"No matter who you are, or where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here."
First Congregational United Church of Christ is an Open & Affirming community
SUNDAY WORSHIP 10:30 AM
NURSERY AND SUNDAY SCHOOL 10:30 AM
Wear Red on Sunday! For Halloween? No, for Reformation Sunday!
REFORMATION DAY OCTOBER 31, 1517
Since we are in a Protestant church, we will remind ourselves what that means this Sunday. We always have to go back to Luther and hear the story of grace alone, faith alone, scripture alone. The text is Matthew 22:34- 46 - a new reformation of love. Martin Luther claimed that what distinguished him from previous reformers was that while they attacked corruption in the life of the church, he went to the theological root of the problem—the perversion of the church’s doctrine of redemption and grace. Luther, a pastor and professor at the University of Wittenberg, deplored the entanglement of God’s free gift of grace in a complex system of indulgences and good works. In his Ninety-five Theses, he attacked the indulgence system, insisting that the pope had no authority over purgatory and that the doctrine of the merits of the saints had no foundation in the gospel. Here lay the key to Luther’s concerns for the ethical and theological reform of the church: Scripture alone is authoritative (sola sciptura) and justification is by faith (sola fide), not by works. While he did not intend to break with the Catholic church, a confrontation with the papacy was not long in coming. In 1521 Luther was excommunicated; what began as an internal reform movement had become a fracture in western Christendom. (Encyclopedia Britannica) The sanctuary choir provides music; Sandy is liturgist; and the children receive their mid-term grade from God.
First Congregational Church of Prescott, United Church of Christ, is an Open and Affirming congregation. We include all persons without regard to age, race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender identity, faith, marital status, or personal ability. We welcome all to share the celebrations and challenges of our congregation. No matter who you are or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome here.
