participants may start the cycle of four Institutes at any point in the cycle.

If a person needs formal evaluation in order to gain privilege of call or ordination, s/he is expected to do the reading and other types of assignments before coming to the Institute (resources posted here). Observer participants (those not seeking evaluation) are strongly encouraged to do the advanced reading and assignments.

ASSIGNMENTS:

All required reading assignments may be downloaded from this website or from other websites available on the worldwide web.  Other practical field assignments may be made requiring interviews, site visits, or attendance at meetings. Additional reading related to the topics covered is encouraged, but not required. These UCC Institutes are enrichment opportunities for all members of the UCC who want to learn more about the history, polity, theology and ministry of the UCC.

INSTRUCTORS:

Arthur Waidmann, retired UCC minister, former chair of the Church and Ministry Committee of the Potomac Association of the UCC.
waidmanna@aol.com

Rubin Tendai, retired UCC minister, immediate past interim Senior Minister, Peoples Congregational UCC, Washington, DC.
rubdot@aol.com

Goals for the Institute:
(from the Essentials document)

Participants will obtain knowledge of 

* Constituent parts of the United Church of Christ?i.e., local church, conferences and associations, national setting, General Synod (Constitution and Bylaws)
* Past and present structure of the United Church of Christ ("covenantal polity")
* Patterns of accountability and autonomy in the various settings of the church

Pre-Institute Assignments:

1. What is UCC Polity?  Read
Edward Long, Patterns of Polity: Varieties of Church Government, "Introduction" pps. 1-9  "Associational Congregationalism" pps. 119-128.
Toward an Understanding of Local Autonomy 1963

2. UCC Polity is based upon the concept of "covenant".  Read
United Church of Christ Manual on the Church (draft, Jan. 2005)
Randi Walker, The Evolution of a UCC Style: History, Ecclesiology, and Culture of the United Church of Christ, Chap. 5 "Covenant Community: Congregationalism and its Discontents."

3. The various settings of the UCC  Read
Constitution and By Laws of the United Church of Christ
 Prism articles on Conferences and the Role of the Conference Minister
Allen M. Comstock "Pastor as Church Member" from the Confessing Christ Newsletter 2005
Peter Schmiechen, "The New Constitution and By Laws,"  Prism 2000
"On Pronouncements" General Synod 1959
"Delegates" First Congregtional UCC Washington, DC 1965

(The highlighted articles can be downloaded using Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you do not have this software on your computer, you can download a free version at www.adobe.com.)

4. Visit the websites of three conferences. One from Group A = ILLINOIS, CONNECTICUT, or OHIO and one from Group B = SOUTHWEST, KANSAS OKLAHOMA, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA NEVADA.  Also go to the website of CENTRAL ATLANTIC.  How is group A different from group B and how does CAC differ from other Conferences?

.5. Interview two ordained pastors in the UCC (face to face or over the phone) Choose clergy who have been involved in some UCC national setting event or structure - attending General Synod, serving on a national board or special task group. Ask him or her to reflect about UCC polity and how it has changed over the past ten years and to comment on the strengths and the weaknesses of UCC polity.  Be prepared to make a five minute report sharing insights you have gained about UCC polity.

6. Write out one page outlining three strengths and three weaknesses of UCC Polity.

7. Visit the UCC website and other websites related to various ecumenical organizations where the UCC in involved.   (This link  Ecumenical Partnerships  will take you to most of them. ) Select two or three such organizations or sub-groups and be prepared to make a five minute report about those groups.

8. CASE STUDY Race, Racism and becoming an Anti-Racist  Multiracial/Multicultural Church (we will spend 45 minutes on this case)

Read "Sacred Conversations Pastoral Letter" and other resources made available for May 18.  Become acquainted with the resources listed there.
Read Calling the UCC to become a Multiracial and Multicultural Church 1993
Read Calling the UCC to be an Anti-Racist Church 2003
Read Resolution on American Indian Boarding Schools 2003
Call at least two churches inquiring about their responses to the "Call for Conversations on Race." Call until you find at least one which responsded to the Call. Be prepared to share and discuss your findings. Share your observations regarding the implementation of the "Call" and the historic resolutions of 1993 and 2003.

9. CASE STUDY Goverance Issues in the Church (we will spend 45 minutes on this case)

Go to the UCC national website http://www.ucc.org and research information on the current discussion and deliberations on "Governance".  This will include press releases, reports and actions.
Go to the Central Atlantic Conference website http://www.cacucc.org and find "resolutions" that are going to be on the agenda at the Annual Meeting regarding "governance."
Bring a brief report of your impressions of the polity issues regarding "governance."

10. Plan to attend one of the workshops being offered on Saturday. (you will be asked about them in the telephone conversation).  Also plan to attend the Friday 4:00 pm Lay/Clergy event and perhaps some hearings.

Summary of Pre-Institute Assignments:
1. Read basic information about polity and what polity is.
2. Read two major essays about "covenant" polity and how it works.
3. Read the Constitution and By Laws of the UCC and several articles about how the various settings of the UCC relate to each other.
4. Read the websites of three UCC Conferences, including CAC.
5. Interview two UCC clergy or lay leaders who have attended General Synod or been involved in the national setting structures in some way. Be prepared to report on what you have learned.
6. Write a one page statement about the strengths and weaknesses of UCC polity
7. Visit the UCC website and explore ecumenical organizations related to the UCC. Come to the institute prepared to explain/introduce several groups.
8. Prepare for a "case study" on "Race, Racism and Becoming a Multiracial/Multicultural Church."  Call at least two churches inquiring about their response to "The Call for Conversations on Race."  Be prepared to report your findings, observations to that and the implementation of the historic resolutions of 1993 and 2003. 
9. Research the national UCC website regarding "Governance" proposals. Research the CAC website regarding proposed resolutions on "Governance" Bring a brief report on your impressions of polity issues regarding the Governance proposal and process. What is at stake regarding our polity? What about Covenant, Association, etc.
10. Plan to attend one of the workshops offered on Saturday, as well as the opening session on Friday at 4 pm.