Acton Congregational Church sits on Concord Road in the heart of Acton, Massachusetts, a short drive from the Minuteman National Historical Park and the historic Old North Bridge. Known locally as ACC, the congregation has been part of the town's civic and spiritual life since a group of Trinitarian residents broke away from Acton's Puritan town parish in 1832. The church describes itself with the phrase "Seeking to Live God's Love," a motto that shapes everything from Sunday worship to its work with the Acton Food Pantry, Lazarus House, and Habitat for Humanity.
From the 1832 Breakaway to an Open and Affirming Church
The story of Acton Congregational Church reaches back to the founding of the original town parish in 1735, when Massachusetts Bay Colony towns were organized around a single theocratic parish. The first two ministers of that original parish, Rev. Jonathan Swift and Rev. Moses Adams, served for 81 years through the French and Indian War, the American Revolution, a smallpox outbreak, and the year without a summer. By the time of the third minister, Rev. Marshal Shedd, fierce theological debate over Trinitarian and Unitarian doctrine had torn the parish apart.
In 1832, 59 Trinitarian members broke away to form what was then called the Acton Evangelical Church. "Evangelical" was a common early-19th-century label for a Trinitarian congregation, and Rev. James Woodbury became the first minister of the new body. Under his oratorical gifts and the influence of the Abolition, Prohibition, and Women's Suffrage movements, the congregation grew quickly. Within 16 years, the original building was enlarged to the dimensions of what is still the sanctuary today. The church was remodeled in 1898, shifting the architecture from Greek Revival to Victorian, and was enlarged again in 1966 and 2002.
In 1963, members replaced "Evangelical" with "Congregational" and adopted the abbreviation ACC. On January 27, 2019, the congregation adopted an Open and Affirming Covenant that explicitly welcomes "all families and individuals, as we all are created in God's image," including people of every gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, marital status, mental and physical ability, economic and social status, political affiliation, and faith background. ACC is a member of the United Church of Christ, in the Central Association of the Southern New England Conference.
The congregation's stated mission is to preach and teach the good news of salvation through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, to encourage each person to accept the gift of Christ and respond in worship, mutual ministry, and the Christian nurture of all ages, and to reach out to the community and the world with love, care, and concern for both physical and spiritual needs.
Sunday Mornings at 9:30
Worship is the center of life at Acton Congregational Church. Services are held every Sunday morning at 9:30 AM in the sanctuary, in person and via livestream on Facebook Live and YouTube.
A typical Sunday service runs about an hour and includes announcements, music, prayers, scripture readings, a sermon, and an offering. Paper bulletins are available at every pew with the order of worship and any call-and-response texts. The sanctuary also holds Bibles and hymnals. Participation in standing, singing, or spoken responses is voluntary, and visitors who prefer to listen and observe are welcome to do so. There is no dress code.
Holy Communion is celebrated on the first Sunday of every month. The congregation's practice is to invite all who wish to partake to do so and to require no one. The belief, in the words of the church, is that "all people are welcome at the table of Christ and that there are no barriers to God's grace."
After the service, coffee hour and fellowship take place in Hartman Hall. A prayer team also gathers each Sunday in the Peter Bollier Conference Room, just to the right and down the stairs from the sanctuary entrance. Prayer After Worship is a quiet, confidential ministry that has been part of ACC for around 30 years. Two prayer team members, one man and one woman, listen to whatever joy, grief, gratitude, or concern a visitor brings and lift it in prayer.
Music Rooted in Organ and Choir
Music at ACC is primarily traditional. Hymns are played on the organ and sung by the congregation, often with the Senior Choir leading. A bell choir and individual soloists supplement the music at various points in the year. There is a designated Music Sunday each year, and concert services such as Sir John Rutter's Requiem on Good Friday and a Tenebrae observance on Maundy Thursday draw on the church's musical strengths.
The Senior Choir is directed by Elinor A. Armsby, with rehearsals on Thursday evenings. Elizabeth Carley serves as Organist and Coordinator of Music. Both musicians play central roles during Advent, Christmas, and Holy Week services, including the Family Christmas Eve service at 5 PM and the candlelight Christmas Eve service at 8 PM, as well as an annual Carol Sing on the first Sunday after Christmas.
