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WHO
WE ARE
Our History
Our Statement of Faith
Our Vision Statement
Our History
David's United Church of Christ traces its lineage
to the days of the Reformation in sixteenth century Europe and to its
original reformers - Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli and John Calvin.
From the Reformation, two major branches of Christianity emerged -
Lutheran and Reformed. David's UCC was born in the Reformed tradition.
In the early 1830's John Henry Dietz and his bride, Elizabeth Geisweit, settled on
what is known today as the Dietz farm near the covered Ashbrook Bridge,
just south of our present location. He was Lutheran, she was the
daughter of a Reformed minister. Their parents opposed their marriage
so they eventually moved from Pennsylvania to begin a new life in Ohio.
Their log cabin became the meeting place for both Lutheran and Reformed
settlers in the area and in 1839 they erected a brick church on the west
side of Washington Street. This building was used for 44 years.
In 1883, the Lutheran and Reformed members decided to build separate
buildings. Our present building was built February 18, 1883, and we
treasure its historic beauty, especially the lovely stained glass windows.
An educational wing was completed in 1969 to support the growing Sunday
School program. Local artist,
Dick Weiser, was commissioned in 1989
and rendered this watercolor of David's UCC in celebration of our 150th
anniversary.
In 1998, we celebrated the completion of a new addition
to our building, including a contemporary stained glass window mural,
located in the new library.
The United Church of Christ was born through a merger of the
Evangelical and Reformed Church, and the Congregational Christian Church
in 1957. Our denomination has 1.6 million members in the United States
alone, and David's UCC actively supports the wider ministry of the United
Church of Christ in Ohio, the United States, and the world.
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Our Statement of Faith
We believe in you, O God, Eternal Spirit,
God of our Savior Jesus Christ and our God,
And to your deeds we testify:
You call the worlds into being,
create persons in your own image,
and set before each one the ways of life and death.
You seek in holy love to save all people from aimlessness and sin.
You judge people and nations by your righteous will
declared through prophets and apostles.
In Jesus Christ, the man of Nazareth, our crucified and risen Savior,
you have come to us
and shared our common lot,
conquering sin and death
and reconciling the world to yourself.
You bestow upon us your Holy Spirit,
creating and renewing the church of Jesus Christ,
binding in covenant faithful people of all ages, tongues and races.
You call us into your church
to accept the cost and joy of discipleship,
to be your servants in the service of others,
to proclaim the gospel to all the world
and resist the powers of evil,
to share in Christ's baptism and eat at his table,
to join him in his passion and victory.
You promise to all who trust you
forgiveness of sins and fullness of grace,
courage in the struggle for justice and peace,
your presence in trial and rejoicing,
and eternal life in your realm which has no end.
Blessing and honor, glory and power be unto you. Amen.
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Our Vision
Statement
We affirm that worship is the heart and soul of our life together in Christ.
We celebrate the diversity among us,
and we expect our worship to challenge
our minds and refresh our spirits.
We lift up as of highest importance the young people of our church.
We pledge to involve them in every aspect of congregational life.
We will use every resource at our disposal
to share with them the light of a living faith.
We will invite the unchurched, the indifferent,
and the uninvolved people in our midst
to share in the joy of responsible church membership.
It is our purpose to welcome and involve people
of all ages, tongues and races.
We believe that the highest joy in life is found
in meaningful Christian stewardship.
In gratitude for the rich blessings of God in our lives,
we pledge our time, talent and money
to further the mission of Christ in our church and in our world.
We accept the great commission of Christ to go
into all the world to share the good news of God's love.
We give thanks for our place in the wider church,
and pledge our generous support for the work
of the United Church of Christ at home and abroad.
We treasure the fellowship that binds our hearts in Christian love.
We call upon our creative gifts to offer every opportunity
to strengthen the bonds of friendship among us.
We open ourselves to the future,
trusting God for the wisdom and guidance we need.
We envision spiritual and numerical growth,
and we accept the challenge
to provide adequate resources for a growing church.
To God, who causes old and young alike
to dream dreams and to have visions
be all glory, power, wisdom and praise for ever and ever! Amen.
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