First Baptist Church of Amherst sits at 434 North Pleasant Street, right where the road meets the entrance to the University of Massachusetts Amherst campus. From that doorstep the church reaches into a town shaped by five colleges and the international scholars, students, and families they draw. Pastor Greg Mozel and a multiracial, multigenerational community describe FBC Amherst as a safe place for your spiritual journey, a place where unchurched people find a spiritual home, hurting people find hope, skeptical people find faith, and seeking people find Christ.
Belonging, Believing, Becoming
Three words shape the life of the church. Belonging draws people in. Believing grounds them in Christ. Becoming sends them out shaped by His grace. The congregation dreams of being a church mosaic of diverse races, nations, cultures, and generations, united as one community worshiping Christ and shining a beautiful witness of God's reconciling grace. Small group communities throughout the region where no one stands alone. Children so excited they wake up their parents to go to church. Students growing hearts filled with love, heads filled with truth, and hands filled with service. Healthy marriages, Christ-centered homes, and broken relationships healed. Each person in the Pioneer Valley seeing God's love in action. The vision is rooted in Acts 2:17: "Your old people will dream dreams and your young people will see visions!"
Sunday Morning at FBC
The church gathers for worship on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. The service is livestreamed for those who cannot attend in person. Visitors can expect a friendly welcome, joyful worship, and thoughtful messages, in a room where questions are welcomed rather than discouraged. Children head straight to KidsWorld at the same hour, where they experience God's love through creative lessons and caring adults.
KidsWorld and The Hub
KidsWorld partners with parents to nurture every child to experience God's love and grow genuine faith for a lifelong relationship with Jesus. More than thirty adults lead the program. Every volunteer passes a background check and participates in training, and the ratio is kept at one leader for every three children. The Bible comes to life through fun lessons, hands-on experiences, and age-appropriate activities, helping kids build a biblical worldview for following Christ.
The Hub is the youth ministry for students in grades seven through twelve. Students gather on Sunday evenings at 6:30 p.m. in a safe culture for dinner, fun games, and engaging teaching that explores who God is and what it means to follow Him for a lifetime. The Hub partners with Hume New England for summer camp and a winter retreat, giving students a place to get away and grow in their faith.
A Home for College Students
FBC College welcomes students from UMass Amherst, Amherst College, Mount Holyoke, Smith, Greenfield Community College, and Holyoke Community College. The church frames itself as a home away from home. The first Sunday of every month brings a College Lunch where students from the five colleges meet one another and people of all ages from the church family. A College Bible Study gathers on Thursday evenings at 7:00 p.m., and a Discover FBC class after worship introduces newcomers to the congregation. Students also serve alongside the rest of the body in the food pantry, children's ministry, worship teams, and youth group.
Growth Groups Across Languages and Generations
Growth Groups are small communities of eight to fifteen people who encourage each other, grow spiritually, and serve together, so that no one at FBC with needs stands alone. The Chinese Sunday Group meets at 10:30 a.m. in the Conference Room to discuss the sermon and pray together, led by Chung and Rebecca Hsu. Young adults and graduate students gather at 11:30 a.m. in the Hub at church, led by Minji Lee. Search the Scriptures meets on Mondays at 7:00 p.m. on Zoom to dig into what the Bible really says. The Women's Bible Study meets on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m., with childcare offered on request. Band of Brothers gathers on Saturday mornings at 8:00 a.m. for men to pray and encourage one another. Family Builders meets twice a month for couples, and a monthly men's breakfast rounds out the weekly rhythm of small groups across the church family.
The Chinese Ministry
The Chinese Ministry, known in Mandarin as 第一浸信会 中文部, serves students, visiting scholars, and the local Chinese-speaking community in the Pioneer Valley. On Sundays the group gathers from 11:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., right after the English service, to discuss the sermon, pray, and fellowship together. Friday evenings from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. bring the community back to the church for worship, Bible study, and refreshments. The ministry is led by Chung Jung Hsu and can be reached at office@fbcamherst.org.
Serving the Pioneer Valley
Outreach flows from FBC into the wider community through several long-running ministries. The Food Pantry opens every Wednesday from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., distributing food, diapers, household goods, and hygiene products to about ninety homes each week. Volunteers gave out more than seventy-three thousand dollars' worth of goods in a recent year, and the pantry, run entirely by volunteers, has met neighborhood needs for twenty-two years.
Free ESL tutoring has been offered for more than twenty years, pairing dedicated volunteers with people arriving in Amherst from around the world for education and work. Tutors help students learn English, adjust to life in the United States, and ask spiritual questions when they wish.
Operation Christmas Child has been a parish tradition for twenty years, with more than fourteen hundred shoeboxes of toys, school supplies, and clothing packed for children around the world. The church also partners with other local ministries to welcome refugees and to serve homeless neighbors through Craig's Place Shelter.
Coming to FBC Amherst
First Baptist Church of Amherst gathers at 434 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01002. The church office can be reached at 413-549-3596 and office@fbcamherst.org. Sunday parking is free on the lot. Newcomers can join a Growth Group that fits their season of life, find a place to serve alongside the congregation, and step into a community that dreams of every neighbor in the Pioneer Valley seeing God's love in action.