We started with Sacred Conversations on Race.  I picked Race and the UCC out of a dozen or so topics.  As we arrived we were presented with a short worship, and a piece of paper.  We went through the worship, then Yvonne Delk, who is a real giant of the denomination.  Coming out of the Afro-Christian tradition (about which I have learned a lot this week) Yvonne was the first african american woman ordained in the UCC. She is 70, but appears a decade younger, which makes her old enough in her time in Virginia to remember Jim Crow very clearly.  Since I, a white woman attending an historically black seminary, was with a black seminarian who wants to serve white congregations (and help them become more multicultural) as well as several others and Yvonne, it was a wonderful, open discussion of racial tensions.  We talked almost entirely about the local church, and approaches to racism education in the local church, and about hearing each other's stories.  Yvonne's story, which we were able to hear some of, is rich and beautiful.  I think the next time I visit my inlaws, I will make a sunday morning field trip to Macedonia African Christian Church in Norfolk, VA.  I already know I will be welcome there.  At the end of the time we wrote a word on a piece of paper that would dissolve in water, then dropped it in a vase full of water.  The word I wrote was "witness" since we talked extensively about the importance of the local church serving as a witness to the greater community in the area of racism.

After the conversation on race I went and got some lunch, dining with a delegate from Connecticut named Jackie.  After a wide ranging discussion that covered the governance resolutions, the call to ministry (she has, like me, taken a single seminary class) and the open and affirming stance of the UCC, I returned to the Pilgrim Press area where I picked up another bag of around 40 books, most of them the same as I'd picked up the first time, from Pilgrim Press.

There are not words to describe the afternoon's worship.  I was thrilled to get a seat in the third row - my photos will be somewhat better.  The dance was beautiful, and some of it really touched me (and I don't think that way, so if dance touches me it is really, really good.)  Some of the symbolic stuff done was inspired. The little pieces of paper, dissoved in water in beautiful glass containers were brought forward, all water now, and poured into the pool that is the central feature of the stage this week.  There was an incredible dramatic presentation of the story of Jonah and the whale (note to LRUCC - I'm coming home with a heap of new ideas. On the top of the stack - more dramatic presentation of scripture - it does not have to alway be a plain reading, as we do it!)  John Thomas preached brilliantly. 

We renewed baptismal promises (I admit to some surprise - Catholics do that every year at the easter vigil, but I've never ever before heard of Protestants renewing baptismal promises, especially in the absence of an actual baptism). But of course baptism is key to the immerse yourself theme of the conference.  I really left this worship service feeling deeply nourished.

I had dinner alone and called my husband, who had watched most of the service streaming online.  That felt really good - that he'd been with me, more or less, at least virtually.  I miss him.

After dinner, two hours of committee meetings ended the day. Having had my say already in a couple of other settings on the governance changes, and being quite attracted to the Accra Confession resolution, I chose to go to that committee meeting. They had two resolutions, the Accra one and the global food crisis one.  I think that world economic justice may be a theme I suggest for World Communion Sunday this year.  I was really thrilled with the hard work my conference minister was doing in this session (he happened to be assigned to this session).  Way to go John Deckenback!  He made some suggestions that, in my opinion, really strengthened the motions.  I was disappointed, though, that the delegates had, for the most part, not really read the Accra confession (particularly disappointed since I, who am NOT a delegate, had.)  It was interesting to hear them craft changes to this and the food crisis resolutions. I don't know what they will do, but I hope they decide to send both resolutions forward.

The committee meetings will continue tomorrow, but I will not be there, as I have signed up for a service project.  I need to get to bed, so I am ready to be there first thing in the AM. Some pics from today: