United Church of Christ
The Rev. J. Bennett Guess, news director
216/736-2177 or 216/403-9862
newsroom@ucc.org
For immediate release
November 1, 2006
All of United Church of Christ's 1.2-million members to gather on Sunday - online
CLEVELAND -- In an experimental, interactive, online teleconferencing event, members of the 1.2-million-member United Church of Christ will kick off the denomination's 50th anniversary celebration by gathering en masse at 6 p.m. (ET) on Sunday, Nov. 5, at www.ucc.org <http://www.ucc.org/> .
The webstreaming event is the denomination's first attempt to create an online, interactive, multiple-site experience.
"The notion is that the whole church - from Maine to Hawaii - will be participating in the same event at the same time, no matter where they live," says the Rev. Robert Chase, the UCC's communication director. It's also a sign of how the church is embracing emerging technology, he says.
In a broadcast that will originate from the UCC's Amistad Chapel in Cleveland, Ohio, the real-time event will include teleconferencing feeds from Redeemer UCC in Sussex, Wis.; Heritage UCC in Baltimore, Md.; and Cathedral of Hope UCC in Dallas, Texas.
From any computer, participants will be able to view the event, submit
questions for discussion, respond to online polls, upload photos to create an online mosaic, watch celebratory 'You Tube' videos submitted by UCC churches, and send text messages of individual or group names that will scroll across computer screens.
Described as a time for "worship, work and play," it's a contemporary way for the church to gather nationally - and interactively - to celebrate the launch of its golden anniversary year, and to do so relatively inexpensively. Some are participating as groups, in gatherings hosted at churches or in regional church settings that include dinner and worship. Many will likely watch from home.
"They'll be able to see themselves, as well as others across the nation, as the event unfolds," Chase says. "It will be a fun, exciting opportunity for us to get a sense of our national ministry, even as we gather in our local settings."
The 30-40 minute gathering will begin at 6 p.m. (ET), 5 p.m. (CT), 4 p.m. (MT), 3 p.m. (CT) and 1 p.m. in Hawaii. Before the event begins, would-be participants can visit www.ucc.org <http://www.ucc.org/> to test to see if their computers are equipped with the necessary technological capacity.
The UCC's other 50th anniversary year highlights will include the publication of "UCC@50," a commemorative publication and historical DVD; a variety of local and regional events; a national TV worship broadcast on Easter Sunday 2007; the 50th anniversary General Synod, June22-26, in Hartford, Conn.; and a closing All Saints celebration in Nov. 2007.
The UCC was created in 1957 with the union of the Congregational Christian Churches in America and the Evangelical and Reformed Church. Although it is one of the nation's youngest mainline denominations, the UCC includes some of the nation's oldest churches, with more than 10 percent of current UCC congregations being founded before 1776.
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