Unexpected ad controversy births new pride among UCC churches, members

By J. Bennett Guess, UCC News service
216-736-2177

Dec. 3, 2004

CLEVELAND -- The larger-than-anticipated roll-out of the United Church of Christ's national advertising campaign has sent the church's distribution staff into an order-taking frenzy, as UCC members and congregations are gobbling up every item they can find to proclaim their proud affiliation.

"I've been here 17 years and I have never experienced excitement like this," says Marie Tyson, the UCC's distribution services manager at the denomination's warehouse in Berea, Ohio - a suburb of Cleveland, where the 1.3-million-member church is headquartered. "No one here is upset by the extra work. Instead, the excitement is contagious. We're just to the point where we're laughing, because of the sheer number of 'still speaking' orders."

The distribution center's four telephone operators are taking dozens of orders each hour.

Before the campaign's launch on Dec. 1 - when a national controversy erupted when CBS and NBC refused to run the UCC's ad because they deemed it "too controversial" - the warehouse would expect to fill only 5 or 6 identity-related orders during a typical day, while about 100 or more orders for other church-related products also would be requested. In those quieter days, that translated into about $5,000 monthly in identity-related sales. But that's all changed.

Leading up to the launch, sales climbed abruptly to $116,000 in October and $121,000 in November. Yet, because of the explosion of attention in December, the church expects a record-shattering month of sales, Tyson says.

"Everyday, the first thing I do is place more orders [for merchandise] so we can keep these items on our shelves," Tyson says.

So what are people buying? "Oh my God, everything!" she says. "We've got everything, and everything is just flying off the shelves."

The denomination's inventory now includes a wide-range of identity-enhancing promotional items, including numerous styles of shirts, mugs, decals, lapel pins, buttons, stickers, balloons, ink pens, tote bags, leather binders, bandanas and baseball caps.

Name it, the warehouse just might have it. Case in point: For the church member who has everything, try "God is still speaking' tattoos.

Local churches, Tyson says, are especially scarfing up the campaign's evangelism-related tools, such as door hangars and postcards, as well as letterhead, envelopes, pew registration pads, yard signs, banners, graphics and media kits.

The distribution center handles a variety of UCC-related products, including hundreds of books published by The Pilgrim Press, a UCC-related printing company. But more than half of the center's 300-a-day orders are now related to the ad campaign.

"We're just coming in every day, saying, 'How is God going to speak today?'" Tyson says. "But we're enjoying it. Because we've never seen anything like it. Our churches are so excited, so proud."

Merchandise related to the UCC's "God is still speaking" campaign can be purchased by calling 800/537-3394. (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET) or online at the stillspeaking.com store.

A recount election has determined that Alabama’s Amendment 2 has failed. The amendment would have removed racist language from the state constitution that is unenforceable because of federal laws. The Birmingham News reports:

The proposed amendment would have removed language from the state constitution that disclaimed a right to public education and required racially segregated public schools. Critics said the measure could have opened the door to increased education taxes. Statewide, the measure failed by 1,850 votes, or .13 percent of 1.38 million votes cast. A 2003 state law forces a recount for any losing margin less than .5 percent.

What a very weird time we’re living in.

December 3, 2004

BY LEONARD PITTS JR.

Let me put my bias right up front so nobody can miss it:

I am a member of the United Church of Christ. I joined the UCC -- a little-known denomination out of Cleveland -- about five years ago. It was the first church I'd ever seen that seemed to take seriously the idea that inclusion is a Christian value. It was the first that sought to resolve divisions of culture, class, race and sexual orientation.

So you can imagine how I feel about Wednesday's news that CBS and NBC rejected a new UCC commercial celebrating just that characteristic: I am appalled. Frankly, I'd feel that way even if I didn't have a personal connection.

The ad in question is part of a campaign called "God is still speaking." The campaign was commissioned in response to marketing research indicating that most people have never heard of the United Church of Christ, though it reports more than 1.3 million members. ....

