Anoka United Church of Christ

Anoka United Church of Christ A lively congregation of the United Church of Christ in downtown Anoka, Minnesota with a beautifully traditional sanctuary filled with progressive spirits.

Anoka United Church of Christ is an Open and Affirming congregation. We have been members of the Anoka, Minnesota community since May of 1855. Although our religion may be centuries old, our thinking is not. We firmly believe that God is still speaking to us - and to you. Anoka UCC is a vital church. Our facility is fully accessible and welcoming of all seekers. We are located in downtown Anoka, M

innesota on the corner of Main and 3rd Ave South. After Labor Day and until Memorial Day, worship services are 8:30am and 10:30am with fellowship in between. Sunday School for children and youth is during the second service. Youth group (grades 6-12) meets Wednesday evenings at 6:30pm. During the summer, we worship at 9:30. Please join us in celebrating a Still Speaking God!

We celebrate and affirm all of God's q***r children every day, but since it's now June, we say HAPPY PRIDE MONTH!All mon...
06/02/2026

We celebrate and affirm all of God's q***r children every day, but since it's now June, we say HAPPY PRIDE MONTH!

All month we will be celebrating Pride by unpacking some of the "clobber verses" in our Sunday worship. This Sunday: S***m and Gomorrah, a story totally NOT about sexuality!

Don't forget to attend Anoka Pride Day this Saturday, June 6, 2026 at Riverfront Memorial Park in Anoka! We're so grateful to have been able to host Anoka Pride these last two years, and we're thrilled the event has grown beyond our parking lot's capacity to hold it all!

It's almost June, which means it is Pride Month! As a UCC Church that is "Open and Affirming," we have covenanted thusl...
05/24/2026

It's almost June, which means it is Pride Month!

As a UCC Church that is "Open and Affirming," we have covenanted thusly: First Congregational Church, UCC of Anoka is an Open and Affirming Christian Community for all. We affirm that the image of God is most fully reflected in diversity. We invite all people to share their energy and talents in full participation with our community. We welcome all individuals and families of any sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, relationship status, race, national origin, socioeconomic status, age, mental and physical health or ability, or belief. Together, we celebrate these and all other facets of one’s essential being.

Because it seems more pressing than ever with the renewed energy of Christian Nationalism that seeks to weaponize the Bible against our q***r neighbors, for this Pride Month we will be focusing in worship on the "Clobber Verses" that are used to harm instead of heal.

What do they *really* mean? Can we even know that? (Spoiler: Sometimes!) How can we read them in a way that leads to abundant life for everyone?

Join us in June as we affirm that we are all--and especially our q***r neighbors--wonderfully made by God!

Summer is here! We don't have a magical snowman singing, but we do have a new worship time; we'll be meeting at 10:00am...
05/24/2026

Summer is here!

We don't have a magical snowman singing, but we do have a new worship time; we'll be meeting at 10:00am for the season (instead of 9:30).

Our Coffee Hour will be held from 9-10.

The two-service schedule of 8:30/10:30 will return after Labor Day.

This summer, come find out what happens to solid water when it gets warm!

Are you thinking about worshipping with us this Sunday? Well then you've got lovely things in store!The first is that i...
05/07/2026

Are you thinking about worshipping with us this Sunday? Well then you've got lovely things in store!

The first is that it's our last choir Sunday until the fall, which means our Chancel Choir will sing a medley of our greatest hits from the 2025-26 program year along with one new song, "Do All the Good." Our Bell Choir will offer two pieces as well, and our amazing keyboardist, Gideon Scheeler, will offer us a rousing and memorable postlude to end the service.

The second is that our Youth Group is holding a used book sale between the services during our Coffee Hour. Come peruse the stacks and maybe take some home in exchange for a donation to our youth ministries!

May God bless you and keep you!

Every couple of weeks, our Little Free Library gets a deposit of some kind of Christian tract/pamphlet that doesn't soun...
05/01/2026

Every couple of weeks, our Little Free Library gets a deposit of some kind of Christian tract/pamphlet that doesn't sound like us at all. That's because we didn't put it there!

We're not mad. Really! Maybe you'd think we would be. Theology that shames people into conversion isn't our thing. We believe in a God of Love who cannot help but reach out to us in affection and care no matter how much we frustrate them.

But see, we understand a few things about the Bible and about the crazy-quilt that is the Body of Christ that not everyone agrees with us about. We understand that people wrote the Bible. We understand that those people were sharing stories and writing over many centuries. And we understand that they don't always agree with each other!

