Over the past few months, the Peace and Justice Steering Committee has been
exploring what it would mean for the Haydenville Congregational Church to become a Just Peace Church. The Just Peace Church movement is a program of the United Church of Christ in which congregations “[commit] to corporately naming and boldly proclaiming a public identity as a justice-doing, peace-seeking church.”
The Just Peace designation would be in keeping with the Steering Committee’s mission to engage in projects, programs and actions that bear witness to our understanding of the radical commitment to peace and justice embodied in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.
We have had two open discussions on the Just Peace church program in our Soup, Salad and Social Change series.The second meeting, on Tuesday, December 11th centered around 13 “marks of a Just Peace Church” as presented by the Fifteenth General Synod of the UCC. (See http://www.ucc.org/beliefs/theology/general-synod-pronouncement.html (section B.)
The consensus that arose from both discussions is that this concept encompasses much of what we believe and the work that we do as a congregation and is worth further exploration. We envision visiting churches in our area that define themselves as Just Peace Churches; hosting additional events which foster further discussion on the topic; providing opportunities for self reflection as a community; looking to scripture to help us define this aspect of our identity; and following through on additional ideas that may come from you.
As we continue this journey, we welcome and encourage input and participation from everyone in the Haydenville Congregational Church Community. You can comment here, contact a member of the Steering Committee or simply come to a committee meeting or an event soon to be announced. We’d love to hear from you!