title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: For 2011, the Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited received a mid-cycle restyling. The interior was fully redesigned to include a new steering wheel with integrated Bluetooth voice command, cruise control, and audio system controls, an available enhanced Electronic Vehicle Information Center (EVIC), the Uconnect hands-free Bluetooth phone system with voice control for the vehicle's audio system, as well as Bluetooth stereo audio streaming via A2DP, updated radios with available Garmin-based GPS navigation and SiriusXM Satellite Radio and Travel Link, a new passenger side grab bar with embossed "Jeep" and "Since 1941" insignias, new interior door skins (panels), a new power window control switch panel, new climate controls and vents, and new seat fabrics (heated front seats and leather-trimmed seating surfaces were also available for the first time in a Wrangler or Wrangler Unlimited). New aluminum-alloy wheels options also became available, and the transmission shift lever for the automatic transmission and manual four-wheel-drive (4X4) system were both redesigned. Even with the Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited being new, the 3.8L V6 gas engine and four-speed automatic transmission would not be replaced by the 3.6L Pentastar VVT V6 gas engine and five-speed automatic transmission until the 2012 model year.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: The 70th Anniversary Edition is a special package based on the Sahara model to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of Jeep. This package is available for the 2011 model year on both Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited models. Features include: Black/Dark Olive (or Black) leather seats with perforated leather inserts and Chestnut accent stitching and piping, Leather steering wheel with Chestnut accents, Berber floor mats with Chestnut binding, Mopar brushed aluminum sill plates, Door armrest and center console in Dark Olive (or Black) with Chestnut accent, Unique 18-inch polished wheels, Automatic shift knob with satin chrome cap and bezel, Satin chrome HVAC rings, front doorpulls and grab handle, 70th Anniversary logo on radio screen, Unique cluster overlay and needles, and 70th Anniversary badges throughout.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: In 2011 MOPAR made a kit available, to convert a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited into a pickup, called JK-8 Independence. The kit turns the Jeep into a two-seater with a 50 inches long steel bed, and the half hard-top works with Freedom Top panels.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: The 2012 model, as confirmed by Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne during the 2010 third-quarter sales announcement, received a version of Chrysler's newest V-6 engine known as Pentastar. The version used in the 2012 Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited produces 285 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque. Fuel economy for the 2-door model is rated at 17 mpg City / 21 mpg Highway.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Jeep Wrangler Arctic is based on Jeep Wrangler Sahara, with Arctic badge, decal recall the Yeti, unique black 17-inch wheels, original Mopar accessories, 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 petrol engine with the automatic five-speed transmission or 2.8-liter turbo diesel engine with a six-speed manual or five-speed automatic transmission.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Wrangler Unlimited Altitude edition is a package that starts with a Sahara model and adds black exterior treatment including the front badge, the wheel spokes, the fuel door, and a hood sticker. Inside, the vent trim, door pulls, steering-wheel spokes, and passenger grab handle are rendered in black. Stitching is done in red. The Altitude Wrangler paint colors are cherry red, black, white, or silver, and all include a body-colored hardtop.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: European models of Jeep Wrangler were introduced in Jeep dealerships starting November 2011. Early models include Sport, Sahara and Rubicon trim levels of Jeep Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited. Arctic model were introduced in Jeep dealerships in the first quarter of 2012 (for Jeep Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited).


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: A version of 2012 model year Jeep Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon inspired by Activision's "Call of Duty" video games was available. Equipment included Rubicon wheels finished in semi-gloss black, black or bright silver body color, "Call of Duty: MW3 Special Edition" graphics on the front fenders and spare tire cover, modified sculpted hood also from AEV (no heat vent), an AEV winch-ready (less the winch plate) front bumper and AEV rear bumper, rock rails, taillamp guards and a fuel-filler door from Mopar accessories, 32-inch off-road tires, live axles with locking differentials in the front and rear, a two-speed transfer case, model-specific black seats with accent stitching and "Call of Duty" logos, unique gauge cluster graphics, dashboard serialized plaque, dashboard grab handle with logo, accent stitching on arm rest, console lid, and steering wheel, as well as Mopar slush floor mats and a rear cargo mat (Unlimited only) with logos.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Since about 2012, the company American Expedition Vehicles offered an extended wheelbase, double-cab pickup conversion of the Unlimited, called the 'Brute'. Inspired by the Land Rover Defender 130, the Brute has a 139 inch wheelbase and an overall length of 216 inches. After four years of production, the Brute was retired.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: The Wrangler series have received the following update/improvements; newly contoured seats and trim, a lever for one-handed rear-seat folding (previously a two-handed operation), ambient cabin lighting, and the return of the long-awaited second windshield washer nozzle.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Similar to the 2012 "Call of Duty" version, it was named in recognition of the mountainous Utah east-central region that plays host to the annual Moab Easter Jeep Safari. The newest addition to the Wrangler lineup was aimed to bridge the gap between Rubicon and Sahara style.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Available for both Wrangler models, the Moab’s uniqueness was its distinguishing exterior features which included the steel bumpers front and rear from AEV (less the winch plate), rock sliders on the sills, tail light guards, front skid plate, black fuel filler door and a modified sculpted hood also from AEV (no heat vent). Color choice was limited to black, white, and a quartet of signature hues: Gecko, Dune, Crush, and Rock Lobster with fender flares in matte black only.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Other components and options were as follows: A limited-slip rear differential is standard and a locking unit is optional, 32" Goodyear Silent Armor tires on black-painted versions of the same wheels found on the 2013 Rubicon, Wrangler’s standard 2.72:1 transfer case (no option for a Rubicon 4:1), a soft canvas top cut from the same cloth as the Chrysler 200 Convertible’s and optional color matching hard top.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: For Australia, the year revived the Jeep 'Overland' name, with the introduction of a premium / luxury version, featuring for instance leather-trimmed seats, automatic headlights and a reversing camera.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: The 2013 Jeep Wrangler and Jeep Wrangler Unlimited are built in the Toledo Supplier Park in Toledo, Ohio.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: As of May 17, 2013, Chrysler Group's Toledo (Ohio) Assembly Complex produced its one-millionth JK model, a 2013 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 10th Anniversary Edition, to be delivered to a customer in Sarasota, Florida.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: As part of 2013 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 10th Anniversary Edition launch, the Jeep X Games Avalanche Scramble sweepstakes campaign featured a 2013 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 10th Anniversary Edition grand prize and 3 'X Games Aspen 2013' prizes.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: The Commando Jeep is a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) tactical vehicle based on the Jeep Wrangler with a factory installed turbodiesel engine operating on JP-8 and global diesel fuels. It is a vehicle modified for use by airborne forces, special operations forces, and combat engineers.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: General changes to the Wrangler include a new Trail Kit (two D-rings, a tow strap, gloves and a bag to store the items), clear park lamps and turn signal indicators replace the amber units, 6 new body colors (Amp’d, Anvil, Copperhead, Flame Red, Granite Crystal and Hydro Blue (Freedom Edition only)) for total of 10.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Changes to Sport models include the introduction of optional UConnect 6.5-inch touchscreen radio with hard drive storage and SiriusXM Radio, optional 32-inch Tire and Wheel Group (semi-gloss black 17-inch Rubicon aluminum wheels, BF Goodrich KM LT255/75R17 off-road tires).


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Available as a two-door Wrangler or four-door Wrangler Unlimited, the Rubicon X is a version of Rubicon with electronic-locking front and rear Dana 44 axles, Rock-Trac transfer case with a "4-Low" ratio of 4:1, 4.10 front/rear axle ratio Tru-Lok locking differentials, six-speed manual transmission, BF Goodrich KM 255/75R17 tires, 17-inch Rubicon aluminum wheels painted satin black with polished faces and a red Jeep Wrangler 'icon' logo on the inside pocket, black front and rear steel off-road bumpers, front steel bumper featuring removable end caps and a winch-capable design, a dual-intake Power Dome hood, red tow hooks, Mopar rock rails, Mopar black fuel filler door, a red-silhouette "Rubicon" decal on both sides of the hood, Premium Sunrider soft top (optional black three-piece Freedom hard top or body-color hard top), Black leather seats, seat heaters for the front passengers, a unique gauge cluster features Rubicon X exclusive styling and a premium Electronic Vehicle Information Center (EVIC) with added read-outs such as oil pressure, transmission and coolant temperatures, digital speed and individual tire pressure; passenger grab handle with Quick Silver accents that are also found on the vent rings, steering wheel spokes and door pulls; Mopar slush mats, unique axle locker, sway-bar disconnect switches.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: New limited edition trim packages include the Wrangler Dragon edition, which includes a black three-piece hard top, Bronze Satin Gloss paint with Dragon decals, and unique 18 inch wheels and front fascia. Jeep introduced the Polar Edition Wrangler in 2014 which was available in 2-door and 4 door and came in three distinct colors; Hydro Pearl Blue, Billet Silver Metallic, and Bright White. In addition to the new colors, the Polar Edition came with options including automatic climate control and heated seats to supplement the black leather seats. The Polar Edition has some similarities to the Sahara such as body colored fender flares and also came standard with a body colored hard top. The Polar Edition is equipped with a standard Trac-Lok limited slip rear differential and offer an electronic locking rear differential as an option.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: A new Freedom Edition is a modified Wrangler sport with 3 unique body colors ('Hydro Blue', 'Billet Silver', and 'Black and Dune'). The package includes a Mineral Gray painted grille, a unique interior and exterior with "Oscar Mike" badging throughout, body colored fenders with silver-painted 17 inch alloy wheels, and rock rails with black tail lamp guards. The interior includes black seats with tectonic fabric, and a French Silver accent stitching steering wheel.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: European models were set to go on sale in the first quarter of 2014. UK models include only 2.8-litre turbo diesel engine with automatic transmission.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: New Mopar Jeep Performance Parts and Accessories included 2014 Jeep Wrangler Trail Rated Kit, 4:10 Dana 44 front and rear axles (for 2007–2014 Wrangler), Hardtop Headliner (for 2007 and later Wrangler), Black Grille (with hood seal and a matching black Jeep badge), Side Visor.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Changes for 2015 include the new paint colors (including, new for 2015, Tank (dark olive green), Sunset Orange, Copper Brown, Baja Yellow, and Firecracker Red.) and trim packages (Sport, Willys Wheeler, Sahara, Rubicon, and Rubicon Hard Rock levels.)


