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COMMAntary
The newsletter of the Minnesota Conference UCC
Volume 24, No. 25 | June 25, 2026
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Equipping a courageous Church alive with Christ's transforming love | | | | |
Reflections from Northern Ireland | | |
Ten young adults under the age of 30 and ten older adults ranging in age from 35 to 80 recently joined a trip sponsored by the Minnesota Conference UCC to Northern Ireland. This intentionally intergenerational trip brought adults from 15 congregations and both the Minnesota and Wisconsin Conferences to Belfast, Derry, and the Corrymeela Community in Northern Ireland to learn about the history of conflict known as “The Troubles" and to learn from folks who were and continue to be active in the peacebuilding work in Northern Ireland and beyond.
The purpose of this trip was to create opportunities for our group to step out of the rhythms and patterns of their daily lives and to travel, learn, and explore together new stories, histories, contexts, and ways of being and moving in challenging and conflicted times. The hope was that this shared experience might spark imagination and curiosity and the folks might return home with new ideas and connections for engaging the work of peace building within their own communities and a desire to continue connecting for support and conversation in the essential work of peacebuilding and reconciliation in the many contexts in which folks live and work.
Five members of the trip are sharing written reflections from the trip. Below are just a few excerpts; please read the full reflections on the Conference's website.
Liam Magistad – St. Anthony Park UCC, St. Paul
The breathtaking, beauty and heartbreaking tragedies that we learned about are a firm reminder of why diplomacy, negotiation, and the universal acknowledgment of human dignity are essential to charting a path towards a future for us all.
Margo Gromoll – St. Crois United Church, Bayport
In addition to newness and beauty, through city tours, workshops, lectures, and conversations with remarkable individuals with heart-wrenching histories and life-altering trauma we learned about and experienced their deep commitment to their heart-expanding, forward-looking, life-changing peace work. One of these individuals said, “Our suffering gives us no rights”. This statement has rumbled around my heart, mind, and soul the most.
Rev. Dustin Janzen, Wayzata Community Church
I’ve been mulling over our conversation particularly with Fr. Martin Magill and Rev. Steve Stockman – a Catholic priest and Presbyterian pastor who started the Four Corners Festival in Belfast to bring people to interact with those on “the other side” of the divides in Northern Ireland … In conflict, we often want to run away from the discomfort of disagreement, or we want to write off “the other” to avoid the hard work of learning about each other. But Martin reminded us that to move toward “the other” is exactly the transformative movement needed to create new understanding, reconnection, and to rehumanize one another.
Rev. Dr. Martha Brunell
How much has changed and how much remains the same — both are true … Question: Can we remember there is never just one story and certainly not just one perspective on a single story?
Madison Plemens-Schunk – First Congregational UCC, Mankato
Dignity is the ability to tell your story without fear of it being misconstrued, romanticized, or falsified. Dignity is having agency to choose how you will move forward after trauma and harm rather than being forced to forgive or forget … I believe that dignity is the single most important thing in order to bring about any sort of change after conflict or violence.
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Save the Dates for the Fall Clergy Retreat
Registration opening soon!
Location: Dunrovin Retreat Center
Dates: October 27-29, arrive 5 pm Tuesday & depart 11:30 am Thursday
Cost: $250 (scholarship support is available; MIDs receive a $200 registration discount)
All authorized ministers of the Minnesota Conference UCC and members in discernment are invited to be part of this year’s clergy retreat. Plan to pause from the rhythms and demands of daily life with a community of colleagues in the beautiful St. Croix River Valley.
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First Congregational United Church of Christ Moorhead Honored with MoorHeart Award
On Monday, June 22, the Moorhead City Council and Moorhead Mayor Shelly Carlson honored the congregation with the MoorHeart award, recognizing the a team from the church for their efforts to provide services and make connections with the homeless community in Moorhead. These efforts include donating food from their community garden, working with service providers in the community and providing compassion through their fellowship. CAPLP Homeless Outreach wrote in the nomination: “They are a small but mighty crew showing everyone around them that we can all lend a hand to our neighbors in need.”
Congratulations!
