{"content":[{"text":"the 1800s. Someone might say that staying closer to the shore has allowed us to see \n that we are still sailing, while dramatically reducing the risk of shipwreck. Close to the \n shore, the wind is not strongest in the middle of the ocean, and keeping the land in our \n sight has given us a sense of security and comfort.","bbox":{"left":0.117647,"top":0.091435,"width":0.749277,"height":0.0692}},{"text":"In 2020, the 110-year-old Council on Christian Unity adopted its new name, the \n Christian Unity and Interfaith Ministry. Many Disciples were encouraged by and have \n welcomed this change. Some believe that it is an example of what we are: a body that \n evolves and moves forward with a great deal of courage. However, other Disciples have \n expressed disappointment, feeling that we will eventually lose our focus on healing the \n divisions of Christ’s church and bringing the visible unity of God’s one church to the \n world. To this small number of Disciples, the change in name is irresponsible to the \n tradition of the church.","bbox":{"left":0.117647,"top":0.178556,"width":0.7620819999999999,"height":0.13889700000000005}},{"text":"It took the board members five years of discussions and conversations to conclude that \n now was the time to change our ministry’s name and renew our commitment to God’s \n calling. This was not an easy process by any means. The board members thoughtfully \n considered our tradition as a denomination and carefully studied the ministry’s original \n purpose. We prayed, reflected, consulted, and studied this issue, and we have \n communicated to the broader church how prayerfully we engaged in this process.","bbox":{"left":0.117647,"top":0.335374,"width":0.7556449999999999,"height":0.104049}},{"text":"After we made our official announcement to the church and legally adopted the new \n name, the reaction and response to this decision from the wider church made the board \n of the CUIM suspicious that we, the Disciples of Christ, had gotten stuck on the \n sandbank called the tradition and the structure when we were instead merely staying \n closer to the shore. Have we completely stalled, and yet, have we perceived it as the \n weight of tradition and history as a denomination?","bbox":{"left":0.117647,"top":0.457344,"width":0.758748,"height":0.10404800000000003}},{"text":"Facing the criticism, concerns, and indifference of the church as well as welcoming this \n change, Ms. Teresa Crist, board chair, class of 2020, responded to the church in a \n recent communiqué:","bbox":{"left":0.117647,"top":0.579314,"width":0.753334,"height":0.051775000000000015}},{"text":"As jarring as it might be for a denomination that loves tradition, changing the \n name from Council on Christian Unity to Christian Unity and Interfaith Ministry \n has been the result of prayerful reflection and discernment. The new name \n represents not a change, but an acknowledgement of what the ministry has been \n doing if not since its inception, at least for the past few decades. It was important \n to the Board to have a name that reflected the work engaged by our President, \n and which affirmed the important theology of unity that is at the heart of Disciples \n identity. The new name is an important step toward aligning our purpose on \n paper as well as in practice and reminding the Christian Church (Disciples of \n Christ) of the continued and renewed vitality of this general ministry.","bbox":{"left":0.176471,"top":0.649011,"width":0.701176,"height":0.17374500000000004}},{"text":"As the COVID-19 pandemic caused the replacement of most physical ecumenical and \n interfaith activities with screen-based gatherings, the CUIM Board spent quite some \n time re-elaborating the purpose of this ministry. Thanks to the lengthy process of","bbox":{"left":0.117647,"top":0.840677,"width":0.745611,"height":0.051776000000000044}}],"images_bbox":[],"images_bbox_not_text_overlap":[]}