Story
Testimony
The worship was a very emotional event for me and something that had not happened in many, many years. I feel like I have found a "home" in Urban Village and am s ...
Story
It started with a simple conversation at the Corner Bakery on the corner of Washington and Wells in downtown Chicago. Trey Hall and Christian Coon were pastors of established congregations in the Chicago area and were both perfectly happy where they were.
But they also sensed that maybe there was something else in their futures. Something new. Something different. The more they talked, the more they realized they both had an interest in starting a new church. That simple conversation between two friends turned into many more discussions, prayers, and dreams about creating a new church in the city, one that would be bold, inclusive, and relevant.
Those dreams turned into reality in early 2009 when they both announced that they would be launching a new church, starting downtown in Chicago’s Loop but with dreams of reaching out to the whole Chicagoland region with a different way of being church. Urban Village Church started scattering seeds in July 2009, held its first monthly “preview” services in Winter 2009-2010 and launched weekly Sunday morning worship downtown on March 28, 2010. A second worship site was launched on October 17, 2010 in the Wicker Park neighborhood on Sunday nights. Trey and Chris pray, dream, and hope that their continuing vision matches God’s vision.
We’re excited about this church’s future. We are committed to creating a diverse Christian community in the heart of the city of Chicago, an “urban village” where we build relationships with each other and with God—relationships that change our lives and also change the world.
We desire to be:
a church that is bold: where there is authentic joy in gathering to worship God and power in discovering that our lives working together can serve and change the world.
a church that is inclusive: where absolutely everybody—seeker and skeptic, Democrat and Republican, gay and straight, young and old, woman and man—has a real place at the table. We mean it. Wherever you are on your spiritual journey, you are truly welcome here.
a church that is relevant: where the message connects to the real world and helps you live your Monday-Saturday life, where beliefs aren’t rigid boxes to check but springboards into imagination and meaningful action.
