First Congregational Church sits on Clinton Street in downtown Concord, New Hampshire, the home of a congregation that calls itself the first church in the settlement that came to be known as Concord. Known around the city as Concord's First Church, this United Church of Christ community has been gathering for nearly three hundred years, drawing people from across the capital region for traditional Sunday worship, a monthly Jazz Sanctuary service, and a full calendar of music, outreach, and social justice work.
Sunday Worship in Phillips Chapel
Worship takes place every Sunday morning at 10:30 in Phillips Chapel, the intimate sanctuary at 79 Clinton Street. The hour-long service runs through prayer, scripture, a sermon by Pastor Emilia Halstead, and music led by pianist Annie Papinsick. The congregation's welcome is direct: "No matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome here."
Visitors can join in person or online. The church livestreams every service on its YouTube channel, broadcasts on Zoom (meeting ID 898 5728 4935, passcode 120786), and accepts dial-in by telephone from anywhere in the country, making Sunday morning accessible to members who are traveling, homebound, or simply not ready to step into a pew yet.
After the service, a Circle Meeting often gathers back in Phillips Chapel at 11:30 with a bag lunch for anyone who wants to linger and get to know a few faces.
Jazz Sanctuary: Where Worship Meets a Groove
Once a month, on the third Sunday at 2:30 in the afternoon, the sanctuary moves next door into a different mode. Jazz Sanctuary is a monthly worship experience that weaves live music, prayers, readings, and conversation into a single hour and a half in Hanna Hall, also on the Clinton Street campus. The Jazz Sanctuary House Band (Joey Placenti, Eddie Raczka, Jock Irvine, and Tim Wildman) provides the music, with vocals from Pastor Emilia Halstead and Reverend Reneé Rouse. The service is free, open to all, and livestreamed on YouTube for those who want to tune in from home. A mailing list carries the monthly themes ahead of each gathering.
The First Sunday Jazz Jam and Java & Jazz
Music is woven through the life of First Church in more ways than Sunday worship. On the first Sunday of every month from 1:30 to 3:30 in the afternoon, Hanna Hall opens for the First Sunday Jazz Jam, an open jam session for musicians of all ages and abilities. The church sets up a microphone for vocalists and provides a keyboard, drums, and a bass amp. Players bring their own instruments and copies of the Real Book; the ability to play a solo is not required. The jam doubles as outreach to area musicians who want a regular place to play together.
On alternating Saturdays from 9:00 to 11:00 in the morning, the Jazz Sanctuary House Band packs up and moves down the street to William & Sons Coffee Co. at 72 Washington Street for Java & Jazz. The two-hour set features favorites from the Great American Songbook, often including Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World," played over Brazilian-inspired coffees, pastries, and made-to-order breakfast sandwiches. One hundred percent of tips collected at the event go to Family Promise of Greater Concord, NH, a nonprofit dedicated to helping families experiencing homelessness achieve lasting stability through emergency shelter, case management, and ongoing support.
Mission, Values, and the Open and Affirming Promise
First Church adopted its current mission statement at the Annual Meeting on January 17, 1997. It reads, in part: "Placing our trust in God, we, the members of the First Congregational Church Family, accept our responsibility in the global community. Reminded by God's promises, we share God's love through our compassionate responses. Guided by the teachings of Jesus Christ, we seek justice for all God's people, and we reach out to all people in faith and sensitivity."
Six core values anchor the congregation's practice. They are a servant community in the spirit of the Servant Christ. They live faith through covenant loyalty with God, with each other, and with the wider community. They honor tradition as a source of strength and vitality. They offer hospitality that welcomes all, respects diversity, and nurtures safe spaces for body and soul. They pursue integrity in relationships, honesty in communication, and mutual respect in all dealings. And they have covenanted together to Welcome in love, Serve in humility, and Grow in Christ.
First Church is also an Open and Affirming congregation. Its statement says: "We, at First Congregational Church, welcome and affirm all people seeking God in their life and in their relationships regardless of age, race, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or faith background. We affirm that each of God's children is entitled to all the rites and sacraments afforded to our church community including baptism, confirmation, communion, and marriage. We invite everyone to join in our common life and mission of our community through participation and leadership in this congregation. We are secure in the knowledge that God's love is for everyone."
As a member congregation of the United Church of Christ, First Church joins the New Hampshire Conference and the wider UCC denomination, a tradition that united four historic faith traditions in 1957. The congregation is self-governed, which means it calls its own pastor and shapes its own ministry while remaining in faithful covenant with neighboring UCC churches.
