Sunday, June 7, 2026 – 200th Anniversary of the Meeting House
First Congregational Church of Cheshire
© the Rev. Dr. James Campbell
Ephesians 2:17-22
So (Christ) came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near, for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then, you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone; in him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.
In my office I have two vintage postcards that are matted and framed together. The first postcard is of this remarkable Meeting House, taken many years ago when there were full growth trees on the Green. My friend Dean found it in an antique shop up in Maine the summer before you actually called me to be your Senior Minister. But immediately after the purchase, Dean, being the superstitious type, feared that he had jinxed my chances of getting the job by buying the postcard before I had the job. But almost nine years later, here I am.
The second postcard in that frame is of the Broadway Tabernacle Church in New York City. It was a magnificent edifice taking up half a city block in Midtown Manhattan and once-upon-a-time was known the Cathedral Church of Congregationalism. And it was the last building that my previous congregation ever owned. As with many city churches after the Second World War, membership declined as people moved to the suburbs. Finally, in 1969, a controversial decision was made to sell the church to developers and to use the proceeds for mission and outreach. The building was demolished and the Broadway congregation became “a church without walls” moving in and sharing space with another congregation.
“The church without walls” was a bold and noble idea, but as with other bold and noble ideas, it was much harder to execute in the real world. And while it did indeed free up a lot of money to do good, it did not help to strengthen the membership. And as for living with another congregation in their house, well, we all know how challenging sharing can be.
By the time they called me to be their minister in 2006, the dream of the church without walls had definitely faded. And that congregation, despite its very best efforts and generosity, was always defined by its homelessness.
After twelve years of ministry there, I began my ministry here. And on the very first Sunday that I stood in this pulpit, my friend and my predecessor at the Broadway Church, the Rev. Dr. Bonnie Rosborough, surprised me by showing up in the pews, right back there. After the service, Bonnie found me in my office and we delighted together in the incredible promise of this place. And then, just before she left, she took me by the shoulders, looked me straight in the eye, and with a broad smile declared: “You’ve got walls now, baby!”
And so, I do! And so, we do! These magnificent walls. These remarkable walls. If only they could talk, what stories they would tell, of love and faith, of doubt and fear, of war and peace, of heartbreak and hope. They would tell of weddings and funerals, of baptisms and conversions, of music and community and laughter. This Meeting House has seen it all. And sometimes, when I sit in this room all by myself, it seems that these walls actually radiate with spiritual energy.
So, I love these walls. And I am honored to steward them along with all of you. But despite their magnificence, I also know that walls alone do not a church make.
That sad truth is evidenced all over this country. Plenty of other magnificent American church building have come and gone as congregations dwindled. Some have been turned into restaurants or event venues or museums. Or worse yet, they sit empty and decaying – a home for pigeons and lost dreams.
Experts tell us that approximately 4000 Protestant congregations cease operation each year in the United States. In our own United Church of Christ, more than 100 churches a year close down; churches like the Devon Church in Milford, who, next Sunday, will conclude its ministry after 119 years.
This is all part of a much larger trend called “the Europeanization of the American Church” – that is, just as in Europe after the Second World War, there is now in America a massive religious disaffiliation born of disinterest and disdain and disappointment in organized religion.
So, you might be wondering: how is it that we are still here? Why are we healthy and alive when so many other congregations are not?
I wish I knew! If I did, I could write a book and go on a speaking tour and retire into the lap of luxury and give Ted Talks! But here’s what I think: I have a suspicion that is has something to do with a Cornerstone.
And it’s a cornerstone that we are actually celebrating today. On June 3, 1826, the cornerstone of this building was laid and then construction began. Today cornerstones are mostly symbolic, but 200 years ago, they played a far more crucial role.
Long before computer simulations or elaborate architectural calculations, the cornerstone of a building guided all that was to follow. When architect, David Hoadley designed this building and when the workers began its construction, it was the cornerstone that served as THE reference point for determining the position, orientation and dimensions of the overall structure. The cornerstone was used to align these walls so that this building would still be here 200 years later.
In the reading from Ephesians today, we heard this: “You are fellow citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone; in him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord…”
And so, it was in 1826 that the integrity of this building was squarely based upon its alignment with the cornerstone. And so, it is in 2026 that the integrity of this congregation is squarely based on its alignment with THE Cornerstone.
In a world of change and fear, in a time of deep division when foundations tremble and temples fall and long-held values evaporate, there is a Rock that does not move. There is a Cornerstone upon which the whole structure holds together. And his law is love and his Gospel is peace. He came to save the least, the last, and the lost. He came to bring all people together. He came to feed the hungry and clothe the naked and welcome the stranger and set the prisoner free.
That is the foundation of this structure. Because it was in his name that this house was built. And it is from this house that his Gospel is still proclaimed.
