For three weeks in July, striking, colorful images filled a space that is usually bare in the summer. Personal expressions of spirituality, grief, inspiration and healing—created with thousands of pieces of cloth, miles of thread, and embellishments of every description—formed the Sacred Threads 2001 exhibition of 160 quilts created by 89 artists. The show, co-sponsored by the Ohio Conference UCC, was held at Reynoldsburg High School.

"Quilting is an art form that grows out of our everyday lives, that helps us discern meaning out of our experiences, and that challenges us to find the Sacred in the very midst of the creative process," write Ohio Conference members and avid quilters, Susan Towner-Larsen and Barbara Brewer Davis in their book, With Sacred Threads—Quilting and the Spiritual Life. "Art is the way some of us work through things in our lives," Towner-Larsen says. "Sometimes we need to cry or pray or scream or sing, and some of us do it while we’re sewing."

The book’s publication led to a quilters’ retreat, where participants decided to establish a show "to provide a venue for quilters of all faiths who see their work as a connection to the sacred or as an expression of their spiritual journey."

The quilters were people of all faiths from many parts of the U.S. and Canada. Next to each quilt hung an artist’s statement giving the details of the inspiration behind the quilt design. Show organizers hoped that the stories would be a source of healing and strength for viewers.

The show appeared to powerfully affect the quilt enthusiasts who visited. "I was very impressed by the reverent respect the viewers had for the exhibit," wrote one visitor. "[There was] none of the loud chatter and giggling one sometimes hears in other exhibitions."

It is not hard to understand such a mood. In Precious Moments by Debbie Barber, Laurelville, Ohio, a country church and cemetery, bathed in sunlight, are seen through a window with a stained glass top. Angels hover in the border. The quilt was created to help the artist deal with her grief over her father’s death from brain cancer.

About her piece, Living Water, creator Sylvia Weir, Beaumont, Texas, wrote: "God pours out his living water to us and requires only that we come and drink." On the quilt several pairs of cupped hands dip into an overflowing container of water for a drink.

In Peace on Earth by Lynne Farrow, Ventura, California, a lion and a lamb rest together. "The inspiration for this quilt is the Isaiah 11:6 prophecy—the lion will lay down with the lamb and the Prince of Peace will lead them," wrote the artist.

Susan Towner-Larsen’s quilt, The Dancing Trinity: Mother, Daughter, Spirit, expresses her image of God which was "transformed years ago when it became intensely painful to constantly hear of God in exclusively masculine terms," she wrote. Her quilt depicts three joyous female figures dancing together within a circle.

Comments from visitors described the show as "very healing," "breathtaking," "inspired my mind and touched my heart," and "emphasizes how faith permeates our lives."

Another Sacred Threads exhibit is planned for 2003.

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Clippings. . .from Ohio Conference church newsletters

Article from United Church News, page 2, September 2001

The chancel choir of Euclid Avenue Congregational UCC, Cleveland, will perform "Prayers for Bobby," by J.A. Kawarsky on October 21. The cantata is based on the memoirs of a mother whose son committed suicide because he was gay. It tells about the son’s increasing isolation because of his mother’s pressure to conform and recounts her struggle to reconcile her fundamentalist Christian faith with her son’s sexual orientation. The Rev. Judith Vasile will narrate; Jill Pappenhagen and Larry Crooks will be soloists.

Pilgrim Church UCC, Toledo runs the Suitably Attired Clothing Closet, providing business attire for people who want to work but do not have the proper clothes to wear to apply for a job.

Trinity UCC, a European-American congregation located in suburban Cincinnati, has formed a new partnership with Calvary Baptist Church, an urban Cincinnati African-American congregation. The partnership was begun in response to the riots in Cincinnati during Holy Week last spring. Its objective is to increase understanding between the two congregations. The two congregations are planning joint activities to try to bridge both the racial and urban-suburban divisions that can hamper understanding. The first joint activity will be a ‘get acquainted’ potluck meal and a worship service at Calvary Baptist on September 9. Trinity will host a similar fellowship meal and brief program in the spring.

Columbia UCC, Barberton, is celebrating its 100-year anniversary in 2001. As a part of the celebration, the congregation hosted an ice cream social on July 22. Members, friends and families were invited to build a sundae, enjoy games and crafts, listen to music and participate in a raffle.

St. Peter’s UCC, Cincinnati celebrated the 100th birthday of member Sam Lehmann on August 12 with a special service and reception. The service included presentation of a living bouquet of roses, singing of old gospel songs, and reading of greetings from Governor Taft and President Bush.

To raise funds for church projects, Immanuel UCC, Bromley KY, operates a Coke Booth at the Annual Fire Department Street Fair in August. Members donate canned Coke products (or funds to purchase them) and volunteer to staff the booth during the fair.

The Undy 100 project, sponsored by First UCC, Troy, almost tripled the congregation’s goal of collecting 100 pairs of children’s underwear. Members donated 155 pairs of girls undies, 132 pairs of boys undies and 29 pairs of socks. The clothing will be given to the Family Abuse Shelter.

