First United Methodist Church of Pittsburgh sits at the corner of Centre Avenue and South Aiken Avenue, on the edge of the Bloomfield neighborhood and not far from the Shadyside border. The stone-and-brick building, with its cornerstone laid in 1893, rises above Centre Avenue on a wide flight of steps. Inside, a Christ-centered, open-minded congregation has been gathering for more than two centuries. The church has long been known in Pittsburgh for its welcoming stance toward LGBTQIA+ people, its strong music program, and First Food & Friends, a Saturday morning community lunch that draws upward of 150 neighbors to the church's Fellowship Hall.
A Reconciling Congregation
After decades of work toward justice for LGBTQIA+ people, First United Methodist Church of Pittsburgh became an official Reconciling Ministries congregation in 2011, marking its tenth anniversary of that designation in 2021. The community lives within the Western Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church and grounds its welcome in a Hospitality Statement that names every category of exclusion the church intends to resist:
"First United Methodist Church of Pittsburgh affirms that God's grace is present in all people. We intentionally seek openly and fully to include all persons regardless of age, race, ethnicity, immigration status, disability, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, education, or economic condition. We commit ourselves to be in ministry for and with all people, regardless of their spiritual path or political perspective and independent of society's regard. God blesses us all so that together we can be God's instruments of blessing in the world."
That welcome shows up in practical details. People are invited to share their pronouns when introducing themselves. Communion offers gluten-free bread and non-alcoholic grape juice for those who need it. A page on the church's site gathers resources for queer theology and spirituality, recommended readings, documentaries, and partner organizations such as the Reformation Project, Q Christian Fellowship, Q Spirit, and Queer Theology.
Sunday Worship at 11:00 a.m.
Sunday morning is when the whole community gathers. Worship begins at 11:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary, and the services are livestreamed on the church's YouTube channel so anyone can join from anywhere.
Each Sunday the order includes singing, prayer, meditation, scripture reading, gifts, ritual, and conversation about things that matter, though the shape changes from week to week. The church describes the time together as "deep and full of life." On Fifth Sundays, the community sets aside the usual pattern to try something different: art, movement, group discussion, or another fresh experiment in worship.
Music is integral to the service. Tim Coles, the Director of Music & Community, leads the Chancel Choir and serves as organist. He joined the church in 1998 and shapes a strong, vibrant program that brings the wider Pittsburgh music community into the building as well. A Hand-Bell Choir adds its performances throughout the year; no prior experience is required to join.
What to Expect on a First Visit
Worship is intergenerational, and children are whole-heartedly welcomed in the sanctuary for the full service. Infants and toddlers may step out to the nursery just outside the sanctuary, where a professional childcare specialist, Emily Burke, is on duty from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Children in kindergarten through fifth grade are sometimes invited to the chapel for a part of the service oriented to their age.
Visitors enter from the Centre Avenue doors at the top of the big steps, which are open for Sunday worship, or from the Aiken Avenue doors behind the rainbow pillars. The building can look imposing, but the people inside are warm; greeters hand out bulletins, smiles, and answers to any questions.
Two parking lots serve the church, one on the Aiken Avenue side and a slightly larger one on the Centre Avenue side. All on-street parking in the area is free on Sundays.
"Wear what makes you comfortable and what makes you feel like you" is the guidance for clothing. There is no dress code beyond authentic self-expression.
Sunday School, Children, and Youth
Sunday School classes meet from 9:45 to 10:45 a.m. between September and May. The Seekers Class gathers in the Parlor and takes up topics of Bible, spirituality, justice, and personal growth, facilitated by retired elder Rev. David Keller, who also welcomes Zoom participation. Coffee & Chat, in the library, is exactly what its name suggests. Godly Play offers Montessori-inspired storytelling for preschoolers and kindergartners. Older kids and youth meet in the Fellowship Hall or the courtyard for frisbee, soccer, board games, and conversations about life and faith.
J.U.S.T. Worship is a Sunday morning program for children in grades one through five, led by the middle school and high school youth: "Joyfully, Uniquely, Sharing Together in Worship." The session includes prayer, movement, reading, discussion, and offering.
The Creative Space on Monday Nights
On Monday evenings at 6:30, the doors open again for the Creative Space, a series of rotating gatherings that the church calls "reconnecting with our Divine Creative Source." Each Monday of the month takes a different form: Contemplative Art on the first Monday, Sacred Sound on the second (a time for drumming, singing, and chant), Contemplative Writing on the third, and Sit & Stitch on the fourth for knitting, crochet, sewing, and other textile arts. All are welcome, and the church specifically invites people who do not think of themselves as creative, framing creativity as a spiritual inheritance rather than a talent.
