We’ve spent almost a year, talking about the qualities that have made us unique as a church historically. We’ve organized event after event, especially artistic events like the retrospective exhibit of paintings by Chiura Obata in September, and the recent concerts, Triumph through Struggle and Earth Walk. In between these, we held a gala 150th birthday celebration with General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ John C. Dorhauer on January 31, which was the actual date in 1866 when our congregation was established.

The production of these events and their promotion Pastor Dave Denoon has light-heartedly referred to as “event-gelism.” But, as Rev. Dorhauer reminded us on January 31, having a sense of who we are is a bigger matter than just how we celebrate ourselves and our history. Issues of mission and message prevail today and will guide us into the future.

In the interest of presenting First Church as a purposeful and vital community, the Communications Team is asking all of us to consider what makes the difference for you in being a part of our faith community.

Maybe you have found that what sets us apart is our welcome of people “no matter who you are or where you are on life’s journey,” or our understanding of faith as something that bears evidence in living rather than just a recited set of beliefs.

Maybe it’s the fact that such a large percentage of our families have been created through adoption, or that a similarly large portion of our members are parents of children who have preceded them in death.

It could be that our interpretation of the Bible matches the cosmology of most scientists, including the Big Bang, the expanding universe, evolution, and climate change.

Perhaps environmentalism and sustainability as hallmarks of our stewardship set us apart, or our love for traditional worship blended with some very non-traditional musical expressions, such as jazz, rock-and-roll, or African drumming and dancing.

It could be any of these things, or maybe others. What do you tell others about your church? How do you communicate who by the grace of God we are?

We’d love to hear from you and get you together with others who are interested in the prospect of reaching out to our wider community, to invite others to come and be a part of us. Please, reply now, and let’s get together in August to talk about First Church’s mission and message so that others fall in love with our community as we have!