About Us
The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a distinct and diverse community of Christians that come together as one church to join faith and action. With over 5,000 churches and nearly one million members across the U.S., the UCC serves God in the co-creation of a just and sustainable world. The UCC is a church of firsts, a church of extravagant welcome, and a church where "…they may all be one" (John 17:21).
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The Church of Firsts. Since 1957, the United Church of Christ has been the church of firsts, weaving God’s message of hope and extravagant welcome with action for justice and peace. Together, we live out our faith in ways that effect change in our communities. The UCC's many "firsts" mean that we have inherited a tradition of acting upon the demands of our faith. When we read in Galatians: "There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus"—a demand is made upon us. And so we were the first historically white denomination to ordain an African-American, the first to ordain a woman, the first to ordain an openly gay man, and the first Christian church to affirm the right of same-gender couples to marry. We were in the forefront of the anti-slavery movement and the Civil Rights movement. Our response to the demands of our faith is woven into the history of our country.
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A Church of Extravagant Welcome - Today, we continue to change lives throughout the world. We work alongside more than 200 mission partners. We labor ceaselessly to fight injustice, in the United States and abroad. We instill our vision into our youth and young adults, forging leaders who will imagine new dreams. And we sustain and develop church leaders, pastors, and our local churches to live their faith in exciting new ways. We believe in a God that is still speaking, a God that is all-loving and inclusive. We are a church that welcomes and accepts everyone as they are, where your mind is nourished as much as your soul.
We are a church where Jesus the healer meets Jesus the revolutionary, and where together, we grow a just and peaceful world.
History
Our History The story of Peace United Church of Christ in Marinette began in the early 1890’s when a small group of German immigrants sought a church similar to that of their homeland. The church building was built and dedicated on July 1, 1893. During the same period, eight German families moved from Potter, Chilton and New Holstein to Porterfield and worshiped in a log cabin donated by Frank Fuhrman. The Sheboygan Synod of the Reformed Church of America sponsored the congregation as its “first mission church” and they became the First Church of Porterfield on October 21, 1900. The Reformed Church in America merged with the Evangelical Synod of North America in 1935 to form the Evangelical and Reformed Church. In 1957 this denomination merged again with the Congregational Christian denomination to form the United Church of Christ. In 1986, First Church joined Peace Church to form the warm, welcoming and loving fellowship that exists today. United Church of Christ is a non-hierarchical, progressive denomination committed to the unity of the church. With a rich history of tying faith to social justice, the UCC continues to challenge its members to explore cutting edge theology and service to the world.
