UCC - Jim Moos: 'Imagine' is a word with wings

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

> Moos: 'Imagine' is a word with wings

> Written by W. Evan Golder
> July 1, 2011

Wings and weight may seem to conjure up opposite
images, but in the mind of the Rev.  Jim Moos,
nominee for Executive Minister for the UCC?s
Wider Church Ministries, both wings and weight
are essential as the church begins to imagine what?s possible.

??Imagine? is a word with wings,? he told
delegates in introducing himself on Friday
evening. ??Possible? is a word with weight.?

He cited the example of the famous ?Haystack
Meeting? in 1806. Then, five students at Williams
College, Mass., took shelter under a haystack
during a rainstorm. Joining in prayer, they
pledged themselves to volunteer in mission.

Their subsequent mission service led to the

formation of the American Board of Commissioners
for Foreign Mission. Two hundred years later,
Moos pointed out, the American Board is still a
vital part of the UCC, through our Global
Ministries partnership with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

Wings and weight. The five students brought

imagination to the call to mission, he said. But
their vision needed weight, the experience and
institutional support of church elders.
The Rev. Jim Moos, nominee for Wider Church
Ministries Executive Minister, addresses General
Synod 28. (photo Scott Griessel)

?Wings lift us above current reality,? said Moos.
?Weight keeps us connected to real needs of God?s
people and of all creation. Wings without weight
is fantasy. Weight without wings is despair. Both
are essential if peace and justice are to be established.?

But youth don?t have a corner on the imagination market, he insisted.

?Our youth and young adults, our clergy in their
20s and 30s aren?t future leaders, not leaders in
training,? he said. ?Your gifts and graces are
active and needed now.? And to applause, he
added, ?Because of you, new things are added.?

> In introducing himself, he noted two things.

?I see myself as a hard-nosed realist,? he said.
?But I am not in despair. I have confidence that
the journey ahead will be filled not only with
challenges, but also with joy, expectation and
new opportunities?Those ministries are already taking shape.?

Since 1996, Moos has served as senior pastor of
Bismarck (N.D.) UCC. He has also been an U.S. Air
Force Reserve chaplain, a member and chair of the
UCC Executive Council, and a member of the Wider Church Ministries board.

In 2002, Moos volunteered his sabbatical time to
Wider Church Ministries. ?Where can I be useful??
he asked. The answer: East Timor, the first new
nation of the 21st century and one of the poorest
on the globe. His efforts resulted in a new
school in the village of Lisa Dila, about four
hours south of Dili, the capital.

General Synod delegates vote on the election of
Moos and the other Collegium nominees on Monday evening.