Join NCC as We Celebrate 75 Years of Christian Unity and Witness

October 13-16 Boston, MA

The National Council of Churches was founded in 1950 during a time of tumult following the end of World War II. Now, 75 years later, we are in another time of tumult where Christian unity and witness for justice is vitally important. You are invited to join us in Boston as we celebrate the dedicated work of generations of leaders who have shown us the way as we face today's challenges and chart a course for the future. Come and remember those who came before us, celebrate today's Christian witnesses, and experience the future of ecumenism.

Learn More

Announcing NCC's Outstanding Leadership Awards Recipients

The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) is pleased to announce our 2021 Christian Unity Gathering Awards Recipients.   Presentation of Outstanding Leadership Awards will be made tomorrow, Tuesday, October 12, 2021. The acceptance speeches will be broadcast live starting at 1:30 pm ET.   J. Irwin Miller Award for Excellence in Ecumenical Leadership – Dr. Diana Eck The J. Irwin Miller Award for Excellence in Ecumenical Leadership is given to a layperson who has demonstrated a commitment to church unity, and who, by living out this commitment through action in the world, has been a witness to justice and other values affirmed by our common faith in Jesus Christ.     Dr. Diana L. Eck is a native of Montana and has taught at Harvard since 1976. She is Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies and Frederic Wertham Professor of Law and Psychiatry in Society at Harvard University. She serves in the Departments of Religion and South Asian Studies in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and is also a member of Faculty of Divinity. For twenty years, Professor Eck was Faculty Dean of Lowell House, one of Harvard’s twelve undergraduate residential Houses. She received her B.A from Smith College (1967) in Religion, her M.A. from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (1968) in South Asian History, and her Ph.D. from Harvard University (1976) in the Comparative Study of Religion.  Dr. Eck’s work on India includes the books  India: A Sacred Geography  (Random House, Inc. 2012), Banaras, City of Light  (Knopf 1982) and Darsan: Seeing the Divine Image in India  (Anima 1981; Columbia University Press 1996).  Dr. Eck’s book, Encountering God: A Spiritual Journey from Bozeman to Banaras  (Beacon Press, 1993), studies the question of religious difference in the context of Christian theology and the comparative study of religion. It addresses issues of Christian faith in a world of many faiths and, more broadly, the issues of religious diversity that challenge people of every faith. Encountering God won the 1994 Melcher Book Award of the Unitarian Universalist Association and the 1995 Louisville Grawemeyer Book Award in Religion, given for work that reflects a significant breakthrough in our understanding of religion.  Her book,  A New Religious America: How a “Christian Country”  Has Become the World’s Most Religiously Diverse Nation  (Harper San Francisco 2001) addresses the challenges for the United States of the more complex religious landscape of the post-1965 period of renewed immigration.  In 1996, Dr. Eck was appointed to a State Department Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom Abroad, a twenty-member commission charged with advising the Secretary of State on enhancing and protecting religious freedom in the overall context of human rights. In 1998, Eck received the National Humanities Medal from President Clinton and the National Endowment for the Humanities for her work on American religious pluralism. In 2002, she received the American Academy of Religion Martin Marty Award for the Public Understanding of Religion. In 2003, she received the Governor’s Humanities Award from the Montana Council for the Humanities in her home state of Montana. In 2005-06 Dr. Eck served as President of the American Academy of Religion. In 2009, she delivered the Gifford Lectures at the University of Edinburgh.  President’s Award for Excellence in Faithful Leadership –   Rev. Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner The President’s Award for Excellence in Faithful Leadership is given as a way to reward, promote, and encourage faithful, risk-taking leadership among faith leaders, and particularly among younger faith leaders, in our midst.     Rev. Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner is CEO and co-founder of Skinner Leadership Institute and is a trusted advisor, public policy strategist, faith and community leader, author, lecturer, educator, executive coach, and mentor. She has made an indelible imprint in American public policy, government, diversity, and community relations. She and her late husband, Tom Skinner, founded the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Prayer Breakfast that annually attracts over 3000 leaders across the nation. She regularly works with interfaith leaders on issues like voting rights, healthcare, and criminal justice reform.  Widely known as a committed prayer warrior, Rev. Dr. Williams-Skinner regularly prays for and with Congressional leaders and sends daily scripture to many of them. She is co-founder of a millennial leadership program - the Masters Series for Distinguished Leaders  - that equips millennial leaders to move to the next levels of  their lives and careers, while addressing the needs of the disadvantaged. The program is now in its 13th year and has graduated over 180 young leaders.  Gwynne Guibord Award for Excellence in Interreligious Leadership – Sister Simone Campbell Gwynne Guibord Award for Excellence in Interreligious Leadership is awarded to a leader who has worked closely with leaders of many faiths and traditions to explore and uphold the experience and presence of the holy body.     Sister Simone Campbell served as Executive Director of NETWORK from 2004 to 2021. She is a religious leader, attorney, and poet with extensive experience in public policy and advocacy for systemic change. She has lobbied on issues of economic justice, immigration reform, and healthcare. She is a noted speaker and educator on these public policy issues. During the 2010 congressional debate about healthcare reform, she wrote the famous “nuns’ letter” supporting the reform bill and got 59 leaders of Catholic Sisters to sign on. This action was cited by many as critically important in passing the Affordable Care Act. She was thanked by President Obama and invited to the ceremony celebrating its being signed into law.  She has led six cross-country “Nuns on the Bus” trips, focused on economic justice, comprehensive immigration reform, and voter turnout.  Sister Simone has often been featured in the national and international media, including appearances on 60 Minutes, The Colbert Report, and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.  She has received numerous awards, including a “Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Award” and the “Defender of Democracy Award” from the international Parliamentarians for Global Action. In addition, she has been the keynote or featured speaker at numerous large gatherings, including the 2012 Democratic National Convention.  She is also the author of A Nun on the Bus: How All of Us Can Create Hope, Change, and Community, published in April 2014 by HarperCollins.    For more information on our award recipients, visit the NCC website at this link. --- For the full Christian Unity Gathering schedule including presentations, sessions, panelists, and speakers, visit the NCC website. Tonight's Faith Summit – Racial Reckoning in America: A Christian Response – will begin at 7pm ET.  The event is free however, attendees must register through the Whova event platform.

