ABOUT US
The Church |
The Minister |
Unitarian Universalism
Ceremonies & Rituals | Membership
We are an active and vibrant church serving the north central communities of Massachusetts in and around the city of Leominster. 
We welcome everyone who seeks a religious home to feed their spirit and nurture their humanity. We celebrate the power of love, the respect of differences, and the right of reason and conscience in discerning what is true and what gives life meaning.
We are proud to be a liberal faith community, rooted in a rich tradition that honors the inherent worth and dignity of all people and all religious perspectives. We are proud to be a progressively-minded church that celebrates the spiritual curiosity of children, youth, and adults. We believe all of us are called to help shape a more just and compassionate world for all people.
The Church
The congregation at First Church stretches back to 1743 when the first meetinghouse was built to fulfill the terms of the act of incorporation for Leominster to become a settled village. The congregation declared itself Unitarian in 1825 and continues to follow the principles of Unitarian Universalism to this day.
This fourth building dates back to 1904 and was built to replace the third meetinghouse which burned to the ground in January 1903. The granite walls and lighted stained glass window facing West St. make it one of the most easily recognized buildings in Leominster.
The church has modern amenities including handicapped access to all levels, headsets for the hearing impaired, and a sound system. We have a spacious chapel with 3 original stained glass windows, an organ and a piano. Downstairs there is a full kitchen, stage, and ample room for gatherings.
The building is available for rent for weddings and other events.Please contact the church at 978.537.0310.
The Minister
Biographic Sketch
Rev. Dr. Susan Suchocki Brown
I was born in Gardner, Mass. to Robert and Joyce Stowell. I am the oldest of four siblings. I lived in Winchendon from 1966- 1995 when I moved to 42 Country Lane in Leominster I have been at First Church Unitarian Universalist in Leominster since 1992 when I was installed that year on October 18th.
I am married to Ron Brown and have two grown children Eric and Scott. Eric is married to Andrea they live in Winchendon and Scott Suchocki and Janet DuHaime live in Temecula California. Together Ron and I have many grandchildren, Kevin, son of Eric and Andrea, and Geneveve and Zachary, children of Ron's daughter Jessica and son in law Chris, Allison daughter of Janet and Scott, and Cameron son of Jason.
I was born into a Unitarian Universalist family and attended the Gardner Unitarian Society through my childhood and early adult years. Prior to pursuing the ministry I worked in human service field. First, at a sheltered workshop assisting persons who were institutionalized to retain or learn new work skills. I then worked for over 16 years in various capacities at Naukeag Hospital an alcohol and drug treatment facility. I pursued an associates degree and Mount Wachusett Community College and a bachelors in the Human Service field at the University of Massachusetts with a specialty to Alcohol Abuse counseling and education. While attending the Unitarian Universalist church of my youth, I would often watch the minister and imagine that I could and wanted to do what he was doing. However, I married young and with the birth of two children in those first years of marriage the pursuit of ministry seemed an impossible one. When I left Naukeag Hospital, I was given the opportunity to reflect on what direction I wanted to take for the rest of my career and professional life.
The call to ministry had always been there and the opportunity to go for my dream seemed possible again. To financially survive attending divinity school Ron and I operated a hot dog stand. To begin with this was located on the side of the road where we sold hot dogs from a New York Style steamer; eventually the business became so successful we needed to rent a building to expand the business. We found a place in Ashburnham, where we sold ice cream, expanded our menu and sold fresh seasonable produce. While attending Andover Newton Theological School, I also served as the student intern at the Church of the Unity in Winchendon. I consider this my first ministry and have a special fondness for the people and the church there.
