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The United Church of Christ at
Valley Forge is a church family with a mission -- to each other, to the
community and to the world. There are many ways in which we reach out
in mission to the local community and beyond. We have a relationship
with Old First Church in Philadelphia where we provide dinners once
per month during the colder months to the homeless men and women
in their shelter. This service is shared in by our youth group,
supported by adult supervision. We also have a relationship with
Bethany Children’s Home
in Womelsdorf, Pennsylvania. We share Christmas
gifts and celebration with them, with other occasional joint activities.
Our facilities are used by community groups. These include
The Children’s School of Cabrini College,
Sally’s Music Circle,
and several others. As a result, the sounds of music and children
often graces our hallways and rooms. Our church also serves as a polling place.
We have an active junior and senior high youth program. They have
performed several service projects in recent years, traveling to areas
in need in Puerto Rico, West Virginia, and Maine. We welcome the opportunity
to identify and respond to the needs of the local and greater community around us.
Through Our Church's Wider
Mission the broader mission of the church served through the
Pennsylvania
Southeast Conference and the National/International
United Church of Christ. On
this page, we share from time to time the thoughts and news of friends who help
us reach where we cannot go ourselves.
What does O.C.W.M. stand for?
The United Church of Christ at Valley Forge
is part of the Pennsylvania Southeast Conference, which consists of nearly 200
congregations in seven associations across the southeastern quadrant of the
state. Led by the Conference Minister, Rev. Dr. F. Russell Mitman, and
headquartered in Collegeville, PA, the Conference provides to member
churches a broad range of administrative support, training opportunities,
clergy placement services, counselling assistance, and outdoor and retreat
ministries.
Altogether, more than 6000 churches in 39 conferences
like ours make up the United Church of Christ, headquartered in Cleveland,
Ohio. Under leadership of the President, Rev. Dr. John Thomas, the denomination
extends our mission across the country and around the world. Major projects
include the development of church school curricula, worship resources and
research material, support for national and international disaster relief, and
sponsorship of legislative and social programs addressing a wide variety of
needs.
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O.C.W.M. stands for "Our Church's Wider
Mission," and it is O.C.W.M. Basic Support from our member churches that
provides staff and programs to make this wider mission possible. The fall
stewardship campaign in each congregation thus does more than meet the programs
of the local church. It a sharing of love as Christ taught us.
In the words of Rev. Gregory A. Jones,
Pastor of Union Community Church, Valparaiso, IN, quoted from our conference
bulletin, Communitas:
"The simple commandment, 'Love one another,' is
our calling as Christians. Nothing less will do it! We must learn how to love
one another! . . . Only when we serve the true meaning around these letters and
words will we be able to find any meaning in the dollars we share together. It
has no value apart from the spirit that motivates us to give."
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