global ministry
The purpose of the Global Ministries Team is engage in global relationships with church entities, and to provide opportunities for individuals and churches to develop and maintain relationships with individuals and churches within the universal church.
This engagement can take the form of travel exchanges; supporting sabbath/sabbatical, formation, and internships; joining together for theological and ecclesiological study and expression; engaging in mission and service as groups or individuals; worshipping, praying, and engaging in witness together; exploring and supporting common and world social justice initiatives. To nurture and sustain existing and historic partnerships, as well as supporting new global partnership initiatives.
Currently the Ministry Team engages with eight church organizations
in four continents, six countries all over the world.
8
Organizations
4
Continents
6
Countries
Active relationships exist with:
Germany
Evangelische Kirche Berlin-Brandenburg-schlesische Oberlausitz or the Evangelical Church in Berlin-Brandenburg and Silesian Upper Lusitania (EKBO).
Evangelische Landeskirche Anhalts,
or the Evangelical Church in Anhalt
Evangelische Kirche im Rheinland, or the Evangelical Church in the Rhineland (EKiR)
India
The Church of South India
Guatemala
The Camgos de Guatemala, or Council
of Ecumenical Churches in Guatemala,
and the Monte Margarita Medical center
in Guatemala (CONSEJO).
Phillipines
The Northwest Luzon Conference
of the United Church of Christ in the
Philippines (UCCP).
Namibia
The United Congregational Churches
of Southern Africa Namibia Synod
Liberia
The Inside the Bible Mission School and Jordan Community School System in Liberia.
Our World Communion Sunday resource developed in 2025 includes prayers from the cultures of all our global partners.
You can be a part of our ministry around the world, too.  We pray together with our partners, visit back and forth, study together, and support one another.  The relationships we build are sometimes lifelong and deep. Check out our individual partnership pages, and contact us to begin learning what relating to a church somewhere else in the world might mean to you!
Germany
Evangelical Churches in Berlin-Brandenburg
and Silesian Upper Lusitania in Germany
(EKBO)
Born out of the end of the cold war and the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989, a relationship with this East German church began around the concept of peace, and to support the church in the former East Germany. In the 1990s the partners established a tradition of joint biannual Colloquies. In recent years an emphasis toward engagement of younger church leaders has emerged, as has attention to church decline and renewal, and how divisiveness in our world has affected our communities. We also maintain our focus on peace.
The Keystone Conference will host a Colloquy with EKBO on the topic of Church as Witness in a Divided World from July 26-31, 2026 at Juniata College in Huntingdon.
Evangelical Churches in Anhalt in Germany
The Evangelische Landeskirchen Anhalts is in the former East Germany, to the south and west of Berlin, located between Leipzig and Magdeburg. In addition to participating in larger church gatherings between the national churches of the UCC and the Evangelical Churches in Germany (EKD) the churches have come together to examine problems of white privilege and racism.
Evangelical Churches in the Rhineland in Germany
Our relationship with the Evangelical Churches of the Rhineland in Germany has been an active partnership since the 1980s. They have engaged with Pastor exchanges, hosted young students for visits, and supported occasional educational events, including a 2018 convocation on Martin Luther King in Atlanta.  Currently our Next Generation Cohort, joint with the Churches of the Rhineland and the Wisconsin Conference have come together for two meetings, one in Wisconsin (with the Wisconsin Conference) and one in Wuppertal.  This group developed a declaration addressing Christian Nationalism in both Germany and the US.  The Church of the Rhineland is hosting the 2027 Kirchentag Church Festival in Dusseldorf.
India
The Church of South India
The Keystone Conference maintains a relationship with the Church of South India.  Currently this relationship is spiritually supporting a persecuted church in that part of the world. We welcomed delegates of the church to our four conference Annual Meeting in 2024.
Guatemala
Council of Ecumenical Churches in Guatemala
We maintain relationships with the Amigos de Guatemala, Council of Ecumenical Churches in Guatemala and the Monte Maria Medical Center in Guatemala. The relationships includes some financial support of the medical center.
Phillipines
Northwest Luzon Conference of the United
Church of Christ in the Philippines
The relationship with the Northwest Luzon Conference of the UCCP dates back to 2010.  The partnership team has enabled exchange of ambassadors, with visits of members of the conference to the Philippines, to attend their Annual Conference Convention and hosting of ambassadors from the Philippines in 2016. The partnership has also initiated a SHEEP (Sharing Hope for Educational Expenses in the Philippines) Fund to help contribute to help children in school and for students preparing for ministry.
Namibia
United Congregational Churches of
Southern Africa Namibia Synod
The Keystone Conference maintains a relationship with the United Congregational Churches of Southern Africa Namibia Synod. The Penn Central Conference's partnership with the Namibia Synod of the United Congregational Churches of Southern Africa began in 1999. Â Throughout the years, there have
been visits between leaders of Penn Central Conference and the Namibia Synod. Â Congregations in the Penn Central Conference have been twinned with one of the congregations in the Namibia Synod.
The relationship between the congregations has been strengthened by prayerful support, communication between the congregations and lay leaders, sending materials to the congregations in Namibia, and visits to the congregations (both in Penn Central and Namibia).
The Penn Central Conference supported a delegation from Namibia to attend the two Partners in Peace experiences at the former Hartman Center in the Penn Central Conference. We have also supported an outdoor ministry project in Namibia.
Liberia
Mission Bible School, Liberia
Jordan Community School System, Liberia
The Keystone Conference maintains a relationship with the Inside the Mission Bible School in Liberia.
The Keystone Conference, via Jordan UCC in Allentown, PA also maintains a relationship with the Jordan Community School System in Liberia. In 2013 the church helped found the Jordan Elementrary Community School, with students from Kindergarten (ABC) to Grade 0.