Deacons at Trinity UCC, Cincinnati sponsor a book table in the Fellowship Hall where members can purchase from a large selection of newer books and magazines at low prices.

First Congregational Church UCC, Lorain supports the Clothe a Kid for School Program sponsored by LOVE, Inc. First Church members who sign up receive a card with a child’s name, age, size and needs and agree to purchase $35 - $50 in school clothes for the child. In 2000 First Church members outfitted fifty children; they hope to be able to help even more kids this year.

Brecksville UCC has "adopted" a section of the Rt. 82 and I-77 intersection. Members gather there periodically to collect and remove litter from the area surrounding the highway. At a recent pickup session, eleven members collected 33 bags of litter, including a completely intact glass Starbuck’s mug. This "treasure" was presented to Interim Pastor Elizabeth Price during worship the next day.

The latest project for the Comfort Quilters from Middleburg Heights Community Church is a quilt that will be donated to Cleveland Habitat for Humanity. The quilt will be in their Silent Auction, to be held September 24.

It was Christmas in July at The United Church of Christ in West Milton. Members enjoyed a complete turkey dinner and brought along toys, children’s clothing or monetary donations to be given to the Cincinnati Mission.

The Board of Christian Education at Pilgrim Congregational UCC, Cleveland sponsored "First Century Marketplace, An Early Christian Community Experience" on Sunday, August 12. The congregation shared in an early Christian worship service, then stayed for food, fellowship and a stroll through the marketplace as it might have been in a Christian community of the first century.

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Impressions from tour of Cuba

Article from United Church News, page 3, September 2001

Ohio Conference members Jim and Lou Deitz spent two weeks on a study tour of Cuba in February and returned with some thought-provoking impressions.

"It was a fascinating trip," said Deitz, a retired UCC minister. "We went because we were curious about life in Cuba and about how the religious community is faring. We came back quite enthusiastic about what we saw there—I don’t think uncritically, but on the whole, very positive. We saw a far more viable and vibrant society than media reports in our country portray. We felt that we learned far more from the Cubans than we could teach.The remarkable rise in life expectancy (from 56 to 76) in the years of the Revolution would seem to indicate that conditions could not be as bad as many would have us believe."

The Revolution begun by Fidel Castro in 1959 encompasses the ideals of the socialist system of government that dominates life in Cuba. "We were impressed by the fact that the Revolution…has endured for 42 years, despite intense hostility from the most powerful nation in the world..." said Deitz. "Castro represents ‘one-man rule’ even yet, quite probably. But he has not enriched himself personally; he really has been for the common people. The idealism of the Revolution is real."

The Cuba study tours began in 1979 when the Cuban Council of Churches invited the UCC to send a delegation to visit Cuba and become acquainted with the work of the churches there. The Rev. Ted Braun, from the UCC’s Illinois South Conference, was a participant on that trip.

"It was an exciting experience," says Braun, now retired and living in Tennessee. "When I discovered that there were no specific plans to continue this experience, I decided to do so on my own, with the United Church Board of World Ministry’s endorsement."

Braun explained that the seminar’s purpose is to present an "immersion experience" into Cuban life.The recent two-week trip touched religious, political, historical and social aspects of Cuban society. Group members talked with pastors on the Cuban Council of Churches, with Methodist lay leader Ysél Pérez and with Mayda Gutiérrez, Office of Religious Affairs, Central Committee. They worshipped at the Second Baptist Church in Santiago de Cuba, heard an impromptu concert by Cuba’s National Chorus, visited the Museum of Revolutionary History and spent an evening as guests of a neighborhood Committee for the Defense of the Revolution. The group attended a performance of the Don Quixote Ballet and talked with family doctors at a free health clinic.

"Free health care is a centerpiece of the accomplishments of the revolution, and the neighborhoods clinics are an important facet of this," said Deitz.

Though the U.S. government has banned most Cuban travel by U.S. citizens, the tours are made possible by a two-year travel license from the U.S. Treasury Department secured by the UCC/Disciples of Christ Global Ministries office. Because Cuba is suffering from an economic crisis, tourist dollars are welcomed in the country. Tourism is Cuba’s biggest source of hard currency.

"We were told that 1.5 million tourists visited Cuba last year," said Lou Deitz."Most came from Canada, Great Britain, Italy, Spain and France, but thousands of U.S. citizens also visited," she added.

The tour group was most interested in the life of the church in Cuba. "We found that there is freedom of worship; churches have found real acceptance now," said Deitz.

Ted Braun agrees. "The church in Cuba is alive and growing. The churches are full on Sunday mornings," he said.

This was not always the case after the 1959 Revolution, but in 1991 the Communist Party Congress opened the Party to believers.

Deitz added, "We were told that freedom of religion was there from the beginning of the Revolution but that in the early years Christian churches were considered to be counter-revolutionary. Christians often faced discrimination. The changed situation today is reflected in the presence of three Protestant pastors in the National Assembly."

Churches augment government programs for the aging, housing rehabs, after-school programs and more. "The church does not need to minister to the ‘least of these’ because the government takes care of basic needs," says Deitz, "but the church provides the loving care missing from government programs."

