UBC Statement on Proposed Restructure

UNITED BLACK CHRISTIANS

UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST 

April 8, 2008Greetings in His name to the Governance Follow up Team:Thank you for the extraordinary time, work, effort and talent of the Governance Task Force. We are especially proud and grateful that Carol Brown, National UBC President, was a member of this very important think tank considering restructure of the national setting.  We are further grateful that our Board members also serve on Covenanted Ministry Boards and thus have had the opportunity for considerable dialogue. Most recently, Edith Guffey joined us in retreat for additional conversation that was very useful.  After individual and collective discernment and prayer, it is the unanimous opinion of the Board that we cannot support your recommendations. The UBC National Board of Directors humbly submit the following questions and observations for your full consideration, deliberation and response. First of all, what’s the hurry? We seem to be rushing to fix a problem that is not self evident to everyone in the UCC. What is the driving force behind this call for change in governance? If it is finance, perhaps attention might be directed to the conferences and local churches, with a focus on giving and stewardship.  Why are we starting all over? Have we tried and exhausted all remedies to “fix what’s broken”? Is it necessary to start from the beginning again?We reject the governance proposal as written because it fosters the Collegium as a body of four or five "equals among equals." It also strongly urges that OGM be abolished, thus reducing the General Minister and President to what we once had -- a person with no real power, no real program staff, and little influence among the other officers of equal status in the Collegium.  Who’s in charge? The President and General Minister must be “the” leader of the United Church of Christ. This is the person “in charge”. This is imperative for all phases of UCC life, including fundraising. The Executive Ministers should be Executive Ministers for Program Development, reporting to the General Minister and President.We are not a monolithic ethnic group and a significant number of African Americans still believe the UCC to be wrong in our statements on human sexuality. We believe the Church knew that when they adopted the marriage equality pronouncement but we were a minority in that vote also. Some walked away from the UCC because they felt they had no redress in any processes within the denomination. Just as some African Americans feel this way, so do a large number of white UCC churches. Thus you have a crisis of financial faith and vision within the UCC. The new governance seeks to have less representation and voice from the local church. The autonomy of the local church versus the covenantal relationship to the local church require a great deal of theological and polity work.Despite the requirements for diversity within the United Church of Christ, there will be fewer opportunities for African Americans to be represented across the life of the national ministries. Again, we are not a monolithic ethnic group. There will be fewer opportunities for youth and young adults and those coming to the denomination from other traditions to experience leadership in the local, conference and national setting. This is in direct opposition to our ongoing goal of intergenerational leadership development. Given the increased number of distinctive constituency groups in the United Church of Christ, what matrix will be designed to assure fair representation? The role of the Chief Financial Officer requires more definition and clarity. How will funds be handled in the proposed governance change? What happens to unrestricted and non-designated contributions? What is the system of checks and balances?  We reject the concept that Covenanted Ministries operate autonomously in the future and set their own priorities and objectives? One of the goals of the current structure in 2000 was uniformity. We’ve watched the dismantling of the ministries with apparent disregard for the original plan. We do not support a staff driven church. Perhaps we should allow governance to proceed as envisioned.Collapsing the boards dilutes passion for specific ministries. While consideration can be given to preferences, this will impose additional hardship on the General Synod Nominating Committee as it seeks applicants. Underrepresented groups will become more invisible. Fewer people making decisions will not be representative of the constituencies in the UCC. More time will be required to attend meetings. How will the voices and representatives of African Americans in the United Church of Christ avoid being further diminished under the proposed governance rules? Our presence as national staff has dramatically decreased in recent years. There are less African American professional staff, lay and clergy, at the national setting than ten years ago, fifteen years ago and twenty years ago, Is Governance a smoke screen for us to focus somewhere other than who is being fired and who is being hired by the denomination?Perhaps we should suspend the search process for a new General Minister and President and seek an interim for the position until we know the new governance design.  What are the positions of Wider Church Ministries, Local Church Ministries, and Justice and Witness Ministries regarding the proposed governance rules? It is our understanding that they have changed over time. It is our understanding that WCM, JWM and LCM also have unanswered questions and unresolved concerns.For all the good work that has been done, unanswered questions remain. Perceptions must be addressed and clarified. Thank you in advance for your continued good work on this part of the journey.In Prayerful Celebration of the United Church of Christ,The Board of DirectorsUnited Black ChristiansCarol A. Brown, National President