Too hot to handle

"The United Church of Christ," he says. "No matter who you are or where you are on life's journey, you're welcome here."

According to the UCC, this is the message two broadcast networks deemed too "controversial" to air. I called CBS for comment and was read a statement that said in its entirety, "The network has a longstanding policy of not accepting advocacy advertising." I'm still waiting to hear back from NBC....

But you won't find it on the National Broadcasting Co. or the Columbia Broadcasting System. Am I the only one who's flummoxed by that?

I mean, work with me here. The maggot eaters of "Fear Factor" are evidently OK to broadcast. Janet Jackson's nipple somehow makes it to the air. Two half-naked vixens can wrestle in a pool, arguing over whether their beer tastes great or is less filling. But a commercial that says only that God's love includes us all is too controversial to show?!

Unbelievable.

Bashing ignored

And yes, I know where this is coming from. Gay bashing under the guise of religious conservatism is on the rise. The thought of gay men and lesbians being able to solemnize their relationships in ceremonies that carry legal weight has some people walking the floors at night.

For the record, the UCC ad is accurate in its portrayal of church exclusion. Blacks and Hispanics once were unwelcome at worship houses outside their own communities. Gay men and lesbians still are.

Thankfully, the ad also is accurate in its portrayal of a love larger than bigotry.

LEONARD PITTS JR. appears most Wednesdays and Fridays in the Free Press. Reach him at the Miami Herald, 1 Herald Plaza, Miami, FL 33132; toll free at 888-251-4407 or at [email protected].

Full story

Blogs like this need more than readers to thrive.  It also costs a little cash to operate the site and to pay for my seminary expenses.  If you're a fan of this blog and want to make a gift please click here to learn more about how you can help.

This post has been updated

The One True b!X’s PORTLAND COMMUNIQUE alerted me to some Oregon fallout over the decision by CBS and NBC to ban a new commercial produced by the United Church of Christ to increase the church’s visibility. KGW.com and the AP are reporting that the local CBS and NBC affiliates might air the spot on their own despite the network ban.

"In the spot, there's no advocacy for special groups, gay people, or this people or that people — it is a very inclusive message," said Brenda Buratti, KGW's director of programming.

KGW vice president and general manager Paul Fry said even though NBC rejected the ad, KGW would air it if the church wanted to buy local airtime on the station.

David Lippoff, vice president and general manager of CBS affiliate KOIN-TV in Portland, said he "didn't see anything objectionable about the spot. If they were to approach us, we wouldn't have a problem airing it."

CBS affiliates in Medford and Eugene, as well as NBC affiliates in Klamath Falls, Medford, Eugene and Bend, said they saw no immediate problem with the spot, but several added that they would not air it without first running it past their staffs.

That is encouraging news. Earlier today members of the Central Pacific Conference of the United Church of Christ held a press conference at Portland’s First Congregational UCC to denounce the decision by CBS and NBC.

"CBS and NBC are seeking to deny a major denomination access to the public airways," the Rev. Eugene Ross, a minister for the United Church of Christ's Central Pacific Conference, said at the protest attended by about 30 people at downtown Portland's First Congregational Church.

Ross asked: "What are these networks afraid of? Why are they doing this? If they can limit the United Church of Christ access to the public airwaves, whose voice will be stifled next month, next year?"

Good questions, Gene.

Local efforts like this challenging network affiliates might go along away toward getting the UCC spot on the air.

Update:  You can now watch KGW's story (and hear some of Gene Ross' remarks) by clicking here for the video.

Update:  Click here to read a recap of the press conference from the Central Pacific UCC web site.

Press statement from the National Council of Churches

December 3, 2004, NEW YORK CITY - Responding to the refusal of the CBS and NBC television networks to air a message from the United Church of Christ, a nationwide group of faith-based communicators has issued a statement challenging the networks' action as "arbitrary" and contrary to the principles of freedom of speech and equal access to media.

