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NCC Sunday School Committee To Meet In Charleston, S.C. March 19-23
40-Member Group Will Hold Special Worship Service Mar. 19 in Support of NAACP Sanctions

            March 14, 2000, NEW YORK CITY ---- The National Council of Churches’ (NCC’s) Committee on the Uniform Series (CUS), which develops outlines for Sunday school resources used by a diverse range of church educators and publishers, will meet at the Radisson Hotel in Charleston, S.C., March 19-23 as planned, but will support NAACP sanctions as it can throughout the meeting.

              “This committee lays the groundwork for development of Sunday School materials that impact millions on any given Sunday,” said Dr. Mary Love, Editor of Church School Literature for the African Episcopal Methodist Zion Church, Charlotte, N.C., CUS Committee chair.  CUS is a committee of the NCC’s Ministries in Christian Education Department.  “One of our main goals is to help people know the content of the Bible and understand the relationship of scripture to situations today,” Dr. Love explained.

              In support of the NAACP’s call for economic sanctions against South Carolina’s tourism industry, the 40-member committee will hold an opening worship service on Sunday, March 19, at 6:30 p.m. at Greater St. Luke’s AME Church (African Methodist Episcopal), 78 Gordon Street.  This “Service of Prayer and Reconciliation” will address the issue of the Confederate battle flag in the state’s capitol and is being planned by members of the CUS committee with members of the Charleston, S.C., committee, including the Rev. Joe Darby, pastor of Morris Brown AME Church, and the Rev. Arnold Nelson, a regional minister for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in South Carolina.  The community is invited to participate in this service.

              The group also will hold its closing banquet, on Wednesday, March 22, at a local church, the Zion Olivet Presbyterian Church, 130 Cannon St., and will join the 7 p.m. Lenten service.  “The group also will support local minority-owned businesses whenever it can during the week,” said the Rev. Patrice Rosner, MCE’s Executive Director.

              At least 16 denominations will send representatives to this meeting, including: African Methodist Episcopal Church, African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, American Baptist Churches, USA, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, Church of the Brethren, Church of God (Anderson), Cumberland Presbyterian Church, Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America, Mennonite Church, National Baptist Convention, National Missionary Baptist Convention of America, National Primitive Baptist Convention, Inc., Presbyterian Church (USA), Seventh Day Baptist, United Church of Christ and United Methodist Church.

            The committee includes theologians, curriculum developers, age group specialists, writers and Christian educators, and reflects considerable cultural diversity.  The committee works several years ahead; this meeting will work on outlines for 2003-2004 and 2004-2005.   Each denomination selects writers to develop and fine-tune outlines for their own constituency.  “The committee is remarkably ecumenical and diverse, encompassing 20 denominations with their own doctrines and understandings,” Dr. Love said.  “I always marvel at how we can come together and develop something in a week’s time with all the diversity in the group.”

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