First Churches of Northampton

A Matter of Faith Based upon Luke 11:1-13, 9th Sunday after Pentecost, July 25, 2010 Rev. Mark Seifried at First Churches UCC and ABC in Northampton I went on a road trip earlier last week with a 75-year-young widow to bless and scatter the ashes of her deceased husband into Narragansett Sound.  I love this [...]

At Jesus’ Feet July 18, 2010, Eighth Sunday after Pentecost Rev. Mark Seifried at First Churches of Northampton, UCC & ABC Based upon Amos 8:1-2 and LUKE 10:38-42, For many years, a business man bought popcorn from an old street vendor each day after lunch.  One day he arrived to find the peddler closing his [...]

Becky Lockwood, associate director of the Everywoman’s Center at the University of Massachusetts and member of First Churches was featured in a Daily Hampshire Gazette Story.  On Thursday, April 29, 2010, the Gazette followed with this editorial: In Our Opinion: Center’s mission is ongoing A recent Gazette story noted that the Everywoman’s Center at the [...]

Members and friends of First Churches will be meeting this Saturday May 1 at 11:40 A.M. at Bridge Street School to take their place, as usual, to join in the annual Northampton Pride Parade. We’d love for everyone to their show solidarity and participate.  And don’t forget to visit the table that we are sharing [...]

From the Daily Hampshire Gazette, Monday, March 29, 2010 Rabbi Justin David, of Congregation B’nai Israel, lives in Northampton. NORTHAMPTON – We shouldn’t even try to sum up the work of someone like the Rev. Peter B. Ives, who leaves his 21-year ministry at the First Churches this June. But if we were to make [...]

Pauline Bassett, chair of the Board of Deacons and David Entin, chair of the Peace and Justice Committee visited Haiti for a week in November, 2009 — six weeks before the devastating earthquake struck — with a church group providing educational and health care assistance to CONASPEH, an alliance of six thousand Protestant ministers.   Here [...]

You can download a PDF of our April newsletter here.

Faithfully Facing Dying Included in the new United Church of Christ (UCC) Lenten Study Guide, “Faithfully Facing Dying” is The “Friends Indeed” booklet published by our own Helene Powers. Special thanks to Denise Karuth of Northampton for this honor. Denise was serving on a national UCC Health Care Justice committee when she attended the first [...]

From the Daily Hampshire Gazette, January 25, 2010 Ives to retire from First Churches By LARRY PARNASS Staff Writer NORTHAMPTON – The Rev. Peter B. Ives will leave his First Churches ministry come June, ending a 21-year tenure that makes him the fifth-longest-serving pastor of the church that helped establish Northampton in colonial times. Ives, [...]

Dear Members and Friends, For 20 years I have been your Pastor at First Churches. During these years I have done my best to honor the calling you extended to me in June of 1989: (1) to preach the Gospel; (2) administer the sacraments; (3) to attend to the pastoral needs of the congregation; (4) [...]