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The Strengthen the Church (STC) Offering reflects the shared commitment of people across the United Church of Christ to cooperatively build up the UCC. Conferences and the national setting equally share the gifts given by members and friends through their local congregations. The funds raised support leadership development, new churches, youth ministry, and innovation in existing congregations. By your generosity to this offering, you build up the Body of Christ.
As God calls our congregations to be the church in new ways, your generosity will plant new churches, awaken new ideas in existing churches, and develop the spiritual life in our youth and young adults.
The theme for 2026 is Sent Forth in Love. Participating in the offering helps foster connections with the wider church and create possibilities for the church of tomorrow. Typically this offering is received on Pentecost Sunday, but it is never too late to Strengthen the Church! You can find helpful materials here.
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At Waters’ Edge: Sacred Relations
The 2026 Great Lakes Creation Care Collaborative Retreat
August 23–25, Paris, Ontario
What if people of faith from across the Great Lakes watershed — Minnesota, Wisconsin, Ontario, and beyond — gathered at the edge of sacred waters to remember how these waters connect us, body and spirit, across every border? This happens with The Great Lakes Creation Care Collaborative, a binational network of the United Church of Christ and the United Church of Canada, gathered around our shared waters. Its deepest gift is building relationships — the discovery that we are not the only ones in our congregation or conference called to care for the waters.
This is for clergy, lay leaders, green-team members, youth, longtime creation-care advocates, and anyone wondering what their love for these lakes and rivers has to do with their faith. Younger adults are especially encouraged. David Coleman, the Conference’s new Minister of Outdoor Ministry, will be there as well.
When: Sunday, August 23, 4:00 pm – Tuesday, August 25, 11:00 am
Where: Five Oaks Retreat Centre, Paris, Ontario (fiveoaks.on.ca)
Cost: $150 CDN double / $250 CDN single (limited). Includes lodging and meals
Travel: Registrants arrange their own; reach out if it’s a barrier
Financial assistance: The Minnesota Conference has funds to help Minnesota participants attend, especially young adults, if cost is a barrier. Available by request — don’t let cost keep you home. Contact David Coleman.
REGISTER HERE.
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Joy as Resistance and Refugia
We are living in a collision of crises right now. Amid that collision, the Minnesota Conference UCC is offering a series of three in-person retreats – Joy as Resistance and Refugia – between August 2026 and February 2027. Each retreat stands on its own and is related to the other two in the series. All three retreats will be hosted at Camp Onomia in Onamia, Minnesota. The registration fee for each retreat is $175, and participants who register for all three will receive a 25% discount for all three retreats.
Retreat 1 – Reconnections
August 6-8, 2026
Retreat 2 – Rest and Resilience
November 17-19, 2026
Retreat 3 – Remembering New Beginnings
February 12-15, 2027
Registration opens soon! Watch for more details in the next edition of COMMAntary. Questions? Contact David Coleman at davidc@uccmn.org.
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Save The Dates: Embodied Antiracism 4-Week Intro Series for White Clergy
What: The times we're in continue to call for courageous and resilient leadership and solidarity. This embodied professional development offering for white clergy is a chance to build authentic relationships with peers around the messy work of racial justice, becoming more familiar with our embodied white patterns, grow our capacity for loving accountability, and gain embodied practices that can support greater alignment with our values under pressure.
This series grows out of a deeper-dive embodied antiracism cohort learning for white clergy that Rachel Svanoe Moynihan + Allyson Green have been offering for several years. This fall we're offering a shorter intro version to make this work accessible to more people.
Who: White clergy longing to embody their racial justice values with greater integrity and resilience
When: 4 Thursdays, 1:30-3:30 pm (Oct 29, Nov 5, Nov 12, Nov 19); First Thursday is 1:30-4:30 pm
Where: A TBD church in Minneapolis
Cost: Suggested range of $300-$500 (please reach out if cost is a barrier)
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News and Updates from The Damascus Project
Upcoming Courses
The Damascus Project, the regional theological education program of the Minnesota and Wisconsin Conferences UCC, offers an enriching line up of online learning opportunities for lay learners, lay leaders, members in discernment, and clergy pursuing continuing education or fulfilling ministerial standing requirements.