The statement was drafted yesterday by the Communication Commission of the National Council of Churches USA, an ecumenical association of professional communicators serving a wide range of Protestant, Anglican and Orthodox faith groups.  The statement reads:

"The controversial issue here is not the content of the ad, but the arbitrary standards of the network gatekeepers. Church doors are open to all who would come; but broadcast channels are increasingly closed to all but the wealthy and well-connected.

"It is important to note that the broadcast networks are not being asked to give free time to the United Church of Christ to express its message - the church is ready to pay dearly for that privilege, even though the networks do not pay for their highly profitable use of the broadcast spectrum.

"The Federal Communications Commission, in giving free access to the public's airwaves to commercial corporations - with virtually no strings attached - has handed them powerful control over America's media 'public square.'  The for-profit keepers of that square are all too willing to promulgate messages laced with sexual innuendo, greed, violence, and the politics of personal destruction, but a message of openness and welcome that merely says 'church doors are open to all' is being silenced as too controversial!

"Advocacy advertising abounds on TV: agribusinesses, drug manufacturers, gambling casinos, oil companies, even some government agencies regularly expose viewers to messages advocating their products and programs, in the interest of shaping public attitudes and building support for their points of view.

"Are only the ideas and attitudes of faith groups now off limits?  Constitutional guarantees of religious liberty and freedom of speech, not to mention common fairness, beg for leadership by the FCC to assure that America's faith community has full and equal access to the nation's airwaves, to deliver positive messages that seek to build and enrich the quality of life."

Initial signers include the following:

Thomas L. Hoyt, Jr., President, National Council of Churches USA (Shreveport, La.)

Wesley M. Pattillo, Associate General Secretary for Communication, National Council of Churches USA (New York, N.Y.)

Fr. Bernard R. (Bob) Bonnot, Roman Catholic author, producer (Los Angeles, Calif.)

Sr. Maureen Fiedler, SL, Ph.D., Host, Interfaith Voices (Washington, D.C.)

Jo Bales Gallagher, National Training Center for Resource Center Directors (Richmond, Va.)

Daniel Gangler, Director of Communications, Indiana Conference of the United Methodist Church (Indianapolis, Ind.)

Mike Hickox, Director of Communications, New England Conference of  United Methodist Church (Lawrence, Mass.)

Larry Hollon, General Secretary, United Methodist Communications (Nashville, Tenn.)

Vince Isner, Director, FaithfulAmerica.org (Washington, D.C.)

N. J. L'Heureux, Jr., Executive Director, Queens Federation of Churches (Richmond Hill, N.Y.)

Kermit Netteburg, Seventh-day Adventist Church (Silver Spring, Md.)

John L. Peterson, Communication Director, The Interfaith Alliance (Washington D.C.)

David W. Reid, Publisher, Vital Theology (Fort Collins, Colo.)

Eric C. Shafer, Director for Communication, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (Chicago, Ill.)

Louis C. (Skip) Schueddig, President, The Episcopal Media Center (Atlanta, Ga.

Nikki Stephanopoulos, Director, News and Information, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America  (New York, N.Y.)

Shirley W. Struchen, Executive Director, Religion Communicators Council  (New York, N.Y.)

Jerry L. Van Marter, News Director, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) (Louisville, Ky.)

William C. Winslow, retired communications officer, United Church of Christ   (New York, N.Y.)

Additional signers will be listed on the Commission's website, www.ncccusa.org/about/comcomadvocacy.html

There has been very heavy traffic on the United Church of Christ's new God Is Still Speaking web site.  That means that some folks who have been trying to watch the UCC ad banned by CBS and NBC haven't been able to view it online.  Joe Irwin e-mailed me today from the Pennsylvania Southeast Conference of the UCC with word that the spot is also available to see on their site.  Click here.

Also, my sermon on Matthew 24:36-44, which was published yesterday on Beliefnet.com, is now also available on the God Is Still Speaking site.  You can find in under Advent resources.

Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, told ABC that the United Church of Christ commerical banned by two television networks is "diabolical" for saying that Jesus weclomes everyone.

