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COMMAntary

The newsletter of the Minnesota Conference UCC

Volume 24, No. 29 | August 20, 2026

Equipping a courageous Church alive with Christ's transforming love

Building Support for Gender-Affirming Health Care

A resolution to support gender-affirming health care passed resoundingly at this year’s Annual Meeting. The resolution calls for the creation of gender-affirming healthcare champions in congregations as well as educational advocacy and financial support. 

The work to craft the resolution and bring it for a vote of the delegates at the Annual Meeting started with Rev. Jeanine Dorfman and Rev. Claire Klein, members of Lyndale UCC. “I had heard people in our congregation frequently lifting up people for prayer for gender-affirming health care,” says Klein, a music therapist ordained through Grace Hospice. “I was also hearing about health care institutions that were ending this type of care for fear of losing funding. So even though Minnesota is a state that supports this care, I knew people were losing access. And because our attention was rightfully focused on the demands of the ICE surge, I also knew that the issue was getting lost.” 

Klein drafted a resolution and Dorfman added to it, as did Rev. Dr. Rebecca Voekel and Rev. T. Michael Rock, pastors at Lyndale UCC, Rev. Oby Ballinger from Prism, and several community members.

“In some ways I was already unofficially acting as a champion of the issue before we wrote the resolution,” said Dorfman. “I have a trans child who is 15 and several trans friends so that was motivating me to keep it in front of my congregation.”

They arranged for two workshops at the Annual Meeting, one for the day before the vote and one after. They engaged Rev. Derek Terry, who at the time was executive director of the UCC’s Open and Affirming Coalition (Terry recently passed away). “We wanted to hear what was going on in different communities, where we were being called and led, and what would be helpful to do the work in this resolution,” says Klein.

The workshop participants discussed four major areas:

1. Advocacy, such tracking legislation throughout the U.S., and advocacy with political leaders;
2. Interpersonal pastoral care, such as Meal Trains for those undergoing surgery, clothing swaps, and support to care providers;
3. Worship and what churches do in terms of hymns, prayers, and buildings;
4. Education through such activities as OWL programming and queer positive events.

Church leaders were encouraged to seek out people who were willing to take on this work in their congregation. The goal is to see the initiative grow and thrive in Minnesota – and perhaps then be shared beyond the state. Rev. Mallory Everhart, the Covenant Organizer for the Minnesota Conference UCC, will be supporting the work as well.

“We are called to help people thrive and shine in their embodiment of Christ,” says Klein. “We should help people feel the most empowered and close to their essential self. This is about being affirmed, seen, and loved.”

Dorfman agrees. “We hear so much about gender dysphoria, but I have learned a lot about gender euphoria, which is in alignment of seeing the image of God in people. Why wouldn’t we want to help people be who they were created to be?”

Read the full resolution here.

Learn about a September 23rd session on becoming a gender affirming care champion

Conference News & Events

Calling All Moderators!

Monday, August 24 from 7-8:30 pm via Zoom

REGISTER

The presiding officer of the church has many names and many responsibilities. We invite all moderators, council chairs, and consistory presidents to an online gathering on Monday, August 24. The purpose of this first gathering is to meet colleagues, share challenges, ask questions, and to talk about desired resources and support. We hope to offer ongoing gatherings throughout the year to deepen connections and support the development of leaders in our congregations.

This first session will be facilitated by Ministry Partner Sarah Lehman. Reach out to Sarah at sarahl@uccmn.org with any questions. 

Register Today for the Women's Retreat: How the Wild Blooms Within Us


Friday, September 11 (arrive 4:30 pm) through Sunday, September 13 (depart 11:00 am)

Camp Onomia
LEARN MORE & REGISTER

There is a wilderness blooming around us: woods, sacred water, birdsong, the slow turning of late summer into fall. And there is a wilderness blooming within us: something sacred, alive, and seeking to thrive. We invite self-identifying women from across the Minnesota Conference to spend a weekend among the woods and waters of Camp Onomia, exploring how the Sacred Wild blooms within and through us. Guided by Rev. Claire Klein (& a special surprise co-facilitator), we'll deepen our connection to the wilderness surrounding us and the wilderness within — through music, movement, and embodied practice. Come rest. Come breathe. Come bloom.

Samaritans Documentary to Show at Locations Across Minnesota

• Sept 24, 5 pm, Riverview Theater, Minneapolis
• Sept 26, 7 pm, location tbd, Duluth
• Sept 27, 5 pm, First Congregational Church, Alexandria
• Sept 28, 6 pm, Event Center, Hutchinson

The Minnesota Conference UCC is joining with the Minneapolis Immigrant Allies Coalition, Creekside UCC, Peace UCC, First Congregational Alexandria, New Journey UCC, and many other congregations and organizations to sponsor showings of Samaritans. This newly released documentary follows a group of volunteers who risk everything to save lives in the deadly desert of Southern Arizona. Samaritans captures desperate journeys, unexpected resilience, and the transformative power of refusing to look away.

Registration is Open for Fall Equinox Retreat: Where the Light Turns:

Camp Courage

Friday, September 25 (arrival at 5:00 pm); depart Sunday, September 27, by 11:00 am

LEARN MORE & REGISTER

At the autumn equinox, day and night coalesce into balance for a breath before the year tips toward dark. An ancient threshold, it’s a time to give thanks for the harvest, to release what we've outgrown, and to turn inward as the light draws down.

