A Christmas Message from Kathryn Mary Lohre, NCC President, 2012-2013
For over sixty years, the National Council of Churches has told the story of the One who embodies God’s gift and promise of unity: Jesus Christ. This unlikely story of our Savior lying newborn in a manger never ceases to amaze. The National Council of Churches enables us to “make known” the Christ-child in more ways than any one of us can manage or imagine alone – as individuals and as churches. This is precisely the benefit of our covenant with one another: that we can be together where we cannot be alone; that we can do together that which we cannot do alone, as witnesses to the living Christ. This year, like all others, the NCC was there: making ever-more visible the gift of our unity in Christ. And, by extension, you were there too.
Through our Eco-Justice Program, we
called for national chemical policy reform, and developed Christian Principles
for a Healthy Body and Spirit. In doing so, we provided tools for enriching our
self-understanding as stewards of the earth, and affirmed the need to protect
Creation from harmful substances that disproportionately impact low-income
Through our Interfaith Engaged Congregations Initiative, we
recognized local churches that are leading the way as models for interfaith
engagement. In doing so, we provided a means for others to explore how
Christian self-understanding is enriched by engagement with people of other
faiths, and offered an alternative to rampant Islamophobia and other forms of
religious discrimination in our society. www.ncccusa.org/interfaith
The NCC will be there wherever the churches remain divided. We will continue our foundational theological work through critical dialogues
and other relationship-building initiatives that nurture the unity of the
church in the United States and throughout the world. The NCC will be there wherever the churches give witness to
their unity in Christ. As shepherds who have beheld the One who embodies
our unity, this is our common calling, our common vision, and our
common joy.
In this spirit, we invite you to continue to participate in our shared ministry as the National Council of Churches through a financial gift.
Give Online Donate now with your credit card via PayPal: (You do not need a PayPal account, just click 'Continue' on the login page to donate by credit card.) Give by Mail Send a check or money order to: National Council of Churches Consider including NCC in your will or life insurance policies, making gifts of stocks and securities, or other giving options at: www.ncccusa.org/donate
p.s. You are invited to download Expecting the Word, an Advent Devotional study produced through the NCC Words Matter Initiative with lectionary-based ecumenical written reflections and art by diverse people of faith.
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