“It is a piece of masterful propaganda but it is a diabolical misrepresentation of Christianity,” said Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, on the national telecast Dec. 2.

“...Jesus Christ did indeed come to seek and to save the lost but as He said to the woman caught in adultery, ‘Go and sin no more,’” Mohler said. Jesus “did not invite persons to stay in sinful lifestyles. Rather, He came to save us from our sins and to make us what we otherwise could not be -- and that is victorious over all the sins that entrap us. Homosexuality is one of those.”

The Southern Baptist Convention was essentially formed to give a theological platform for those who wanted to defend slavery. During the civil rights era they defended segregation and even today fight against opportunities to expand the place of women and minorities in society.

Several times this past year Mohler has declared that advocates for gay marriage are the moral equivalent of the terrorists who attacked on 9/11. His denomination opposes hate crimes legislation designed to protect gays and lesbians from violent attacks that have become increasingly common place.

None of us are free from sin. Sadly, Mohler and his associates haven’t learned from their sinful past and are determined to repeat the mistakes that have plagued their denomination. They worship in a church born in the sin of slavery and still practicing the sin of exclusion and discrimination.  Homosexuality is not a sin, but what Mohler preaches is.

A United Methodist Church court has convicted one of their pastors of being lesbian and determined that she should be stripped of her credentials as an ordained minister. United Methodist News Service has the story:

PUGHTOWN, Pa. — The trial court that returned a guilty verdict against the Rev. Irene Elizabeth “Beth” Stroud has decided by a close vote that her ministerial credentials should be withdrawn.

The trial court reconvened at 5:05 p.m. The Rev. Nicolas Comacho, pastor of Central/Park United Methodist Church in Reading, Pa., served as spokesperson for the court and read the verdict.

By a 7-6 vote, the trial court decided that the Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference should withdraw Stroud’s ministerial credentials.

Bishop Joseph Yeakel, presiding officer, advised Stroud that she has the right to appeal the decision within 30 days. He closed the trial with a prayer.

Stroud supporters in the hall held hands and sang, “We are gay and straight together, singing, singing for our lives. We are gentle, angry people, singing, singing for our lives.”

This is another sad moment in the life of the Christian Church. Rev. Stroud has a web site where you can learn more about her story.

There is some irony that the same week that CBS and NBC banned a United Church of Christ ad from airing because it declares gays and lesbians are acceptable that the United Methodist Church has defrocked a homosexual pastor for the first time in 17 years.

I have a great deal of love for the United Methodist Church and the local congregations that really live by the slogan “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors.” It is sad that those doors are increasingly labeled “For Straights Only.”

Conservatives opposed to the UCC commercial are claiming that gays and lesbians are welcome in all churches. This proves that statement is inaccurate.

Gays and lesbians are excluded from the life of the church and far too many Christians are proud of that exclusion. The Kansas City Star had this quote today about the UCC spot from one leader of the Religious Right (and Bush White House adviser):

“It's silly,” said Gary Bauer, president of the conservative group American Values.

“If they're saying it's inappropriate to speak out about the sin of homosexuality, I'd urge them to go back to the owner's manual, which is the Bible … They're becoming so anxious to mirror the culture that there's nothing special someone gets out of going to the church.”

Click here for my take on what is actually written in the Bible about homosexuality.

Bauer wasn’t the only Republican party activist / Religious Right leader who spoke out on the UCC ad today. One of their most prominent leaders was happy the spot had been banned, according to Reuters:

Reverend Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, called the ads "masterful propaganda" that should not be aired.

"We are all sinners, but we cannot remain in our sin and just bless a lifestyle by saying we accept it when the scriptures clearly condemn it (homosexuality) as sin," said Mohler.

The United Church of Christ is far from perfect, but thank God there is at least one Christian denomination where people strive to make sure everyone is truly welcome.

God Is Still Speaking.

The top story on Belieftnet.com this evening is about the controversy over the decision by CBS and NBC not to air the United Church of Christ's new television spot.  Beliefnet's coverage includes news stories, comments from their own official bloggers, and the sermon I gave this past Sunday.  Having my sermon published on their site is quite an honor.  Take a look.

