What to expect when you arrive on Sunday:

When you come through First Parish’s front doors (the main entrance at 20 Lexington Road with the steps and pillars), there will be a few friendly faces there to say hello, hand you a bulletin that outlines the order of service, and answer any questions you may have.  If you have children with you, the ushers and greeters will be happy to take you to our Religious  Education wing and introduce you to staff there.   Or you and your children may just take a seat anywhere (seldom are seats reserved) and wait for the service to begin.  Our children are with us at the start of each worship service, leaving after the “children’s message” to join their religious education classes.

If you enter from the side door, off the “traffic circle” to the right of the main building, you will be in the lower hall near the church office, the kitchen and our parish hall.  If you arrive a little early, you can take a peek at some of the tables set up in the parish hall (social action projects or current events) or browse the bulletin boards that line the hallways.  Or, visit our Religious Education wing, which you can reach by going straight ahead. There should be a “greeter” there to help you find your way.

Ingathering music begins about 5 minutes before the service begins, so make your way to the sanctuary (left down the lower hallway from the side door, up a flight of stairs, and into the vestibule), and find a seat.  Right around 9 am (and again at 11 am), the service begins.

What to expect during worship:

Our ministers (Gary Smith, Jenny Rankin and Karen Foley) will guide things as they go, and your order of service will give you a “roadmap” of what to expect next.  At First Parish in Concord, we honor our Judaeo-Christian tradition while also drawing wisdom from other world religions, so chances are that during your visits to First Parish you will hear words or music from all the world’s religions, as well as the earth-centered traditions and modern day poets and writers.  Each week we have a time of meditation and prayer which begins with music, settles into 2 or 3 minutes of silence, then a spoken prayer, and music at the end.

First Parish has a vibrant and diverse music ministry.  Worship music runs the gamut from classical choral works and traditional organ music to hand-clapping gospel, hand bells, world music, blue grass, chamber music or jazz.  You will probably hear one of our five choirs on a Sunday, ranging from children as young as five to an adult choir that is fifty voices strong. 

At the end of the service each Sunday, we stand and say together the words of our Benediction.  These words are printed on the back of your Order of Service.  If you come a few times, you may begin to notice that many of our members have learned them by heart.  They are really the way we try to live out our faith in the days between Sundays.  Feel free to join in.

What to expect after worship:

Each service lasts about an hour.  Many people stand in line at the back of the church to shake the ministers’ hands.  You are encouraged to do this but you do not need to do it.   You may want to go directly to your child’s religious education class to meet them.  Teachers will expect you by 10:15 or 12:15, but they understand if things are running late in worship.

Afterwards, people often linger to have a cup of fair-trade coffee, juice and goodies in the parish hall. You can reach the parish hall by leaving the sanctuary at the back door, taking the stairs to your right, and following the crowd down the central hallway to the room with lots of light, people and tables full of exciting events and projects.  Get your coffee in the kitchen which is on your left as you head to the parish hall.

This is a chance to get a drink, have a bite to eat, and visit together as a community.  It can be a bit daunting for introverts, but know that you are not alone!  Most Sundays, there is a table with information for newcomers, and someone to talk to and answer your questions.  We appreciate your presence and are glad you came.

After visiting, if you have any questions or want to talk more with one of the ministers, please email us.  Gary Smith ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ), Jenny Rankin ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ), Karen Foley ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ).  And thank you for coming.