Introduction:

The Wisconsin Conference - United church of Christ, Christian Education Commission, in June 2003, adopted a resolution aimed at reducing the risk of child abuse in the church. The adopted resolutio in cluded the following statements:

Jesus said: "Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs." (Matthew 19:14)

Whereas, as Christians we are called to love, care for, protect and provide places of justice and hospitality for all persons, especially children: and

Whereas, churches are to be holy places of sanctuary where all can gather for worship, study and services with the assurance that they are safe and secure in the community of faith; and

Whereas, churches, large and small , rural and urban, have not always been safe places for children, free from sexual abuse and exploitation; and

Whereas, when such abuse occurs its consequences are devastating to all involved, including the church; and

Whereas, God's call to make our churches safe places and to protect children from abuse now has a sense of urgency and intentionally about it;

Therefore, be it resolve that the Wisconsin Conference of the UCC urge all its member churches to develop and implement a safe church policy.

Thus, in covenant with other UCC congregations, we adpt this policy for the prevention of child abuse in our church.

Statement of Purpose:

Our congregation's purpose of establishing this Safe Sanctuary Policy and accompanying procedures is to demonstrate our absolute and unwavering commitment to creating a safe and healthy environment in which young people can learn about and experience God's love. Our goal is to provide a safe environment to the children and youth who are entrusted to our care as they participate in our programs and use our facilities. We want our church to be a haven, free of misconduct or harassment. Therefore, we have adopted the following procedures, guildelines and programs to reduce the possibility of sexual or physical abuse from occurring in our congregation. The educational aspect will make us aware of potential problems and the implementation of prudent procedures and guidelines should help safeguard our children, youth and members. While not all policies can anticipate and prevent all misfortune, they can state a purpose and provide guidance to achieve the purpose. These procedures express our keen interest in protecting our children and youth, while maintaining the trusting atmosphere of our church family for the entire congregation, adults and children alike.