First Church Vision Statement
We walk together in the path of Jesus to create more good in the world by experiencing and embodying God’s love, nourishing the divine spark in all people, and offering a spiritual home within and beyond our walls.
Shaping our faith community
walking together in faith
A Covenant is an agreement we make between ourselves and God. In the congregational tradition, it is our covenants that bind our community together. They describe who we are to God, who God is to us, who we are to each other, and how we want to be together as a church.
At First Church we have three covenants that we rely on to define our congregation, and support us in our shared ministry. We rely on God’s grace to help us keep these agreements, and find our way back to each other when we inevitably fall short.
“But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
~Isaiah 31:33
Our Three Covenants
First Covenant
Founding Covenant from 1668
Our first Covenant is our founding covenant from 1668. Its language (and spelling) is archaic and due for study – perhaps even a contemporary re-write – but its deeper truths still speak to us today:
We do in ye presence of God , the Holy Angells and this Assembly, take acknowledge and Avouch the one and onely true God, God the Father, Sone and Holy Ghost to bee our God, giving up ourselves and our children to him to be his people. Ingaging that we will walk with this God and one with another according to the rules of ye Gospell, Attending his Holy will made know to us in his word, that we will bee subject to ye Government of Christ and observe all those laws yt he hath established in his Kingdom, soe far as hitherto he hath or hereafter shall be please to reveale ye same unto us. And particularly yt we will maintaine and diligently attend all his ordinances; obeying them that are over us in the Lord: that we will watch over one another and faithfully deale with and submits to one another in case of offence according as Lord hathcommanded. All this we promise carefully to perform through the grace and strength of Christ’s Grace.
Second Covenant
First Church Open & Affirming Covenant from 1993
The second covenant that defines First Church is our Open and Affirming Covenant from 1993. This covenant was written after a year of faithful conversation and discernment and reflects our shared belief that all of God’s children are welcome and affirmed in every aspect of the Church’s life.
Careful readers of this covenant will notice that transgender & Intersex people, gender identity & presentation are missing from our covenant. That’s because First Church was in the first one hundred congregations to adopt the OnA Covenant. In 2003 the OnA covenant was updated to include transgender & Intersex people, gender identity & presentation. First Church absolutely affirms and welcomes people of all gender identities and expressions, we just haven’t held a congregational vote to update our covenant with the new language.
The Treatment of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people has recently emerged as an issue of great concern both within First Church and throughout the country.
Mindful of the discrimination and hatred often directed as these our brothers and sisters, and the consequent fear, violence, and isolation which they suffer, we with sot affirm that lesbian, gay, and bizesual people share with all others the worth that comes from being children of God. They deserve the dignity, justice, and acer which derive from this fact; we will strive to insure that these are fostered both inside and outside the church.
Therefore, responding to Christ’s command that we love one another as he has loved us, we declare ourselves to be an “Open and Affirming Church.” We reiterate that all are welcome into the full life of our community regardless of their race, age, gender, nationality, marital status, economic situation, mental or physical ability, or sexual orientation.
Third Covenant
Behavioral Covenant from 2022
Our newest covenant is our Behavioral Covenant that we adopted in 2022. It’s one thing to know that we are called by God to love one another. It’s another thing to know what it means to treat one another lovingly. This covenant helps us remember our highest hopes for our behavior and the tone we strive for in our shared work. We read this covenant at the beginning of all of our committee and congregational meetings.
A behavioral covenant is a set of promises we make to God and to each other as to how we will treat one another. Our promises are crucial for realizing our vision of being a faith community of radical hospitality and inclusiveness. We can only hold to these promises as we live with and love one another in the spirit of Christ. Therefore:
1. We Promise to Listen for the Call of the Holy Spirit for the Good of the Church by:
- Appreciating the balance of new ways and traditional ways of doing things,
- Listening with respect, in order to understand, particularly when there is a difference of viewpoint,
- Considering the views of all interested parties before decisions are made about church programs and events.
2. We Promise to Listen and Speak the Truth in Love by:
- Using “I” statements to express ourselves in disagreements, owning our own feelings,
- Trusting that our individual views are valuable and the Church needs to hear our position,
- Believing that the opinions of others are also valuable, and giving time and space to all opinions.
3. We Promise to Welcome Different Ideas and Perspectives by:
- Accepting, even celebrating, the many different identities within our community,
- Criticizing the idea, not the person expressing the idea,
- Recognizing that different peoples and cultures express views differently.
4. We Promise to Express our Faith through our Actions by:
- Carrying this covenant outside of the church walls to any instance where we interact with one another including social media,
- Realizing that when feelings get heated it is appropriate to call for a “calm down” period,
- Recognizing that when words hurt it is appropriate to claim your pain so feelings can be dealt with appropriately,
- Recognizing that even well-meaning words can hurt people and accepting responsibility for unintended consequences.
5. We Promise to Remember There is More Light and Truth to Break Forth in our Church’s Life by:
- Recognizing we all are imperfect and need forgiveness and mercy,
- Holding ourselves and others accountable to these promises made in this covenant,
- Regularly reviewing and reminding ourselves of the promises made.