About
Caring deeply, loving everyone, serving together.
First Baptist Church of Denver began in 1864. Two centuries later, Old First's steeple stands tall at the intersection of 14th Avenue and Grant Street directly across from the south steps of the State Capitol. Taller still is First's vision of being a center of activity for Capitol Hill where people of all walks of life and systems of belief can experience conversations rooted in hope and filled with a passion to serve the needs of the broader community.
Reflective of FBCD's historic commitment to social justice and the pursuit of equality for all people on April 16, 1962, the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr., preached from First Baptist's pulpit. Dr. King's vision of a beloved community is a vision for which FBCD's members still strive.
Sunday Worship
Welcome to First Baptist: where pink hair or a pink Easter bonnet is considered our Sunday best, along with everything in between.
On Sundays, we seek to create a sacred space that fosters deeper relationships with both God and the community that surrounds us. Our worship is rooted in Christian beliefs yet draws influence from a number of other religious traditions and spiritual practices.
Our traditional Sunday services include:
Diverse music selections, from classical to contemporary and everything in between
Concise, inclusive, and dynamic preaching from our pastoral team
Prayers of the people, a time where all are invited to share their prayer concerns
A special Children's time led by our Children's minister
Communion on the first Sunday of each month
We are always looking for greeters, ushers, readers, musicians, and anyone that wants to participate in our Sunday services.
Children's Sunday School
Each Sunday, our children (and the young at heart!) are invited to participate in our Sunday School class to better connect with the youth in our church and to have an age-appropriate worship and learning experience.
To participate, children will be invited forward for a brief message during worship in the Sanctuary, then will be dismissed to the children's room for class and snacks. Children may be picked up from the Children's room following worship.
First Baptist takes the safety and security of our children seriously.
All volunteers and staff who work with youth are background checked and have been trained in the safety and security of our youth. We have also developed policies and procedures that ensure our children are kept safe.
Faith Formation
First Baptist coordinates classes and small groups that can meet via Zoom or in person to explore our Baptist heritage, Christian faith, and other faiths through video series, book studies, and guided conversations.
All are welcome to these small groups, whether you've grown up in the church your whole life, or if you're not sure what this whole "church" thing is about.
Though this group meets weekly, it often takes breaks during certain seasons. For an updated schedule, contact faithformation@rethinkbaptist.org.
Centering Prayer
Our prayer service meets each Wednesday at 12:30 PM on the chancel for a time of fellowship followed by twenty minutes of silent prayer and reflection. This prayer service is contemplative in nature and is intended to be a break in the busyness of life to connect us back to the God that is present with us always.
The Contemplative Society has this to say regarding Centering Prayer:
Most faith traditions have some form of meditation or contemplation. Virtually all methods of meditation have a goal of expanding, or deepening, the consciousness of the practitioner. The details vary. The Contemplative Society focuses on Centering Prayer, a surrender method of meditation, or contemplative prayer, that reaches back to the early days of Christianity.
Centering Prayer “….is a very simple method for reconnecting us with that natural aptitude for the inner life…(p.6) which, over time, of its own accord, leads to personal self-emptying and a more unitive outer life."
- Cynthia Bourgeault