PHOTO: Worshiping in the Victorian interior (1882-1971) of our 1761 Meetinghouse
View our 375th-Anniversary interviews
A Brief Historical Overview
First Church gathered originally in 1635, making it
one of the oldest churches in America. Wethersfield’s initial settlers, known
as the “ten adventurers,” had arrived here a year earlier. Most of them came
from Watertown, Massachusetts, and, at first, they called their new settlement
Watertown as well. They were one of three groups of Englishmen, known as Puritans,
who established three adjacent settlements in the Connecticut River
Valley—Wethersfield, Hartford, and Windsor.
For a few years, these three communities were the only
English settlements in what became Great Britain’s Connecticut Colony. To
govern themselves, representatives from the three settlements met to create the
Fundamental Orders—a written constitution that was a forerunner of the
United States Constitution.
Begun as a frontier settlement in what the early English
colonists called the “remote wilderness,” Wethersfield soon became a gateway
for migrating to even more remote places. At its founding, Wethersfield covered
a large area, the distant parts of which later became separate towns. First
Church members in these spin-off towns formed new churches or became members of
other churches. But in the modern era (especially since the 1980s), the advent
of automobiles and highways have allowed people from outlying communities to
become active members of First Church in Wethersfield—including some from
southern Massachusetts. It’s gone from exodus to influx.
Today, histories of the Puritans often focus on the witch
trials held in New England towns, including Wethersfield, during the latter
part of the 17th century. Today’s accounts of New England’s witch trials (which
were not in accord with Christ’s teaching) frequently distort facts and lack
perspective.
The early settlers’ first crude buildings are long gone, but
the picturesque area called “Old Wethersfield,” where First Church is located,
still has many genuine colonial structures, some of them open to the public.
This section of Wethersfield is located less than a half mile from exit 26 on
route I-91. The church’s present primary sanctuary, or Meetinghouse, is
a handsome, Georgian-style colonial building that dates from 1761. It is an Old
Wethersfield landmark.
In time, the many local New England churches established by
the Puritans came to be known as Congregational churches, which
continues to be First Church’s tradition. For two centuries, these Puritans, or
Congregationalists, were the dominant group in most of New England and
generally shared a consistent set of beliefs and attitudes. Serious dissent
from the shared beliefs was not readily tolerated, and, in Connecticut and
Massachusetts, Congregationalism was the state religion.
Traditionally, each Congregational church owns its own
property and selects its own clergy. In practice, these churches have worked
closely together. Even before 1818 and the disestablishment of
Congregationalism as Connecticut’s state religion, denominational organization
as we know it today was preceded by such associations as the missionary
societies of Connecticut and of Hartford.
First Church was part of the original formal Congregational denomination
from its founding in 1871 until 1957, when it merged with the Evangelical and
Reformed Church to form the United Church of Christ. First Church joined that
new denomination in 1961, withdrew from it in 2004, and is now considered an independent congregational church.
In essence, a church is not its building or its
denomination. It is people brought together by God, to love and praise Him, to
love all others, and to spread to others the good news of God’s grace. When we
focus on our own personal relationship with God, we find ourselves effective in
loving and helping others. Church becomes a place where, as we at First Church
like to put it, “the Spirit is alive and miracles happen.” To the extent that
we succeed in any of this, the credit belongs to God.
First Church is over 375 years old, so there have been a
great number of pastors, church leaders and parishioners who have worshiped and
served God here. Many are chronicled in the book A Pleasant Land—A Goodly
Heritage, by Lois M. Wieder, for the period 1635 to 1985. Here are a
few well-known Christians who have had a connection with this church.
Jonathan Edwards has been described by British
historian Paul Johnson as “a man of outstanding intellect and sensibility, the
first major thinker in American history.” From 1716 to 1718, Edwards attended
classes at what became Yale University. The classes were held in Wethersfield.
The students and their teacher, Elisha Williams, worshiped at First Church.
A serious Christian whose theological writings are still
read today, Edwards had a role in the Great Awakenings of the 18th century.
However, he was removed as pastor of the Congregational Church in Northampton,
Massachusetts, because he insisted that the measure of a true Christian was a
life-transforming relationship with God, and most in the congregation found
that too demanding.
Because Wethersfield was a center of patriot activity, both George
Washington and John Adams were here separately and visited the
present Meetinghouse during the American Revolutionary War, years before they
became our nation’s first and second Presidents. Christianity had an important
influence on them and on almost all of our nation’s other founders.
These are but three in the long line of distinguished people
who have some connection with First Church. A more recent example is Ravi
Zacharias, a renowned Christian thinker who, in 2010, spoke at First Church
on two different evenings to overflow audiences.
Each of these distinguished individuals benefited by being a
committed Christian and holding a Christian worldview. What matters
ultimately about them or about anyone else is not their fame or lack of it. The
real issue for each of us is: Have I stepped out in faith to accept in my heart
God’s forgiveness and grace intended for me?
We are a community
of Jesus followers
who love God, love one another,
and make disciples.