For 2021, CUG will be held using an online event service called Whova. After you register, you can sign in on the website using your laptop or computer, or you can download the app for your phone or tablet. Information on how to use Whova: If you are attending the event and have never used Whova, this is a helpful guide. https://whova.com/pages/whova-app-user-guide/?source=ems You will need to create an account with your email and password. To automatically log in to CUG, please make sure to use the email you used when registering for the event. The app will automatically take you to the event main page. Be sure to set up your profile to network during the event!

Here's what you don't want to miss at next week's Christian Unity Gathering! ✝️

NCC's annual Christian Unity Gathering (CUG) will be held virtually on October 11 - 12, 2021 with the theme, "In New Wineskins: From Pandemics to Possibilities to Promises," based on the scripture in Luke 5:37-39. The event is free to attend. This year’s CUG will explore how church life has changed and what our hope is for the church as the global community struggles to emerge from its pandemics and economic crises while at the same time continuing to grapple with the racial reckoning that is happening in our nation and the world. Can we discard the old wineskins? What will it take to go beyond conversations on racism to fully incorporating equity and racial justice in our churches? Where are new models of racial reckoning/reconciliation? Together, we will examine how to move forward as we negotiate those who are lamenting the old and those embracing the new as well as the spaces where both are happening at the same time. Will you join us to go beyond how we “always do it” and get to a place of possibilities? We invite you to join us virtually to explore what churches must do to honor old wineskins while embracing new ones and God’s promises for a new path forward. CUG SCHEDULE: All times in Eastern Daylight Savings Time. Monday, October 11 10:00 am – 12pm - Issue Meetups Reparation -- Rev. Mark Thompson, Host of the SiriusXM show "Make it Plain" Voting Rights -- Sister Quincy Howard, NETWORK Lobby and Faithful Democracy Child Tax Credit -- Amelia Kegan, Legislative Director for Domestic Policy, Friends Committee on National Legislation Student Loan Forgiveness for Clergy -- Rev. Sekinah Hamlin, Minister for Economic Justice, United Church of Christ, National Ministries   1:00 pm - 2:30 pm - Opening Session/Panel Bible Study - Rev. Dr. Cynthia Rigby, W. C. Brown Professor of Theology, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary - Rev. Dr. Valerie Bridgeman, Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs Associate Professor of Homiletics and Hebrew Bible, Methodist Theological School in Ohio   3:00 pm - 4:15 pm - Nice Racism: How Progressive White People Perpetuate Racial Harm with Dr. Robin DiAngelo, Affiliate Associate Professor of Education, University of Washington. Dr. DiAngelo's presentation will not be recorded. This is a live event.   7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Faith Summit – Racial Reckoning in America: A Christian Response A panel with questions from the audience. Have denominational and other faith leaders discuss what they have been doing to negotiate the racial reckoning in the country. Where are new models of racial reckoning/reconciliation? - Bishop Teresa Jefferson-Snorton, Presiding Bishop, 5th Episcopal District, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church - Moderator - Dr. Richard Hughes, Scholar in Residence, Lipscomb University, author of Myths America Lives By: White Supremacy and the Stories that Give Us Meaning - Opening Speaker - Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, Presiding Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America - Karen Gonzalez, Speaker, Writer, and Immigrant Advocate - Rev. Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson, Chairman, Conference of National Black Churches - Minister Candace Simpson, Associate Minister, Concord Baptist Church of Christ - Elona Street-Stewart, Co-Moderator, Presbyterian Church (USA) - Dr. Jonathan Tran, Associate Professor of Theology and George W. Baines Chair of Religion, Baylor University   Tuesday, October 12   10:30 am - 11:15 am - Morning Devotion/Opening Prayer and Self Care Session - Rev. Dr. Souci Grimsley, Founder and President, Tuburan Integrative Wellness Ministries - Speaker - Cole Arthur Riley, founder and writer of Black Liturgies, writer, liturgist, speaker - Closing Prayer   11:30 am - 12:30 pm - Keynote Address by Dr. Christine Hong and Q&A Dr. Christine Hong, Associate Professor of Educational Ministry, Columbia Theological Seminary   1:30 pm - 2:00 pm - Presentation of Outstanding Leadership Awards  Irwin Miller Award for Excellence in Ecumenical Leadership - Dr. Diana Eck, Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies and Frederic Wertham Professor of Law and Psychiatry in Society , Harvard University President’s Award for Excellence in Faithful Leadership - Rev. Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner, CEO and co-founder, Skinner Leadership Institute Gwynne Guibord Award for Excellence in Interreligious Leadership - Sister Simone Campbell   2:00 pm – 3:30 pm - Panel on Christian Nationalism - Dr. Miguel De La Torre, Professor, Iliff School of Theology and author of “Decolonizing Christianity” - Dr. Philip Gorski, Chair, Sociology, Yale University - Rev. Dr. Obery Hendricks, Visiting Research Scholar at Columbia University and author of “Christians Against Christianity” - Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs, Program Director for Racial Justice, Minnesota Council of Churches - Dr. Sarah Riccardi-Swartz, Postdoctoral Fellow, Center for the Study of Religion and Conflict at Arizona State University - Rev. Dr. Susan K. Smith, Founder and Director, Crazy Faith Ministries - Amanda Tyler, Esq., Executive Director, Baptist Joint Committee on Religious Liberty   4:00 pm - 5:15 pm - International Briefing on the COVID-19 Pandemic - Rev. Dr. Angelique Walker-Smith, Senior Associate for Pan-African and Orthodox Church Engagement, Bread for the World - Moderator - Dr. Francis S. Collins, M.D., Director, National Institutes of Health (NIH) - Rev. James Bhagwan, General Secretary, Pacific Conference of Churches - Rev. Joel Ortega Dopico, President and Executive Secretary, Cuban Council of Churches - Dr. Pauline Muchina, Chair, Advocacy Network for Africa, COVID-19 Working Group and Public, Education, Advocacy Coordinator for American Friends Service Committee   7:00 pm - 8:00 pm - Closing Worship For 2021, we will be using an online event service called Whova. After you register, you can sign in on the website using your laptop or computer, or you can download the app for your phone or tablet.    The event is free however, attendees must register through the Whova event platform. For all the details about the Christian Unity Gathering including presentations, sessions, panelists, and speakers, visit the NCC website.

