Conference Minister Remarks: SCNC UCC Annual Gathering 2026 - Rev. Rachael Pryor, SCNC UCC Conference Minister

A question arose at our clergy retreat, which has been on my heart continuously since I was called to this role. The question is: Where will the Conference be in five years from now?

At the clergy dinner, as we were wrapping up, I said somewhat in jest, “I can’t know about that.” In other words, I can’t answer that question. I can’t even think about it. 

But the truth is that I think about it all the time. I think and pray about our congregations who are in transition: searching for new leadership or searching for a vision that can transform ministries of property maintenance into ministries of community solidarity. I think about our ministers being called and prepared for a church that doesn’t exist yet. I think about the ways aging and climate change, migration and political movements will affect our communities and landscapes – physically and culturally. 

I pray for humility as I observe my own children, and other kids and teens in church – longing for them to love what I have always loved about my experience of church, but knowing in my heart that I have to be more committed to building the church of their future than to preserving the church of my past. 

And when I imagine the church of this future, I am strengthened by the growing conviction that the answer to who we are – as a Conference, as a denomination, as a Church – in five or 10 or 50 years, will depend primarily on when and if we choose to remain silent, in this moment. 

We are watching, in real time, the eradication of a people and a culture, as Palestinian cities and homes are bombed to rubble; as Palestinian doctors and journalists, hospitals and schools, are assassinated and demolished. Our tax dollars are being used to arm a government with no regard for international law or human rights. The oldest Christian churches in the world, in the birthplace of our faith, are being erased. Will we remain silent as the Body of Christ is slaughtered? As our Muslim and Jewish neighbors, including tens of thousands of children, are tortured, imprisoned, and starved to death?

We have elected a president who is convicted of rape; and we have multiple political and administrative leaders, from multiple political parties, who are embroiled in a massive child sex trafficking and abuse network. Every survivor of sexual abuse and assault is watching; will the Church remain silent in an unspoken assent to rape culture and toxic masculinity?

We are watching on social media as our neighbors – citizens and immigrants, indigenous and international, black and brown, children and infants – are rounded up by a White nationalist militia with no regard for their own policies and procedures; as families are separated; as human beings die of intentionally cruel and inhumane conditions in detention centers in this very state. Will the Church remain silent as they come for our neighbors – our Christian neighbors – thinking our wealth or our Whiteness will protect us indefinitely?

Even as Los Angeles recovers from one of the most destructive climate disasters in history, we watch the rollback of decades-long protections for our air, water, and ecosystems, as the science and technology that is our planet’s only hope for survival are tossed aside as part of a cancel culture that favors short-term profit over long-term stewardship. Will we silently pretend that our sacred text does not call this creation supremely good – and call on us to take care of it?

It is our silence that will tell the next generation, we didn’t care enough to fight for your future. We were more concerned with replacing the carpet than feeding the hungry. We prayed in our sanctuaries, but not at our ballot boxes or our federal buildings. We didn’t talk about consent or patriarchy because we didn’t want to make our biggest donors to feel uncomfortable.

It is our silence – or our witness, whichever we choose – that will determine whether the next generation sees the church as faithful, relevant, courageous, and worthwhile; or as just another dying institution primarily concerned with preserving power, tradition, and comfort for a few. 

By our silence we contribute to a culture of impunity, in which those entrusted with authority and leadership are not held accountable to laws, to basic ethical standards, or to the will of the people. 

And so rather than a report this year, I wanted to offer an invitation: to explore and create together, over the coming year, a Resolution of Witness against a culture of impunity. A resolution that does not address any single one of the challenges we face, but all of them together. A resolution that refuses to demean as mere “politics” the civil and cultural laws and policies that are literally a matter of life or death for people in our communities. 

A resolution that addresses the sinfulness of silence, and the faithfulness of public witness. A resolution that will empower our Conference ministry staff, authorized ministers in Local Churches and specialized settings, and lay members, with the resources and encouragement we need, to witness boldly and effectively for our Gospel commitment to preach Good News to the poor, release the imprisoned, and liberate the oppressed. 

I hope we will craft a resolution together over the coming year and bring it to next year’s Annual Gathering for a Conference vote; but more importantly, for a covenantal dialogue and engagement about what it means to build solidarity and speak truth to power. If we want to be a part of vibrant, relevant, healthy churches in five or 10 or 50 years, we have to be the ones who build the beloved community today. Or our silence today will be the silence of closed and empty churches in our future. 

That’s the Conference I hope to know in five years, and I hope to build it together with all of you. Thank you for your attention, your prayers, and your partnership.

Editor’s note: This message was delivered to the Southern California Nevada Conference at their Annual Gathering that was held May 29-30 at First Congregational Church of Los Angeles.

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Mentored into ministry from childhood at Sylvania United Church of Christ in Northwest Ohio, Rachael’s call and vision are rooted in extravagant welcome, faithful generosity, and a commitment to advocacy and justice. She holds a BA in Political Science from the University of Michigan and an M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary. Rachael lived and worked in eastern Austria as an English teaching assistant through the Fulbright program for two years between college and seminary.

Before coming to the SCNC, Rachael served as Associate Conference Minister with the Kansas-Oklahoma Conference and as part of the Tri-Conference staff team in Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota. She also spent seven years working with Kansas Interfaith Action: first as a board member and volunteer, then three years as Board Chair, followed by a staff role as Director of Engagement and Development. Rachael has served local congregations of the UCC and the ELCA in interim, transitional, and settled calls. She also has experience in campus ministry, in children and teen ministries, and with new church starts. She is a former participant with the UCC’s Next Generation Leadership Initiative (NGLI).

Rachael is a parent to four young children. She enjoys cooking for friends, reading, cold weather, and traveling to new places.