Syllabus and Readings

All required reading assignments may be downloaded from this website or from other websites.  These materials 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. 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, governance, theology and ministry of the UCC.

INSTRUCTORS:
Amber Henry Neuroth, Senior Pastor
Hope United Church of Christ, Alexandria, Virginia
pastor@hopeucc.org

Daniel Sack
dansack1962@gmail.com

Francis Smith
fsmith7527@gmail.com

Goals for the Governance 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:

IF THIS IS YOUR FIRST INSTITUTE:
Read the complete “Short Course on the History of the UCC"

Required Reading 

Covenant 101
Toward an Understanding of  Local Autonomy- a UCC Statement from 1969
UCC Manual on Church, 2005 Draft
Spike, Robert. Two Anxieties article
Constitution and By Laws of the United Church of Christ
Peter Schmiechen, “The New Constitution and By Laws,” Prism 2000
Steckel, Clyde. “The UCC Ecclesiology at 50” 
2004 Restructure Evaluation
Sevetson, Donald. The Idea of a Conference- background on structuring conferences

Suggested Reading

Long, Edward. Patterns of Polity: Varieties of Church Government. Suggested pages, 1-9, and 119-128
Steckel, Clyde. New Ecclesiology and Polity, The United Church of Christ.
Walker, Randi. The Evolution of a UCC Style: History, Ecclesiology, and Culture of the UCC. Suggested- chapter 5, “Covenant Community: Congregationalism and its Discontents.”
Zikmund, Barbara Brown. Hidden Histories of the UCC, Volumes I or II

Visit at least three of these conferences' websites:

ILLINOIS
SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND
HEARTLAND
SOUTHWEST
KANSAS OKLAHOMA
CENTRAL ATLANTIC

(Updated 4/27/2022)