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Changes include a package that bundles steel wheels with 31-inch tires for Sport models, and a Torx tool set that's standard on all models, allowing owners to remove the doors or lower the windshield wherever they are. On base Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited models, sixteen-inch gloss black-painted styled steel wheels were available to replace the standard Sparkle Silver-painted styled steel wheels.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: The 2015 Wrangler received a new nine-speaker, 552-watt Alpine premium audio system (replacing the previously-standard seven-speaker, 368-watt Infinity premium amplified audio system with subwoofer) with amplifier and rear cargo floor-mounted all-weather subwoofer that was optional on all trim levels. All trim levels included a newly-standard eight-speaker audio system (replacing the previously-standard six-speaker audio system). The eight-speaker system replaced the instrument panel-mounted tweeter speakers with 3.5-inch mid-range speakers, and also added a pair of 3.5-inch mid-range speakers to the rear sound bar.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: The Jeep Wrangler was released in India on 30 August 2016. Alongside the Grand Cherokee, the Wrangler was the first model to be sold directly by Jeep in the country. Jeeps were previously built under licence by Mahindra in India since the 1960s.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: For 2018, the Jeep Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited JK were sold alongside the all-new 2018 Jeep Wrangler (JL) and Wrangler Unlimited JL in order to meet demand for the Wrangler until the all-new JL model went on sale in early 2018. The two models would be produced at separate plants at the Toledo Complex in Toledo, Ohio. To distinguish between JK and JL models, a Wrangler JK decal was applied to the front fenders of the vehicle. There were very minimal changes from the 2017 model year Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited (aside from the 75TH Anniversary Edition models), with the same trim levels and special editions being offered, although a new Golden Eagle special edition models were also offered, with bronze-painted accents and aluminum-alloy wheels and special front fender decals. The Golden Eagle was also the only Wrangler JK to be offered with a beige top option.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: On September 13, 2007, at the Defence Systems and Equipment International trade show, Chrysler LLC unveiled a Wrangler Unlimited version designed for military use dubbed the J8. The unarmored Jeep J8 is equipped with larger brakes, axles and suspension components than the civilian version and has a payload capacity of 1,339 kg (2,952 lb). The J8 also differs from the civilian model by utilizing heavy-duty rear leaf springs for carrying heavier payloads. The Jeep J8 is powered by a VM 2.8-liter (169 CID) four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine that produces 118 kW (158 hp) and 400 N·m (295 lbf·ft) of torque, providing towing capability of up to 3,500 kg (7,700 lb). The engine is mated to a five-speed automatic transmission. The J8 also features a unique air-intake system with special filtration and a hood-mounted snorkel that enables the J8 to wade in water up to 762 mm (30 in) deep and tackle sandstorm conditions for up to five hours. Available as a two-door with an extended pickup bed for personnel or equipment transport, or a four-door multipurpose vehicle, it may be produced with numerous vehicle-body and seating configurations in either right-hand- or left-hand-drive. Targeted for use by the militaries in overseas markets, the J8 is not available in the United States because it will not meet U.S. emissions requirements. The J8 will be produced in Egypt.


title: Jeep Wrangler (JK)

text: Production of the Jeep Wrangler JK and Wrangler Unlimited JK ceased on Friday, April 27, 2018, after twelve years, as dealer stock of the 2018 Jeep Wrangler (JL) ramps up. The current Jeep Wrangler JK plant will receive a retooling in order to produce the upcoming JL-based Jeep Gladiator (JT) that will debut for the 2020 model year.


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius II (Latin: "Flavius Julius Constantius"; ; 7 August 317 – 3 November 361) was Roman emperor from 337 to 361. His reign saw constant warfare on the borders against the Sasanian Empire and Germanic peoples, while internally the Roman Empire went through repeated civil wars, court intrigues, and usurpations. His religious policies inflamed domestic conflicts that would continue after his death.


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius was a son of Constantine the Great, who elevated him to the imperial rank of "Caesar" on 8 November 324 and after whose death Constantius became "Augustus" together with his brothers, Constantine II and Constans on 9 September 337. He promptly oversaw the massacre of his father-in-law, an uncle, and several cousins, consolidating his hold on power. The brothers divided the empire among themselves, with Constantius receiving Greece, Thrace, the Asian provinces, and Egypt in the east. For the following decade a costly and inconclusive war against Persia took most of Constantius's time and attention. In the meantime, his brothers Constantine and Constans warred over the western provinces of the empire, leaving the former dead in 340 and the latter as sole ruler of the west. The two remaining brothers maintained an uneasy peace with each other until, in 350, Constans was overthrown and assassinated by the usurper Magnentius.


title: Constantius II

text: Unwilling to accept Magnentius as co-ruler, Constantius waged a civil war against the usurper, defeating him at the battles of Mursa Major in 351 and Mons Seleucus in 353. Magnentius committed suicide after the latter battle, leaving Constantius as sole ruler of the empire. In 351, Constantius elevated his cousin Constantius Gallus to the subordinate rank of "Caesar" to rule in the east, but had him executed three years later after receiving scathing reports of his violent and corrupt nature. Shortly thereafter, in 355, Constantius promoted his last surviving cousin, Gallus' younger half-brother Julian, to the rank of "Caesar".


title: Constantius II

text: As emperor, Constantius promoted Arian heresy, banned pagan sacrifices, and issued laws against Jews. His military campaigns against Germanic tribes were successful: he defeated the Alamanni in 354 and campaigned across the Danube against the Quadi and Sarmatians in 357. The war against the Sasanians, which had been in a lull since 350, erupted with renewed intensity in 359 and Constantius travelled to the east in 360 to restore stability after the loss of several border fortresses. However, Julian claimed the rank of "Augustus" in 360, leading to war between the two after Constantius' attempts to persuade Julian to back down failed. No battle was fought, as Constantius became ill and died of fever on 3 November 361 in Mopsuestia, allegedly naming Julian as his rightful successor before his death.


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius was born in 317 at Sirmium, Pannonia. He was the third son of Constantine the Great, and second by his second wife Fausta, the daughter of Maximian. Constantius was made "caesar" by his father on 8 November 324. In 336, religious unrest in Armenia and tense relations between Constantine and king Shapur II caused war to break out between Rome and Sassanid Persia. Though he made initial preparations for the war, Constantine fell ill and sent Constantius east to take command of the eastern frontier. Before Constantius arrived, the Persian general Narses, who was possibly the king's brother, overran Mesopotamia and captured Amida. Constantius promptly attacked Narses, and after suffering minor setbacks defeated and killed Narses at the Battle of Narasara. Constantius captured Amida and initiated a major refortification of the city, enhancing the city's circuit walls and constructing large towers. He also built a new stronghold in the hinterland nearby, naming it "Antinopolis".


title: Constantius II

text: In early 337, Constantius hurried to Constantinople after receiving news that his father was near death. After Constantine died, Constantius buried him with lavish ceremony in the Church of the Holy Apostles. Soon after his father's death Constantius supposedly ordered a massacre of his relatives descended from the second marriage of his paternal grandfather Constantius Chlorus (also known as Constantius I), though the details are unclear. Eutropius, writing between 350 and 370, states that Constantius merely sanctioned “"the act, rather than commanding it"”. The massacre killed two of Constantius' uncles and six of his cousins, including Hannibalianus and Dalmatius, rulers of Pontus and Moesia respectively. The massacre left Constantius, his older brother Constantine II, his younger brother Constans, and three cousins Gallus, Julian and Nepotianus as the only surviving male relatives of Constantine the Great.


title: Constantius II

text: Soon after, Constantius met his brothers in Pannonia at Sirmium to formalize the partition of the empire. Constantius received the eastern provinces, including Constantinople, Thrace, Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, and Cyrenaica; Constantine received Britannia, Gaul, Hispania, and Mauretania; and Constans, initially under the supervision of Constantine II, received Italy, Africa, Illyricum, Pannonia, Macedonia, and Achaea.


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius then hurried east to Antioch to resume the war with Persia. While Constantius was away from the eastern frontier in early 337, King Shapur II assembled a large army, which included war elephants, and launched an attack on Roman territory, laying waste to Mesopotamia and putting the city of Nisibis under siege. Despite initial success, Shapur lifted his siege after his army missed an opportunity to exploit a collapsed wall. When Constantius learned of Shapur's withdrawal from Roman territory, he prepared his army for a counter-attack.