Faith Formation for Every Age
Acton Congregational Church takes its commitment to children and youth seriously. The Family Ministries program covers children from birth through 12 years old, with a primary focus on Sunday School during the school year and special intergenerational events throughout the year such as Rally Sunday, Trunk-or-Treat, Advent wreath-making, and the Christmas Eve Family Service.
Sunday School is offered for children in grades K through 5 most Sunday mornings during the school year. Children begin in the sanctuary at 9:30 AM and, after the Children's Message, head to Room 108 for lessons using crafts, games, and experiments to explore stories about God's love. Sixth graders may choose Sunday School or the Junior High Youth Fellowship depending on where they feel most comfortable. Sunday School does not meet on three-day weekends or school vacation weeks. During the summer, from mid-June through the Sunday after Labor Day, Sunday School and choir are on hiatus, though childcare is still available.
For older youth, JHYF (Junior High Youth Fellowship, grades 6 to 8) meets every other Sunday at 5 PM, starting with games, challenges, and activities designed to remind teens that they are beloved children of God. The program includes a service project, a lock-in, and other special events that the youth themselves help plan. SHYF (Senior High Youth Fellowship, grades 9 to 12) meets every Sunday at 7 PM in Room G02 for games, deep discussions, and the occasional pizza feast. Each summer, the youth have the opportunity to go on a mission trip from the church.
Confirmation classes are offered for eighth graders who wish to explore questions of faith more deeply. The class meets a few times a year, culminates in an overnight retreat, and concludes with a Confirmation Sunday in June when participants may choose to join the church. Children's Sunday and Youth Sunday each year offer the younger members of the congregation a chance to take leading roles in worship.
Adult Programs and Small Groups
Adult faith formation at ACC includes Bible Study, Faith and Life Book Studies, a Faith Sharing Group, and walking fellowships. Bible Study meets weekly on Wednesdays from 2:00 to 3:00 PM, with the group currently on break. Faith and Life Book Studies cover prayer, theology, scripture, spiritual practices, contemporary issues, race, social justice, poetry, and more, with times and books that change regularly.
The Faith Sharing Group is a small gathering of women who meet on the second and fourth Thursday of each month, except holidays, from 11:00 AM to noon. It is not a Bible study but a circle that shares readings, prayers, poetry, and life stories.
Two walking groups offer a different kind of fellowship. Tuesday Trekkers meet at 10:00 AM on Tuesdays for walks along bike paths and conservation trails in Acton and Boxborough; the group's mailing list is the best way to find the week's meeting spot. Walk and Wonder gathers on Thursdays at 9:00 AM for a walk in nature that concludes with a brief prayer. A men's Trekking Group associated with a White Garland cluster also walks local conservation areas and bike paths.
On the second Sunday of each month, the service includes Pursuing Justice Sunday, a time to educate the congregation, listen to others' experiences, and discern how to take action on social justice issues in the local community and beyond.
Caring Ministries and Pastoral Care
The pastoral side of ACC's ministry runs deep. Rev. Karen Hodges, Interim Minister, makes home visits, calls on members and friends in extended care and nursing facilities, and counsels by appointment for weddings and baptisms. For pastoral emergencies, a minister can be reached at extension 113 of the church's main line; otherwise, messages left on staff extensions are routed directly to the appropriate person.
Stephen Ministry has been active at ACC since 1997 and is part of a network of more than 11,000 congregations worldwide. Stephen Ministers are laypeople trained to provide one-to-one Christian care, including listening, emotional and spiritual support, and confidentiality, to those experiencing illness, grief, loneliness, job loss, divorce, relocation, or other life difficulties. Meetings typically last about an hour each week.
The Visitation Team, formed in 2019, has 12 members who make telephone visits and send cards to people in the congregation who might be alone, ill, sad, or simply in need of a connection. The Good Shepherd Meal Ministry is a small group of men and women who prepare a few meals for anyone in the church family needing short-term help, usually because of a health crisis. The Prayer Shawl Ministry welcomes knitters of all skill levels, meeting on the third Sunday of each month after worship; the shawls they create are given to people in need, and baptismal blankets are presented to each infant baptized at ACC.
