Calvin Synod Herald, 2007 (108. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2007-09-01 / 9-10. szám
CALVIN SYNOD HERALD 5 “Let It Shine” United Church of Christ General Synod XXVI The Twenty-sixth General Synod ofthe United Church ofChrist took place in Hartford, CT on June 22-26, 2007. Showcased as a celebration of the 50th anniversary of our denomination, it was filled with pomp and circumstance. The leadership attempted to have an event free of major controversy and division, which had plagued past Synods. In this regard, they were very successful. You probably did not hear about any decisions on your own local or national television news reports or read about anything in the newspaper. The local media did cover the events daily, as it was the largest convention ever held in the state of Connecticut. We experienced this first hand, as many of the local eateries could not handle the crowds during lunch and dinner breaks. It was a successful event in mending fences, bringing together, and days of celebration. By weeks end, we were all celebrated out. Calvin Synod was well represented. Our delegates were Rt. Rev. Karl Ludwig, Bishop, Rev. Ilona Komjáthy, and myself. Also present were Rt. Rev. Joseph Vásárhelyi as local church board ministries member, and Rev. Bela Poznan as executive council member. We all met at various times throughout the week. For me, the most meaningful experience was the Sunday special anniversary worship service. I have never experienced the feeling of singing hymns with eleven thousand people. It was beautiful and very moving to be at such a service. Synod in the City was on Saturday, packed with speakers, entertainment, and workshops throughout the day. We had to choose from the many events, as there were tons of things going on at the same times. In the morning, we listened to a wonderful talk from Bill Moyers, Emmy-winning Journalist seen on PBS. We also attended an excellent Faithful and Welcoming workshop given by Rev. Bob Thompson. In the afternoon, we heard Senator Barrack Obama (D-IL), a member of Trinity UCC in Chicago, speak about his own religious experiences and his feeling about religion in politics. We also heard from Rev. Dr. Peter Gomes, a prominent preacher and theologian at Harvard University’s Divinity School and author of several books. Special thanks to Rev. Komjáthy for knowing him and reading several of his books, as I may not have chosen to go to this lecture if not for her suggestion. He was great! Image telling the UCC delegates that they need to open their Bibles and read them. You may learn something. The day ended with a laser light show. The bulk of the plenary sessions were on Monday and Tuesday. Two resolutions on marriage, one to reaffirm marriage based on the Word of God and another on the historic and Ecumenical Christian perspective (basically between a man and a woman) were voted on “to take no action.” This was to avoid the great division that this caused at the last GS in Atlanta. A resolution supported by the Faithful and Welcoming group to reaffirm our faith to retain our churches was passed with some changes. Also passed were resolutions on immigration, depleted uranium weapons, and various other issues which you can find on the internet at ucc.org. Perhaps the most controversial issue was a letter written by the Collegium of Officers calling for an end to the war in Iraq. The GS voted overwhelmingly to endorse this letter. On Tuesday, we heard from actress Lynn Redgrave, who talked about her battle with breast cancer. She told us how her faith and her local UCC congregation helped her get through it. She courageously chose to tackle it head on, having a complete breast removal and aggressive treatments. She is presently cancer free. In all, it was a great week of celebration and sharing. Our hotel was beautiful; the Residence Inn by Marriot in downtown Hartford. We were a short walk to the Civic Center, where most of the events were held. Here are a few numbers for you: on Saturday and Sunday, attendance was over 10,000 people each day; it was the largest ever for a UCC General Synod; around 700 delegates, 166 journalists covering the events; our host state of Connecticut- 244 UCC churches, 89,996 UCC members, 168,000 cookies baked for the delegates; and 787 miles- the distance between Hartford, CT and Grand Rapids, Michigan, site of GS 27 in 2009. Go to ucc.org and you can find all the happenings and watch the videos of many events. It was truly an exciting experience to be a part of. Jim Balias Bridgeport, CT UCC Mr. Jim Balas; Rt. Rev. Koloman Ludwig; Rev. Ilona Komjáthy at the UCC General Synod in Hartford CT 31 — le, Live each day so that you void neither he afraid of tomorrow nor ashamed of yesterday! i*i________________________________________________r*