Being called to Leominster has been great. The community of Leominster and its needs, challenges, and gifts both within the church and in the larger community provide me with an opportunity to be a minister and to use many of my life and employment skills and experiences. Early in my life, my parents and my beloved grandfather, who lived with us while I was growing up, told me that I should attempt to find ways to give back to the community in which I live, so I am apt to be found volunteering for or attending numerous community events and committees. Each of these activities embodies the message of Unitarian Universalism and I represent the church and demonstrate what it means to be a member of the first religious society in Leominster. Since 1996, I have been Chaplain with the Leominster Fire Department. I was a founding member and still serve on the Board of the Massachusetts Corps of Fire Chaplains, which was established in October 1999. This is the first ever state wide interfaith Corps of Chaplains.
In December of 1999, I was called to the Worcester Cold Storage Fire, where six fire fighters lost their lives. And on September, (16th - 23 rd returning again at the end of October for three more days) I was deployed to New York under the direction of the International Association of Fire Fighters, through the Massachusetts Fire Service Department and State Fire Marshall. I and twenty-seven other Chaplains from Massachusetts provided various services to victims, families, fire fighters, police and other rescue workers. I also was at Logan Airport on September 12 and 15th, 2001 as part of a Spiritual Aviation Incident Response Team through the Red Cross.
Also I have had the honor to be the President and a founding member of the Unitarian Universalist Trauma Response ministry. The UUTRM responds to Unitarian Universalist ministers and congregations when an event occurs that requires our special expertise. For example I have responded to wild fires in California, to the shooting at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg Va. and to the Knoxville Tennessee congregation when two people were killed and several injured when a shooter opened fire during a worship service
In May 2002, 10 years after receiving my Masters degree I received a Doctorate in Ministry from Andover Newton Theological School. My thesis project addressed anti-oppression, anti-racism, multicultural transformation of institutions and individuals, by looking at the issue from a theological, social, congregational and systemic perspective. The desire for First Church Unitarian Universalist to be an institution that is welcoming, free of oppressions and open to all persons remains one of my strongest values and ideals.
Because I had such a positive experience as a Student Intern Minister; I have become a supervisor to other students. This has brought me to become adjunct faculty at Andover Newton Theological Schools where I have the honor of working in an interfaith setting with students studying for the ministry. First Church Unitarian Universalist has had four student ministers and each has brought their unique gifts and talents to the church and I have learned valuable lessons from each one of them. I am proud of the church for taking the risk to be a teaching congregation.
I serve on the boards of the Latino Partnership for Success and Spectrum, a drug alcohol treatment agency.
My opinion of ministry is that it is the highest and most humbling of professions. I engage with people at the height of joys and the depths of sorrow and together we face life with a willingness to stay connected with me, with others and with that which they have come to understand as the ultimate, that which is oft times called God but is the divine love and source.
If you would like more information please contact me at 978.537.0310 work or home 978.537.7252.
Unitarian Universalism 
Unitarian Univeralism is a noncreedal theologically liberal denomination that is dedicated to a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. We are committed to being a welcoming congregation and our members come from a wide variety of religious backgrounds. Below you will find our Statement of Purpose, Vision Statement, and the 7 UUA Principles.
Covenant: Statement of Purpose
We gather together in the love of truth and the spirit of religious and philosophical freedom. We acknowledge the spirit of Jesus, and the worship of God in our religious heritage. We unite for the discovery of self and the improvement of the human condition.
Vision Statement
We, the members of First Church Unitarian Universalist, dedicate ourselves to walk together in ways of truth, goodness, and beauty, to be an anti-racist, democratic, nurturing community of love, to be a support to each other in times of need, and to stand in the larger community for those values of tolerance, justice, equality and love by which we attempt to live our lives.
UUA Principles
We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote
The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;
The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;
The goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all;
Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
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What Ceremonies & Rituals Are Carried Out At First Church?
Child Dedications
Child dedications are celebrated during the worship services at a time mutually agreed upon by the parents and the minister.
Usually only one family dedication at a time occurs to allow each child and family to have the fullest personal attention. The ceremonies are usually conducted at the beginning of the worship service so that the children in the congregation or the family may also participate, and then go to the Religious Education programs or play room. The ceremony is open to any and all family and friends. All are encouraged to remain for the entire worship experience.
