Our History
The first house of worship in Cummington was built in 1780, on a hill outside of the present village area. After years of discussion some members decided to build a church in the Village of Cummington, and others built a church in West Cummington. In 1838 the Village Congregational Church was erected. The incorporation of the Village Church as a legal body was completed on February 20, 1912.
The Village Church was yoked with the West Cummington Church from 1912 to 1994, sharing a minister. We are now independent of each other, but share worship services at certain times of the year.
In 2005, the Village Church voted to form a "bridge" with First Churches in Northampton, MA. Starting in September of 2005, a minister and two ministerial students will begin to preach at the Village Church. The shared ministry included Liza Neal, leader, and students Duane Romberger and Barbara Black. It was a great experience with the variety of preaching and the chance for the church to help two ministerial students progress in their callings. Duane and Barbara have moved on, leaving fond memories behind. The Village Church liked Liza so much we called her to be our settled part-time minister.
The Village church started a newsletter called "The Good Will Messenger" which started as a church newsletter and has become an unofficial newsletter for the town.