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius repeatedly defended the eastern border against invasions by the aggressive Sassanid Empire under Shapur. These conflicts were mainly limited to Sassanid sieges of the major fortresses of Roman Mesopotamia, including Nisibis (Nusaybin), Singara, and Amida (Diyarbakir). Although Shapur seems to have been victorious in most of these confrontations, the Sassanids were able to achieve little. However, the Romans won a decisive victory at the Battle of Narasara, killing Shapur's brother, Narses. Ultimately, Constantius was able to push back the invasion, and Shapur failed to make any significant gains.


title: Constantius II

text: Meanwhile, Constantine II desired to retain control of Constans' realm, leading the brothers into open conflict. Constantine was killed in 340 near Aquileia during an ambush. As a result, Constans took control of his deceased brother's realms and became sole ruler of the Western two-thirds of the empire. This division lasted until 350, when Constans was assassinated by forces loyal to the usurper Magnentius.


title: Constantius II

text: As the only surviving son of Constantine the Great, Constantius felt that the position of emperor was his alone, and he determined to march west to fight the usurper, Magnentius. However, feeling that the east still required some sort of imperial presence, he elevated his cousin Constantius Gallus to "caesar" of the eastern provinces. As an extra measure to ensure the loyalty of his cousin, he married the elder of his two sisters, Constantina, to him.


title: Constantius II

text: Before facing Magnentius, Constantius first came to terms with Vetranio, a loyal general in Illyricum who had recently been acclaimed emperor by his soldiers. Vetranio immediately sent letters to Constantius pledging his loyalty, which Constantius may have accepted simply in order to stop Magnentius from gaining more support. These events may have been spurred by the action of Constantina, who had since traveled east to marry Gallus. Constantius subsequently sent Vetranio the imperial diadem and acknowledged the general's new position as "augustus". However, when Constantius arrived, Vetranio willingly resigned his position and accepted Constantius’ offer of a comfortable retirement in Bithynia.


title: Constantius II

text: In 351, Constantius clashed with Magnentius in Pannonia with a large army. The ensuing Battle of Mursa Major was one of the largest and bloodiest battles ever between two Roman armies. The result was a victory for Constantius, but a costly one. Magnentius survived the battle and, determined to fight on, withdrew into northern Italy. Rather than pursuing his opponent, however, Constantius turned his attention to securing the Danubian border, where he spent the early months of 352 campaigning against the Sarmatians along the middle Danube. After achieving his aims, Constantius advanced on Magnentius in Italy. This action led the cities of Italy to switch their allegiance to him and eject the usurper's garrisons. Again, Magnentius withdrew, this time to southern Gaul.


title: Constantius II

text: In 353, Constantius and Magnentius met for the final time at the Battle of Mons Seleucus in southern Gaul, and again Constantius emerged the victor. Magnentius, realizing the futility of continuing his position, committed suicide on 10 August 353.


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius spent much of the rest of 353 and early 354 on campaign against the Alamanni on the Danube frontier. The campaign was successful and raiding by the Alamanni ceased temporarily. In the meantime, Constantius had been receiving disturbing reports regarding the actions of his cousin Gallus. Possibly as a result of these reports, Constantius concluded a peace with the Alamanni and traveled to Mediolanum (Milan).


title: Constantius II

text: In Mediolanum, Constantius first summoned Ursicinus, Gallus’ "magister equitum", for reasons that remain unclear. Constantius then summoned Gallus and Constantina. Although Gallus and Constantina complied with the order at first, when Constantina died in Bithynia, Gallus began to hesitate. However, after some convincing by one of Constantius’ agents, Gallus continued his journey west, passing through Constantinople and Thrace to Poetovio (Ptuj) in Pannonia.


title: Constantius II

text: In Poetovio, Gallus was arrested by the soldiers of Constantius under the command of Barbatio. Gallus was then moved to Pola and interrogated. Gallus claimed that it was Constantina who was to blame for all the trouble while he was in charge of the eastern provinces. This angered Constantius so greatly that he immediately ordered Gallus' execution. He soon changed his mind, however, and recanted the order. Unfortunately for Gallus, this second order was delayed by Eusebius, one of Constantius' eunuchs, and Gallus was executed.


title: Constantius II

text: Laws dating from the 350s prescribed the death penalty for those who performed or attended pagan sacrifices, and for the worshipping of idols. Pagan temples were shut down, and the Altar of Victory was removed from the Senate meeting house. There were also frequent episodes of ordinary Christians destroying, pillaging and desecrating many ancient pagan temples, tombs and monuments.


title: Constantius II

text: Paganism was still popular among the population at the time. The emperor's policies were passively resisted by many governors and magistrates.


title: Constantius II

text: In spite of this, Constantius never made any attempt to disband the various Roman priestly colleges or the Vestal Virgins. He never acted against the various pagan schools. At times, he actually made some effort to protect paganism. In fact, he even ordered the election of a priest for Africa. Also, he remained pontifex maximus and was deified by the Roman Senate after his death. His relative moderation toward paganism is reflected by the fact that it was over twenty years after his death, during the reign of Gratian, that any pagan senator protested his treatment of their religion.


title: Constantius II

text: Although often considered an Arian, Constantius ultimately preferred a third, compromise version that lay somewhere in between Arianism and the Nicene Creed, retrospectively called Semi-Arianism. During his reign he attempted to mold the Christian church to follow this compromise position, convening several Christian councils. "Unfortunately for his memory the theologians whose advice he took were ultimately discredited and the malcontents whom he pressed to conform emerged victorious," writes the historian A.H.M. Jones. "The great councils of 359–60 are therefore not reckoned ecumenical in the tradition of the church, and Constantius II is not remembered as a restorer of unity, but as a heretic who arbitrarily imposed his will on the church."


title: Constantius II

text: Judaism faced some severe restrictions under Constantius, who seems to have followed an anti-Jewish policy in line with that of his father. This included edicts to limit the ownership of slaves by Jewish people and banning marriages between Jews and Christian women. Later edicts sought to discourage conversions from Christianity to Judaism by confiscating the apostate's property. However, Constantius' actions in this regard may not have been so much to do with Jewish religion as with Jewish business—apparently, privately owned Jewish businesses were often in competition with state-owned businesses. As a result, Constantius may have sought to provide an advantage to state-owned businesses by limiting the skilled workers and slaves available to Jewish businesses.


title: Constantius II

text: On 11 August 355, the "magister militum" Claudius Silvanus revolted in Gaul. Silvanus had surrendered to Constantius after the Battle of Mursa Major. Constantius had made him "magister militum" in 353 with the purpose of blocking the German threats, a feat that Silvanus achieved by bribing the German tribes with the money he had collected. A plot organized by members of Constantius' court led the emperor to recall Silvanus. After Silvanus revolted, he received a letter from Constantius recalling him to Milan, but which made no reference to the revolt. Ursicinus, who was meant to replace Silvanus, bribed some troops, and Silvanus was killed.


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius realised that too many threats still faced the Empire, however, and he could not possibly handle all of them by himself. So on 6 November 355, he elevated his last remaining male relative, Julian, to the rank of "caesar". A few days later, Julian was married to Helena, the last surviving sister of Constantius. Constantius soon sent Julian off to Gaul.


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius spent the next few years overseeing affairs in the western part of the empire primarily from his base at Mediolanum. In 357 he visited Rome for the only time in his life. The same year, he forced Sarmatian and Quadi invaders out of Pannonia and Moesia Inferior, then led a successful counter-attack across the Danube.


title: Constantius II

text: In the winter of 357–58, Constantius received ambassadors from Shapur II who demanded that Rome restore the lands surrendered by Narseh. Despite rejecting these terms, Constantius tried to avert war with the Sassanid Empire by sending two embassies to Shapur II. Shapur II nevertheless launched another invasion of Roman Mesopotamia. In 360, when news reached Constantius that Shapur II had destroyed Singara (Sinjar), and taken Kiphas (Hasankeyf), Amida (Diyarbakır), and Ad Tigris (Cizre), he decided to travel east to face the re-emergent threat.


title: Constantius II

text: In the meantime, Julian had won some victories against the Alamanni, who had once again invaded Roman Gaul. However, when Constantius requested reinforcements from Julian's army for the eastern campaign, the Gallic legions revolted and proclaimed Julian "augustus".


title: Constantius II

text: On account of the immediate Sassanid threat, Constantius was unable to directly respond to his cousin's usurpation, other than by sending missives in which he tried to convince Julian to resign the title of "augustus" and be satisfied with that of "caesar". By 361, Constantius saw no alternative but to face the usurper with force, and yet the threat of the Sassanids remained. Constantius had already spent part of early 361 unsuccessfully attempting to re-take the fortress of Ad Tigris. After a time he had withdrawn to Antioch to regroup and prepare for a confrontation with Shapur II. The campaigns of the previous year had inflicted heavy losses on the Sassanids, however, and they did not attempt another round of campaigns that year. This temporary respite in hostilities allowed Constantius to turn his full attention to facing Julian.


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius immediately gathered his forces and set off west. However, by the time he reached Mopsuestia in Cilicia, it was clear that he was fatally ill and would not survive to face Julian. The sources claim that realising his death was near, Constantius had himself baptised by Euzoius, the Semi-Arian bishop of Antioch, and then declared that Julian was his rightful successor. Constantius II died of fever on 3 November 361.


title: Constantius II

text: Like Constantine the Great, he was buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles, in a porphyry sarcophagus that was described in the 10th century by Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus in the "De Ceremoniis".


title: Constantius II

text: First to a daughter of his half-uncle Julius Constantius, whose name is unknown. She was a full-sister of Gallus and a half-sister of Julian. She died c. 352/3.


title: Constantius II

text: Second, to Eusebia, a woman of Macedonian origin, originally from the city of Thessalonica, whom Constantius married before his defeat of Magnentius in 353. She died in 360.


title: Constantius II

text: Third and lastly, in 360, to Faustina, who gave birth to Constantius' only child, a posthumous daughter named Flavia Maxima Constantia, who later married Emperor Gratian.


title: Constantius II

text: Emperors are shown with a rounded-corner border with their dates as Augusti, names with a thicker border appear in both sections


title: Constantius II

text: Constantius II is a particularly difficult figure to judge properly due to the hostility of most sources toward him. A. H. M. Jones writes that Constantius "appears in the pages of Ammianus as a conscientious emperor but a vain and stupid man, an easy prey to flatterers. He was timid and suspicious, and interested persons could easily play on his fears for their own advantage." However, Kent and M. and A. Hirmer suggest that Constantius "has suffered at the hands of unsympathetic authors, ecclesiastical and civil alike. To orthodox churchmen he was a bigoted supporter of the Arian heresy, to Julian the Apostate and the many who have subsequently taken his part he was a murderer, a tyrant and inept as a ruler". They go on to add, "Most contemporaries seem in fact to have held him in high esteem, and he certainly inspired loyalty in a way his brother could not".


