College Church

History

College Church, founded as The First Church of Christ in Wheaton, was organized in 1861 by Jonathan Blanchard (Wheaton) in 1861 and affiliated with the Congregational Association of Illinois. The church first met on the campus of Wheaton College as "The First Church of Christ in Wheaton." Blanchard wanted the church to be known for its opposition to slavery, secret societies, and alcohol use.

The church was first affiliated with the Congregational Association of Illinois. Jonathan Blanchard's involvement as the first president of Wheaton College and as the founder of College Church caused the two institutions to share statements of faith and facilities. The church suffered divisions over doctrine and affiliation during the years after its founding, leading to the creation of what are now First Presbyterian Church in Wheaton and Wheaton Bible Church. After a reorganization in 1878 the church was renamed the College Church of Christ. It only gained its current name, College Church in 1963, in an effort to distinguish itself from the Church of Christ denomination, which has a rather different theology.

Although it is not formally associated with Wheaton College, College Church has long been closely associated with the college and drawn large numbers of students and members of the faculty to its services. The congregation is "largely affluent.

Growth

The church expanded rapidly during the years that R. Kent Hughes led the church as senior pastor, with the church growing in membership and facility size. In 2000, the church dedicated the new Commons building, a 55,000 square feet (5,100 m²) addition to the church campus. The building cost $7.5 million.

By 1990, the burgeoning congregations of College Church, Wheaton Bible Church, and St. John Lutheran Church, all located close together led to serious traffic and parking problems. For the church, the solution was to dig "an underground tunnel from the existing complex to the new building which they placed across the street."

Core Beliefs

Under the leadership of Pastor Josh Moody, the church has established the following vision: “The God Centered Gospel of Jesus Christ Proclaimed in Us as a Church and Through Us to the World by the Transforming Power of the Holy Spirit.” It is guided by the following values: Fellowship (biblical community of gospel compassion); Learning (expositional teaching for transformational discipleship); Outreach (evangelistic, missional and missionary outreach locally to globally); Worship (excellence in biblical worship together).

Ministries

College Church has a variety of different ministries devoted to different groups within the church. One area of ministry that the church is known for is its ministry to persons with disabilities, called the STARS Disability Ministry. The church offers a disability ministry "to make access to worship, ministry, and fellowship a reality for any child or adult with special needs." The church hosts The Run for the STARS in June to raise money to send STARS members and their families to summer camp. Celebrity athletes including Jean Driscoll, winner of the women's wheelchair division of the Boston Marathon, have supported this College Church fundraiser by participating.

College Church has ties with church plant congregations in Chicago, Batavia, Lombard, and Naperville.

The church is active in supporting worldwide missions and church planting. In 2016-17 the annual mission budget was $7.2 million, with more than $2 million supporting cross-cultural outreach.

Pastors

Elders

Members

Aerial photos and maps