Brethren attend inaugural meeting of Christian Churches Together.

A consensus on the importance of evangelism and the need to eliminate domestic poverty marked the official formation of Christian Churches Together (CCT), at a meeting in Pasadena, Calif., on Feb. 6-9. This was the sixth annual gathering for CCT, an informally structured organization of 36 churches and national Christian groups that began in 2001 to provide a meeting place all the major groupings of Christian traditions in the US.

A proposal for the Church of the Brethren to join CCT will be brought to this year’s Annual Conference by the Committee on Interchurch Relations and the General Board. Four Church of the Brethren leaders attended as observers: Belita Mitchell, moderator of Annual Conference; Jim Beckwith, moderator-elect; Stan Noffsinger, general secretary of the General Board; and Michael Hostetter, chair of the Committee on Interchurch Relations.

CCT was begun when a number of US church leaders discussed the need for an ecumenical gathering that included Christian churches and traditions that were not members of the National Council of Churches (NCC) or the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE). The idea was encouraged by NCC general secretary Bob Edgar. By March 2006, 36 churches and organizations had become founding members.

With a focus on praying together and building relationships, the new organization has become the broadest and most inclusive fellowship of Christian churches and traditions in the US. The five "faith families" of the CCT are Evangelical/Pentecostal, Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, and Racial/Ethnic. It is the first time Roman Catholics have formally participated in a broad national ecumenical coalition in the US. Participants also include a number of nondenominational religious groups such as World Vision, Bread for the World, Sojourners/Call to Renewal, and Evangelicals for Social Action.

Evangelism and the need to eliminate poverty in the US were major topics of discussion at the meeting. The theme, "Is Jesus’ Proclamation Our Proclamation?" from Luke 4:18, led participants' discussion of evangelism in their church and faith family contexts. Participants also continued discussions from a 2006 gathering on poverty, when a committee was appointed to find common ground and propose ways to challenge US Christians and the country to address poverty. At this meeting, CCT considered the proposals and approved a statement on poverty.

For more information, see www.christianchurchestogether.org.

Source: 3/16/2007 Newsline