You're invited to meet that turning on the wooded shore of Cedar Lake. This is a contemplative, deeply restorative weekend grounded in equinox spirituality with guided meditation, breathwork, drumming and sound, time outdoors in, and energy healing. Together we’ll call in the directions and the Sacred in wind, water, fire, and falling leaves, creating space to quiet the mind, tend the spirit, and journey in the company of open-hearted mystics.

Come to release the summer, gather what you'll carry into the coming season, and reconnect with the Holy that moves through a living world and you.

Save the Dates for Other Upcoming Conference Events

Watch for registration information for the following events

Gender Affirming Care Champion Information Session (hybrid event)

September 23, 2026 – 7:00 pm

Location: United Theological Seminary (767 N Eustis St #140, St Paul, MN 55114)

At our annual meeting in June, the Minnesota Conference of the United Church of Christ voted to affirm the sacredness of trans people and the vital importance of protecting access to gender affirming care. Learn how you and your congregation can become a Gender Affirming Care Champion. LEARN MORE

Lay Stories of Church Mergers, Partnerships, and Resource Sharing: A Panel Discussion (hybrid event)

September 27, noon-3 pm

Olivet Congregational Church, St. Paul

Lay leaders and clergy are encouraged to attend this hybrid event together and those attending at a distance will receive guiding questions to help deepen the learning. Lunch will be provided for those attending in person. LEARN MORE

FourThursday 2026

FourThursdays for Faith Formation are back! Please make plans to join us for upcoming lunchtime gatherings for congregational leaders — clergy, lay staff, and volunteers — to come together for conversation, connection, mutual support and resourcing. Mark your calendars to join us either in person or on Zoom on each of the following dates:

2026: September 24 & October 22

2027: January 28, February 25, March 25, and April 22

Come for lunch and information conversation at 11:30 am and stay for the presentation/facilitated conversation from noon-1:30 pm. LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SEPTEMBER GATHERING

Clergy Retreat
October 27-29
Dunrovin Retreat Center, Marine On St Croix

LEARN MORE

Covenant Days

October 24, 2026: Northwestern

November 14, 2026: South Central

February 20, 2027: Twin Cities

April 24, 2027: Southeastern

Joy as Resistance and Refugia

November 4-6, 2026; February 25-27, 2027

Mount Olivet Retreat Center
LEARN MORE

Conference Youth Retreat

April 9-11, 2027
Camp Onomia, Onamia MN

LEARN MORE

Regional Youth Event

July 21-24, 2027

St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, MN

LEARN MORE

FreshWater FaithWorks
Late June or July 2027

Mark Your Calendars for a Cultivating Generous Congregations Workshop

November 7 from 9 - 4 p.m., United Theological Seminary

This workshop will help you learn how to enhance generosity ministries in your congregation. It is designed for a team of pastor and leaders. Say tuned for registration details.

OWL for Senior High Students Starting this Fall

Lyndale UCC and Spirit of Peace Church, Minnetonka, are co-hosting Our Whole Lives (OWL) for senior high students in the West Metro. The session runs September-April, with 12 in-person, 90-minute sessions on Wednesday and Sunday evenings, roughly twice per month.

OWL is a comprehensive sexuality education curriculum that addresses all that makes a person a sexual being: sexual identity, intimacy, sensuality, and sexualization, as well as sexual health. And it does so while centering the beliefs and ethics at the heart of the UCC's theology that all humans - no exceptions - are beloved by our creator, that our bodies are gifts meant to be honored and enjoyed, and that we have a profound responsibility to care for others through mutual respect, transparency, and compassion.

Check out the program slide presentation, then fill out the sign-up form for the required parent orientation on Wednesday, Sept. 2.

Partner News & Events

Sacred Reckonings Trainings Scheduled for September-October

Join us in person for two days of immersive learning at New Branches (5011 31st. Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55417) and a pilgrimage with Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs from B’dote to George Floyd Square and the memorials for Renee Good and Alex Pretti. The place-based story-telling about the history of the Doctrine of Discovery with Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs (Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican) is a new and powerful addition to the training.



Join us in person in Minneapolis for Sessions 1 and 2:

• Fri., Sept 18: 5-8:30 pm CT
• Sat., Sept 19: 9:30 am-4:30 pm CT 

Then continue your learning online for Sessions 3 through 5:

• Mon., Oct. 26, 2026: 6:30-8:00 CT
• Mon., Nov. 9, 2026: 6:30-8:00 CT
• Mon., Nov. 23, 2026: 6:30-8:00 CT

REGISTER

Joys & Concerns

Employment Opportunities

The Conference maintains an up-to-date listing of authorized minister, interim minister, and other positions available in Minnesota, as well as positions with the UCC National setting. This site is frequently updated. See the current listings.

More Resources & Opportunities

STORY IDEAS: Have a story or idea to share in COMMAntary? Send an email to communications@uccmn.org. COMMAntary is published every other Thursday. Submissions are due Tuesday prior to publication at noon.

PROGRAMS & SUPPORT: Check out the wealth of resources available on the Conference's website for authorized ministers, local churches, and faith formation leaders.

EMPLOYMENT: Check out the employment opportunities page on the Conference's website for all open positions.