June 25, 2019 — Milwaukee, Wisconsin
American Jewish Committee (AJC) welcomes passage by an overwhelming margin of two resolutions from the United Church of Christ (UCC) calling for interreligious dialogue and declaring solidarity with Jews and others who are targets of neo-Nazis and white supremacists.
On the last day of the five-day UCC 32nd General Synod, delegates embraced the resolution "Reaffirming the United Church of Christ's Commitment to Interreligious Relations, and Deploring Religious Bigotry."
That resolution, brought to the assembly by the UCC Board, introduced a formal interreligious statement, "A Just World for All: Engaging with All God's Creation," while also deploring religious bigotry, including attacks on Jewish institutions, mosques and other places of worship.
The resolution calls on church leadership at all levels, as well as local church members to institutionally and personally engage in interreligious dialogue.
"The UCC outreach to interfaith partners is significant, offering a theological, moral and spiritual basis for engaging interreligiously, committing to learning about others, and expressing concern that antisemitism is on the rise," said Emily Soloff, AJC Associate Director of Interreligious and Intergroup Relations, who attended UCC Synod 2019 and testified in the committee that discussed the interreligious resolution.
A second resolution, "Denouncing Acts of Violence, Hatred, and Racism Carried Out in the Name of Neo-Nazi and White Supremacist Ideologies" also passed overwhelmingly at the synod. That resolution exhorts all UCC congregations to stand in solidarity with those who are targets of hate speech and violence.
AJC, the leading global Jewish advocacy organization, looks forward to engaging UCC congregations via its 22 regional offices across the U.S., as well as meeting with UCC leaders on the national level.