United Church of Christ Action Alert

The CBS and NBC television networks are refusing to run the UCC's 30-second television ad because its all-inclusive welcome has been deemed "too controversial." The ad, part of the denomination's new broad identity campaign, began airing nationwide Dec. 1 and includes the message that - like Jesus - the United Church of Christ seeks to welcome all people, regardless of ability, age, race, economic circumstance or sexual orientation. According to a written explanation from CBS, the UCC is being denied network access because its ad implies acceptance of gay and lesbian couples - among other minority constituencies - and is, therefore, "too controversial."

"Because this commercial touches on the exclusion of gay couples and other minority groups by individuals and organizations," reads the explanation from CBS, "and the fact that the Executive Branch has recently proposed a constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union between a man and a woman, this spot is unacceptable to broadcast on the [CBS and UPN] networks." Similarly, a rejection by NBC declared the spot "too controversial." The ad has been accepted and will air on a number of networks, including ABC Family, AMC, BET, Discovery, Fox, Hallmark, History, Nick at Nite, TBS, TNT, Travel and TV Land, among others.

The Rev. John Thomas, UCC general minister and president, remarked, "It is ironic that after a political season awash in commercials based on fear and deception by both parties seen on all major networks, an ad with a message of welcome and inclusion would be deemed too controversial. We find it disturbing that the networks in questions seem to have no problem exploiting gay persons through mindless comedies or titillating dramas, but when it comes to the church's loving welcome of committed gay couples, that's where they draw the line."

To send a fax to the NBC and CBS executives, click

http://www.ucctakeaction.org/ctt.asp?u=6223&l=69333

Also, check your local phone listings to contact the station managers of your local CBS and NBC affiliates and express your disappointment about the decision not to air the UCC ad. UCC members and congregations are also encouraged to conduct local press conferences to draw attention to the networks' refusal to air the advertisement.

To view the UCC press release on the CBS and NBC decision, click

http://www.ucctakeaction.org/ctt.asp?u=6223&l=69334

This post has been updated

When I preached this past Sunday on the United Church of Christ’s God Is Still Speaking campaign, I told the congregation that the new UCC commercial would prove to be controversial. That was clearly an understatement. You can read the sermon here.

CBS and NBC have refused to air the ad.

As I said on Sunday, the spot is edgy and has an important theological message. Bouncers, like those seen at trendy nightclubs, are seen in the ad standing outside a church. As people try and enter for Sunday services the bouncers are deciding who gets into church and who doesn’t. The bouncers exclude anyone who doesn’t fit the definition of the “normal” Christian. Then the screen fades to the message "Jesus didn't turn anyone away and neither does the United Church of Christ." At the end of the commercial there is a group of diverse people standing together at the entrance of the church. It symbolizes the openness which our denomination strives for. The reason that CBS gives for refusing to air the ad is frightening.

"Because this commercial touches on the exclusion of gay couples and other minority groups by other individuals and organizations," reads an explanation from CBS, "and the fact the Executive Branch has recently proposed a Constitutional Amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, this spot is unacceptable for broadcast on the [CBS and UPN] networks."

In America today the corporate media gets to determine what we see on television based solely on whether or not it corresponds with the political views of George W. Bush.

Our commercial is religious and not political. The message is theological. Jesus welcomed everyone to the table and so does the United Church of Christ.

Will CBS and NBC now refuse to air television spots for denominations that exclude open gays and lesbians from ordained ministry, the communion table, or even worship services?

This is a frightening moment in the history of America’s fight for religious freedom. CBS and NBC have made a terrible mistake that threatens the ability of Americans to communicate religious views different that those of the Executive Branch of government.

Keep visiting this site for additional information on ways to communicate your views with CBS and NBC.

Update:  CNN now has a story up on their web site about this.  Read "Jesus accepting gays too hot for NBC, CBS". 

Update:  Click here to send a fax to CBS and NBC telling them to run the UCC spot.