open and affirming at First Congregational church

We, the First Congregational Church of Falmouth, Massachusetts, are a community of faith, called to love one another as Jesus Christ loves us. 

We strive to be champions of justice, compassion, and inclusion. We welcome all people into the full life and ministry of the Church, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identities, gender expressions, race, ethnicity, culture, and all of the multitude of differences that span the fullness of humanity. 

As an Open and Affirming church, we covenant with God to create a safe and accepting space for everyone. Respecting our differences and supporting one another, we seek to demonstrate Christ’s unconditional love. 

We commit ourselves to the ongoing work of being an Open and Affirming congregation, one that lives out the belief that God is still speaking. With God’s grace, we will encourage one another as we journey together in Christian faith.

 The First Congregational Church in Falmouth can be and should be and, with God’s help, will be our finest expression of God’s Kingdom on Earth. And if it is going to be  like God’s Kingdom, then it should be a place where  everyone is welcome and everyone knows it! It should  be a Kingdom where everyone is fully encouraged to  work together, a Kingdom where everyone supports  and is supported by one another in Christian  community, a Kingdom where all of God’s children are  affirmed as worthy and welcome, and a Kingdom where  all of us, together, can follow in Christ’s righteous way. That is a Kingdom worth  building! The Ichthys (or Icthus) is a symbol consisting of two intersecting arcs that overlap at the  end, creating an image that appears to be like a fish. It is believed the symbol of the fish  was adopted by early Christians as a secret symbol (a shibboleth) used to help identify  other Christians and to indicate safe places where Christians could gather at a time  when they faced persecution from the Roman Empire. Our FCC Church Council has  voted to adopt the symbol of a rainbow Ichthys to indicate our status as an Open and  Affirming congregation and to let members of the LGBTQ+ community know they are  welcome and will be safe at the First Congregational Church in Falmouth. From now on we will find the rainbow Ichthys incorporated into our church stationary,  on the cover of our bulletins and newsletters, and displayed on the front and back  signage of our church. Many people will see our rainbow fish and think of the beauty of  Cape Cod. And some will see our rainbow fish and recognize it is inviting them to be  participants in building God’s Kingdom, one church at a time. 

Go now and live, Jonathan  

PS — A very special thank you to Brennan Carlson for designing and refining our rainbow Ichthys.