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Over the Top is a 1987 American sports drama film starring Sylvester Stallone. It was produced and directed by Menahem Golan, and its screenplay was written by Stirling Silliphant and Stallone. The original music score was composed by Giorgio Moroder. The main character, Lincoln Hawk/Hawks, played by Stallone, is a long-haul truck driver who tries to win back his estranged son, Michael, while becoming a champion arm wrestler.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Lincoln Hawk is a truck driver who also arm wrestles for extra cash. Hawk's estranged wife Christina, who is suffering from heart disease, asks that Hawk pick up their young son Michael from military school and develop a relationship with him; Hawk had left them ten years earlier. Michael's wealthy grandfather, Christina's father, Jason Cutler, believes that Hawk has no right to be in his grandson's life. Michael distrusts Hawk initially and treats him with contempt at every turn.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Over the course of a trip from Colorado to California, the two reconcile and bond. When they finally arrive at the hospital, Christina has died from complications during surgery. Michael blames Hawk for delaying his arrival and immediately leaves for his grandfather's estate. An attempt to retrieve Michael ends with Hawk being arrested when he resorts to ramraiding the gated mansion. Michael visits Hawk in jail and forgives him, but says he feels safer living with his grandfather. As a condition of charges being dropped, Hawk is obliged to sign over custody of Michael to Cutler.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Hawk leaves to compete in the World Armwrestling Championship in Las Vegas, hoping to start his own trucking company with the prize of $100,000 in cash and a $250,000 Volvo White Tractor Truck, despite his underdog status. Most other participants are much larger, including Bull Hurley, the undefeated world champion for the past five years and the odds-on favorite to win again. Other competitors include John Grizzly, Mad Dog Madison, Harry Bosco and Two-Time Canadian Champion "Slammin'" Carl Adams. When Hawk arrives, he sells his truck for $7,000 and uses the proceeds to place a bet on himself (as a 20–1 long shot) to win. Meanwhile, Michael learns Cutler had driven his parents apart and had been intercepting and hiding letters Hawk had regularly written to him. Stunned by his grandfather's deceptions, Michael steals a pickup truck and drives to Las Vegas to find Hawk.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Hawk advances to the final eight competitors in the double-elimination tournament before suffering his first loss, injuring his arm in the process. Cutler, who is also in Las Vegas, summons Hawk to his hotel suite and offers Hawk a chance for a fresh start: $500,000 and a top-of-the-line semi (even better than the tournament's grand prize) on the condition that he stay out of their lives for good, but Hawk refuses. He returns to the tournament with improved focus and advances to the final match against Hurley. Michael finds Hawk and apologizes for misjudging him, which gives Hawk the emotional support he needs to compete. After a long match, Hawk manages to beat Hurley and wins the tournament. A triumphant Hawk and Michael take their accumulated winnings and drive off in the new truck to start a new life together.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Multi-time world arm wrestling champion and future professional wrestler Scott Norton also makes an appearance along with other professional arm wrestlers such as Allen Fisher, John Vreeland, Cleve Dean and Andrew "Cobra" Rhodes (as the final match referee). Professional arm wrestler John Brzenk also makes an appearance.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: In May 1984, it was reported Stallone would appear in the film for a fee of $12 million. Cannon Films presold the movie over the next few years during which time Stallone appeared in "Rhinestone", "Rambo: First Blood Part II" and "Rocky IV".


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Cannon hired Stirling Silliphant to write the script. "It's an action love story with the emphasis on action," Silliphant says. "It's the story of a man trying to win back the love of his son and win the world arm-wrestling championship in Las Vegas." Although Stallone was a writer and had final cut on the film, Sillphant said " "I don't anticipate any problem whatsoever. I'm a very difficult person to abuse...He doesn't have to do anything at this point. He has been very smart about what he can do. He has to protect that."


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: The film was shot for about 9 weeks from June 9 to August 15, 1986. The military academy scenes, portrayed as being in Colorado, were filmed at Pomona College in Claremont, California in 1986. The Kirkeby mansion at 750 Bel Air Road, Los Angeles (also the home of the Clampett family on the CBS comedy "The Beverly Hillbillies") was used to portray the Cutler estate. Parts of the film were also shot in Monument Valley, Utah. Olive View–UCLA Medical Center was also used as the hospital.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: In late 1986, producer/director Menahem Golan chose prestigious Italian composer and record producer Giorgio Moroder as music supervisor of the soundtrack. Moroder was in charge of creating a concept album with a compilation of new songs in different genres and diverse artists, writing most tracks on the album himself in collaboration with Tom Whitlock.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: The soundtrack album was released on February 13, 1987, under CBS to coincide with the release of the movie. It contains music from Frank Stallone, Kenny Loggins (who performs the film's central theme, "Meet Me Half Way"), Eddie Money, and Sammy Hagar. John Wetton, lead singer of the rock group Asia, sang "Winner Takes It All" for the movie, but after performing the song, it was felt that his voice wasn't "mean" enough, so the song was offered to Hagar, whose version, featuring a bass guitar solo from Hagar's then-bandmate Edward Van Halen, ended up being the one on the soundtrack. Asia is credited for the track "Gypsy Soul", but Wetton is the only Asia member who actually contributed to the song.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Stallone appears in the video for "Winner Takes It All," wrestling Hagar at the end of the video. Hagar says in his video commentary on the DVD "The Long Road to Cabo" that he was unenthusiastic about the song. Hagar says that Stallone gave him his black cap at the end of the shoot, both signed it, and the cap went to charity, fetching around $10,000.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: "Over the Top" was released by Warner Bros. on Thursday, February 12, 1987, in New York and Los Angeles before expanding to 1,758 theaters on Friday, grossing $5.1 million over the President's Day weekend, finishing in fourth place. In total, the film earned $11.5 million in the US and Canada.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 32% based on 31 reviews, with an average rating of 4.7/10. The site's consensus states: "The definitive film about arm-wrestling truck drivers fighting for custody of their children, "Over the Top" lives down to its title in the cheesiest of ways." On Metacritic, it has a score of 40 out of 100 based on reviews from 12 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: "Variety" called it "routinely made in every respect". Janet Maslin of "The New York Times" called it "muddled" and criticized the number of product placements. Rita Kempley of "The Washington Post" wrote that the film does not live up to Stallone's "Rocky" films and is "virtually a feature-length video" because of all the rock songs.


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Movie historian Leonard Maltin seemed to agree: "Title merely begins to describe this heavy-handed variation on "The Champ"...In trying to underplay, Stallone speaks so quietly that you often can't make out what he's saying."


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: The film received three nominations at the 8th Golden Raspberry Awards in 1988. David Mendenhall won two for both Worst Supporting Actor and Worst New Star, and Sylvester Stallone was nominated for Worst Actor, which he lost to Bill Cosby for "Leonard Part 6".


title: Over the Top (1987 film)

text: Stallone later said of the film, "I would have made it less glossy and set it more in an urban environment, for one. Next, I would've not used a never-ending stream of rock songs, but scored music instead, and most likely would've made the event in Vegas more ominous – not so carnival-like."


title: United Church of Christ

text: The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximately 4,800 churches and 773,500 members. The United Church of Christ is a historical continuation of the General Council of Congregational Christian churches founded under the influence of New England Pilgrims and Puritans. Moreover, it also subsumed the third largest Calvinist group in the country, the German Reformed. The Evangelical and Reformed Church and the General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches united in 1957 to form the UCC. These two denominations, which were themselves the result of earlier unions, had their roots in Congregational, Lutheran, Evangelical, and Reformed denominations. At the end of 2014, the UCC's 5,116 congregations claimed 979,239 members, primarily in the U.S. In 2015, Pew Research estimated that 0.4 percent, or 1 million adult adherents, of the U.S. population self-identify with the United Church of Christ.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The UCC maintains full communion with other Protestant denominations. Many of its congregations choose to practice open communion. The denomination places high emphasis on participation in worldwide interfaith and ecumenical efforts. The national leadership and General Synod of the UCC have historically favored culturally liberal views on social issues, such as civil rights, LGBT rights, women's rights, and abortion. However, United Church of Christ congregations are independent in matters of doctrine and ministry and may not necessarily support the national body's theological or moral stances. It self-describes as "an extremely pluralistic and diverse denomination".


title: United Church of Christ

text: The United Church of Christ was formed when two Protestant churches, the Evangelical and Reformed Church and the General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches united in 1957. This union adopted an earlier general statement of unity between the two denominations, the 1943 "Basis of Union". At this time, the UCC claimed about two million members. In 1959, in its General Synod, the UCC adopted a broad "Statement of Faith". The UCC adopted its constitution and by-laws in 1961.


title: United Church of Christ

text: There is no UCC hierarchy or body that can impose any doctrine or worship format onto the individual congregations within the UCC. While individual congregations are supposed to hold guidance from the general synod "in the highest regard", the UCC's constitution requires that the "autonomy of the Local Church is inherent and modifiable only by its own action".