May it ever be so! Amen.
First Congregational Church of Cheshire
© the Rev. Dr. James Campbell
Ephesians 2:17-22
So (Christ) came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near, for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then, you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone; in him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.
In my office I have two vintage postcards that are matted and framed together. The first postcard is of this remarkable Meeting House, taken many years ago when there were full growth trees on the Green. My friend Dean found it in an antique shop up in Maine the summer before you actually called me to be your Senior Minister. But immediately after the purchase, Dean, being the superstitious type, feared that he had jinxed my chances of getting the job by buying the postcard before I had the job. But almost nine years later, here I am.
The second postcard in that frame is of the Broadway Tabernacle Church in New York City. It was a magnificent edifice taking up half a city block in Midtown Manhattan and once-upon-a-time was known the Cathedral Church of Congregationalism. And it was the last building that my previous congregation ever owned. As with many city churches after the Second World War, membership declined as people moved to the suburbs. Finally, in 1969, a controversial decision was made to sell the church to developers and to use the proceeds for mission and outreach. The building was demolished and the Broadway congregation became “a church without walls” moving in and sharing space with another congregation.
“The church without walls” was a bold and noble idea, but as with other bold and noble ideas, it was much harder to execute in the real world. And while it did indeed free up a lot of money to do good, it did not help to strengthen the membership. And as for living with another congregation in their house, well, we all know how challenging sharing can be.
By the time they called me to be their minister in 2006, the dream of the church without walls had definitely faded. And that congregation, despite its very best efforts and generosity, was always defined by its homelessness.
After twelve years of ministry there, I began my ministry here. And on the very first Sunday that I stood in this pulpit, my friend and my predecessor at the Broadway Church, the Rev. Dr. Bonnie Rosborough, surprised me by showing up in the pews, right back there. After the service, Bonnie found me in my office and we delighted together in the incredible promise of this place. And then, just before she left, she took me by the shoulders, looked me straight in the eye, and with a broad smile declared: “You’ve got walls now, baby!”
And so, I do! And so, we do! These magnificent walls. These remarkable walls. If only they could talk, what stories they would tell, of love and faith, of doubt and fear, of war and peace, of heartbreak and hope. They would tell of weddings and funerals, of baptisms and conversions, of music and community and laughter. This Meeting House has seen it all. And sometimes, when I sit in this room all by myself, it seems that these walls actually radiate with spiritual energy.
So, I love these walls. And I am honored to steward them along with all of you. But despite their magnificence, I also know that walls alone do not a church make.
That sad truth is evidenced all over this country. Plenty of other magnificent American church building have come and gone as congregations dwindled. Some have been turned into restaurants or event venues or museums. Or worse yet, they sit empty and decaying – a home for pigeons and lost dreams.
Experts tell us that approximately 4000 Protestant congregations cease operation each year in the United States. In our own United Church of Christ, more than 100 churches a year close down; churches like the Devon Church in Milford, who, next Sunday, will conclude its ministry after 119 years.
This is all part of a much larger trend called “the Europeanization of the American Church” – that is, just as in Europe after the Second World War, there is now in America a massive religious disaffiliation born of disinterest and disdain and disappointment in organized religion.
So, you might be wondering: how is it that we are still here? Why are we healthy and alive when so many other congregations are not?
I wish I knew! If I did, I could write a book and go on a speaking tour and retire into the lap of luxury and give Ted Talks! But here’s what I think: I have a suspicion that is has something to do with a Cornerstone.
And it’s a cornerstone that we are actually celebrating today. On June 3, 1826, the cornerstone of this building was laid and then construction began. Today cornerstones are mostly symbolic, but 200 years ago, they played a far more crucial role.
Long before computer simulations or elaborate architectural calculations, the cornerstone of a building guided all that was to follow. When architect, David Hoadley designed this building and when the workers began its construction, it was the cornerstone that served as THE reference point for determining the position, orientation and dimensions of the overall structure. The cornerstone was used to align these walls so that this building would still be here 200 years later.
In the reading from Ephesians today, we heard this: “You are fellow citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone; in him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord…”
And so, it was in 1826 that the integrity of this building was squarely based upon its alignment with the cornerstone. And so, it is in 2026 that the integrity of this congregation is squarely based on its alignment with THE Cornerstone.
In a world of change and fear, in a time of deep division when foundations tremble and temples fall and long-held values evaporate, there is a Rock that does not move. There is a Cornerstone upon which the whole structure holds together. And his law is love and his Gospel is peace. He came to save the least, the last, and the lost. He came to bring all people together. He came to feed the hungry and clothe the naked and welcome the stranger and set the prisoner free.
That is the foundation of this structure. Because it was in his name that this house was built. And it is from this house that his Gospel is still proclaimed.
May it ever be so! Amen.
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