The purpose of a child dedication is to recognize that child and his/her family as participants in the First Church Unitarian Universalist community. Unitarian Universalists believe that each child is a gift of the universe, a divine and pure being born into the world needing the care and nurture of many individuals to provide for their spiritual growth and well being.
The family is encouraged, though not required, to seek out spiritual mentors (God-parents) to name and recognize during the ceremony. The parents, the spiritual mentors and the congregation are invited to make a pledge to the child. The congregation, members, friends, and those who care to, often say the following words, or words that are similar: "We as a church are dedicated to strengthening one another in every good thing and are called upon to be faithful and generous in the care of all. Therefore we solemnly pledge that we will encompass this child and his/her family with our love and that we will extend a helping hand as we walk together on our spiritual path."
Rev Susan uses both a white rose and water brought forward by members and friends in the dedication service. The white rose symbolizes the innocence and purity of the child and the water represents the flow of life and the source of nourishment. The family provides the white rose. (a single stem, de-thorned rose). Then Rev. Susan, the child, and other children in the family, if there are any, walk around greeting and being greeted by the gathered congregation. The choir and music director play appropriate music while this is happening.
The dedication ceremony is also the time when the child is recognized by name and Rev. Susan includes this naming as part of the ceremony.
Parents are invited to suggest readings, poems or prayers to use during the ceremony. A one time visit with Rev. Susan is expected so that the ceremony can be planned. It is not mandatory that one be a member of First Church Unitarian Universalist to hold a child dedication service, however Rev. Susan does talk about how you plan on involving the child or children in some religious programs and training. Contact Rev. Susan Suchocki Brown through the church office to arrange a conversation about a child dedication or to have questions answered about this important ceremony.
Children's sunday
Once per year, normally at the end of the church year, the children under the direction of the Religious Education Director and the Religious Education Committee plan and organize Children's Sunday. This is an opportunity for the church community to review what the youth in the Children' s programs have been learning and exposed to during the church year. During Children's Sunday, teaching of the youth and young people is honored and volunteers are sought for the next year.
Flaming Chalice
At the opening of Unitarian Universalist worship services, many congregations light a flame inside a chalice. This flaming chalice has become a well-known symbol of our denomination. It unites our members in worship and symbolizes the spirit of our work. The chalice and the flame were brought together as a Unitarian symbol by an Austrian artist, Hans Deutsch, in 1941. There, he met the Reverend Charles Joy, executive director of the Unitarian Service Committee (USC).
The Service Committee was new, founded in Boston to assist Eastern Europeans, among them Unitarians as well as Jews, who needed to escape Nazi persecution. From his Lisbon headquarters, Joy oversaw a secret network of couriers and agents. Thus, Hans Deutsch made his lasting contribution to the USC and, as it turned out, to Unitarian Universalism. With pencil and ink he drew a chalice with a flame. It was, Joy wrote his board in Boston, "a chalice with a flame, the kind of chalice which the Greeks and Romans put on their altars. The holy oil burning in it is a symbol of helpfulness and sacrifice.... This was in the mind of the artist.
The fact, however, that it remotely suggests a cross was not in his mind, but to me this also has its merit. We do not limit our work to Christians. Indeed, at the present moment, our work is nine-tenths for the Jews, yet we do stem from the Christian tradition, and the cross does symbolize Christianity and its central theme of sacrificial love."
The flaming chalice design was made into a seal for papers and a badge for agents moving refugees to freedom. In time it became a symbol of Unitarian Universalism all around the world.
The story of Hans Deutsch reminds us that the symbol of a flaming chalice stood in the beginning for a life of service. When Deutsch designed the flaming chalice, he had never seen a Unitarian or Universalist church or heard a sermon. What he had seen was faith in action—people who were willing to risk all for others in a time of urgent need.