Because of that, we know that no two Christians or churches are the same, and no amount of telling people they're wrong, sinful, or helpless is going to change that. That means that not every church is going to be a good fit for every person seeking a spiritual home--and that's okay!

At the Anoka United Church of Christ, we celebrate each person's God-given freedom to wonder about all things Divine without feeling pressure to fit it all into a tightly-defined box. We bring our questions with us! We bring our doubts with us! We bring our uncertainties with us! And we don't put stuff in our Little Free Library that contradicts that sincerely-held faith.

Do you know why our LFL is a TARDIS from Doctor Who? Partly it's because we have a lot of nerdy folks around here who like science fiction. And partly it's because the Doctor once said this really amazing thing: "You know that in nine hundred years of time and space and I've never met anybody who wasn't important before."

To us, that seems to resonate with the same thing the Apostle Paul wrote in Romans--a verse, we note, that wasn't included in the latest pamphlet we found in our LFL!

"For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)

You are important, God loves you, and so do we!

Pardon the late posting; Holy Week is a busy time!This evening (Friday, April 3), we are having our annual Good Friday s...
04/03/2026

Pardon the late posting; Holy Week is a busy time!

This evening (Friday, April 3), we are having our annual Good Friday service of worship at 7:30pm. This year, we will be focusing not just on the death of Jesus, but the fact that he was a victim of Pilate's State violence.

Jesus isn't the only one we love who died at the hands of State-sanctioned violence. And so, tonight, we will remember others who have died, including Renae Good, Alex Pretti, George Floyd, and others.

We hope you will join us for this somber, reflective, and powerful time of remembering these blessed dead as we build resilience and courage to fight for a world where there are no more Crucifixions.

Tonight's service will NOT be livestreamed.

*******************

Sunday is Easter! What meaning can we glean from the powerful moment when Jesus says, "Mary!" and Mary finally recognizes him? What does it mean to be known as we are fully known? We hope you will join us as we celebrate the Resurrection and a God who lovingly sees each and every one of us as beloved children who are worthy of life, love, flourishing, and justice.

Our 10:30 service will be livestreamed.
Our Nursery will be open for the 10:30 service.
We will NOT have Sunday School on Easter.

Trans Day of Visibility has always been important, because trans folks have always been with us. Testimony abounds acro...
03/31/2026

Trans Day of Visibility has always been important, because trans folks have always been with us. Testimony abounds across culture and history that gender has never been so clear-cut as "male" and "female."

We confess that the Church has been a powerful voice pushing a gender binary that never truly reflected the Image of God. The book of Genesis says, "male and female" in a rhetorical flourish where "and" points to a spectrum in every other usage. So why not gender?

Our spiritual belief is that ALL humans are created in the Image of God, which is why we "love loudly" by standing in solidarity with all trans people. We reject any social or political rhetoric that makes enemies of those Jesus calls us to love. We implore all our neighbors to publicly affirm the beloved humanity of trans people.

Today is officially Trans Day of Visibility; let's live out that call *every* day.

02/25/2026

Here's an update on our mutual aid partnership with Parents for Good! In this video, Pastor Chris explains in detail what exactly goes into an order for aid.

The need is still acute! Please continue bringing your donations to the Parents for Good drop off sites (parentsforgood.org Mutual Aid page). Families are still hurting, and helping our neighbors is the very essence of justice, kindness, and humility.

Thank you!

We offer blessings in the month of Ramadan to our Muslim neighbors!
02/20/2026

We offer blessings in the month of Ramadan to our Muslim neighbors!



Please join us for our annual Ash Wednesday service this Wednesday, February 18, at 6:30pm! We will gather to hear a go...
02/17/2026

Please join us for our annual Ash Wednesday service this Wednesday, February 18, at 6:30pm! We will gather to hear a good word about repentance and love, particularly in how we can build "bridges over troubled water" in this season of strife in Minnesota and beyond.

We also have our annual Soup Suppers beginning (Feb 18 - March 25) at 5:30pm. You're welcome to come! The meal is free, though we do gratefully accept freewill donations.

Address

1923 3rd Avenue
Anoka, MN
55303

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 3pm
Tuesday 9am - 3pm
Wednesday 9am - 3pm
Thursday 9am - 3pm
Sunday 8:30am - 11:30am

Telephone

+17634213375

Website

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