Through the Valley is the church's interfaith grief support circle, meeting on the second and fourth Monday of every month at 7:00 PM in the Conference Room. The group is open to anyone in the community carrying loss, whether the death of someone loved, the end of a marriage, estrangement, illness, or any other significant life change. All faiths are welcome and all losses are welcome. Drop-in attendance is welcome, with no preparation required.
Mission Partners Near and Far
Missions and outreach are described in the church's own history as "always a top priority." ACC supports a wide network of partner organizations with both financial contributions and volunteer energy:
- Acton Community Supper and Food Pantry, providing food and clothing to residents in Acton and surrounding towns since 1984.
- Akaa Project, founded in 2007 to improve life in rural eastern Ghana.
- Acton COA Fuel Assistance and Local Aid, helping local households pay energy bills.
- Back Bay Mission, serving homeless and low-income individuals and families on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
- First Connections, supporting families with young children in Acton.
- Habitat for Humanity, with ACC serving as a covenant church and members taking part in local builds, including a recent duplex on School Street in Acton.
- Hagar's Sisters, a Christian ministry assisting women affected by domestic violence in greater Boston.
- Household Goods, an Acton neighbor providing furniture to families in difficult circumstances.
- Lazarus House, providing food, shelter, and services to those in need in the Lawrence area.
- Minuteman Arc for Human Services, serving children and adults with disabilities in Middlesex County.
- National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).
- Straight Ahead Ministries, reaching incarcerated and formerly incarcerated youth.
- Worcester Area Mission Society, working for economic and educational equity.
The Cornerstone Thrift Shop, run by the church, accepts donations and is staffed by volunteers on Fridays from 10 AM to 2 PM and Saturdays from 10 AM to noon.
The Handmade Harvest Market
Each fall, ACC hosts its Handmade Harvest Market, a juried craft fair featuring professional artisans and a Harvest Cafe serving lunch, snacks, and drinks. Proceeds from the market benefit ACC's outreach programs. Past markets have drawn hundreds of shoppers from Acton and surrounding towns looking for holiday gifts.
Weddings, Baptisms, and Memorials
Members and non-members are welcome to have weddings in the sanctuary, with space available for small weddings and receptions in Hartman Hall. The church's stance on marriage is that it is "God's gift to humankind" and reflects God's hope that two people learn to live for each other; as an Open and Affirming congregation, ACC welcomes all couples and is glad to host interfaith, interracial, and multicultural ceremonies. A representative of another faith tradition is welcome to co-officiate alongside ACC's minister.
Baptisms of both adults and infants are celebrated in the presence of the whole community of faith gathered for public worship, in keeping with the church's understanding that baptism is a Christian, not a denominational, sacrament and is administered only once in a person's life. The church also hosts funeral and memorial worship services that celebrate the gift of a life, console those who mourn, and proclaim the Christian hope of resurrection.
Planning a First Visit
Acton Congregational Church is located at 12 Concord Road in Acton, MA, with a large parking lot beside the building and additional parking behind the town center fire station and behind the Acton Town Hall/Library. The sanctuary, fellowship hall, classrooms, and other spaces are wheelchair accessible via elevator, with two reclining chairs in the sanctuary for those who need them.
Masks during in-person worship are optional, though recommended during periods of increased reported COVID cases in the region. Children are welcome in the service; a Children's Library is available for parents who wish to let their children stretch and move, with audio of the service piped in. Hearing assistance is provided through individual receiver devices that can be requested from an usher, and large-print bulletins are available with advance notice.
Church office hours are Monday through Thursday, 9 AM to 4 PM during the school year and 9 AM to 3 PM in summer. The office is closed on federal and state holidays and from December 24 through January 4 each year.
Sunday worship begins at 9:30 AM, with the prelude starting around 9:20. The livestream begins at the same time on Facebook and YouTube. Those who wish to give to support the church's ministries can do so online through Vanco, by mail, by stock transfer, by planned gift, or simply by cash during a service. A mobile giving app, Vanco Mobile, is available for both Apple and Android devices.
Solar panels on the church roof generate renewable energy, and the church shares production data publicly as part of its commitment to sustainability. Members of the LGBTQ+ community, interfaith couples, and people at any stage of their faith journey are warmly welcomed at ACC, a value captured in the congregation's Open and Affirming Covenant and embodied each Sunday at 9:30. For those who wish to follow along online, services are streamed through the livestream page, and gifts can be made through the giving page.