Today, the flaming chalice is the official symbol of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee and the Unitarian Universalist Association. Officially or unofficially, it functions as a logo for hundreds of congregations. A version of the symbol was adopted by the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches in Britain. It has since been used by Unitarian churches in other parts of the world. Perhaps most importantly, it has become a focal point for worship. No one meaning or interpretation is official. The flaming chalice, like our faith, stands open to receive new truths that pass the tests of reason, justice, and compassion.
Flower Communion
Normally celebrated in June around the birthday of Norbert Chapek.
The first flower communion was celebrated in June of 1923 in Czechoslovakia. This communion was held each year thereafter even during the year and half of the originator's Norbert Chapek's imprisonment in German concentration camps. At times the lines of people waiting to get into the church for the Flower Communion, and for Sunday services, would reach as far back as a block or more. Each person entered with a flower, placed it in a vase, and each person left with a different flower.
The flowers are blessed and placed in the vase as a symbol of our freedom to choose our religion. The flower represents the unity of First Church Unitarian Universalist of Leominster's religious community and the spirit of acceptance of one another.
The flower communion helps to educate Unitarian Universalist about the connection to our Unitarian forbears in Eastern Europe.
Holiday Services
Christmas Eve is celebrated with a service of Carols, biblical readings, and candle lighting at 4 pm. The service is family friendly and about one hour in length. One of the Sunday's in December is an multi generational Holiday service, which is led and organized by the Religious Education Director and the Religious Education Committee in consultation with the minister and Music Director. The intention is to allow for a much youth and child involvement as possible.
Easter is held on Sunday and there is no Monday, Thursday or Good Friday service.
Memorial Services
Memorial services, funerals, graveside committals are conducted for friends or members of First Church Unitarian Universalist. First contact is most appropriately made through the funeral home that the family is coordinating services with. This allows the family opportunity to continue the grieving process and lets the funeral home and the minister arrange the details. Rev. Susan upon hearing of the need for her services in this regard will contact you to arrange a meeting to discuss the content of the service with any and all family members who want to be involved.
If the family wishes to use the church fellowship hall for an after service gathering this can be coordinated through the main office by calling 978-537-0310. If you are in need of pastoral care regarding the death of a member of First Church Unitarian Universalist, contact the minister as soon as the need arises.
Water Communion
After the traditional summer closing of the church, members return in September and engage in the water communion during the first two Sunday services. They are asked to bring in a small amount of water from a place they experienced spiritual renewal over the summer. Members share stories of where the water came from and how gathering it was a spiritually renewing experience. At the conclusion of the services, Reverend Susan adds that new year's water to water from past years. She uses it during child dedication ceremonies. Using the water, which symbolically brings together shared dreams, hopes, and ideals, deepens the connection as we come to understand that we all have a responsibility to nurture and care for all the children of the world. When we hold a child dedication ceremony, we each make a commitment to the child and their parents to make them a part of our religious/spiritual home.
Weddings
Rev. Susan conducts wedding services for friends, members and non church members these are arranged by calling the church office and beginning the process of setting dates and appointment times. Rev. Susan sits with each couple a minimum of two times to review the process, to plan the service, and to deal with any issues that might need clarity prior to the wedding. Rev. Susan will provide each couple with a booklet to review and that they may make choices from to make the ceremony uniquely personal and meaningful. Couples are invited to bring in their own resources, however Rev. Susan reserves the right for final inclusion.
First Church Unitarian Universalist and the minister are open and pleased to be marrying couples of the same gender. This tradition of honoring same sex unions began here at First Church Unitarian Universalist as early as 1985 and will continue.
Rev. Susan will perform marriage ceremonies out of the church setting however; she reserves the right to decline any service that is not appropriately respectful of persons or places.
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Membership
HOW DO I BECOME A MEMBER?
We welcome you to join our beloved community. We hope you have found your spiritual home here and you will choose to become a member and journey with us.
