Category: Expired-Events

You are invited to the Church School Sunday celebration of our amazing children and our delightful teachers, who meet up most every Sunday for some straight talk about why we are all here on this earth — and some fun time making crafts.

And following that, everyone is invited to the All Church Picnic out on the courtyard lawn, hosted by the Christian Education Committee. Lots of good food and good conversation with friends. What could be better? See you there.

Come to help, or come for soup, or both! Many thanks to Blount Soups for their generous donation of delicious soups, available to anyone who comes. We could use a few extra hands to help. See you there.

The life and times of Rev. Henry Wight, founding pastor of our July Fourth tradition, will be the topic of the Bosworth Lecture Series on Thursday, June 11, 6:30pm, at First Congregational Church, (FCC), in the DeWolf Room. The event is free and open to the public.

Members of the church, Dyan Vaughan and Rei Battcher, will explore the life and times of Rev. Wight, who presided as the sixth pastor of the town’s founding church for 44 years after serving in the Revolutionary War. The Historical Properties Room at FCC, which exhibits relics and documents from this era, will be open on this occasion.

Rev. Wight was outspoken in the areas of religion, education, civic life, and politics, and his daily journals chronicled life in Bristol from 1784 until his death in 1837. In 1785 he started the tradition of reading the  Declaration of Independence on the 4th of July, which continues to this day, making it the first patriotic exercise in the history of the country.

In conjunction with the Fourth of July Committee, and in tribute to the 250th Anniversary of our Declaration of Independence, Ms. Vaughan, Mr. Battcher, and the Rev. Nancy Hamlin Soukup invite FCC members and the larger community to learn about the life of this patriot and preacher, to see how he was shaped by the Revolution, and to discover how his views influenced the Town he loved. The lecture will conclude with excerpts from Rev. Wight’s Patriotic Address from July 4, 1809, read by Mr. Steve Brosnihan.

The Roswell S. Bosworth Jr. Lecture Series is presented by the Men’s Club, a local organization that pays tribute to its founding member, former editor and publisher of the East Bay Newspapers, with lectures of interest to the public. FCC collaborates with the Lecture Series to hold the annual June lecture at the church.

One of the hymns we sang this Sunday was written by Isaac Watts. In preparation for the coming 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Rei Battcher, Bristol historian and member of our church, took a few moments during worship to tell us a bit about Watts (1674-1748), an English Congregational minister, hymn writer, theologian, and logician. Watts was a prolific and popular hymn writer and is credited with some 750 hymns. His works include “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross”, “Joy to the World”, and “O God, Our Help in Ages Past”. Most particularly, Rei retold the story which I (a New Jersey girl) had heard all my youth: the story of “Give ‘Em Watts” that took place at the Battle of Springfield, NJ on June 23, 1780. The picture, above, shows Rei in one of his Revolutionary uniforms with the Rev. Nancy H. Soukup at last year’s July 4th Interfaith service. And below is a photo of the First Presbyterian Church in Springfield, whose minister gathered up all of the church hymnals and gave them to the Revolutionary soldiers for them to use in their fight for American independence. You can see the video, below the church photo, of Rei’s story telling and find out how the soldiers used the hymnals. It’s a good one!

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Easter Sunday

Worship service: Rev. Nancy H. Soukup;

Scripture: “Acts 10:34-43” ;

Scripture: “John 20:1-18” ;

Meditation: “In Light and Love We Gather”

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You are invited to be part of a worship service that is truly one of the most powerful spiritual experiences in the whole liturgical calendar–Tenebrae on April 2, Maundy Thursday. Come and experience it for yourself. Bring a friend.

WHAT IS TENEBRAE?

You’ve been seeing a flyer about the Maundy Thursday service in recent weeks. I want to encourage you to attend this moving service that leads us into the solemnity of Good Friday.

At First Congregational Church, our Maundy Thursday practice includes the reading of the Tenebrae. What is Tenebrae, which is the Latin term for “shadows”? Our worship will be centered around this ancient ritual, which chronicles the arrest, trial, and crucifixion of Jesus. As we worship, this space will grow increasingly darker as the shadow of the cross falls upon each of us. Thus, the sanctuary is cast into darkness as the readers assemble and speak. The twelve candles on the table represent Jesus’s twelve disciples; the large candle is the Christ candle.

Throughout the service, there are readings, prayers, and most important sacred music for the occasion. We are fortunate to have Nikita Zabinski, our Music Director, who has prepared a powerful blend of works by J. S. Bach and Sergei Prokofiev, and contemporary choral music by Heather Sorenson and Ruth Elaine Schram.

Additionally, special musical offerings include vocal solos by Cara Massey, Sarah Albanese, and Katherine Harcourt, as well as a featured violin sonata performed by Alexi Shabalin, violinist with the Rhode Island Philharmonic.

The service is on April 2, at 7:00 p.m. in the church sanctuary. All are welcome.

First Congregational Churchin Bristol Welcomes You to Its Holy Week and Easter Services from April 2 to April 5, 2026.

Our historic congregation has been celebrating this religious tradition for 346 years, and we feel this continuity deeply as  Bristol’s oldest church and organization. We hope you will join us  for this year’s services. As we say at First Congregational Church in Bristol, whoever you are and  wherever  you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.

Come join us for a time of new beginnings, new sources of comfort and grace, new friendships.

Join us for the Tenebrae service on Maundy Thursday, with a reenactment of the last supper and special music.

Join us for a Labyrinth Walk in the DeWolf Chapel on Good Friday, a time of quiet contemplation and spiritual support.

Join us for a joyful Easter worship service, either at the Mt. Hope Boat Ramp at the 6:30am Sunrise service or the regular 10:00am service at the church — or both.

Short Book — BIG message. We invite you to dip your toe into the exciting subject of Restorative Justice by attending 4 gatherings, either in person at Guiteras House or via ZOOM, on Monday, March 2 through March 30 at 6:30pm. We will explore a process defined by Howard Zehr, based on ancient practices designed to open up constructive dialogue between conflicting parties.

Wouldn’t you like to learn something new, something as important and pertinent as a way to help find understanding and perhaps even agreement for seemingly unresolvable conflicts?

Serving the justice needs of the world is a key mission of Christianity. Here is an opportunity to learn more about how we can all contribute to it. Join us on Monday, March 2 at 6:30, either at the Guiteras House or via ZOOM. If you think you would like to join the group via ZOOM, call the office and let Barbara know so that we can be sure to email you the link invitation to the meeting.