For 2021, CUG will be held using an online event service called Whova. After you register, you can sign in on the website using your laptop or computer, or you can download the app for your phone or tablet. Information on how to use Whova: If you are attending the event and have never used Whova, this is a helpful guide. https://whova.com/pages/whova-app-user-guide/?source=ems You will need to create an account with your email and password. To automatically log in to CUG, please make sure to use the email you used when registering for the event. The app will automatically take you to the event main page. Be sure to set up your profile to network during the event! The Christian Unity Gathering is free to attend. We welcome contributions to cover the event expenses and always appreciate your financial support for NCC’s work. Thank you!

Announcing the 2021 Christian Unity Gathering Speakers!

NCC's annual Christian Unity Gathering (CUG) will be held virtually on October 11 - 12, 2021 with the theme, "In New Wineskins: From Pandemics to Possibilities to Promises," based on the scripture in Luke 5:37-39. The event is free to attend. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new wine, but says, ‘The old is good.’”

This year’s CUG will explore how church life has changed and what our hope is for the church as the global community struggles to emerge from its pandemics and economic crises while at the same time continuing to grapple with the racial reckoning that is happening in our nation and the world. Can we discard the old wineskins? What will it take to go beyond conversations on racism to fully incorporating equity and racial justice in our churches? Where are new models of racial reckoning/reconciliation? Together, we will examine how to move forward as we negotiate those who are lamenting the old and those embracing the new as well as the spaces where both are happening at the same time. Will you join us to go beyond how we “always do it” and get to a place of possibilities? We invite you to join us virtually to explore what churches must do to honor old wineskins while embracing new ones and God’s promises for a new path forward.   SCHEDULE WITH SPEAKERS:   All times in Eastern Daylight Savings Time. Monday, October 11 10:00 am – Noon Issue Meetups 10 am Student Loan Forgiveness for Clergy -- Rev. Sekinah Hamlin, Minister for Economic Justice, United Church of Christ, National Ministries 10:30 am Voting Rights -- Sister Quincy Howard, NETWORK Lobby and Faithful Democracy 11 am Reparation -- Rev. Mark Thompson, Host of the SiriusXM show "Make it Plain" 11:30 am Child Tax Credit -- Amelia Kegan, Legislative Director for Domestic Policy, Friends Committee on National Legislation 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm - Opening Session Rev. Dr. Cynthia Rigby (Speaker) W. C. Brown Professor of Theology, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Rev. Dr. Valerie Bridgeman (Speaker) Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs Associate Professor of Homiletics and Hebrew Bible, Methodist Theological School in Ohio 3:00 pm - 4:15 pm - Nice Racism: How Progressive White People Perpetuate Racial Harm with Dr. Robin DiAngelo, Affiliate Associate Professor of Education, University of Washington Dr. DiAngelo's presentation will not be recorded. This is a live event. 4:15 pm - 5:15 pm - Small Group Discussions 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Faith Summit – Racial Reckoning in America: A Christian Response A panel with questions from the audience. Have denominational and other faith leaders discuss what they have been doing to negotiate the racial reckoning in the country. Where are new models of racial reckoning/reconciliation? Dr. Richard Hughes, Scholar in Residence, Lipscomb University Dr. Jonathan Tran, Associate Professor of Theology and George W. Baines Chair of Religion, Baylor University Elona Street-Stewart, Co-Moderator, Presbyterian Church (USA) Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, Presiding Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Rev. Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson, Chairman, Conference of National Black Churches Minister Candace Simpson, Associate Minister, Concord Baptist Church of Christ Bishop Teresa Jefferson-Snorton, Presiding Bishop, 5th Episcopal District, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church Tuesday, October 12 11:00 am - 11:30 am - Morning Devotion/Opening Prayer Rev. Dr. Souci Grimsley, Founder and President, Tuburan Integrative Wellness Ministries 11:30 am - 12:30 pm - Keynote Address by Dr. Christine Hong and Q&A Dr. Christine Hong, Associate Professor of Educational Ministry, Columbia Theological Seminary   2:00 pm – 3:30 pm - Panel on Christian Nationalism Amanda Tyler, Esq., Executive Director, Baptist Joint Committee on Religious Liberty Rev. Dr. Susan K. Smith, Founder and Director, Crazy Faith Ministries Rev. Dr. Obery Hendricks, Visiting Research Scholar at Columbia University and author of “Christians Against Christianity” Dr. Philip Gorski, Chair, Sociology, Yale University Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs, Program Director for Racial Justice, Minnesota Council of Churches Dr. Sarah Riccardi-Swartz, Postdoctoral Fellow, Center for the Study of Religion and Conflict at Arizona State University Dr. Miguel De La Torre, Professor, Iliff School of Theology and author of “Decolonizing Christianity” 3:45 pm - 5:15 pm - International Briefing on the COVID-19 Pandemic Rev. Dr. Angelique Walker-Smith (Moderator) Senior Associate for Pan-African and Orthodox Church Engagement, Bread for the World Dr. Frances S. Collins, M.D., Director, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Dr. Pauline Muchina, Chair, Advocacy Network for Africa, COVID-19 Working Group and Public, Education, Advocacy Coordinator for American Friends Service Committee Rev. Joel Ortega Dopico, President and Executive Secretary, Cuban Council of Churches Rev. James Bhagwan, General Secretary, Pacific Conference of Churches 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm - Closing Worship   REGISTER NOW!   For 2021, we will be using an online event service called Whova. After you register, you can sign in on the website using your laptop or computer, or you can download the app for your phone or tablet.

2021 Christian Unity Gathering Sponsorship Opportunities & Registration NOW OPEN

NCC’s annual Christian Unity Gathering (CUG) will be held virtually on October 11 – 12, 2021 with the theme, “In New Wineskins: From Pandemics to Possibilities to Promises,” based on the scripture in Luke 5:37-39: And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new wine, but says, ‘The old is good.’” _____ This year’s CUG will explore how church life has changed and what our hope is for the church as the global community struggles to emerge from its pandemics and economic crises while at the same time continuing to grapple with the racial reckoning that is happening in our nation and the world. Can we discard the old wineskins? What will it take to go beyond conversations on racism to fully incorporating equity and racial justice in our churches? Where are new models of racial reckoning/reconciliation? Together, we will explore how to move people forward as we negotiate those who are lamenting the old and those embracing the new as well as the spaces where both are happening at the same time. Will you join us to go beyond how we “always do it” and get to a place of possibilities? We invite you to join us virtually to explore what churches must do to honor old wineskins while embracing new ones and God’s promises for a new path forward. _____ Sponsorship Opportunities are Available! Click to learn more _____ For 2021, we will be using an online event service called Whova and registration is free. After you register, you can sign in on the website using your laptop or computer, or you can download the app for your phone or tablet. REGISTER TODAY!

REGISTER ON WHOVA

Christian Unity Gathering Event Page