Wishing you a warm welcome!

We are very pleased that you would like to learn more about Venice United Church of Christ, and are considering becoming a member. We offer two types of membership, Full and Associate. Associate members retain their membership in another church while joining us while they reside part of the year in Florida. Both types of membership come with full voting rights. Those who have not yet committed to becoming either type of member can opt to be known as a “Friend of the Church”. They may be fully involved participants except for not being able to join in any decision-making of the congregation.
The membership process is a simple one. We are pleased to be an Open and Affirming congregation who welcomes all! Our bylaws state that, “The congregation shall receive into membership any person who expresses a desire for membership and who, in the presence of the congregation, affirms a commitment to the faith and family of Venice United Church of Christ.”

Your commitment to faith may be shown in a variety of ways:
Confession of faith through baptism;
Confession of faith through confirmation;
A letter of transfer from your last church;
Making a reaffirmation of faith if no church records are available.
When you have decided to join us, we ask that you attend a New Members class on three consecutive Sundays. These dates will be announced. We will meet in the Naar Hall conference room for about an hour after church. (You may bring your coffee and Fellowship snack with you!) Our main objective throughout will be to get to know each other better, but we also want to enrich your understanding of the United Church of Christ.  To do this, we will ask that you read a brief document or watch a short video at home before each class so that we can spend our time together talking.

Prepare for our first meeting

The first class is simply a “Meet and Greet” in which we will learn about each other’s backgrounds, where we are from, what we may have done in a former church, and our interests and talents. We will also discuss our Statement of Faith. Before that session, we ask that you please:
  •  Complete a New Member Interest Form.
  • Go to the App Store and download the VUCC app on your phone. (We can help you)
  •  Watch a video about our UCC “Statement of Faith.”
  • Read our Shared Core Values, Our Vision and Mission Statements
  • Invite a church member to be your sponsor, attending your first session with you.

Our Second meeting

The second class will allow us to collect all of your biographies, take your photograph, and discuss some of our remarkable history. Before that session, we ask that you:
  • Watch “A Church of Firsts, An Historic & Ongoing Commitment to Joining Faith and Action.”
  • Read “UCC Firsts”
  • Read “Five Faith Communities”

Our third meeting

The third class will help you understand the structure of our governing body, the Leadership Council, and how to contact everyone. You will be introduced to the officers and to the chair of Missions. Before that session, we ask that you review:
 “Who’s Who on Leadership Council
 “Leadership Council”
 “ Where Does Everything Fit?”

Your membership ceremony

Your membership ceremony will take place during our Service of Worship on the following Sunday.  A celebration in your honor will follow during Fellowship.

We look forward to formally welcoming you into our family of faith.

Warmly,
Pastor Barb and The Vision Team