title: United Church of Christ

text: Within this locally focused structure, however, there are central beliefs common to the UCC. The UCC often uses four words to describe itself: "Christian, Reformed, Congregational and Evangelical". While the UCC refers to its "Evangelical" characteristics, it springs from (and is considered part of) mainline Protestantism as opposed to some doctrines in Evangelicalism. The word evangelical in this case more closely corresponds with the original Lutheran origins meaning "of the gospel" as opposed to the Evangelical use of the word. UCC is generally theologically liberal, and the denomination notes that the "Bible, though written in specific historical times and places, still speaks to us in our present condition".


title: United Church of Christ

text: The motto of the United Church of Christ comes from : "That they may all be one". The denomination's official literature uses broad doctrinal parameters, emphasizing freedom of individual conscience and local church autonomy.


title: United Church of Christ

text: In the United Church of Christ, creeds, confessions, and affirmations of faith function as "testimonies of faith" around which the church gathers rather than as "tests of faith" rigidly prescribing required doctrinal consent. As expressed in the United Church of Christ constitution:


title: United Church of Christ

text: The United Church of Christ acknowledges as its sole Head, Jesus Christ, Son of God and Savior. It acknowledges as kindred in Christ all who share in this confession. It looks to the Word of God in the Scriptures, and to the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, to prosper its creative and redemptive work in the world. It claims as its own the faith of the historic Church expressed in the ancient creeds and reclaimed in the basic insights of the Protestant Reformers. It affirms the responsibility of the Church in each generation to make this faith its own in reality of worship, in honesty of thought and expression, and in purity of heart before God. In accordance with the teaching of our Lord and the practice prevailing among evangelical Christians, it recognizes two sacraments: Baptism and the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The denomination, therefore, looks to a number of historic confessions as expressing the common faith around which the church gathers, including:


title: United Church of Christ

text: In 2001, Hartford Institute for Religion Research did a "Faith Communities Today" (FACT) study that included a survey of United Church of Christ beliefs. Among the results of this were findings that in the UCC, 5.6% of the churches responding to the survey described their members as "very liberal or progressive", 3.4% as "very conservative", 22.4% as "somewhat liberal or progressive", and 23.6% as "somewhat conservative". Those results suggested a nearly equal balance between liberal and conservative congregations. The self-described "moderate" group, however, was the largest at 45%. Other statistics found by the Hartford Institute show that 53.2% of members say "the Bible" is the highest source of authority, 16.1% say the "Holy Spirit", 9.2% say "Reason", 6.3% say "Experience", and 6.1% say "Creeds".


title: United Church of Christ

text: David Roozen, director of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research who has studied the United Church of Christ, said surveys show the national church's pronouncements are often more liberal than the views in the pews but that its governing structure is set up to allow such disagreements. Starting in 2003, a task force commissioned by General Synod 24 studied the diverse worship habits of UCC churches. The study can be found online and reflects statistics on attitudes toward worship, baptism, and communion, such as "Laity (70%) and clergy (90%) alike overwhelmingly describe worship 'as an encounter with God that leads to doing God's work in the world.'" "95 percent of our congregations use the Revised Common Lectionary in some way in planning or actual worship and preaching" and "96 percent always or almost always have a sermon, 86 percent have a time with children, 95 percent have a time of sharing joys and concerns, and 98 percent include the Prayer of Our Savior/Lord's Prayer." Clergy and laity were invited to select two meanings of baptism that they emphasize. They were also to suggest the meaning that they thought their entire church emphasized. Baptism as an "entry into the Church Universal" was the most frequent response. Clergy and laity were invited to identify two meanings of Holy Communion that they emphasize. While clergy emphasized Holy Communion as "a meal in which we encounter God's living presence", laity emphasized "a remembrance of Jesus' last supper, death, and resurrection".


title: United Church of Christ

text: One of the UCC's central beliefs is that it is "called to be a united and uniting church". Because of this, the UCC is involved in Churches Uniting in Christ, an organization seeking to establish full communion among nine Protestant denominations in America. Currently, the UCC has entered into an ecumenical partnership with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and through "A Formula of Agreement", signed in 1997, is in full communion with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Presbyterian Church (USA), and the Reformed Church in America. Internationally, the UCC has been in full communion with the Union Evangelischer Kirchen (Union of Evangelical Churches) in Germany since 1981. The UEK is an organization of 13 Reformed and United Landeskirchen (regional churches) within the federation of Protestant churches known as the Evangelical Church of Germany.


title: United Church of Christ

text: In 1982 the World Council of Churches published "Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry", a document that has served as a foundation for many ecumenical recognition agreements. As a WCC member church, the United Church of Christ issued a response as part of the process to work toward a statement of common theological perspectives.


title: United Church of Christ

text: On October 17, 2015, representatives of the United Church of Christ and the United Church of Canada came together in Niagara Falls, Ontario to sign an historic full communion agreement. This agreement had been approved at the 30th General Synod of the UCC and the 42nd General Council of the United Church of Canada in the summer of 2015 and signifies the mutual desire of both denominations to work in cooperation and openness in the areas of worship, mission, witness, ministry and the proclamation of a common faith. This agreement will allow the two denominations to recognize the validity of each other's sacraments and ordination of ministers and opens up the possibility of ministers being called to serve in congregations of either denomination.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The United Church of Christ facilitates bilateral dialogues with many faith groups, including members of the Jewish and Muslim communities. This includes membership in the National Muslim-Christian Initiative.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Quoting the United Church of Christ Constitution, "The basic unit of the life and organization of the United Church of Christ is the local church." An interplay of wider interdependence with local autonomy characterizes the organization of the UCC. Each "setting" of the United Church of Christ relates "covenantally" with other settings, their actions speaking "to but not for" each other.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The "ethos" of United Church of Christ organization is considered "covenantal". The "structure" of UCC organization is a mixture of the congregational and presbyterian polities of its predecessor denominations. With ultimate authority given to the local church, many see United Church of Christ polity as closer to congregationalism; however, with ordination and pastoral oversight of licensed, commissioned and ordained ministers conducted by Associations, and General Synod representation given to Conferences instead of congregational delegates, certain similarities to presbyterian polity are also visible.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The UCC's "Covenantal Polity" is best expressed in Article III of the 1999 revision of the Bylaws and Constitution of the United Church of Christ.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The basic unit of the United Church of Christ is the "local church" (also often called the "congregation"). Local churches have the freedom to govern themselves, establishing their own internal organizational structures and theological positions. Thus, local church governance varies widely throughout the denomination. Some congregations, mainly of Congregational or Christian Connection origin, have numerous relatively independent "boards" that oversee different aspects of church life, with annual or more frequent meetings (often conducted after a worship service on a Sunday afternoon) of the entire congregation to elect officers, approve budgets and set congregational policy. Other churches, mainly of Evangelical and Reformed descent, have one central "church council" or "consistory" that handles most or all affairs in a manner somewhat akin to a Presbyterian session, while still holding an annual congregational meeting for the purpose of electing officers and/or ratifying annual budgets. Still others, usually those congregations started after the 1957 merger, have structures incorporating aspects of both, or other alternative organizational structures entirely.


title: United Church of Christ

text: In almost all cases, though, the selection of a minister for the congregation is, in keeping with the Reformed tradition of the "priesthood of all believers", vested in a congregational meeting, held usually after a special "ad hoc" committee searches on the congregation's behalf for a candidate. Members of the congregation vote for or against the committee's recommended candidate for the pastorate, usually immediately after the candidate has preached a "trial sermon;" candidates are usually presented one at a time and not as a field of several to be selected from. Typically the candidate must secure anywhere from 60 to 90 percent affirmative votes from the membership before the congregation issues a formal call to the candidate; this depends on the provisions in the congregation's particular constitution and/or by-laws.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Local churches have, in addition to the freedom to hire ministers and lay staff, the sole power to dismiss them also. However, unlike purely congregational polities, the association has the main authority to ordain clergy and grant membership, or "standing", to clergy coming to a church from another association or another denomination (this authority is exercised "in cooperation with" the person being ordained/called and the local church that is calling them). Such standing, among other things, permits a minister to participate in the UCC clergy pension and insurance plans. Local churches are usually aided in searching for and calling ordained clergy through a denominationally coordinated "search-and-call" system, usually facilitated by staff at the conference level. However, the local church may, for various reasons, opt not to avail itself of the conference placement system, and is free to do so without fear of retaliation, which would likely occur in synodical or presbyterian polities. However, many UCC congregations have constitutions that mandate that their called pastor be an ordained minister approved by the association, while others require that the call of a pastor be approved by the association committee on ministry. Participation in the search and call process is usually considered a sign of the congregation's loyalty to the larger denomination and its work.


