About

Senior Pastor

Rev. Dr.
Alonzo Chisholm

Pastor’s office:
781-893-0255
email:
fbcwaltham.ma@gmail.com

Rev. Dr. ALONZO CHISHOLM (Pastor Al)

Pastor Al is a native of Rock Hill, South Carolina. He is the son of a Baptist Preacher, Reverend Joseph Chisholm. Pastor Al and his late twin brother, Minister Alphonso Chisholm, were the only sons of six children. Four out of the six became ministers of the Gospel.

Pastor Al answered God’s call to preach the Gospel in December 2004 and received his Ordination in 2020. As words of his enthusiasm and zeal for boldly preaching the Good News of Jesus Christ, he is sought after to provide inspiring sermons to congregants throughout New England and South Carolina. On March 5, 2023, the First Baptist Church in Waltham, MA. installed him as their Settled Pastor. He is a retired Major of the United States Air Force and the Department of Veterans Affairs. He is married to Cedeline C. Chisholm, who is also retired from the United States Air Force and the Department of Defense. They have three sons, Jason, Bryant, and Jonathan, and nine beautiful grandchildren.

Staff

Office Manager

Mrs. Suzanne DeGisi is our office manager. She is a dependable presence in our office. DeGisi stays on top of many of the little things that go unnoticed. She organizes parishioner data, filters and sorts the mail, and troubleshoots the office equipment or finds someone who can. DeGisi always is looking for better and more efficient ways to do things.

Organist and Choir Director

Ms. Elizabeth Keusch is our organist and choir director. Also, Beth is one of our soloists. Her singing and that of Maxwell Li’s enhance our worship services. As a vocalist, one of Beth’s specialties is difficult music, at which she excels. As our organist and choir director, Beth works well with our choir. She is a patient and professional director who pays attention to the little things that are so important to a choir. Our organ was refurbished a little over a year ago, and Beth gets the most out of it.

Custodians

Our church is blessed with two custodians, Roselvia and Fredy Orozco. They work tirelessly to keep our church clean and tidy. Roselvia focuses on the building, and Fredy on the grounds, yet it is quite common to see them working together on a project. They diligently work to keep things in order, and to keep the church looking beautiful inside and out.

TBD

Statement of Faith

The Mission Statement of the First Baptist Church In Waltham, Massachusetts

The Mission of the First Baptist Church in Waltham is to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ through witness, prayer, and service; and to make a spiritual home where all will feel welcome as we cooperate with denominations in furthering the Kingdom of God.

A Brief History of the First Baptist Church in Waltham, Massachusetts
On August 17, 1852 residents of the North side of Waltham were notified of a meeting “to be held under the direction of the Baptist denomination.” On November 4, 1852, a church was organized and Reverend Martin Bickford became its first pastor.

For three years the meetings on Sunday were held in Rumford Hall, the site of the present City Hall.

The church building which was erected in 1855 at the corner of Charles and Moody Streets was dedicated February 14, 1856.

At a special business meeting of the church in January, 1962, it was voted to move to a new site, and to build a new church nearer the center of membership. On February 9, 1964, 400 Lexington Street was dedicated.

Article III Of the Constitution of the First Baptist Church in Waltham, Massachusetts Government and Fellowship

Recognizing Jesus Christ as the only head of the Church, the government of this church is vested in its members who exercise the right to control all its affairs. It is amenable to no other ecclesiastical body, but it accepts the obligations of mutual counsel, comity and cooperation involved in the free fellowship of the American Baptist Convention [now the American Baptist Churches, USA (ABC-USA.org)], and pledges itself to share its common aims and work. This church is in direct fellowship with the Samuel Stillman Association, Massachusetts [now the American Baptist Churches of Massachusetts (TABCOM.org)] and American Baptist Conventions, and with all churches which seek to promote the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. This church is also in active fellowship with the National Council of Churches.

For more information about services, ministry, and spiritual counseling, please contact us using the form below, or write directly to the email

fbcwaltham.ma@gmail.com

Church Government

Board of Christian Education

Shall consist of not less than five (5) and not more than seven (7) members.
Shall administer the church school and direct all religious and missionary education of the church.
Shall report to the church at the Annual Meeting on the activities of the previous year and shall nominate the Superintendent of the Church School and one member to the Nominating Committee. The Superintendent may appoint teachers and other agents of the Church School with the consent of this board.
Shall meet monthly except July and August and whenever necessary.

Constitution and Bylaws Committee

The Constitution and Bylaws Committee shall consist of not less than five (5) and not more than seven (7) members of the congregation, including the Chairperson (or a representative) of each current board – the Diaconate, the Christian education Board, and the Board of Trustees – the Moderator (or a representative) and not more than three (3) at-large positions (as provided in Article VI, Section 4). The Chairperson of this committee shall be elected by a quorum which shall be its majority.

