Thanks to a flood of calls and emails, the State Senate voted on Thursday, May 23, to include a $11.5 million one-time Salary Reserve for low-paid human service workers in the budget! Please take a moment to thank the Senate for this important...
Sharing our Resources
Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. — Timothy 6:17
In addition to coordinating our wide-ranging justice initiatives, our Missions and Social Justice Committee also disperses a yearly budget of approximately $80,000 to various social justice ministries within and outside of the United Church of Christ. This is a full 10 percent tithe of our overall church income.
Over $50,000 goes to UCC-related organizations and efforts. These include Our Church’s Wider Mission, the Metropolitan Boston Assocation and Massachusetts Conference UCC Fellowship Dues, UCC education and attendance at UCC meetings and events. We also share our resources with various local non-profit organizations and ministries. We encourage individuals to participate in supporting these partnerships with both funds and volunteer involvement. The list of organizations we have supported in recent years includes:
- Greater Boston Interfaith Organization
- Cooperative Metropolitan Ministries
- Refugee Immigration Ministry
- City Mission Society
- Harvard Square Meals Program
- Hispanic Ministry of MACUCC
- Solutions at Work
- Medicine Wheel (World AIDS Day Art Installation)
- Social Impact Center of the Roxbury Presbyterian Church
- Kids 4 Peace
- Massachusetts Interfaith Power and Light
- Massachusetts Peace Action
- New Covenant Church (Haiti earthquake relief)
- Tree of Life (conference on peace in Israel and Palestine)
- Boston New Sanctuary Movement
- Massachusetts Bible Society
- Expenses of Saturday Meal of The Outdoor Church
- The Gaza Mental Health Foundation
We use the following criteria to guide us in deciding what organizations and efforts to support:
- Related to the UCC: We collect at least two annual UCC offerings, One Great Hour of Sharing and Neighbors in Need. When possible we try to be a “5 for 5” church that supports the five national offerings of the UCC. We support our historic connection with City Mission Society and with Andover Newton.
- Faith-based: When giving outside the UCC, we give preference to faith-based, and particularly interfaith, initiatives.
- Connection with members of First Church: We give preference to groups in which FCC members are involved as volunteers or staff.
- Related to the work of current social justice teams of First Church.