title: United Church of Christ

text: At the end of 2008, 5,320 churches were reported to be within the UCC, averaging 210 members. Sixteen churches were reported to have over 2,000 members, but 64% had fewer than 200 members. The latter statistic probably indicates where most of the denomination's declining membership has occurred, in formerly mid-sized congregations between 200 and 500 members or so. The reduction in a typical church's size has also meant that, increasingly, many congregations are no longer able, as they once were, to afford a full-time, seminary-educated pastor, and that some of them have to rely on alternatives such as one of their members serving the church under a license, the use of recently retired clergy on a short-term basis, or ordained ministers serving the church on a half-time (or less) basis while earning their primary income from chaplaincies or other occupations. While this has been occurring to a lesser degree in other mainline denominations as well, the UCC's congregational polity allows for churches to adopt such approaches without ecclesiological restraint, as might happen in a more hierarchical denominational structure.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Local churches are typically gathered together in regional bodies called "Associations". Local churches often give financial support to the association to support its activities. The official delegates of an association are all ordained clergy within the bounds of the association together with lay delegates sent from each local church. The association's main ecclesiastical function is to provide primary oversight and authorization of ordained and other authorized ministers; it also is the ecclesiastical link between the local congregation and the larger UCC. The association ordains new ministers, holds ministers' standing in covenant with local churches, and is responsible for disciplinary action; typically a specific ministerial committee handles these duties. Also, an association, again with the assistance of the ministerial committee, admits and removes local congregations from membership in the UCC.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Associations meet at least once annually to elect officers and board members and set budgets for the association's work; fellowship and informational workshops are often conducted during those meetings, which may take place more frequently according to local custom. In a few instances where there is only one association within a conference, or where the associations within a conference have agreed to dissolve, the Conference (below) assumes the association's functions.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Local churches also are members of larger "Conferences", of which there are 36 in the United Church of Christ. A conference typically contains multiple associations; if no associations exist within its boundaries, the conference exercises the functions of the association as well. Conferences are supported financially through local churches' contribution to "Our Church's Wider Mission" (formerly "Our Christian World Mission"), the United Church of Christ's denominational support system; unlike most associations, they usually have permanent headquarters and professional staff. The primary ecclesiastical function of a conference is to provide the primary support for the search-and-call process by which churches select ordained leadership; the conference minister and/or his or her associates perform this task in coordination with the congregation's pulpit search committee (see above) and the association to which the congregation belongs (particularly its ministerial committee). Conferences also provide significant programming resources for their constituent churches, such as Christian education resources and support, interpretation of the larger UCC's mission work, and church extension within their bounds (the latter usually conducted in conjunction with the national Local Church Ministries division).


title: United Church of Christ

text: Conferences, like associations, are congregationally representative bodies, with each local church sending ordained and lay delegates. Most current UCC conferences were formed in the several years following the consummation of the national merger in 1961, and in some instances were the unions of former Congregational Christian conferences (led by superintendents) and Evangelical and Reformed synods (led by presidents, some of whom served only on a part-time basis). A few have had territorial adjustments since then; only one conference, the Calvin Synod, composed of Hungarian-heritage Reformed congregations, received exemption from the geographical alignments, with its churches scattered from Connecticut westward to California and southward to Florida. Only one conference has ever withdrawn completely from the denomination: Puerto Rico, expressing disapproval of national UCC tolerance of homosexuality (as well as that of a large number of mainland congregations), departed the denomination in 2006, taking all of its churches.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The denomination's churchwide deliberative body is the "General Synod", which meets every two years. The General Synod consists of delegates elected from the Conferences (distributed proportionally by conference size) together with the members of the United Church of Christ Board (see below), the officers of the denomination, and representatives of so-called "Historically Underrepresented Groups", such as the disabled, young adults, racial minorities, and gay and lesbian persons.


title: United Church of Christ

text: While General Synod provides the most visible voice of the "stance of the denomination" on any particular issue, the covenantal polity of the denomination means that General Synod speaks "to" local churches, associations, and conferences, but not "for" them. Thus, the other settings of the church are allowed to hold differing views and practices on all non-constitutional matters.


title: United Church of Christ

text: As agents of the General Synod, the denomination maintains national offices comprising four "covenanted ministries", one "associated ministry", and one "affiliated ministry". The current system of national governance was adopted in 1999 as a restructure of the national setting, consolidating numerous agencies, boards, and "instrumentalities" that the UCC, in the main, had inherited from the Congregational Christian Churches at the time of merger, along with several created during the denomination's earlier years.


title: United Church of Christ

text: These structures carry out the work of the General Synod and support the local churches, associations, and conferences. The head executives of these ministries comprise the five member "Collegium of Officers", which are the non-hierarchical official officers of the denomination. (The Office of General Ministries is represented by both the General Minister, who serves as President of the denomination, and the Associate General minister). According to the UCC office of communication press release at the time of restructure, "In the new executive arrangement, the five will work together in a Collegium of Officers, meeting as peers. This setting is designed to provide an opportunity for mutual responsibility and reporting, as well as ongoing assessment of UCC programs." The main offices of the Covenanted ministries are at the "Church House", the United Church of Christ national headquarters at 700 Prospect Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The Pension Boards of the United Church of Christ (PB-UCC) operates the employee benefits systems for all settings of the United Church of Christ, including health, dental, and optical insurance, retirement annuity/pension systems, disability and life insurance, and ministerial assistance programs. The Pension Boards offices are located in New York City, where the headquarters of all UCC national bodies had been located prior to their move to Ohio in the early 1990s.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The Insurance Board is a nonprofit corporation collectively "owned" by the Conferences of the United Church of Christ. It is run by a president/CEO and a 19-member Board, with the full corporate board consisting of Conference, Region and Presbytery ministers as well as laypeople. The IB administers a property insurance, liability insurance, and risk management program serving the United Church of Christ, the Presbyterian Church(USA), and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) churches and related entities.


title: United Church of Christ

text: United Church Funds (UCF), formerly known as The United Church Foundation, provides low cost, socially responsible, professionally managed Common Investment Funds (CIFs) and other trustee services to any setting of the United Church of Christ. United Church Funds' offices are also located in New York City.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Everett Parker of the UCC Office of Communication, at the request of Martin Luther King Jr., organized UCC churches during 1959 against television stations in the Southern United States that were imposing news blackouts of information pertaining to the then growing Civil Rights Movement. The UCC later won a lawsuit that resulted in a federal court decision that the broadcast air waves are public, not private, property. That led toward the proliferation of people of color in television studios and newsrooms.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The UCC national body has been active in numerous traditionally liberal social causes, including support for abortion rights, the United Farm Workers, and the Wilmington Ten.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Churches in the UCC may solemnize same-sex unions. A resolution, "In support of equal marriage rights for all", was supported by an estimated 80 percent of delegates to the church's 2005 General Synod, which made the United Church of Christ the first major Christian deliberative body in the U.S. to endorse "equal marriage rights for all people, regardless of gender". It now is the second-largest Christian denominational entity in the US to support same-sex marriage, after the Presbyterian Church (USA). The resolution was one of 32 actions by General Synod and other national bodies, beginning in 1969, which support civil rights for LGBT citizens and urge their full inclusion in the life of the church. The UCC's Open and Affirming movement, funded by the Open and Affirming Coalition, is the largest LGBT-welcoming-church program in the world with more than 1,100 congregations and 275,000 members.


title: United Church of Christ

text: On April 28, 2014, the UCC filed a lawsuit against North Carolina for not permitting same-sex marriage, the first faith-based challenge to same-sex marriage bans in the US. In the lawsuit, the church argues that prohibiting same-sex marriages violates the freedom of religion, as the ban forced ministers for same-sex marriages to not act on their beliefs.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Same-sex marriage is not supported by some UCC congregations, but it is rapidly gaining ground. Opponents included the Iglesia Evangelica Unida de Puerto Rico (United Evangelical Church in Puerto Rico), three fourths of which voted to withdraw from the UCC after the 2005 General Synod vote. The Biblical Witness Fellowship, a small conservative evangelical organization within the denomination, opposes the denomination's growing support for same-sex relationships.


title: United Church of Christ

text: United Church of Christ was recognized in the to Native Hawaiians. Congress recognized the reconciliation made by the UCC in the Eighteenth General Synod for their actions in overthrowing the Kingdom of Hawaii.


title: United Church of Christ

text: United Church of Christ General Synod XXV also passed two resolutions concerning the conflict between Israel and Palestinians in the Middle East. One calls for the use of economic leverage to promote peace in the Middle East, which can include measures such as government lobbying, selective "investment", shareholder lobbying, and selective "divestment" from companies that profit from the continuing Israel-Palestine conflict. The other resolution, named "Tear Down the Wall", calls upon Israel to remove the separation barrier between Israel and the West Bank. Opponents of the "Tear Down the Wall" resolution have noted that the wall's purpose is to prevent terrorist attacks, and that the resolution does not call for a stop to these attacks. The Simon Wiesenthal Center stated that the July 2005 UCC resolutions on divestment from Israel were "functionally anti-Semitic". The Anti-Defamation League stated that those same resolutions are "disappointing and disturbing" and "deeply troubling". In addition to the concerns raised about the merits of the "economic leverage" resolution, additional concerns were raised about the process in which the General Synod approved the resolution. Michael Downs of the United Church of Christ Pension Boards (who would be charged with implementing any divestment of the UCC's Pension Board investments) wrote a letter to UCC President John H. Thomas expressing concern "with the precedent-setting implications of voted actions, integrity of process and trust".


title: United Church of Christ

text: The United Church of Christ, along with the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) of Congregations, created the Our Whole Lives curriculum (commonly known as OWL), which is a lifespan, comprehensive, inclusive, and developmentally appropriate sexuality education program. The Whole Lives includes modules for grades K–1, 4–6, 7–9, and 10–12, and for Young Adults and Adults. The Our Whole Lives curricula are secular. Congregations who use this program often also use "Sexuality and Our Faith" for the age level they are offering. Sexuality and Our Faith are separate manuals that bring in the UUA principles and scripture used in the UCC to support its teachings. The curriculum is based on guidelines provided by the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States.


title: United Church of Christ

text: In 2021, the UCC and the UUA presented "a study on polyamory by the Canadian Unitarian Council" as a part of its sexual education programs. Prior to the sexuality education series, in 2016, the UCC published differing opinions on polyamory in the "UCC Stillspeaking Daily Devotional", one in opposition and one in favor of affirming polyamory.


