United Church Of Christ Plans New Advertising Campaign; Hopes To Grow In South

The new issue of United Church News – the official newsletter of the United Church of Christ – has been posted online and there are several good articles reporting on the meeting of the UCC’s General Synod that took place last month.

But there are two articles related to the future of the UCC that drew my attention.

Our denomination is planning on airing a new commercial during Advent – if $3 million can be raised by then.

Ron Buford, coordinator of the UCC's Stillspeaking Initiative, promises the new ad will be just as provocative as the "bouncer" ad that made national headlines last December.

"It is going to be edgy again and it will create a buzz," Buford says. "There will be a buzz everywhere about it." Buford, however, refuses at this point to discuss the ad concept in detail. "Tell people I'm being tightlipped about it," he says with a coy smile.

Just one small thing stands in the way — $3 million.

That's how much money Buford says will be needed in order for the church to "blanket the nation" with its message of extravagant welcome. A combination of broadcast and cable television time will be purchased, he said.

"We want to be able to buy even more air time than we bought a year ago," Buford said. "If we are able to do what we want, people will see this commercial a lot more often throughout the day. They will see it a lot."

Last winter the UCC’s commercial was banned by CBS and NBC but received amazing support from the public and drew unparalleled attention to the denomination.

Click here to make a donation to support the commercials.

That attention is one reason the UCC is hoping to grow in all regions of the country – even in the South where UCC churches are few and far between.

Compared to Massachusetts’ 416 UCC churches, for example, the Southeast Conference has only 60 congregations that dot a wide geographic region that covers Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi and the Florida panhandle. There are more Southern Baptists in Georgia than the UCC has members nationally…..

In more recent years, however, the UCC’s justice-oriented Christian voice has piqued the interest not only of individuals but entire congregations, such as Victory Church in Stone Mountain, Ga., which joined the UCC about four years ago. With nearly 5,500 members, it’s now the denomination’s second-largest congregation.

Atlanta’s progressive Virginia-Highland Church became part of the UCC in 2002 after being "disfellowshiped" by Georgia’s Southern Baptist Convention. Several other existing congregations are in conversation about joining the UCC, (Rev. Timothy) C.Downs says (Southeast Conference Minister).

Moreover, new church starts — such as Atlanta’s Sankofa UCC and Birmingham’s Beloved Community UCC have positioned themselves as alternative Christian communities in a region known for its plethora of more-conservative churches.

Downs also points to several congregations that are thriving, such as Pilgrim Congregational UCC in Chattanooga, Tenn., Church of the Savior UCC in Knoxville, Tenn., First Congregational UCC in Atlanta, and Community Congregational UCC in Montgomery, Ala.

"There is great potential for growth in part because the South remains a highly churched culture … and there typically is a very narrow range of theological diversity," Downs explains. "The UCC provides a dimension that is distinctive and has the power to connect with people here."

You can read these and other articles by clicking here.

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