This preliminary syllabus is provided for general information only. Instructors may make changes to the
syllabus up to 45 days prior to the announced start of the course. The changes can include course required
textbooks, assignments and the schedule of activities. For final syllabus, please contact our office within 45
days of the course start. The dates will not change, nor will the competency area addressed by the course.
COURSE SYLLABUS
AREA OF MINISTERIAL PRACTICE: 15. Understanding of Heritage
Course Number
15B
Course Title
United Church of Christ:
History, Theology and Polity
Course Dates
August 25, 2015 to October 20, 2015
Instructors:
Rev. Margot Trusty Pickett
Email: Margot.Pickett@gmail.com; phone: 919-414-6053
Course Description—This course will explore the history, theology, polity and ethos of the
United Church of Christ in order to provide an understanding of its structure, ministries, and
mission commitments.
Prerequisite
None
Course Overview. Through weekly reading, online research, reflection, writing, and student
interaction this course will enable and encourage students to be faithful interpreters of the UCC.
This course also spends time focusing on the emerging UCC and gives students a chance to
explore the UCC ethos – what distinguishes us from other denominations.
Required Texts:

The UCC Book of Worship (available in three editions: loose-leaf, personal, or CD).

Most readings will be found online.
Recommended Texts (students will read 4 chapters from each book.
Readings are available
online, however, students may choose to purchase the books):


The Shaping of the United Church of Christ, by Louis Gunnemann
Hidden Histories in the United Church of Christ, Vol. 1, ed. Barbara Brown Zikmund.
Course Objectives
1. To examine the history and theological perspectives of the four principal bodies that make up
the UCC as well as other antecedent groups which have shaped its life and character.
2. To introduce the ecclesiologies and the theologies which are foundational to our
understanding of the polity, order, mission and structure of the United Church of Christ.
3. To explore the history, mission, and purpose of the United Church of Christ since 1957.
4. To gain an appreciation of the diversity of the UCC and the meaning of its commitment to
unity.
5. To discover ways our history, theology, and polity shape the practices of ministry.
6. To understand the ordination process in the UCC, including familiarity with the Marks of
Faithful and Effective Authorized Ministers.
7. To become acquainted with the UCC website and the resources available there.
Course Requirements
Students are required to do all the assigned readings and viewing of videos and to participate
in class discussions (through discussion posts and responses), as well as write weekly essays
and prepare a final project.
Course Schedule and Assignments
Each week students will be assigned reading from resources on the UCC website and writing
assignments that will include essays and discussion posts. Students are expected to read and
respond to at least two of their classmates’ posts each week.
Pre-Class assignments:
 If this is the first Edvance360 course that you have taken with the Mid-America Center
for Ministry, be sure to do the tutorial that you will find under the Courses tab that is
at the top of your screen.
 Introduce yourself to the rest of the class, telling us something about your family,
your town, your call to ministry, your current context for ministry.
 Also tell us why you are taking this course. We are particularly interested in hearing
what you hope to learn by taking this course. What questions do you have about the
UCC?
 If you have not explored the UCC website, please do so at UCC.org. Look specifically
for the resource page for UCC History and Polity courses and for the Ministry Issues
and Marks of Faithful and Effective Authorized Ministers.
 Look at your calendar and find a Sunday in the next 8 weeks when you can visit a UCC
church other than your own.
 Begin familiarizing yourself with the history of your local church and/or with the
people or resources you will need to consult to learn about its history.
Week 1: Introductions and Local Church Histories
Students will write a brief history of their local church, read and respond to others’
essays and start reading about the four streams that came together to form the UCC.
Students will post pictures of their churches and provide a copy of an order of worship
from their congregation.
Week 2: UCC History, Pre-1957
Students will read brief histories of the four major denominations that formed the UCC as
well as some “hidden histories” of other significant players in the formation and ethos of the
denomination. Students will write brief essays reflecting on the unique contributions of each
of these “streams” to our denomination and respond to each other’s discussion posts.
Week 3: UCC History, 1957-2014
This week’s readings, reflections, and writings will focus on the basis of union of the UCC
significant developments in the denomination since its formation in 1957. Students will write
essays on the obstacles that had to be overcome for the four denominations to become one
and will discuss with each other the issues they think still need to be resolved.
Week 4: UCC Theology
Some theologians have suggested that the UCC doesn’t have any theology! Instead, we
would say that we embrace a range of theological positions. Students will read some
foundational documents, including the Preamble to the UCC Constitution, the Statement of
Faith, and Introduction to the Book of Worship, as well as theologies from “the margins.” We
will also consider the UCC’s sacramental theology. Students will write short essays about UCC
theology and discussion posts about how the UCC tries to hold a variety of theological
positions in tension…or in harmony.
Week 5: UCC Polity
Students will read several online articles about how the UCC works—at the local, conference,
and national levels. We will focus on the tension in the UCC between “autonomy” and
“covenant,” and look at what the restructuring in 2013 has meant for the future of the
denomination. Students will write essays that clearly explain our polity at all levels and
discussion posts on the challenging balance between local church autonomy and keeping
covenant.
Week 6: Ministry in the UCC
What does it mean to be an ordained minister in the UCC? What is the process for being
ordained? Who is involved in the process? Students will read about these important issues
and explore the Marks for Faithful and Effective Ministers and how those are being used in
the discernment and ordination processes currently employed throughout the UCC. Students
will write about the process and the roles of the local church, the individual, and the
association. They will also reflect on their personal journey toward ordained ministry.
Week 7: UCC Ethos, Part 1
In the last two weeks of the course we will explore the ethos of the UCC, or what makes our
denomination unique in character and vision. This week students will read and reflect on an
essay by H. Richard Niebuhr and consider how effective we have been in seeking social justice
and in embracing our desire to be a multi-racial, multi-cultural denomination. Students will
write a 500 word essay responding to Niebuhr’s call for Christians to be responsible for
society and discussion posts on the UCC’s efforts to make the world a more just place for all
of God’s children.
Week 8: UCC Ethos, Part 2
The UCC was the first denomination to ordain a gay man and to endorse marriage equality.
Students will read the various Resolutions that have been passed by General Synod on this
issue, along with anti-racism and accessibility/wholeness. Students will be introduced to
many social issues that the UCC has addressed, and they will create a plan for an educational
workshop for a local church to learn about and take action on one of those issues.
Final Project: Due November 3, 2015
Students will prepare a teaching plan for a 5-session UCC History and Polity class for their
congregation.
Grading Scale
Weekly assignments (reading and writing) need to be completed by the deadlines and are
worth 65% (each week is worth approximately 8%) of the final grade. The final project is
worth 35%.
 A=90-100%
 B=80-89%
 C=70-79%
 Less than 70% means you did not pass the course.