Indianapolis - The Board of Directors of the Council on Christian Unity, in a special meeting during the Portland General Assembly of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), affirmed a "vision statement" that provides new clarity, direction and focus to the work and programs of Disciples of Christ in response to God's call to unity in Christ.
The preface to the vision statement, "Crafting Unity: Our Calling and Journey as Disciples," asserts, "In an era marred by mounting disagreements and social disintegrations leading to injustices and incivilities, the world needs the clear witness of Christ toward the unity of the human family." And, in identifying the locus of that unity, the statement affirms, " ... we find this witness (to unity) always at its most sublime and radical when we come to the Lord's Table. With the elements of daily life, it is at the Table that Jesus draws the disparate into one."
Underscoring the central place of the Lord's Supper for Disciples, the statement goes on to declare, "His (Christ's) invitation to the Table displays the openness of God. At the Table, Christ continues the healing and consolidating work of redemption."
The statement emphasizes the "crafting of the spirit of unity'' as central to the work of reconciliation in the 21st century. The CCU identifies three "frontiers'' as key elements in this vision:
In its closing paragraph, common celebration at the Table is seen as the goal and vision of our work in unity: "In the search for new approaches to this crafting of unity, we return to where we began: to the simple act of the Lord's Table. Here our differences do not divide. Here our divisions do not define...''
In its Portland meeting, CCU board members also were trained to lead study-and-response groups to the proposal on the "Mutual Recognition and Mutual Reconciliation of Ministries" from Churches Uniting in Christ.
New officers for 2006-2007 were elected: David Wayne Brown (layman, Lindenwood Christian Church, Memphis, TN) as chair; Sue Shadburne Call (pastor, Downey Avenue Christian Church, Indianapolis, IN) as vice-chair; Jeanetta Cotman (laywoman, United Christian Church, Detroit, MI) as secretary; and Andy Mangum (pastor, First Christian Church, Arlington, TX) as treasurer.
For a full copy of the Vision Statement, "Mapping Christian Unity in the 21st Century."