wfn.org | Improving Christians' Involvement in Government

[CAROL_FOUKE.parti@ecunet.org (CAROL FOUKE)]

National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA
CONTACT: Lisa Lederer at 202/371-1999
  Wendy McDowell at 212/870-2152
Email: news@ncccusa.org  Web: www.ncccusa.org

36NCC3/25/99

INNOVATIVE NEW PROJECT SEEKS TO IMPROVE
CHRISTIANS' INVOLVEMENT IN GOVERNMENT
Results of Survey Exploring Attitudes of Participants to be
Released

Do Christians have confidence in their local, state and federal
governments?  Do they believe that Christians have a
responsibility to be involved in the areas of social action and
just government?  Is there an attitude change toward government
after Christians participate in a Bible study and hear a sermon
on church and government?

Those and other questions will be answered in a research report
released March 30 by the National Council of Churches of Christ
in the U.S.A. (NCCC).  Christians and Government was designed to
explore the attitudes toward government held by members of
congregations from diverse denominations.  A collection of
sermons preached as part of the year-long project will also be
released.

The Christians and Government program, supported by the Ford
Foundation, provides participating churches with five Bible study
plans and "sermon helps" which are designed to help Christians
strike a balance between confidence in government and criticism
of particular government policies.  Before and after surveys
developed by the Presbyterian Research Service explored the
attitudes toward government of participating congregations in:
Albany; Albuquerque; Decatur/Atlanta; Fresno; Milwaukee; Oklahoma
City; Portland (ME); Seattle; and Wichita.  Fifty-nine
congregations participated in the project, and nearly 800
individuals completed surveys gauging their views of government.

Participating congregations included: Roman Catholic; Lutheran;
United Church of Christ; Disciples of Christ; Presbyterian Church
(U.S.A.); United Methodist; Friends; Episcopal; Mennonite;
Baptist; African Methodist Episcopal; Congregational; and Church
of God.

The National Council of Churches of Christ is a member of the
Partnership for Trust in Govern-ment, a project of the Council
for Excellence in Government and the Ford Foundation.  The
Partnership unites 30 leading non-government organizations across
American society to bring objective information about government
to their employees, customers, members and audiences.

The Council for Excellence in Government, a nonpartisan,
nonprofit organization of former government leaders now in the
private sector, works to improve the performance of government at
all levels and government's place in the lives and trust of
American citizens.

The NCCC is the nation's preeminent ecumenical organization,
comprised of 35 Protestant and Orthodox member communions, to
which 52 million people belong.

The research report is available from Lisa Lederer at 202/371-
1999 or Wendy McDowell at 212/870-2152.

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