This Day in History

By
Date: June 25, 1957
Scene: A group of church members gathering in Cleveland, Ohio

Guy: All right, everyone. We've pretty much worked everything out except one detail. What shall we call this new church of ours? I propose that, since we are a newly united church, we should call ourselves the United Church of Christ.

Second Guy: Um...pardon me for a second.

Guy: Yes, you'd like to speak to the name?

Second Guy: Yeah, about that. Don't you think that if we called ourselves that, people might confuse us with the Church of Christ?

Guy: Why would people do that? It's a totally different church.

Second Guy: Well, yes, but Church of Christ, United Church of Christ...they're pretty similar.

Guy: You answered your own question. Clearly, our name has the word "United" in front of it.

Second Guy: But people might not get that they're different.

Guy: Of course they're different. They're just the Church of Christ. We're the UNITED Church of Christ.

Second Guy: I'm just saying that maybe we should think about something more distinctive...

Guy: We'd have the "United" in front, plus we use organs. No one could ever confuse the two.

Second Guy: I don't know, man...they seem pretty similar to me...

Guy: Not possible. People will be able to tell the difference. Our own members, non-members, the media, the governor of Connecticut...they'll all easily recognize that we're not the same and always call us by our proper name.

Second Guy: I'm not so sure...

Guy: Of course they will. UNITED Church of Christ. It's can't-miss. We'll never ever have to explain to anyone that they're different.

Second Guy: But is adding an extra word going to be enough? They still seem really close...

Guy: All in favor of "United Church of Christ" as our new name, say "Aye!"

Everyone Else: Aye!

Happy birthday, UNITED Church of Christ.

Order my books!

Sign up for my author newsletter!

powered by TinyLetter

Popular posts from this blog

Libraries and Churches

By
Image
I've had a life-long appreciation for public libraries. I remember being pulled in a wagon down the sidewalk from our house to the library when I was probably 4 or 5 years old. One of my first jobs was at a library working as a page (as in, person who shelves books, not an actual book page). My dad's second career was as a reference librarian. And I enjoyed working at the library in high school so much that I worked at my seminary's library later on while a student there.

Since having kids, I've gained an entirely new love for libraries. My daughter and I make a trip every Monday to our own library, where she not only chooses a new batch of books to read, but she also takes time to play with the toys that they have set out for kids' enjoyment. Sometimes she plays with others, sometimes she prefers being by herself. But every week she asks if we're going, and every week I'm pleased to say that we are.

As always we took our weekly trip this past Monday. It wa…
Read more

Book Review: Cultural Savage by Aaron J. Smith

By
Image
All of this is my reality of living with mental illness. I hope it gives you some insight into the lives of people around you who live with these illnesses. But listen to their stories. Mental illness is different for each person. Don't assume that I can speak for the entire population affected by mental illness. Still, I hope you will hear my words [and] they will help you see those of us suffering. We deserve to be seen. - Aaron Smith, Cultural Savage

The world needs more personal stories about living with mental illness. And the Christian community is in special need of such stories that wrestle with how to reconcile faith with such illnesses. While many in general hold conscious or unconscious stigma, there tends to be an extra layer of misunderstanding and cruelty in the church, as the message many receive is that it is a sign of weak faith or needing more prayer. While faith and prayer may assist one in pursuing health, it is not the only thing that one needs. Therapy, medic…
Read more