When you walk into our sanctuary you will be entering the oldest church building in Long Beach, a place of incredible beauty and long tradition. You will find yourself seated amidst a diverse congregation - people of various ages, abilities and disabilities, races and sexual orientations. A lot of children are present when our service begins and then after our "Words With Children" time, they leave for their classes. You will feel the warmth of the congregation as people greet one another. There may be moments of spontaneity and laughter in the service, but from the moment our Buddhist singing bowl calls us into a time of quiet to the final notes of the postlude played on one of the most magnificent pipe organs in Southern California.

The Sanctuary Choir performs a variety of choral music representing a number of styles and genres. The choir sings Renaissance motets, Baroque chorales, major choral/orchestral works from Handel's "Messiah" to Faure's "Requiem," and 20th century anthems and motets. The Sanctuary Choir sings in a number of languages including Hebrew, Latin, French and German, as well as Spanish and English. The choir also sings larger works with instruments for the Fourth Sunday of Advent, Christmas Eve, and Easter.

Una Voce is our chant choir that sings on the first Sunday of each month.

Sheep's Kin is our youth band that plays a variety of acoustic and electronic instruments and the group features youth vocalists. Sheep's Kin plays in our Sunday morning service several times each year.

Beloved Bells is a hand bell choir for children in grades 5 through 12. The Beloved Bells play regularly in our Sunday service and several times a year at other sites or events. The group has traveled throughout California and to Hawaii on performance tours and to bell ringing conferences.

Our Organ
M. P. Möller. Hagerstown, Maryland
Opus 8800, 1956 - 5 Manuals, 70 Ranks

You can listen to our sermons on our web site.

The First Congregational Church is a vibrant and exciting faith community located in the heart of downtown Long Beach. There's a place for you here. Come and join us.

Visit ... www.firstchurchlb.org