Faith as a Verb: Local Outreach and Justice Work
First Church describes its faith as a verb, an action word, something to be done rather than something to be held. Three commitments shape how that faith shows up in Concord.
On the first Thursday of every month from 3:00 to 6:00 in the afternoon, members of First Church show up at the Friendly Kitchen at 2 South Commercial Street to cook a meal. The Friendly Kitchen is a community meal program in downtown Concord that serves free meals to anyone who walks through the door. First Church's team takes a turn each month, preparing and serving food as part of an ongoing partnership.
The Racial Justice Steering Team gathers on the third Wednesday of every month from 2:30 to 4:00 in the afternoon on Zoom, with reading and discussion as the heart of its meetings. In its current program year, the team is reading "Black Portsmouth: Three Centuries of African-American Heritage" by Mark Sammons and Valerie Cummingham, a comprehensive history of the Black community in Portsmouth from 1648 until the early 21st century. The group reads and discusses the book together and takes action to learn more about the African-American heritage of New Hampshire. The book is available at Gibson's Bookstore, through blackheritagetrailnh.org, or on Amazon.
In the warmer months, First Church partners with Wesley United Methodist Church to host the Clinton Street Summer Concert Series, a run of free outdoor concerts held in June, July, and August. Past lineups have included Electric Praise and the Scott Spradling Band, with a mix of genres from contemporary Christian favorites to disco, rock, pop, and soul. The Jazz Sanctuary House Band also takes the show on the road during the summer with a Concert in the Gazebo, a relaxed evening of swing and groove under the open sky.
In November, First Church hosts the Musicians' Flea Market on the first Saturday of the month from 8:00 in the morning to 1:00 in the afternoon, when local musicians gather to buy, sell, and trade instruments, gear, and accessories.
First Church also partners with several local organizations. Family Promise of Greater Concord, NH is supported through Java & Jazz tips and through direct collaboration. The Friendly Kitchen receives monthly volunteer teams. The Greater Concord Interfaith Council and the Concord Female Charitable Society are listed as community partners.
Reaching Beyond Concord: Global Partnerships
The same spirit of service that drives local outreach reaches beyond New Hampshire through a set of longstanding partnerships with wider church ministries.
Through Church World Service, First Church supports the CROP Walk, School Kits, and Emergency Clean-Up Buckets, three programs that address hunger, education, and disaster response in communities around the world.
The Ukama Partnership is a sister relationship with UCCZ churches in Zimbabwe, coordinated with the New Hampshire Conference. Ukama, a Shona word for family relationship or kinship, describes the bond between the congregations and their counterparts across the Atlantic.
The church also supports a slate of United Church of Christ wider mission offerings: Our Church's Wider Mission (OCWM), the basic shared fund that underwrites the UCC's regional and national ministry; One Great Hour of Sharing (OGHS), which supports disaster relief, refugee resettlement, and development; Neighbors in Need (NIN), which funds the UCC's justice and witness ministries; the Christmas Fund, which provides care and compassion for active and retired UCC clergy and lay employees in times of need; Strengthen the Church (STC), which invests in new and renewing congregations; and Global Ministries Partnerships, the shared global mission arm of the UCC and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
The People Who Make It Work
Pastor Emilia Halstead serves as the 14th settled senior minister of First Congregational Church. A preacher's kid from Chicago via Cleveland and Philadelphia, she earned her undergraduate degree from Arcadia University in 2004 and her Master of Divinity from Andover Newton Theological School in 2010. She is passionate about creating and leading worship, pastoral visitations, and connecting with the wider church, and she is outspoken about the need for every church to engage with social media.
Annie Papinsick serves as the church's pianist, providing music for worship services throughout the year.
Getting Involved
Sunday worship is the front door, but it is not the only door. Newcomers can fill out a contact form online if they would like a call from the pastor. The church publishes a weekly e-newsletter with announcements, reflections, and updates, and the congregation maintains active channels on Facebook and YouTube where past worship services, Jazz Sanctuary services, and House Band performances are archived for streaming at any time.
Financial gifts support the church's ministry locally and around the world. Online giving is available through a secure portal, and checks may be mailed to the church office. Members and friends of First Church serve as volunteers at Java & Jazz, at the Friendly Kitchen, on the Racial Justice Steering Team, in the Spiritual Life Team, and on the church Council.
Visitors coming for the first time can expect a congregation rooted in nearly three hundred years of history and committed to being a place where all are welcome, where faith is something to be done, and where music, justice, and community go together.