The church in Storrs is a local church which is affiliated with other local churches.  The history of the local churches dates back to the time of Jesus and the twelve apostles.  The only two times that Jesus mentioned the church in the Gospels was in Matthew 16:18 and 18:17 where he said, “I will build my church” and “tell it to the church”, respectively.  Here Jesus’s church is universal, which includes all believers regardless of time and space (Matthew 16:18), yet it also exists specifically with regard to time and space (Matthew 18:17), i.e. the local churches.

After Jesus’s resurrection from the dead about 3,000 people in Jerusalem repented, believed, were baptized, and continued in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles (Acts 2:38-42).  They gathered daily in the temple and in their homes, partook of their food with exultation and simplicity of heart, praising God (Acts 2:46-47)!  The first use of the word “church” in Acts refers to the believers in Jerusalem as simply “the whole church” (Acts 5:11), meaning the called out (congregation), or assembly (Greek ekklesia).  In Acts 8:1 they were referred to as “the church which was in Jerusalem”.  This is the first church established in the Bible in Acts and it included all the believers living in Jerusalem.  The record concerning the establishing of the church in its locality is consistent throughout the New Testament (Acts 13:1; 14:23; Romans 16:1; 1 Cor. 1:2; 2 Cor. 8:1; Gal. 1:2; Revelation 1:4, 11).

Although the practice of meeting as the church in its city was lost throughout the centuries, based on the classical writings of some 19th and 20th century Bible teachers, about 25 Christians began meeting as the church in Storrs on Sunday morning September 18, 2011, at a special meeting on the UConn campus to celebrate the Lord’s supper (Communion) for the first time as a testimony of Jesus in Storrs, Connecticut.  They were joined by 150 other believers who came from local churches in the New England area.  Twenty-five to thirty members of the church in Storrs have met over the years in rented UConn campus venues as well as in homes.

In addition to meeting on Sunday, we like to gather in the homes of the church members for prayer, fellowship, and reading the Bible throughout the week.  We welcome you to join us.