First Food & Friends and the Wider Missions
First Food & Friends is a Saturday ministry of hospitality and sustenance. Guests gather at 11:30 a.m. for a Bible study at 10:30 and a nourishing lunch afterward that serves between 80 and 150 people. At least once a month, health professionals from the church offer blood pressure screenings and information. Monique McCain serves as executive director.
Beyond the building, the church participates in United Methodist Volunteers In Mission (UMVIM), the United Methodist Church's short-term missions channel, and supports the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), the denomination's humanitarian relief and development arm. The church also partners in a Prayer Walk along Centre Avenue with Warren United Methodist Church, part of the two congregations' Wrestling with Racism work.
Community Connections
The building is a hub for far more than the church's own ministries. Through its Community Connections program, the church opens its doors to many outside groups, treating such hospitality as a ministry of being a good neighbor. The current roster of regular users includes the International Women's Association of Pittsburgh, Alcoholics Anonymous, East End Song Studio, the Pittsburgh Equality Center, the Peace Is Possible Coalition, Resonance Works, Narcotics Anonymous, the American Recorder Society, First Food & Friends (also a church-led ministry), Ceasefire PA, the Pittsburgh Toy Lending Library, the East End Cooperative Ministry, the Pittsburgh Home School Association cooking meetup, Days for Girls, Ecstatic Dance, and FOSNA. The result, the church notes, is a chance to "smell international food in our kitchen and observe how others are addressing the needs of our surrounding area."
Baptisms, Weddings, and Funerals
Baptism is offered to infants, children, youth, and adults. Pastor Tracy Cox or the church office walks families through the preparation, and baptisms are ordinarily performed in the presence of the congregation.
The church hosts weddings and is open to both Christian ecumenical and interfaith ceremonies. Membership is not required, though the staff hopes couples will become part of the community. Couples meet with a pastor for pre-marital conversations, and clergy from other religious backgrounds can be invited to assist in officiating. The sanctuary is available for the ceremony and the Fellowship Hall for the reception, both smoke-free and alcohol-free. A non-refundable $200 deposit reserves a date.
At the time of death, the pastor and congregation provide care and support. Families contact the church office or Pastor Tracy to begin planning a funeral or memorial service.
The Memorial Garden
For those who want a final resting place within the community of faith, the church maintains a Memorial Garden and Memorial Alcove. The garden receives cremated remains; nameplates on plaques in the Alcove recognize members of the broader First Church family, including those interred elsewhere. Interment (which includes a nameplate) costs $500; a nameplate alone is $100. The fees cover ongoing care of the space.
Leadership and Staff
Pastor Tracy Cox has served as Lead Pastor for more than twenty years in the Western Pennsylvania Conference. A graduate of Duke Divinity School, she previously served Blooming Valley, Ingomar, New Brighton, and Coraopolis United Methodist Churches before coming to First Church.
Dr. Joe Smith serves as Director of Spiritual Formation, blending ancient Christian contemplative practice with interfaith spirituality and creative expression. A certified spiritual director through The Haden Institute and a Ph.D. theologian (Duquesne University), he teaches theology and ethics at Duquesne and through the Correctional Education Program of Ashland University.
Rev. Anais Hussian serves as a Deacon. Rev. David Keller, retired, facilitates the Seekers Sunday School class. Tim Coles leads music and coordinates special offerings. Michael Dodin handles digital and tech engagement. Gwendolen Jackson serves as Office Administrator and is the contact for weddings and textile-arts newcomers.
Giving and Stewardship
Generosity is a core practice at First Church. Gifts can be made online through Vanco, by mail, through a bank's bill-pay service, or as a stock transfer coordinated with the United Methodist Foundation of Pennsylvania (EIN 251024341). The church frames giving as participation in the ministry of the community, grounded in texts such as 2 Corinthians 9:7: "Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."
From its beginnings with a Methodist Society in 1796 and its first building on downtown Pittsburgh in 1810 to the laying of the cornerstone of the present sanctuary in 1893, First United Methodist Church of Pittsburgh has spent more than two centuries learning how to be a faithful neighbor in the city. Today that work looks like inclusive Sunday worship, an arts-centered Monday program, a Saturday lunch for a hundred neighbors, music that fills a sanctuary built for sound, and a building whose doors stay open week after week for partners across the wider Pittsburgh community.