We Are a People of
Extravagant Welcome

Come; share your journey with us.

What Matters to Us

"Jesus didn’t turn people away, neither do we." When you’re gutsy enough to make such a claim, it’s not always easy to make good on it. Following Jesus’ lead, the United Church of Christ strives to keep doors open to all. By God’s grace—in the past and today—we do what needs to be done to be bold people of God’s welcome.

Jesus lived and breathed gracious hospitality. Even though there were powerful people who opposed Jesus' extravagant welcome, he still embraced those who were often shunned. In the reign of God that Jesus spoke of, he declared there is room for all—children (Luke 18:15-17) and those who are hungry, thirsty, homeless, ill, poor, grieving, persecuted, and in prison (Matthew 25: 31-46 and Luke 6:20-26). Jesus put faith and hospitality together: "Whoever receives one whom I send receives me" and those who received Jesus, embraced God (John 13:20).

This kind of hospitality is characteristic of both God’s faithfulness and, at our best, our faithfulness. God welcomes, and also feeds the hungry, forgives sins, stands with those who are poor and oppressed, comforts the suffering, and becomes home for those who wander. In gratitude, faithful people welcome strangers. A surprise in the Bible is the way you welcome a stranger expresses how you embrace the very presence of God (Genesis 18:1-8 and Luke 23:28-35).

The church, since its beginning, continues to "extend hospitality to strangers (Roman 12:13)." The church, after all, is a blessed company of strangers held together by the grace of God.

Or, make your selection below...

•    We are people of God’s extravagant welcome
•    We belong to Christ
•    We are a people of covenant, a united and uniting church
•    We are one at Baptism and the Table
•    We thank God by working for a just and loving world
•    We listen for the still-speaking God