About Us
Who We Are
We are people of God's extravagant welcome.
Come, share your journey with us.
We are at baptism and at the table.
Come to the water of baptism and the table of Christ. Receive God's goodness and love.
We are a people of covenant, and uniting church..
All are welcome into a special relationship with God, especially you.
We listen for the stillspeaking God.
Look, listen all around. God's trying to tell us something.
We thank God by working for a just and loving world.
You are invited to both the joy and responsibility for discipleship.
We belong to Christ.
How do you know God? Tell us your story. Let's grow together.
What We Do
As a United Church of Christ, we believe and are active in community and social justice issues as well as the spiritual and social well being of our congregation. Examples of the activities of our church are:
- Hosting and participating in the Open Arms Baby Boutique. This non-profit organization provides supplies, clothing and educational opportunities for needy families.
- Providing facilities for the worship of three other churches.
- Providing camp scholarships for youth attendance at Pilgrim Cove Camp, our denomination's camp at Payette Lake near McCall.
- Administering and the supporting the Alan Creech Memorial scholarship. This scholarship is given annually to a deserving recipient to pursue higher education in memory of Alan Creech, former church member and Nampa Police Chief.
- Participating in the Idaho Association and the Central Pacific Conference of the United Church of Christ. Members are active as officers and committee members.
- Providing a meeting place for a weight loss group and two Alcoholic Anonymous groups.
Open and Affirming
Open and Affirming (ONA) congregations in the United Church of Christ publicly declare that people of all sexual orientations (lesbian, gay, bisexual-and heterosexual) are welcome in their full life and ministry! Because sexual orientation and gender identity are interrelated, ONA we also to include trangender persons in our welcome. In addition, our welcome extends to those of all ages, colors, abilities, etc., thus proclaiming that God's love, Christ's church and the Spirit's power are for everyone!
"Never place a period where God has put a comma"
United Church of Christ History
This church shall be part of the United Church of Christ and it shall sustain that relationship to the United Church of Christ a community of faith that seeks to respond to the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed. The UCC was founded in (c. 1957) as the union of several different Christian traditions: from the beginning of our history, we were a church that afirmed the ideal that christians did not always have to agree to live.
Christians did not always have to agree to live together in communion. Our motto—"that they may all be one"—is Jesus' prayer for the unity of the church. The UCC is one of the most diverse Christian churches in the United States. Use the directory on the left of this page to read stories about the history and future of our community. Also linked from this page: the meaning of the United Church of Christ logo with copies of the logo in different formats for use by local churches, a copy of our Constitution, a brochure about the new structure of the UCC's national ministries, the UCC Archives Page with links to various historical societies, and our database of UCC congregations in your community.
c. 1620 The Pilgrims, forebearers of the United Church of Christ leave Europe for the New World. John Robinson urges then to keep their minds and hearts open to new ways. God, he says, "has yet more light and truth to break forth out of his holy word."
c. 1630 Congregational churches become an early experiment in democracy with each congregation being self governing.
c. 1785 Lemuel Haynes is the first African American ordained by a protestant denomination.
c. 1839 Forebears of the United Church of Christ organize to free the prisoners of the Amistad.
c. 1853 Antionette Brown is the first woman since New Testament times ordained as a Christian minister.
c. 1957 The United Church of Christ is born when the Evangelical and Reformed Church unites with Congregational Churches.
c. 1965 The First Congregational Church is established in Nampa as a member of the United Church of Christ.
c. 1968 Members of the First Congregational Church of Nampa construct the first part of the present church.
c. 1972 The United Church of Christ's Golden Gate Association ordains the first openly gay person to mainline Protestant ministry, the Rev. William R. Johnson.
c. 1976 Rev. Joseph Evans is elected president of the United Church of Christ, the first African American leader of an intergrated denomination.
c. 2006 First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ in Nampa votes to become Open and Affirming.
c. 2010 First Congregational Church votes to become the Nampa, United Church of Christ.
Our faith is over 2000 years old. Our thinking is not.
