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Read the UC News Spotlight E-Newsletter
by The Rev. Dr. Jim Antal
September/October 2009
Let’s stay in touch!" As we part company with a new acquaintance or an old friend, these are the words we often exchange. But then we go on to the next thing in our busy lives, and we often lose touch – even though we had the best of intentions to stay connected. Relationships matter; and because they matter, they ask us to be committed to maintaining them.
One of the great benefits of having a printed publication arrive in the mailboxes of thousands of UCC members throughout the Commonwealth is that it connects members (and churches) with the wider church. If you were a subscriber, all you had to do was read your mail. At least some of what you read connected you with a wider church witness and a broader vision of God’s call.
But that mode of connecting is fading – not only in the church world but in the broader world as well – as newspapers disappear. The more our means of communication shifts to an electronic format, the more important it is for each of us to be intentional about what we pay attention to. We must actively seek to amplify our relationship to the wider world, and in particular we must enhance the partnership between the Conference, our almost 400 churches, and our 80,000 plus members.
So please allow me to encourage you – in the strongest possible way – to go to www.macucc.org/subscribe and sign up for one or more of our e-newsletters in an area in which you are interested.
What a difference it would make if every UCC member regularly received at least one e-newsletter from the Conference!
As we make this transition together, another step you could take would be to email several of your church friends the link to www.macucc.org/subscribe and encourage each of them to subscribe to one or another of our e-newsletters. This time of transition provides the perfect opportunity to increase our electronic subscribership, and thus expand the connection of our members to the wider church.
And if you haven’t recently visited www.ucc.org, now would be a great time to take a moment and have a look. The site offers many opportunities for any UCC member to learn about and participate in countless ministries in which the UCC engages throughout the world.
You may have heard it said that “Faith is a verb!” Let’s surprise ourselves in this time of transition. Let’s take action – to connect ourselves and others – so that we assure our ongoing participation in the testimony and opportunities of the wider church.