Some of the American seminar participants have engaged their congregations in cooperative efforts with Cuban churches. "Out of our seminar experience, two UCC congregations have established partner church relationships with congregations in Cuba, and the Southeast Conference is establishing a partnership with the ecumenical church in Cuba," Braun added.

Many clergy are among those who left Cuba right before or during the Revolution. "I think it was fear of the unknown and fear of persecution," said Lou Deitz. "Many pastors left when they heard that Communists would be taking over the government."

"The churches of necessity began developing indigenous leadership," says Jim Deitz. One such pastor is Rev. Sergio Arce, a teacher of theology at the Presbyterian Seminary in Matanzas, who has grown a small Presbyterian church into an active congregation of 125.

Jim Deitz has spent many hours since the trip doing research to "try to get a handle on Castro’s life story and a true sense of his relationship to the Cuban people." He acknowledges that, although he has learned a lot, Cuba is still ‘an enigma wrapped in a puzzle.’ In understanding the country and its leader, "I feel like a beginner," he said.

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Ohio Conference congregations contribute to Wolff endowment
to support seminarians

Article from United Church News, Page 3, September 2001

Richard Wolff is passionate about motivating Ohio Conference congregations to take responsibility for supplying future ministers for the United Church of Christ. In an effort to increase the supply of ‘pastors-in-training,’ Wolff, a retired UCC minister, and his wife Rachael established the Richard and Rachael Wolff Scholarship Fund to help support students studying at UCC-affiliated seminaries. Twenty-two OC churches have contributed to the fund since its beginning in 1994 (see list below).

"Too long we have been indifferent to the urgent call of each congregation to engage in the serious business of developing future ministers," Wolff wrote in a letter to OC churches. "Each church is in need of ministry," he added. "Therefore, it is the responsibility of the churches to supply ministers."

In the Ohio Conference, 20% of churches (85 of 435) are seeking a pastor. "When we need a minister, we expect that our Conference or Association will have plenty of candidates to choose from...but the facts are not so," says Richard Wolff.

Financial support from Ohio Conference congregations has built the Wolff Scholarship endowment to nearly $200,000. In 2000, five seminary students received grants of $2000 each.

Congregations can send Wolff Fund donations to their Association or to the Ohio Conference.

Wolff Fund Supporters

• First Immanuel UCC, Alliance
• Congregational UCC, Amherst
• The Bath Church UCC, Bath
• First UCC, Berea
• First Congregational Church & Society, Berlin Heights
• Brecksville UCC
• First UCC, Canton
• First Congregational UCC, Claridon
• West Park UCC, Cleveland
• Pilgrim Congregational UCC, Cleveland
• First Congregational UCC, Columbus
• St. Paul UCC, Elyria
• First Congregational UCC, Lorain
• St. John UCC, Lorain
• First UCC, Marion
• UCC Congregational, Medina
• First Congregational, N. Ridgeville
• First Church in Oberlin
• Olmstead Community UCC, Olmstead Falls
• Brownhelm Community UCC, Vermilion
• UCC (Congregational), Vermilion
• Wakeman Congregational Church UCC

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Article from United Church News, Page 3, September 2001

The Ohio Conference received a grant from the Brown Endowment for the Interim Network Training. The total cost, including a one-year membership, is $580. This includes training, room and board. There is limited space for UCC and Disciple pastors serving in the Ohio Region or Ohio Conference. Contact your Association or the Ohio Conference (800-282-0740 or ohioucc@ocucc.org.)

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Article from United Church News, Page 3, September 2001

Leave your troubles at the gate and enjoy a weekend of fellowship. So reads the invitation to the 2001 Christian Men’s Retreat sponsored by the Ohio Conference. Men from UCC and Disciples of Christ congregations will gather for spiritual refreshment and fellowship at Pilgrim Hills Camp from Friday, September 28 at 5:00 p.m. through 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 30.

The Christian Men’s Retreat is an annual gathering of men for fellowship and spiritual enrichment. Organized around the theme "Building Our Spiritual Houses," the 2001 retreat will be an upbeat weekend inspiring men and proposing new possibilities for living as Christian men. Retreat leaders will be the Rev. Greg Alexander, developer of The Fellowship of Carpenters, and the Rev. David Holden, Men’s Minister for the United Church of Christ.

The casual weekend retreat is designed to promote fellowship between all attendees, who are encouraged to dress in jeans and tennis shoes. There will be time for small group discussion, sharing of life experiences, and frank discussion of men’s spiritual needs. On Saturday afternoon, participants can choose between a nature hike, golf outing, work project or unstructured time.

The registration fee for Friday through Sunday is $90 if paid by September 3, $100 thereafter. Participants can also attend Friday through Saturday noon for $55 ($65 after September 3).The registration fee includes all meals, snacks, lodging and program costs. Scholarship assistance is available. Contact Susan Towner-Larsen at 800-282-0740 for information. Questions? Contact Ohio Conference office, Hank Stonerook (614-891-4250), or Phil Mikesell (614) 840-9767.

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