title: United Church of Christ

text: At the 2003 General Synod, the United Church of Christ began a campaign with "emphasis on expanding the UCC's name-brand identity through modern advertising and marketing". Formally launched during the advent season in 2004, the campaign included a coordinated program of evangelism and hospitality training for congregations paired with national and local television "brand" advertising, known as the "God is Still Speaking" campaign or "The Stillspeaking Initiative". The initiative was themed around the quotation "Never place a period where God has placed a comma" attributed to Gracie Allen. Campaign materials, including print and broadcast advertising as well as merchandise, featured the quote and a large comma with a visual theme in red and black. United Church of Christ congregations were asked to opt into the campaign, signifying their support as well as their willingness to receive training on hospitality and evangelism. An evangelism event was held in Atlanta in August 2005 to promote the campaign. Several renewal groups panned the ad campaign for its efforts to create an ONA/progressive perception of the UCC identity despite its actual majority in centrist/moderate viewpoints. According to John Evans, associate professor of sociology at University of California, San Diego, "The UCC is clearly going after a certain niche in American society who are very progressive and have a particular religious vision that includes inclusiveness...They are becoming the religious brand that is known for this."


title: United Church of Christ

text: The church's diversity and adherence to covenantal polity (rather than government by regional elders or bishops) give individual congregations a great deal of freedom in the areas of worship, congregational life, and doctrine. Nonetheless, some critics, mainly social and theological conservatives, are vocal about the UCC's theology, political identity, and cultural milieu.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Following the decision of General Synod 25 in 2005 to endorse same-sex marriage, the UCC's Puerto Rico Conference left the church, citing differences over "the membership and ministry of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Christians". A number of conservative congregations also ended their affiliation with the denomination after the decision in favor of same-sex marriage.


title: United Church of Christ

text: A controversy arose over former U.S. president Barack Obama speaking at UCC gatherings, but the IRS found that the UCC had adhered to the prohibition against churches campaigning for political candidates.


title: United Church of Christ

text: In 2007, longtime UCC member Barack Obama (then a Democratic presidential candidate) spoke at the UCC's Iowa Conference meeting and at the General Synod 26. A complaint filed with the Internal Revenue Service alleged that the UCC promoted Obama's candidacy by having him speak at those meetings.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Barry Lynn, an ordained UCC minister and the executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, stated that although he personally would not have invited a Presidential candidate to speak at the meetings, he believed "the Internal Revenue Service permits this to happen." The church had consulted lawyers prior to the event to make sure they were following the law and had instructed those in attendance that no Obama campaign material would be allowed in the meeting. Nevertheless, in February 2008, the IRS sent a letter to the church stating that it was launching an inquiry into the matter.


title: United Church of Christ

text: On February 27, 2008, in an open letter to UCC members, Rev. John H. Thomas announced the creation of The UCC Legal Fund, to aid in the denomination's defense against the IRS. While the denomination expected legal expenses to surpass six figures, it halted donations after raising $59,564 in less than a week.


title: United Church of Christ

text: In May 2008, the IRS issued a letter that stated that the UCC had taken appropriate steps and that the denomination's tax status was not in jeopardy.


title: United Church of Christ

text: At the time of its formation, the UCC had over 2 million members in nearly 7,000 churches. The denomination has suffered a 44 percent loss in membership since the mid-1960s. By 1980, membership was at about 1.7 million and by the turn of the century had dropped to 1.3 million. In 2006, the UCC had roughly 1.2 million members in 5,452 churches. According to its 2008 annual report, the United Church of Christ had about 1.1 million members in about 5,300 local congregations. However the 2010 annual report showed a decline of 31,000 members and a loss of 33 congregations since then. The decline in number of congregations continued through 2011, as the 2011 Annual Report shows 5,100 member churches. As of the 2014 Annual Yearbook of the UCC, membership is listed as 979,239 members in 5,154 local churches. According to the 2020 report for 2019 statistics, the membership has declined to 802,256 members in 4,852 congregations.


title: United Church of Christ

text: Membership is concentrated primarily in the Northeast and Midwest. Pennsylvania, a bastion of the German Reformed tradition, has the largest number of members and churches. As of 2000, the state had over 700 congregations and over 200,000 members. The highest membership rates are in the states of Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, situated in the heartland of the American Congregationalist movement.


title: United Church of Christ

text: The United Church of Christ among Christian churches has a highly educated membership, with 46% of members holding graduate or post-graduate degrees. Only Presbyterians (47%), Episcopalians (56%), and Anglicans (60%) ranked higher. The church also claims a disproportionate share of high-income earners.


title: United Church of Christ

text: "These 18 schools have affirmed the purposes of the United Church of Christ Council for Higher Education by official action and are full members of the Council."


title: United Church of Christ

text: ""These colleges continue to relate to the United Church of Christ through the Council for Higher Education, but chose not to affirm the purposes of the Council. Though in many respects similar to the colleges and universities that have full membership in the Council, these institutions tend to be less intentional about their relationships with the United Church of Christ." (from the United Church of Christ website)"


title: United Church of Christ

text: "These colleges and universities were founded by or are otherwise related historically to the denomination or its predecessors, but no longer maintain any direct relationship."


title: United Church of Christ

text: This section lists notable people known to have been past or present members or raised in the United Church of Christ or its predecessor denominations.


title: Harry Hay

text: Henry "Harry" Hay Jr. (April 7, 1912 – October 24, 2002) was an American gay rights activist, communist, and labor advocate. He was a co-founder of the Mattachine Society, the first sustained gay rights group in the United States, as well as the Radical Faeries, a loosely affiliated gay spiritual movement.


title: Harry Hay

text: Born to an upper middle class family in England, Hay was raised in Chile and California. From an early age, he acknowledged his same-sex sexual attraction, and came under the influence of Marxism. Briefly studying at Stanford University, he subsequently became a professional actor in Los Angeles, where he joined the Communist Party USA, becoming a committed activist in left-wing labor. As a result of societal pressure, he attempted to become heterosexual by marrying a female Party activist in 1938, with whom he adopted two children. Recognizing that he remained homosexual, his marriage ended and in 1950 he founded the Mattachine Society. Although involved in campaigns for gay rights, he resigned from the Society in 1953.


title: Harry Hay

text: Hay's developing belief in the cultural minority status of homosexuals led him to take a stand against the assimilationism advocated by the majority of gay rights campaigners. He subsequently became a co-founder of the Los Angeles chapter of the Gay Liberation Front in 1969, although in 1970 he moved to New Mexico with his longtime partner John Burnside. Hay's ongoing interest in American Indian religion led the couple to co-found the Radical Faeries in 1979 with Don Kilhefner and Mitchell L. Walker. Returning to Los Angeles, Hay remained involved in an array of activist causes throughout his life, and became a well-known, albeit controversial, elder statesman within the country's gay community. Hay has been described as "the Founder of the Modern Gay Movement" and "the father of gay liberation".


title: Harry Hay

text: Controversially, Hay was an active supporter of the North American Man/Boy Love Association (NAMBLA), a pedophile advocacy organization. He protested the group being banned from Pride parades, wearing a sign protesting the banning during the 1986 Los Angeles Pride, and boycotting New York Pride in 1994 for their refusal to include NAMBLA. He spoke out in support of relationships between adult men and boys as young as thirteen, and spoke at several NAMBLA meetings, including panels in 1984 and 1986, and another in 1994 about helping the group strategize a name change to help with their public image.


title: Harry Hay

text: Hay was born in the coastal town of Worthing in Sussex, south-east England (at 1 Bath Road, then known as "Colwell"), on April 7, 1912. Raised in an upper middle class American family, he was named after his father, Harry Hay, Sr. (1869-1938), a mining engineer who had been working for Cecil Rhodes first in Witwatersrand, South Africa, and then in Tarkwa, Ghana. His mother, Margaret Hay (née Neall), a Catholic, had been raised in a wealthy family among American expatriates in Johannesburg, South Africa, prior to her marriage in April 1911. Hay Sr. was raised a Presbyterian but converted to her religion on their marriage, and their children were brought up Catholic. Harry Hay Jr.'s aunt took him to an Episcopal church and later he would join First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles.


title: Harry Hay

text: Their second child, Margaret "Peggy" Caroline Hay, was born in February 1914, but following the outbreak of the First World War the family moved to Northern Chile, where Hay Sr. had been offered a job managing a copper mine in Chuquicamata by the Guggenheim family's Anaconda Company.


title: Harry Hay

text: In Chile, Hay Jr. contracted bronchial pneumonia, resulting in permanent scar tissue damage to his lungs. In May 1916, his brother John "Jack" William was born. In June 1916, Hay Sr. was involved in an industrial accident, resulting in the amputation of a leg. As a result, he resigned from his position and the family relocated to California in the United States. In February 1919 they moved to 149 Kingsley Drive in Los Angeles, with Hay, Sr. purchasing a 30-acre citrus farm in Covina, also investing heavily in the stock market. Despite his wealth, Hay, Sr. did not spoil his son, and made him work on the farm. Hay had a strained relationship with his father, whom he labelled "tyrannical". Hay Sr. would beat his son for perceived transgressions, with Hay later suspecting that his father disliked him for having effeminate traits. He was particularly influenced on one occasion when he noted that his father had made a factual error: "If my father could be wrong, then the teacher could be wrong. And if the teacher could be wrong, then the priest could be wrong. And if the priest could be wrong, then maybe even God could be wrong."


title: Harry Hay

text: Hay was enrolled at Cahuenga Elementary School, where he excelled at his studies but was bullied. He began experimenting with his sexuality, and aged nine took part in sexual activity with a twelve-year-old neighbour boy. At the same time he developed an early love of the natural world and became a keen outdoorsman through walks in the wilderness around the city. Aged ten he was enrolled at Virgil Junior High School, and soon after joined a boys' club known as the Western Rangers, through which he developed an interest in Native American Cultures, specifically the Hopi and the Sioux. Becoming a voracious reader, in 1923 he began to volunteer at a public library, where he discovered a copy of Edward Carpenter's book "The Intermediate Sex". Reading it, he discovered the word "homosexual" for the first time and came to recognize that he was gay. Aged twelve he enrolled at Los Angeles High School, where he continued to be studious and developed a love of theater. Coming to reject Catholicism, he remained at the school for three mandatory years before deciding to remain for a further two. In this period he took part in the school's poetry group, became State President of the California Scholarship Federation and President of the school's debating and dramatic society, and competed in the Southern California Oratorical Society's Contest, as well as joining the Reserve Officers' Training Corps.


