wfn.org | Young Synod delegates vital to United Church of Christ future

[George Conklin <gconklin@wfn.org>]

United Church of Christ
Office of Communication
700 Prospect Ave.
Cleveland, OH 44115
contact: Barbara Powell
phone: 216-736-2222
email: powellb@ucc.org
http://www.ucc.org
PROVIDENCE, RI - July 6 1999 - 
by Tim Kershner and Pam Smith
        Hillary Thomas was a lastminute delegate replacement to attend General
Synod 22.
        Still, after receiving word in June that her services were needed this
week in Providence, R.I., she read the "big book" cover to cover, becoming
familiar with the issues; she talked with other persons from her Massachusetts
delegation to discuss issues and procedures.
        "I made sure that I looked over everything," she said.
        More than just another delegate, Hillary represents the future of the
church. She is among the almost 140 youth and young adult delegates at Synod —
those who are under 30 years of age. Their presence indicates a precious gift:
our youth and young adults not only are the future of the church; they are the
present.
        Many of today's leaders in the United Church of Christ received
valuable
experience as members of their local church leadership teams, said the Rev.
Richard Smith of the Southwest Conference, who is at Synod as head of his
delegation.  "Youth group activities which challenged me to serve have sent me
on this journey," he said.  That journey includes 23 years of ordained ministry
and serving as moderator of his conference.
        The Rev. Jana Norman-Richardson, Assistant Moderator of General Synod
22, fondly remembers a church school teacher who was "the first [person] in my
life to put faith in action with kids," and credits her and others in her
church for leading her to ministry.
        The inclusion of youth and young adults in this national meeting is
intentional. Most national bodies and agencies of the UCC, in addition to the
General Synod, have youth representatives. "They are the stakeholders," said
one member of the Executive Council. "They inherit whatever we do. Their voice
must be heard."
        Youth and young adult delegates, the future delegation leaders and
assistant moderators, are everywhere at this General Synod. Matthew Leathers of
the Southern California Conference received a “baptism-by-fire” on Monday
evening when he proposed what he perceived to be a friendly amendment to a
resolution and was voted down  twice. At first angered and discouraged by the
plenary's response to his motions, he decided to try yet a third time, and this
time found his persistence rewarded and even applauded, as other delegates and
staffers helped him to reword his amendment so that it could be accepted as
friendly.
        Kimberly Alexander, a delegate from the Central Pacific Conference,
says
that the youth and young adult delegates became more comfortable as the Synod
has progressed. "Most of us haven't been here before and don't have years of
history and practice,” she says. “The only way we can learn is by doing it." 
        Alexander credits her experience in a Youth-As-Leaders event with
empowering her to find and use her voice in the church. In much of their lives,
she says, youth feel out of place. "Youth don't feel welcome at the table. Here
we're at all the tables,” she says.  “As soon as we are in a place where we can
have a voice, our voices will get stronger."
        Delegate Robbie Gilchrist of the Washington North Idaho Conference says
he feels more accepted in church than "in the real world." Acceptance comes
easily in local congregations, Gilchrist says, but he is astonished and pleased
that "even at the national level, youth and young adults are accepted."
        But Matthew Small of the Council for Youth and Young Adult Ministries
says that we need to go even further. "The commitment of the UCC to involve
youth and young adults isn't always followed through," he says.
        While UCC guidelines state that delegations should include 20 percent
youth and young adult representation, no one contests delegations which do not
comply, says Small, and "that needs to be addressed." 
        "Youth and young adults have passion and gifts for inclusion in
worship,” Small says.  “If the church is truly committed, that's one place
where inclusion needs to be strengthened."
        Anne Cohen concurs. She proposes a youth-designed worship service for
the entire Synod, with the "technical support needed" to present it. She asks,
"We are inviting youth to come to the table as full partners, but are we ready
to treat them as full partners?"
        Small says that the best thing about all delegates, young and old
alike,
being treated as full partners is that when they return to their local
congregations, "they bring back our denominational identity, our commitment to
social justice issues and to aspects not always addressed” in the local
setting.