The Social Justice committee has proposed and presented that The United Church of Clinton become an “Open and Affirming” (ONA) Congregation of the United Church of Christ and a Reconciling Churches Member of the United Methodist Church.
Within this covenant our church commits to welcome ALL people, including members of the LGBTQ+ community, supporting their human and civil rights.
We, The United Church of Clinton, have always lived our vision statement “God’s People Loving and Serving God.” We believe that each of us has been created in God’s image, an image that is diverse, compassionate, and welcoming. We look to live our mission statement as we continue to love God and our neighbors passionately. We encourage and create a sense of love and belonging to God’s family including but not limited to people of all ages, cultures, races, economic backgrounds, sexual orientation, gender identities, family structures, or spirtual traditions. All are welcome to join fully in the life of the church including participating in leadership roles, encouraging and creating a sense of love and belonging to God’s family. We live and bear testimony to our faith by being an example of Christian living, welcoming all no matter where an individual may be on life’s journey. Reaching out to our local, national and global communities of neighbors using our spiritual gifts in faithful service to those in need. We commit ourselves to becoming an Open and Affirming Congregation and Reconciling Church Member.
The UMC Reconciling Church Covenant reads as follows:
“We celebrate God’s gift of diversity and value the wholeness made possible in community equally shared and shepherded by all. We welcome and affirm people of every gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation, who are also of every age, race, ethnicity, physical and mental ability, level of education, and family structure, and of every economic, immigration, marital, and social status, and so much more. We acknowledge that we live in a world of profound social, economic, and political inequities. As followers of Jesus, we commit ourselves to the pursuit of justice and pledge to stand in solidarity with all who are marginalized and oppressed.”.
Our mission and social justice endeavors fall into three geographical areas—local, national, and global.
Here are some of our past projects in those areas:
Local
- Growing for Others started in 2017, and continuing today. Our harvest is gathered in and delivered to the WHEAT food pantry in Clinton.
- Community Café, the church membership donates a monthly meal of pizza, salad, and dessert. This continues to be delivered on the third Monday of each month.
- Spare Change Collections: Item Appeal, Ukraine Relief Efforts
- Plastic bags for WHEAT
- Expand/Extend the Table: Non-Perishable food collections on Communion Sunday
National
- Winter Togs Collection: We collect winter hats, scarves, and gloves for the residents of the Sioux reservation in S. Dakota.
Global
- Heifer International-monetary donation was sent through our spare change collection.
- Mercy Ships-monetary donation was sent through our spare change collection.
- HeroRats: Our HeroRats Hope and Faith entered the workforce, we continued to support the training rats to find IDs and diagnose TB.
New Ideas
Your Social Justice Committee invites members and friends of our church family to propose and undertake projects they especially care about and would like to see the church become involved in. If you have a project you care about, bring to the Social Justice Committee a proposal that contains a description of the project, it’s timeline, and how you would build a team to execute the project. The Social Justice Committee will review the proposal to make sure it matches the stated mission of our church, ask you how the Committee might help you, and check your proposed scheduling against other scheduled projects to avoid project “overload” for our church family. We look forward to hearing your proposals. The Social Justice Committee meets on the first Tuesday of the month.
Current Mission Work
Growing for Others: The gardens are full! Thank you to Laraine A. and our neighbors for continuing this amazing project! | |
Expand/Extend the Table: We collect non-perishable food items on Communion Sundays to be donated to the WHEAT community cafe each month. | |
Winter Togs for the Sioux YMCA in Dupree, South Dakota: Our collection of warm hats, scarves, socks, and gloves for adults and children of all ages is ongoing. Now is a great time to shop for sales on winter hats & gloves. Shipments are sent in the fall each year. | |
Spare Change Collection: Our spare change collection will go to support Ukraine Relief Efforts through the UCC. | |
Recycling Mission Projects: Plastic bags for the WHEAT Food Pantry. Drop your bags in the collection bin on the mission table in the side sanctuary. | |
Our Church’s Pizza Meal: WHEAT Community Café: On the third Monday of each month, members of our church family help to organize a meal for the guests of the Community Café on High Street, Clinton. Our church’s meal ingredients cost us about $175 per month. Consider donating to the monthly food costs for this local mission work |