We have Covenants, not Doctrines at First Congregational Church!
The United Church of Christ receives the historic creeds and confessions of our forebears as testimonies, not tests of faith. We cherish freedom of conscience among our members. The United Church of Christ is rooted in the covenantal tradition, beginning with God’s Biblical covenants with Noah, Abraham, Moses and the new covenant in Jesus Christ. In our covenantal polity there is no central authority or hierarchy. Christ alone is Head of the church. Each congregation is autonomous and each church is governed democratically by its members. As each congregation is organized by covenant, so the churches within the denomination are held together by voluntary covenant. We are always seeking to balance autonomy or freedom with covenantal responsibility or steadfast love.
>> Read Our Covenant and Prayer of Faith.
>> Visit the Beliefs pages on the United Church of Christ website to learn about our covenantal tradition.
Open and Affirming
First Congregational Church had done an extensive study and become, for all practical purposes, an Open and Affirming Church in 1973. Responding to the request of General Synod XV encouraging local churches to declare themselves Open and Affirming with respect to sexual orientation, another study was done which resulted in a statement declaring ourselves an Open and Affirming (ONA) church.
>> Read our Open and Affirming Statement
Just Peace
In response to a call from General Synod, First Church voted in 1985 to be a Just Peace Church. The Social Action Commission helped the church focus on the way justice and peace are related on a range of issues, such as political struggles in Latin America and South Africa, race relations in the U.S., struggles for economic justice, and arms control.
>> Read our Statement on Being a Just Peace Church
Multicultural and Multiracial
Responding to the Pronouncement of General Synod in 1993 that the United Church of Christ become a multiracial and multicultural church, First Congregational began a prolonged study with resulted in a statement passed at the Annual Meeting of 2003.
>> Read our Multiracial and Multicultural Vision