title: Harry Hay

text: During the summer holidays, Hay's father sent him to work on his cousin's cattle ranch in Smith Valley, Nevada. Here he was introduced to Marxism by fellow ranch hands who were members of the Industrial Workers of the World ("Wobblies"). They gave him books and pamphlets written by Karl Marx, leading to his adoption of socialism. He learned of men having sex with other men through stories passed around by ranch hands, telling him of violent assaults on miners who attempted to touch men with whom they shared quarters. Hay often told a tall tale that in 1925 he was invited to a local gathering of Natives, where he claimed to have met Wovoka, the Paiute religious leader who revived the Ghost Dance movement, and that Wovoka had recognized him in some way. However, Wovoka, as a well-known spiritual leader, led a well-documented life, and Hay's story does not line up with his activities and whereabouts during the time in question. However, Hay's family did have an actual, documented, bloody connection to Wovoka and the Ghost Dance movement. In 1890, a misinterpretation of the Ghost Dance ritual as a war dance by Indian agents led to the Wounded Knee Massacre. Hay's great-uncle, Francis Hardie, carried the Third Cavalry flag at Wounded Knee.


title: Harry Hay

text: At fourteen Hay took his union card to a hiring hall in San Francisco, convinced the union officials he was 21, and got a job on a cargo ship. In 1926, after an unloading at Monterey Bay, he met and had sex with a 25-year-old merchant-sailor named Matt, who introduced him to the idea of gay men as a global "secret brotherhood". Hay would later build on this idea, in combination with a Stalinist definition of nationalist identity, to argue that homosexuals constituted a "cultural minority".


title: Harry Hay

text: Graduating from school in 1929, Hay hoped to study paleontology, but was forbidden from doing so by his father, who insisted that he pursue law. Hay, Sr. obtained an entry-level job for his son at his friend's legal firm, Haas and Dunnigan. While working at the firm, Hay discovered the gay cruising scene in Pershing Square, where he developed a sexual relationship with a man who taught him about the underground gay culture. It has been claimed that here he learned about Chicago-based gay rights group the Society for Human Rights, although Hay would later deny having any knowledge of previous LGBT activism.


title: Harry Hay

text: In 1930 Hay enrolled at Stanford University to study international relations, taking independent study courses in English, history, and political science. There, he became increasingly interested in acting, and also wrote poetry, some of which was published in university magazines. He came to frequent the gay scene in both Los Angeles and San Francisco, attending parties where men danced with men, women danced with women, people cross-dressed, and alcohol was consumed, all of which was illegal. He had a number of sexual and romantic trysts with various men; one biographer asserts that these included a one-night stand with Prince George, Duke of Kent, and a brief affair with James Broughton. In 1931 he came out as gay to some people he knew at Stanford, and while he did not face any vehement backlash, some friends and associates, including a number who were gay, chose not to be seen with him from then on. A severe sinus infection led Hay to drop out in 1932 and he returned to his cousin's Nevada ranch to recuperate; he would never return to university.


title: Harry Hay

text: Relocating to Los Angeles, Hay moved back in with his parents. He associated with artistic and theatrical circles, befriending composer John Cage and his lover Don Sample, with the former getting Hay to perform vocals at one of his concerts in November 1932. Becoming a professional voice actor, he obtained a minor role in a radio adaptation of Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities" performed by George K. Arthur's International Group Players for the Hollywood Playhouse. They were impressed with his talent, and gave him a job as a permanent understudy. He supplemented this income as a screen extra, usually as a stunt rider in B movies, and also worked as a freelance dialogue coach for expat aristocrats in Hollywood. Through a friendship with George Oppenheimer he was able to get work screen-writing as a ghost-writer. Immersing himself in the Hollywood gay scene, he claimed to have had brief flings with Willy Wakewell, Philip Ahn, Hans Heinrich von Twardowski, and Richard Cromwell. Having met the Thelemite high priestess Regina Kahl on a play that they were both working on, he agreed to play the organ for the public performances of the Gnostic Mass given by the Agape Lodge, the Hollywood branch of the Ordo Templi Orientis.


title: Harry Hay

text: While working on a play Hay met actor Will Geer, with whom he entered into a relationship. Geer was a committed leftist, with Hay later describing him as his political mentor. Geer introduced Hay to Los Angeles' leftist community, and together they took part in activism, joining demonstrations for laborers' rights and the unemployed, and on one occasion handcuffed themselves to lamposts outside UCLA to hand out leaflets for the American League Against War and Fascism. Other groups whose activities he joined in with included End Poverty in California, Hollywood Anti-Nazi League, the Mobilization for Democracy, and Workers' Alliance of America. Hay and Geer spent a weekend in San Francisco during the city's 1934 General Strike, where they witnessed police open fire on protesters, killing two; this event further committed Hay to societal change. Hay joined an agitprop theatre group that entertained at strikes and demonstrations; their performance of "Waiting for Lefty" in 1935 led to attacks from the fascist Friends of New Germany group.


title: Harry Hay

text: After Hay had become increasingly politicized, Geer introduced him to the Communist Party USA (CPUSA), however from the beginning Hay was perturbed at the Party's hostility to homosexuals and its view that same-sex attraction was a deviance resulting from bourgeois society. Although he joined the Party in 1934, his involvement was largely restricted to attending fundraisers until 1936. In late 1937, Hay attended further classes in Marxist theory at which he came to fully understand and embrace the ideology, becoming a fully committed member of the Party. From the time he joined the Party until leaving it in the early 1950s, Hay taught courses in subjects ranging from Marxist theory to folk music at the "People's Educational Center" in Hollywood and later throughout the Los Angeles area. Hay, along with Roger Barlow and LeRoy Robbins, directed the 1937 short film "Even As You and I", featuring Hay, Barlow, and filmmaker Hy Hirsh, in which they spoofed surrealism. In early 1937, Hay, Sr. was partly paralysed following a stroke, leaving Hay to take on many of his family duties.


title: Harry Hay

text: Hay began Jungian analysis in 1937. He later claimed that the psychiatrist "misled" him into believing that through marriage to a woman, he could become heterosexual; the psychiatrist suggested that Hay find himself a "boyish girl". After confiding with fellow Party members that he was homosexual, they too urged Hay to marry a woman, adhering to the party line that same-sex attraction was a symptom of bourgeoise decadence. Acting on this advice, in 1938 he married Anna Platky (1914-1983), a Marxist Party member from a working-class Jewish family. Hay maintained that he loved her, and was happy to have a companion with whom he could share his political pursuits; he also got along well with her family. Their marriage took place in September 1938, in a non-religious wedding ceremony overseen by a Unitarian minister. Their honeymoon however was cut short as a result of the sudden death of Hay, Sr. Settling into married life, Hay gained employment with the Works Progress Administration supervising the cataloguing of Orange County's civil records, while the couple continued their activism by taking photographs of Los Angeles' slums for a leftist exhibition. However, the marriage did not quell Hay's same-sex attractions, and by 1939 he had begun to seek sexual encounters with other men in local parks on a weekly basis. He would later describe the marriage as "living in an exile world".


title: Harry Hay

text: The couple moved to Manhattan, New York City, where Hay went through a series of unsteady and low-paid jobs, including as a scriptwriter, a service manager in Macy's toy department, and a marketing strategy planner. Briefly returning to acting, he appeared in George Sklor's off-Broadway play "Zero Hour". The couple involved themselves with the city's Communist Party branch, with Hay becoming a party functionary in the Theater Arts Committee for Peace and Democracy, and in 1941 he was appointed interim head of the New Theatre League, responsible for organising trade union theatre groups and teaching acting classes, for which he adopted the Konstantin Stanislavski 'system'. By 1940 he was having a series of affairs with men in the city, developing a seven-month relationship with architect William Alexander, almost leaving his wife for him. During this period he took part in the research of sexologist Alfred Kinsey.


title: Harry Hay

text: In 1942 the couple returned to Los Angeles, renting a house near to Silver Lake and Echo Park; the area was colloquially known as "the Red Hills" due to its large left-wing community. There, Hay went through various jobs, including with Russian War Relief, as a puddler, and as a production engineer at a manufacturing plant. He was not conscripted into the armed forces following the outbreak of World War II due to his work with Avion Aircraft, which was deemed essential for the country's war effort. He would subsequently work in a record store, a television repair shop, and at a boiler manufacturing plant. Better-paid work was barred from him by his political viewpoints, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation monitoring his activities. He spent much time teaching lessons in Marxism across the Los Angeles Bay Area, for which he read widely in anthropology and sociology, but faced problems due to the increased anti-communist repression being exerted by the government through the Smith Act and the subsequent creation of the House Un-American Activities Committee. From 1945, he was involved in the People's Songs organisation, becoming the group's theoretician, through which he came to know Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger. From 1947 he taught a musicology class on the "Historical Development of Folk Music", through which he articulated a Marxist understanding of the genre; he continued to teach these classes through the mid-1950s.


title: Harry Hay

text: In September 1943, Hay and his wife adopted a daughter, Hannah Margaret, soon moving to a larger home nearby to accommodate her. They adopted a second daughter, Kate Neall, several days after her birth in December 1945. Hay was a caring parent, and encouraged his children's interests in music and dance. In 1945, Hay was diagnosed with hypoglycemia, and the following year began to suffer intense mental anxiety and repeated nightmares as he realised that he was still homosexual and that his marriage had been a serious mistake. The couple divorced in 1951.