Our Denomination
We are a member of the United Church of Christ, a community of faith that seeks to respond to the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed. The UCC was founded in 1957 as the union of several different Christian traditions: from the beginning of our history, we were a church that affirmed the ideal that Christians did not always have to agree to live together in communion. Our motto—"that they may all be one"—is Jesus' prayer for the unity of the church.
That unity, in fact, is what prompted the creation of the United Church of Christ. As a united and uniting church, we are “ecumenical” -- the term used to refer to the broader Christian community of all denominations and affiliations. Often, families from different religious traditions find a home in the UCC because of our blended nature. We have formal agreements of Full Communion with other Protestant churches, as well, fully recognizing each other’s ministries, sacraments, and leaders. Learn more about our ecumenical partnerships.
Through the United Church of Christ, we are in covenant connection with other faith communities throughout the nation and the world. Locally, we are a member of the Santa Clara Association, which includes all of the local churches and authorized ministers in Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Monterey, and San Benito Counties, plus one church in San Mateo County. Our Santa Clara Association supports ministers and local churches engaged in broader ministry, like campus ministry programs at Stanford and San Jose State Universities, and numerous chaplaincies and hospice ministries, like Correctional Institutions Chaplaincy at the Santa Clara County jails, or SpiritCare Ministry to Seniors.
The Association meets at least twice a year, and usually more regularly with special meetings for the purpose of authorizing new ministers and encouraging new ministries. Lay delegates from our congregation are essential to this process -- and more are always welcome!
We are also in connection with the Northern California Nevada Conference of the United Church of Christ, which includes six associations, about 120 local churches and more than 300 authorized ministers from Fresno in the south to the California-Oregon border in the north, from the Pacific Ocean in the west to Winnemucca, Nevada, in the east. In this vast territory are churches and ministries diverse in age, race/ethnicity, and mission. Two camps, Cazadero and Tamarack, and one seminary, the Pacific School of Religion, are also included in this territory. The Conference is headed by a Conference Minister and two Associate Conference Ministers -- one of whom is our very own Daniel Ross-Jones, a minister-in-covenant with our congregation.
The Conference meets at the Annual Gathering each late spring/early summer on the beautiful campus of Sonoma State University. The collective expression of around 500 voting members and friends, including at minimum 50% lay people representing their local churches, results in a dynamic event of worship, business, learning, and connection.
Every two years is the General Synod of the United Church of Christ -- our denomination’s “family reunion.” Thousands of UCCers from across the country gather together to praise and worship God, to discern resolutions of witness to the world, make amendments to our governing documents, to learn more about the ministries being carried out by our UCC connection, and to snack on legendary Synod cookies baked by volunteers from the host Conference. Our past meeting in 2015, was in Cleveland, Ohio and in 2017 the meeting was in Baltimore, Maryland. Our meeting this year, 2019, was in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and the next meeting will be year 2021 in Kansas City, Missouri. Delegates are appointed by our Conference from a slate of nominees suggested by local churches, and past delegates have included members of our Congregation. You don’t have to be a delegate to attend, however -- and, in some ways, visitors have more fun!
Stillspeaking. It's the shorter form of "God is still speaking," a campaign by the United Church of Christ to remind us that God still has a lot more to say. Stillspeaking has worked with thousands of UCC churches and individuals across the country to make religion relevant again and to extend an extravagant welcome to all--because no matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you're welcome here.
That unity, in fact, is what prompted the creation of the United Church of Christ. As a united and uniting church, we are “ecumenical” -- the term used to refer to the broader Christian community of all denominations and affiliations. Often, families from different religious traditions find a home in the UCC because of our blended nature. We have formal agreements of Full Communion with other Protestant churches, as well, fully recognizing each other’s ministries, sacraments, and leaders. Learn more about our ecumenical partnerships.
Through the United Church of Christ, we are in covenant connection with other faith communities throughout the nation and the world. Locally, we are a member of the Santa Clara Association, which includes all of the local churches and authorized ministers in Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Monterey, and San Benito Counties, plus one church in San Mateo County. Our Santa Clara Association supports ministers and local churches engaged in broader ministry, like campus ministry programs at Stanford and San Jose State Universities, and numerous chaplaincies and hospice ministries, like Correctional Institutions Chaplaincy at the Santa Clara County jails, or SpiritCare Ministry to Seniors.
The Association meets at least twice a year, and usually more regularly with special meetings for the purpose of authorizing new ministers and encouraging new ministries. Lay delegates from our congregation are essential to this process -- and more are always welcome!
We are also in connection with the Northern California Nevada Conference of the United Church of Christ, which includes six associations, about 120 local churches and more than 300 authorized ministers from Fresno in the south to the California-Oregon border in the north, from the Pacific Ocean in the west to Winnemucca, Nevada, in the east. In this vast territory are churches and ministries diverse in age, race/ethnicity, and mission. Two camps, Cazadero and Tamarack, and one seminary, the Pacific School of Religion, are also included in this territory. The Conference is headed by a Conference Minister and two Associate Conference Ministers -- one of whom is our very own Daniel Ross-Jones, a minister-in-covenant with our congregation.
The Conference meets at the Annual Gathering each late spring/early summer on the beautiful campus of Sonoma State University. The collective expression of around 500 voting members and friends, including at minimum 50% lay people representing their local churches, results in a dynamic event of worship, business, learning, and connection.
Every two years is the General Synod of the United Church of Christ -- our denomination’s “family reunion.” Thousands of UCCers from across the country gather together to praise and worship God, to discern resolutions of witness to the world, make amendments to our governing documents, to learn more about the ministries being carried out by our UCC connection, and to snack on legendary Synod cookies baked by volunteers from the host Conference. Our past meeting in 2015, was in Cleveland, Ohio and in 2017 the meeting was in Baltimore, Maryland. Our meeting this year, 2019, was in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and the next meeting will be year 2021 in Kansas City, Missouri. Delegates are appointed by our Conference from a slate of nominees suggested by local churches, and past delegates have included members of our Congregation. You don’t have to be a delegate to attend, however -- and, in some ways, visitors have more fun!
Stillspeaking. It's the shorter form of "God is still speaking," a campaign by the United Church of Christ to remind us that God still has a lot more to say. Stillspeaking has worked with thousands of UCC churches and individuals across the country to make religion relevant again and to extend an extravagant welcome to all--because no matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you're welcome here.
