Q: Where does the United Church of Santa Fe come from?
Our Christian faith is 2000 years old. Our thinking isn't.
A few historical facts:
The United Church of Santa Fe was started in 1979 as part of the United Church of Christ.
From a small group of 30, we have grown to over 500 members and friends, adults, children and youth.
The founding members met at the El Gancho Restaurant, and had to go through the bar to get to church!
Our current church building (at the corner of Arroyo Chamiso and St. Michael's Drive) has been built in stages with a strong commitment to Northern New Mexico and care for this high desert land.
Since the beginning, we've also been committed to children and youth, reaching out to the wider community, and engaging the faith in a lively and inclusive way.
Our Legacy:
In 1957, four denominations with very deep roots: Congregational, Christian, Evangelical, Reformed, united because they believed that God calls us to be one people. They believed that as Christians there are more things we hold in common than things than things that divide us.
The heritage of these denominations had many firsts:
1700 — First to publish an anti-slavery tract in the U.S.
1785 — First to ordain an African American in the mainline Protestant church.
1853 — First to ordain a woman in any Christian tradition.
1972 — The first African American elected to Congress was a member of the UCC.
1976 — First to ordain an openly gay person in any Christian denomination.
1985 — First to welcome all persons, regardless of sexual orientation.
For more about the United Church of Christ go to their official web site, at http://www.ucc.org.
Our Legacy in Santa Fe:
- Members of the United Church founded Habitat for Humanity and the Salazar Agua Fria School Partnership. They also helped start St. Elizabeth Shelter, the Family Center at the State Penitentiary, the Santa Fe Youth Commission, the Jewish-Christian and Muslim-Christian Dialogues.
- United was the first UCC church in the Southwest Conference to be "Open and Affirming" of GLBT persons.
“Behold, the former things have come to pass,
And new things I now declare.”
Isaiah 42:9