Diaconate Board

The Diaconate:

Shall consist of not less than seven (7) and not more than ten (10) members of Deacons and Deaconesses whenever possible. With the Pastor, they shall have general direction of meetings for religious worship.
Shall supervise the raising and disbursement of the Fellowship Fund and the Missionary Benevolent Funds.
Shall have general care of the spiritual welfare of the church and its members and shall perform such duties as usually pertain to their office.
The first meeting after the Annual Meeting shall meet and organize by electing a chairperson, a clerk, a member to the Nominating Committee and appoint committees on Membership, Baptism, Communion, Music, Ushers, Missions, Pulpit, Flowers, Fellowship and such other committees as may be needed from time to time.
Shall meet monthly except July and August and whenever necessary.
Shall have the power to act on the acceptance or dismissal of all members, either by letter, baptism, or other action. They will inform the church at the Annual Meeting of all such action taken, giving names and reasons thereof.

Nominating Committee

The Nominating Committee:

Shall consist of (5) members, one appointed by the Pastor, one appointed by each of the three boards and one appointed by the outgoing Nominating Committee. The member appointed by the outgoing Nominating Committee shall be the Chairperson.
At least two months before the Annual Meeting they shall prepare a list of nominations for all officers, boards, delegates and committees unless otherwise provided for.
Shall make nominations for which it makes nominations at the Annual Meeting.

Pastoral Relations Committee

1. The Pastoral Relations Committee will consist of five (5) active church members, one (1) appointed by each of the three (3) boards and two (2) nominated by the Nominating Committee in consultation with the Pastor, and be elected to the Annual Meeting of the church for staggered terms of three (3) years.
2. No member shall serve more than one (1) consecutive three (3) year term.
3. The purpose of the committee is provide a liaison between the Pastor and the congregation in the following ways:

To be a channel through which the Pastor and congregation exchange ideas, reactions and comments.
To review the compensation of the Pastor annually and make a recommendation to the Diaconate Board.
To function as a counselor, advisor, and confidante to the Pastor in matters of the Pastor’s vision for the church and what courses of action are necessary to make the church an effective instrument in God’s hand.
To discuss a Continuing Education Program with the Pastor; to support the educational growth of the Pastor.

4. The function of this committee implies that members elected to serve should be discreet and sensitive. They should be people with whom the Pastor and congregation can work comfortably.
5. The authority of the Pastoral Relations Committee will be limited to recommending courses of actions to the appropriate boards, committees or other decision-making entities of the church.
6. The Pastoral Relations Committee will meet with the Pastor at least quarterly, with definite dates scheduled well in advance.
7. The chairperson of the Pastoral Relations Committee shall be elected by a majority vote of the Pastoral Relations Committee each year, not to serve more than one year as chairperson.
8. The Quorum of this committee shall be three (3) voting members. If a quorum is not met, the chairperson shall reschedule that meeting to another date.
9. If an insurmountable problem arises this committee will inform the Church Council before calling upon the area minister of TABCOM. This call will be made by the Chairperson after a majority vote of a quorum of this committee.

Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees:

Shall consist of not less than five (5) and not more than seven (7) members of the Board of Trustees.
Shall have custody and control of all property belonging to the church and all revenues, and shall administer the same in accordance with the instruction of the church.
Shall meet monthly, except for July and August and whenever necessary.
Shall constitute the Ecclesiastical Society of the First Baptist Church in Waltham, Massachusetts.
Shall be responsible for the duties of the care of the property and administration of purchases made in the name of the church.
Shall report at the Annual Meeting of the church on the financial condition of the church.
Shall prepare and recommend a budget for the ensuing year as well as conduct a canvas for funds to cover the budget.
Shall nominate the church Treasurer and Financial Secretary.
Shall employ a custodian/s who shall be responsible to the Board of Trustees.
In the absence or incapacity of the Treasurer, shall appoint a Treasurer Pro Tempore, with all rights, duties, and responsibilities of the office of Treasurer. This appointment may or may not be the Assistant Treasurer, if that position has been elected.
Shall appoint at its first meeting after the Annual Meeting a Chairperson, Clerk, member to the Nominating Committee, Chairperson for Finance, a Chairperson for the House Committee, a Chairperson and not less than two (2) nor more than four (4) members of the Permanent Funds Committee.
The Board of Trustees shall be subject to a spending limitation of $10,000.00 for any one (1) project without the necessity of obtaining the approval of the congregation. Should it be necessary to exceed that amount, the approval of the congregation must be obtained. However, in the event a situation arises wherein work, repairs, etc., must be done immediately at a cost to exceed the $10,000.00 cap, and a special meeting cannot be called because a quorum (20) of its membership is not available, (g., the summer months) to approve the expenditure, then the work shall be done in accordance with the majority vote of the Board of Trustees. The Trustees then are to approve the completed work and the bill for payment of same, which the Treasurer is to pay upon receipt thereof. At the next scheduled congregational meeting, the Board of Trustees must bring this matter to the congregation for confirmation.
The Permanent Funds Committee shall have the power to invest and reinvest at their discretion, any Investment Funds in the name of the First Baptist Church in Waltham, Massachusetts and is authorized to execute all appropriate instruments necessary to these transactions under the direction of the Board of Trustees. Any transfers in excess of $25,000.00 from the Permanent Funds to any other Church Fund, shall be approved by the Church membership at a Church Business Meeting. The Chairperson of the Permanent Funds Committee shall be bonded.
Any quarterly transfer in excess of $25,000.00 has to be voted on at a special meeting called for by the church.

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