Our Mission Statement

University Church of Christ exists to teach Jesus Christ as Lord, praise God, trust His Word and follow the leading of his Spirit, serve one another in love, and reach out to others.

(Matthew 22:37ff; Matthew 28:18-20; John 13:34-35; Ephesians 3:14-21)

Our Core Beliefs

• There is one God, eternally existing in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. (Romans 8)
• God, out of love for His children, sent His son Jesus Christ to die for our sins, and rise from the dead. (I Corinthians 15:1-8)
• The Bible is the inspired Word of God and is the final authority in life and doctrine. (2 Timothy 3:16)
• Salvation is a free gift of God. The death of Christ on the cross is the only sufficient payment for our sins. All have sinned, and all can be saved. This salvation is available for any who put their trust in Christ as Savior. (Romans 3:23; 6:23; John 3:16)
• Those trusting in Christ should repent of sin, confess their faith in Jesus, and be baptized. (Romans 10:9; Acts 2:38)
• The church is the body of Christ on earth, empowered by the Holy Spirit to continue the task of reaching the lost and discipling the saved, helping them become fully devoted followers of Christ. (Ephesians 4:1-16)

Our Guiding Principles

• Honor God through a Spirit filled worship.
• Seek and serve others through outreach, evangelism, benevolence, and foreign mission efforts.
• Increase unity in Christ by serving on another with love, being non-judgmental and accepting of one another.
• Enhance spiritual growth through prayer, the study of God's word, and personal meditation.
• Equip each other for spiritual ministry and benevolent service.
• Support the development of strong marriages and Christ centered families.
• Foster a spirit of concern for each and every member of the UCC family.

Our Church Purpose Statement (by the late Harold Thomas)

The University Church of Christ is a congregation of believers in Jesus which in this country has its roots in efforts of early nineteenth century religious leaders to deal with the divided state of Christendom. There was a desire to see all believers in Jesus united through the acknowledgment of the Bible alone as a basis of doctrine and with each congregation free to determine teaching "and practice by a consensus of its members."

The University Church affirms that desire. Any person who seeks to follow Jesus as Lord is welcomed as a member of the congregation without being asked to subscribe to any creedal formula.

Presently in the congregation, there is a majority acceptance of a number of beliefs which are expressed in our practices. These include:

1. that believers are to be baptized by immersion for the remission of sins and in order to receive the Holy Spirit;

2. that the leading of the indwelling Holy Spirit should be sought in all of our actions, both individually and as a congregation. We do not set limits on the power of range of the Holy Spirit's movement in our lives. We are concerned that we not quench or reject His direction;

3. that the Lord's Supper should be offered each Lord's Day;

4. that the leadership of a congregation should be by elders (if there is a plurality of qualified men who will serve) and deacons;

5. that there should be no subservience to any organizational structure other than its local organization under the headship of Christ;

6. that worship in song be without any accompaniment of man-made instruments of music; (With some this is a matter of conscience. Others respect the consciences of these members though they do not see the use of man-made instruments in worship as wrong);

7. that there should be no appearance of sitting in condemnation of sincere believers who differ with us as to their acceptance in the grace of God; (If we are accepted, it is by His grace which overlooks shortcomings in our understanding of the whole of His truth, in the measure of our faith, in the purity of our motives, and in the correctness of any or all of our actions. We do not limit His grace only to us!)

This body of believers does not feel obligated to justify a status quo. It has no illusion that it has arrived at being the ideal church. It is a congregation of disciples (learners) and, whereas these believe that the word of God contains the instructions and directions for achieving the ideal, they do not accept any formula that men have written or expressed as a final, infallible definition of that ideal -- neither in its totality nor in its several parts. For us the search is still on and if we have right now a distinctive quality it is perhaps just that we regard ourselves as seekers rather than as those who have achieved. (Philippians 3: 12-16).

But if we are seekers, there should be growth. There should be zest in the search, excitement in every new discovery, and the eagerness to translate into deeds the ideas that we have discovered in the open study of the word of God. Unless we do this, our search is a kind of folly. But if we do this, we will demonstrate, in action and in life, higher and deeper and broader and more long range Christian perspectives. We will be changed from "glory to glory" (2 Corinthians 3:18) as we "attain the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:13).

The point is that this church desires to show by ascending steps its progress toward the ideals of Christianity. It is one thing to be free to search and another to search indeed. And it is one thing to be free to search and something else to translate the discoveries into everyday Christian activity.

Our Church History

The Church of Christ had its beginning in Conway in the spring of 1904. It began in the parlor of Mr. & Mrs. J. C. Dawson's home with just three members. The Dawson's had just moved to Conway to open a new business. On June 9, 1905, R. H. Johnson of Atkins held its first gospel meeting. Soon after this meeting, and with fourteen members, J. C. Dawson and A. L. DeArmond were selected as elders, and P. H. Jamison and W. R. Townsend were selected as deacons. Money was in short supply; but, with much faith and sacrifice, in November, 1905, they purchased a building located at the corner of Faulkner and Robinson Avenue from the Presbyterians.

On the first Sunday of September 1919, the congregation moved into a new and larger building at Faulkner and Robinson Avenue. The first sermon in the new building was preached by J. C. Dawson. By this time he was a well-known preacher, with a large tent, and he spent his summer months preaching the Word in Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma.

In 1962, a small band of Christians from the now mature Robinson & Center Church of Christ formed the College Church of Christ as an outreach to the young people attending Arkansas State Teachers College. This band of Christians began with the blessing and encouragement of the Robinson & Center congregation.

The first members of the College Church were:

The congregation's first meeting place was the 'Hill House' which had previously served as housing for the female students from AST college. This two story frame house was located on the corner od Donaghey and Bruce Streets, across the street fro the college campus.

The congregation grew and in 1967 a brick house was built on the same location, The building had eleven classrooms, a fellowship hall which was also used as a worship center, kitchen, nursery, minister's study and restrooms.

In 1975, the State College of Arkansas (formerly Arkansas State Teachers' College) changed its name to the University of Central Arkansas. And soon after the College Church changed its name as well to become the University Church of Christ.

There were 130 members of the congregation in 1984. The church continued to grow and in 1992 the congregation decided there was a need for a larger facility. Twelve acres were purchased in Highway 286 at Mattison Road and the building on Donaghey and Bruce was sold.

While construction on the new building took place, the church began to meet in the chapel at Dwire Funeral Home for Sunday morning worship. It was also at this time that the church began to meet in small group "house churches" for Bible study, devotionals, and fellowship.

The current facility was completed in 1994 and the congregation moved into their new church building with great excitement. The small band of Christians that met in the "Hill House" in 1962 has grown in number, in spiritual strength, and in outreach.

(UCC history comes from the contributions of Rebecca Ely and Wade & Deanna Ely. Early Conway Church of Christ history comes from the Robinson and Center archives.)