New offerings include Strangers Within your Gates: Cultivating Holy Hospitality for Immigrants looks through the lens of the Hebrew Bible to considers what it means to welcome the stranger in a world that builds walls and deports.
Our Lilly Endowment Thriving Congregations grant is underwriting two helpful courses for lay leaders and clergy: Healthy Conflict and Communication and Human Resources Basics for UCC Churches.
Explore all upcoming courses and trainings.
Info Sessions for Living Faith Confirmation Program
The Damascus Project will hold four information sessions for congregations interested in the online Living Faith confirmation program. The Living Faith confirmation program is supported by a Lilly Endowment grant and designed to serve the needs of small and rural churches in the Minnesota and Wisconsin Conferences UCC. The program is for eighth graders, and each student learns with a mentor from their congregation. For September 2026-May 2027 we will offer a twice-monthly cohort on Sunday afternoons or on Wednesday evenings.
Rev. Uriah Williams is the director of the Living Faith program. He will host information sessions via Zoom on:
6/28 at 6:00 pm
7/22 at 6:00 pm
7/26 at 6:00 pm
Join here.You may also direct inquiries to Rev. Williams at uriah@the-damascus-project.org. Registration for the Living Faith confirmation program will open on July 1, 2026.
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Camino Hackensack: Sacred Walking on the Paul Bunyan Trail
Come walk, listen, and discover what the Spirit stirs, one step at a time.
October 7–11, 2026 | Hackensack, Minnesota
What happens when a congregation looks at the trail just outside its doors and imagines possibilities for sacred experience?
For Union Congregational Church in Hackensack, that question became Camino Hackensack: a five-day spiritual walking experience along the Paul Bunyan Trail, rooted in Minnesota lake country, October beauty, shared reflection, and the hospitality of a local community. Camino Hackensack is inspired by the Camino de Santiago in Spain, but shaped for Minnesota.
From October 7–11, participants will walk approximately 40–45 miles over five days at a sustainable pace, with walking guides, daily spiritual prompts, evening reflection, and time for both quiet and conversation.
When: October 7–11, 2026
Where: Union Congregational Church, Hackensack, MN
Cost: $150, including food, lodging at the church, spiritual guidance, walking guides, and a t-shirt
Group size: Limited to 15 walkers — register soon!
Participants may stay at the church for the full communal experience or arrange private lodging nearby.
The Minnesota Conference will cover the full registration cost for any pastor, chaplain, or ministry leader who would like to participate. We especially hope ministry leaders will experience Camino Hackensack as a model for congregation-led outdoor ministry that could take root in other communities.
To learn more or register, email Linnea Dietrich at linneadietrich@icloud.com. Linnea can provide additional information, receive payment, and help ministry leaders access Conference-covered registration.
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ConNext Summit 2026:
Beyond Belonging - Branching Out - Bringing In - Building Together
October 11-13, Clearwater Forest Camp and Retreat Center
REGISTER
Faith leaders strive to create places of deep belonging. We long to branch out beyond belonging to bring into the center children, youth, and adults forced to the margins so that together, we can build a more beautiful community in which all God's beloveds flourish. How can we develop more emotionally- and systemically-aware mentors – adults and peers –capable of more joyful and meaningful welcome for children and youth whose identities place them on the margins and increasingly in danger? In the face of Christian Nationalism and other radicalizing ideologies, how do we create communities in which vulnerability, compassion, and gracious conversation are norms that shape open, compassionate, gracious children, youth, and families?
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You are invited to a farewell service for Rev. JD Haas, Sunday, July 5, at 9:30 am at United Church, 201 Troendle St SW, Mapleton MN.
The Committee on Ministry will host an Ecclesiastical Council for Katie Johnson Gant on Sunday, July 19, at 2:00 pm. Delegates and guests are invited to join in person at Morningside Hills UCC (4201 Morningside Rd, Edina, MN 55416) and via Zoom. This is an opportunity for our member churches to participate in the Conference’s discernment for our candidates for ordination. We must have a quorum for this candidate to move forward in the process. Learn more about Katie. Please reach out to See Chang at COMadmin@uccmn.org with any questions or for more information.
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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 | | | | |
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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.
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