First Congregational Church of Southington First Congregational Church of Southington

Sunday was Pentecost—the birthday of the church. We had a special Pentecost worship service

to conclude the celebration of our 300th anniversary. We welcomed the Executive Conference

Minister of the Southern New England Conference of the UCC, the Rev. Darrell Goodwin, as our guest

preacher.  The Rev. Goodwin is the first Executive Conference Minister of the SNEUCC, a new

Conference formed by the merger of the historic Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island

Conferences in 2020. As the Chief Vision-Keeper, he is responsible for guiding the Conference and its

affiliates to have a positive and lasting impact in our world.



The Rev. Goodwin is a member of the United Church of Christ Board, the UCC Council for Health and

Human Service Ministries, and the Global Ministries Board. He brings to his varying leadership roles

extensive experience in pastoral ministry and higher education.

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." - 1 Corinthians 15:57



What a joyful celebration we had in worship on Sunday, May 5! And the celebrations continued for those who joined us at the Aqua Turf on Monday. There was much planning behind the scenes for the 300th Anniversary celebrations and the hard work of the committee paid off. We are looking forward to the culmination of the festive activities on Sunday, May 19 with our town-wide block party!



This Sunday, May 12 we will gather for worship at 8:00 AM in the Chapel and 10:15 AM in the meetinghouse. The Scripture reading is selected verses from 1 Corinthians 15. This section of Paul's letter to the Corinthians includes a strong rhetorical argument for the bodily resurrection.



As I study this passage, I see several connections to my recent trip to Chicago. I was in Chicago with NGLI (Next Generation Leadership Initiative), a program of the Pension Boards. The purpose of our trip was to reflect on Church Vitality. I will share more about the people I met in Chicago and the lessons I took away from my time there in my sermon on Sunday.

We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.    ~1 Thessalonians 1:2-3



It’s finally here—our 300th Anniversary.  We will celebrate with several special events during May, including our worship service this Sunday.  There will be special music, and greetings, and guests.  It will be a wonderful day!  I hope you will be here in the meetinghouse for this great celebration.



As we celebrate, we will remember what counts.  According to Paul, the great apostle who started the church in Thessalonica to which he wrote the letter I quoted above, what count are your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.



Yale University history professor Jaroslav Pelikan once said, “Tradition is the living faith of the dead.  Traditionalism is the dead faith of the living.”  On Sunday we will celebrate the living our 300-year history, but we will not worship it—it is not an “ism.”  Rather we will celebrate how our tradition points us fully in to a future where God is still speaking and dream about how we, the First Congregational Church in Southington, will continue to evolve into an inclusive community of faith that will be a beacon of light in Southington and beyond for the next 300 years!

A simple question from one of the most recognizable passages in the Bible, the parable of the Good Samaritan.  Christ tries to guide us with a seemingly simple answer, but are we following in our daily lives? The FCC Board of Deacons have reflected on this over the last several months and are hoping you will join us this Sunday at 8:00 a.m. or 10:15 a.m., as we offer a Deacon-led service, including personal reflections on this question.   

As part of our 300th anniversary celebration, we are welcoming three guest preachers to our pulpit who have held significant leadership positions in the United Church of Christ. Our guest preacher this week is the Rev. Kent Siladi. Kent is a visionary leader dedicated to fostering spiritual growth, community empowerment, and a sense of interdependence in the denominational setting.



Rev. Siladi served local Connecticut UCC congregations in Brookfield and North Guilford before accepting a call to Conference Ministry. He served as a Regional Minister on the historic Connecticut Conference staff (1997-2007), as Conference Minister of the Florida Conference (2007-2013), and returned to the historic Connecticut Conference in 2013 to serve as Conference Minister until 2020. He was one of the architects of a plan to merge the Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island Conferences to become the Southern New England Conference. From 2020 until his “semi-retirement” at the end of last year, Rev. Siladi was the Director of Philanthropy in the national UCC’s Office of Philanthropy, Technology, Identity and Communication. Currently, he serves as the part-time Pastor in Residence at the Congregational Church of New Canaan, CT.



Kent has visited FCC several times as part of the historic Connecticut Conference staff and is one of our dear friends. His unwavering dedication to serving others and fostering unity has earned him widespread admiration and respect across the United Church of Christ.

And they went out and fled from the tomb; for trembling and astonishment had come upon them; and

they said nothing to any one, for they were afraid. ~Mark 16:8



Of all the Gospels, Mark’s recounting of the events on Resurrection Sunday is the most frustrating.

Mark tells us that three women go to the tomb on Sunday morning to anoint the body of Jesus—there

was no time to do that on Good Friday. They’re worried about who will roll away that large stone

blocking their way to Jesus. When they got there, the large stone had already been rolled away. Inside

someone described only as “a young man dressed in a white robe” tells them that Jesus isn’t there, like

they should have expected anything else. “He has risen, he is not here…   But go, tell his disciples and

Peter that he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him…”



And what do they do? You read it in the verse above. They ran away, saying nothing to anyone because

they were afraid. The end.



You and I know that it isn’t the end, but how did the news of Jesus’ resurrection get out and what does

that mean for us today? We will explore those questions on Easter morning as we consider what

happens next.