History

“From a garage prayer meeting in 1961 to a thriving church community today, we exist to be the very presence of Jesus in Carmichael and beyond.”

The Timeline

A timeline infographic showing the number of years from 1961 to 2022, marking several key years: 1961, 1962, 1980, 1999, 2002, 2008, 2021, with dots indicating data points and vertical lines representing error margins.

Our history

Christ Community was formed in a Carmichael garage in 1961, and in 1962 formally organized as a Reformed Church in America (RCA) congregation. Christ Community’s mission - then and now - has been to make fully committed followers of Jesus Christ. We exist to be the presence of Christ in Carmichael and beyond. We have always had an eye not only on the already gathered, but on welcoming and blessing the not yet gathered.

After outgrowing the original Winding Way campus, Christ Community moved to its current Manzanita Avenue campus in 1980; it was significantly expanded in 2008. Beginning in the early 2000s, Christ Community leaders actively engaged nationally in RCA polity matters (e.g. twice the then-serving Christ Community Senior Pastor served as the RCA General Synod President) with the explicit intent to ensure the RCA held its Pastors and Churches accountable to the full authority of Scripture, particularly with regard to issues involving human sexuality. In 2022 Christ Community made the difficult but nearly unanimous decision to leave the RCA, and joined the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. 

Black and white photo from 1962 of people waiting in line to go through the winding way entrance at an amusement park or similar attraction.
A crowd of people gathered outdoors at Manzanita Avenue in 1980, with a person speaking or performing on a small stage, and a large open gate in the background.
A large crowd gathered at a construction site, possibly for a building dedication or event, with a partially built structure in the background and construction safety barriers around the area. The image is labeled 'MULTI-PURPOSE -- 2008' at the top.
Aerial view of a church campus with multiple buildings, trees, and parking lots, labeled as 'Church Campus -- 2000'.

The Very presence of jesus in carmichael and beyond.