We do try to be friendly, by greeting visitors as they enter the church and chatting with them during fellowship time. However, we would never ask you to join our church right away, since we recommend you visit for a few months to see whether we are a good fit. And we would never pressure you to convert, since we respect everyone's personal spiritual beliefs and accept all religious traditions. Eventually, we'd be happy if you decide to become a member of our church.
Becoming A Member
Becoming a member of the First Church Unitarian Universalist Church of Leominster means that you are committed to the principles, values and life attitudes that Unitarian Universalism embraces. It is a public declaration that you stand with a group of people who have a liberal religious view. It is a commitment to support and encourage ones own and others efforts to grow spiritually and to support the congregations mission and vision in the wider world.
As a member of this congregation, you will be expected to become actively involved in the life of the congregation and its ministries. All members are asked to reflect on their life circumstances, their spiritual goals and to make a serious commitment to serving the mission and purpose of the church.
Expectations of Membership
Worship and the Celebration of Life
Attending worship regularly, participating in life passages, community rituals and activities, etc.
Spiritual Growth
Cultivation of your spiritual life: for example, participating in our learning community, joining a small group ministry covenant group, personal meditation, prayer, etc.
Shared Ministry
Serving the community within and beyond the church walls. For example, teaching religious education, providing pastoral care, participating in worship, working for justice, volunteering for a committee or project, taking a position of leadership, involvement in community service , serving and assisting during Pot Luck gatherings, helping to stock the Grains and Greens food pantry, ushering, greeting, etc.
Stewardship
Taking care of what we value and enabling it to improve and grow. For example, making a stewardship pledge by giving or tithing 5-10% of your income, caring for our buildings and grounds, participating in fund raising events, etc.
Living Our Faith
Living out Unitarian Universalism through our mission and covenant. For example, practicing our principles in daily life, voting at congregational meetings, getting involved in justice, anti-racism and/or anti-oppression work, supporting our Welcoming Congregation, multicultural initiatives, etc.
Sharing the Vision
Letting others know about the transformative power of Unitarian Universalism.
Next Steps
There are many ways to prepare for membership. While you are welcome to join the congregation at any time, you are also invited to take whatever time you need to discern whether First Church Unitarian Church is your spiritual home. Below are some of the ways you can prepare for membership and/or deepen your membership commitment when you join the church.
Preparing for Membership
*Attend an Exploring Membership class. This class led by our minister addresses our personal religious paths, the sources of UU living traditions, the history of the faith, and the hope it holds for the future. These classes are held periodically throughout the year. Please make sure and express an interest in this class to the minister. Watch our Current News and Events, the Calendar page or Order of Service on Sundays for details.
*Speak with someone from our Parish Committee to learn more about the meaning and expectations of membership.
*Spend some time reflecting within yourself about what it will mean to you to commit to being a member of this church. How will you want to help make the mission and goals of this institution real? Does First Church Unitarian Church of Leominster feel like your spiritual home? How might you want to invest your own gifts of time, talent and treasure to support our mission?
How to Join
*Participate in a formal welcoming ceremony, where you sign the membership book and are recognized by the members of the congregation. New Member ceremonies are a part of the services twice a year. There are special words of welcome and a covenanting with the congregation.
For more information about becoming a member please speak with someone from the Parish Committee or the Minister.
Note: As a member of the church you have the right to vote at all congregational meetings and elections. And, if you wish, can be nominated and elected to serve on any standing committee. Only members are counted by our denomination in its annual survey. Non-members are welcome to participate in many areas of church life but membership allows us to “stand and be counted†as a liberal religious body so that we may have more influence in making real the values and vision we have for ourselves and the world around us.
Contact Information
Church Address
15 West Street, Leominster MA 01453
Phone: 978-537-0310
Email: 1stchurchoffice@verizon.net
Minister
Rev. Dr. Susan Suchocki Brown
email: revsusanuu1@verizon.net
Office Coordinator
Bonnie Picone
phone: 978-537-0310
email: 1stchurchoffice@verizon.net