WELCOME TO

FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF SONOMA

FCC Sonoma is excited to offer many ways to be together in Christian love.  Our Sunday gatherings are Contemplative at 9:00am, and regular service at 10:30am. Details for the current Sunday's services can be found by clicking the "This Week" tab located at the top of this page. Our Earth Care Team offers monthly learning opportunities and spiritual walks, our Social Action Team organizes outreach activities, and our Thrift Shop is open every Saturday from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.! We enjoy being together to pursue new ideas and grow spiritually, to seek justice and serve those in need, and to advocate for the care of the earth.  We invite you to join our community of love, acceptance, and service.  Click here to learn about our Mission and Values.  Click here to contact us directly.

 

We laugh freely and rejoice in the wonder of God’s love and care, while investing our energy, our courage, and our creativity in building a world of justice and equal opportunity for all.

 

We affirm our high calling to care for all creation and to seek justice for the oppressed, ever-conscious of the socioeconomic dimensions of climate change and ecological disruption and its effects on global inequality.


We are spiritual seekers who embrace Jesus’ message of love and compassion, and often find ourselves more comfortable with questions than answers. We value science, culture, and the wisdom of other religious traditions.

In the spirit of love, we welcome people of every age, economic status, ethnicity, physical ability, nationality, race, religious background, and sexual orientation to participate fully in all aspects of our church’s life and ministry.



Rev. Dr. Curran Reichert, Pastor

 

The slightly irreverent Reverend Dr. Curran Reichert has been stirring up “good trouble,” and serving up questions that challenge us to grow spiritually for the past ten years at FCC. She believes in the power of Spiritual community to be a force for good in the world. Curran is highly educated and dedicated to making Sonoma Valley a more just and equitable place.


Throughout the Valley, Rev. Reichert lends her perspective as a faith leader to addressing the need for fair housing and worker justice. She has been a leading voice concerning fair treatment of those without permanent shelter. She is committed to doing her part to end racial bias and deconstruct colonialism in the church and in our community.


Rev. Reichert understands that Christianity can be scary for people who have suffered abuse, or oppression due to bigotry and religious intolerance. She creates what she hopes will be a safe entry point for those seeking the support of a radically inclusive community of faith. Her motto is “Purpose, Presence, and Practice,” she embodies all three.


We love our pastor, and we think you will love her to. If you would like to make an appointment to meet with Rev. Reichert, receive prayers, or a visit from our support team, send her a message or call the church office at 707.996.1328.


Rev. Reichert often says, “FCC is the place you would want to go to church if you went to church.” We are a gathering of spirited people who care about earth justice, speaking out about injustice, tending to the vulnerable, and learning to find common ground, these are the relevant earmarks of our congregation. We invite you to join us on Sunday mornings either contemplative at 9:00am or regular in person at 10:30am. Here is the Zoom link for our 8:30 a.m. service.

 

Thoughts from the Pastor

9/15/2025

 

Last week at her high school, my daughter now sixteen and in her junior year, participated in a nationwide student walkout against gun violence. In a school of just over 400, more than ¾ of the student body participated. She felt so proud of her classmates; the energy, their signs and speeches.

Fast forward exactly one week to the news breaking of Charlie Kirk’s murder. Ellie came home from school very upset that some of those same students who were leaders in an event designed to create greater awareness of the need for stricter gun control in the US, were now posting slap happy, cruel jokes about Charlie Kirk getting what he deserved.

Did Charlie Kirk deserve to be assassinated? Did he deserve to die a horrible death in front of his wife and children? Does anyone deserve to die this way?

Live by the sword, die by the sword" is a proverb in the form of a parallel phrase, derived from the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 26, 26:52): "Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.
We are living in a moment in time where shcadenfreude (pleasure derived by someone from another person's misfortune) is the order of the day. Jesus taught his disciples to rejoice in one another’s rejoicing (Freudenfreude) and weep with one another in their pain.

David Graham wrote for The Atlantic:

“[E]mploying force is actually an admission of defeat. A person who resorts to violence has concluded that he cannot change the terms of debate with words or arguments. Might may not make right, but it can end the conversation. Scholars have noted that assassinations occur most frequently in countries with “strong polarization and fragmentation” and that “lack consensual political ethos and homogeneous populations (in terms of the national and ethnic landscape).”

God is Love. 1 John 4:16
 
“We become the God we believe in.” Denis Lynn, Catholic Theologian
It is important to remember not only who we are, but whose we are. If we see ourselves belonging to a God of vengeance and violent retribution that is who we will emulate. Conversely, if we chose to embody the essence of a loving, inclusive and benevolent Creator, we cannot help but understand ourselves as part of a miraculous network of living beings all worthy of dignity and respect, even amid our disagreements.

I enjoin my prayers to yours for more peace filled days to come,

With love,
Curran

FCC Sonoma

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