The Rock of Hadley: First Congregational Church celebrates 350 years
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HADLEY - Take away the First Congregational Church from Hadley, and there might be no Hadley to speak of.
The venerable church, in its third incarnation at 102 Middle St., is celebrating its 350th anniversary on Sunday with a special sermon, lunch and musical performance. The town, too, has been celebrating its 350th birthday all year long, with events to mark the historic milestone.
The minister of the First Congregational is the Rev. Sarah Buteux, 35, a wife and mother of one young son, with another baby on the way. Leader of the church for about five years, Buteux said being part of a 350-year-old institution gives her pause.
"From a pastoral standpoint, it's very humbling, because I know that this church has been here for 350 years, and it's going to be here for many years after I pass on. It really puts things in perspective, in terms of your significance or what you hope to accomplish," said Buteux. "It helps to not take yourself too seriously. There's something very beautiful and liberating about that, as well, in that you come in, you do your best, you contribute what you have to contribute. This is so much bigger than (me)."
Buteux noted how the founding of the church was inextricably linked with the founding of the town.
"The town did begin as an effort to start the church. The people came up with the idea of starting a community, but at the heart of that was the church. It was the pastor, Rev. (John) Russell, who led the effort," said Buteux.
The young minister has prepared a special sermon to mark the historic anniversary.
"It's titled 'Entertaining Angels,' and it has to do with the Angel of Hadley. The Angel of Hadley is supposedly a myth, but I'd like to challenge that idea and reimagine what might have happened just a little bit," she said.
The Angel of Hadley, as legend goes, was an old man, never before seen by the residents of the town, who appeared one day in September 1675. The man warned the inhabitants of an impending Indian attack, and then led a defense of the town, before suddenly vanishing into thin air.
Buteux said her creative sermon will include a skit in the middle of it.
Far from antiquated are Buteux's sermons, which she posts as podcasts on the church's Web site, at http://web.mac.com/revsarahb/Firstchurchhadley/Welcome.html. There, one can find photos, a newsletter and a bio of Buteux. Her interests include "The Lord of the Rings" (the movies and the books), "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," and "Battlestar Galactica," and the works of Emanuel Swedenborg, the visionary Swedish theologian.
She said she uses podcasts as a means to reach a younger generation of followers.
"I think a lot of people have gotten away from coming to church, and I think there's so much value in gathering and considering these age-old truths together, and finding ways to make them relevant now," said Buteux.
The service begins at 10 a.m., followed by a lunch, with a musical performance by the Pioneer Valley Fiddlers from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Ninety-year-old Ted McQueston, of West Street, ought to know a lot about the church: He's been a member there for about 74 years.
The church still plays a healthy role in his life, and vice versa. McQueston folds the church bulletins for the service every Sunday and helped set up a records preservation library there.
He's also seen quite a few pastors come and go.
"A few, we were glad to see them go. Most have been pretty good," said McQueston. He said the current one is "the tops."
In addition to being an active church member, McQueston has taken on a role as an amateur historian, of sorts.
"I've been around a few years, so (townspeople) think that I ought to know everything, but that's not the case," said McQueston.
While humble about his breadth of knowledge regarding Hadley's history, McQueston knows plenty.
The church building is actually the third meetinghouse built by the Congregationalists, spiritual descendents of the Puritans, whose tenets are based in freedom, fellowship and faith. The meetinghouse used to be on the West Street common, where the town's Colonial settlers - a dissenting congregation from Wethersfield, Conn. - grazed cattle and shared the land.
That meetinghouse was built in 1808 and was moved in 1841 to its current location, said McQueston.
In pre-Revolutionary times, West Street was known as Front Street, McQueston said, and Middle Street was called Back Street.
Residents of these two parts of town wanted to have the church more centrally located, so they agreed to move it, said McQueston.
"It was supposed to go halfway to appease the Back Streeters and Front Streeters. But when they got it going, the Back Streeters said, 'Keep it going, boys,' and it went on up to Middle Street," said McQueston.
The rest, as they say, is history.
