First Congregational UCC, Huntington, WV

05/31/2026

Good morning and welcome to First Congregational UCC, Huntington, WV
Join us for worship this morning!
Giving Link: https://linktr.ee/FirstCongregationalUCC
"The Pain of Remembering"
Rev. Max Cooper-Dowda

05/24/2026

Good morning and welcome to First Congregational UCC, Huntington, WV
Join us for worship this morning!
Giving Link: https://linktr.ee/FirstCongregationalUCC
"Feeling the Energy"
Rev. Max Cooper-Dowda

05/17/2026

Good morning and welcome to First Congregational UCC, Huntington, WV
Join us for worship this morning!
Giving Link: https://linktr.ee/FirstCongregationalUCC
"Ascend thru Chaos"
Rev. Robin Blakeman

05/10/2026

Good morning and welcome to First Congregational UCC, Huntington, WV
Join us for worship this morning!
Giving Link: https://linktr.ee/FirstCongregationalUCC
"Obedience and Rules"
Rev. Max Cooper-Dowda

07/16/2025

Often you hear churches say, “Trust and Obey” and sometimes quote a scripture to back up the call for compliance. But the Bible is also full of stories about rebels their redemption arcs.
A wise saint of this church used to lovingly say in response to this, “Misbehave a little.”
To that saint in Heaven, and all the rebels of the Church, “Catch a hug!”

07/12/2025

🙌🏾 Basta Ya!
(enough already)

For disembodied theologies.

For doctrine that requires us to operate in binaries, boxes or labels.

For institutions set on self preservation, rather than movements that lead to the disruption of empire, death dealing policies & war.

For church folks calling on Jesus while calling everyone else anything but a child of God, hating their neighbor and inciting fear & violence.

For empty spaces not being used as respite for the unhoused or sanctuary for immigrants.

For the gatherings where we play nice and risk nothing for the gospel of Jesus which is revolutionary, rebellious and rebukes Christian nationalism.

Basta ya, God is saying to us in this moment! It’s time for a revival-and not some typical church revival, we need a pentacost people power revival!

-Rev. Dr. Marilyn Pagán-Banks
Opening Worship, General Synod #35

07/11/2025

General Synod 1 - Opening Worship of the National Setting of the United Church of Christ

United Church of Christ's 35th General Synod Kansas City Convention Center Kansas City, MO

06/24/2025

Many thanks to our friends from Mansfield Ohio who visited us on their mission trip! It was a pleasure meeting this amazing group!

06/14/2025

🙌🏾 The United Church of Christ joins the World Council of Churches and others in the ecumenical community in strongly condemning the Israeli attack on Iran. The escalation of aggression challenges peace and stability in the region at a time when war continues in Gaza.

War is not a response to the peace we seek. We continue to pray for peace and for an end to the suffering.

-Rev. Dr. Karen Georgia A. Thompson
General Minister & President/CEO, UCC

🙌🏾 Read the full statement from World Council of Churches, and join us in continuing to pray for peace: https://ow.ly/qpCw50W9eyM

06/12/2025

We will not forget the loves lost, the lives impacted, and the scars we suffered from this tragedy. This is why PRIDE is important for all those pushed to the margins, outcast and targeted, like the Samaritan on the road of life.
We understand that for many road is still dangerous an increasingly so. That is why we remember, why we uplift the downtrodden, welcome the stranger, and love one another, as Jesus commands.
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BuWfmYcYz/?mibextid=wwXIfr

49 lives were stolen, countless others forever changed.

As a people of faith, we remember them. We grieve them. We say their names.
We honor the LGBTQ+ community that was targeted. We affirm their worth, their dignity, and their place in our churches and in our world.

The Florida Conference of the United Church of Christ continues to say: love must win.
We commit again to building a world free of hate, where every person, no matter who they are or whom they love, can live safely and openly.

🕯️ We remember.
🏳️‍🌈 We affirm.
✊ We act.