About 3 am, a loud thunderclap woke me up. Though I did get back to sleep, it rained for the next three hours. There would be no motorcycle ride today. (Well, that and the fact that I had a guitar and cooler at Elmhurst College that I had to bring home when the conference meeting was over.)
After a small breakfast (I arrived at about 8 am) it was into the next plenary (do you like that word?) where we celebrated church and ordination milestone anniversaries. (I learned that St. Matthew Senior Pastor Neal Sadler is celebrating 25 years of ordained ministry!) We had significant discussion about an emergency resolution calling for a more humane US immigration policy. Though we passed the resolution, there was significant dissent due mostly to the wording of the resolution. I think most everyone supported the spirit of the resolution. It seems as though it was passed for study in congregations, but also was passed to send to General Synod in 2007. We also passed, without much discussion at all, a previously passed, but now slightly changed resolution calling for no more Depleted Uranium weapons. We're sending this resolution to General Synod too. (Resolution text will be linked when it is available on the Illinois Conference UCC website)
Our closing worship service offered moving music from the United Campus Ministries Choir from Champaign as well as a wonderful message from Dow Edgerton. He really focused on challenging us to pray with the Holy Spirit. Let the Spirit continue to move us and to guide us.
And then we were done.
One last note -- I thoroughly enjoyed having a conversation with Rev. Sterling Cary, retired Illinois Conference Minister, as well as listening to and laughing with our outgoing Illinois Conference president, Rev Joe Mills.
Annual Meeting 2007 is June 8-10 at the Clock Tower Inn in Rockford.
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