Rev. Adam E. Eckhart

Senior Pastor - Rev. Adam Eckhart has served First Church Milford for over twenty-one years but still embodies a youthful spirit that engages the church in faith and ministry.

First U.C.C. Milford called Adam to be its settled Senior Pastor after he served for 13 years as the church's Associate Pastor. After the church initiated an Open and Affirming process in 2017, Adam helped facilitate the theological reflection of what God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit reveal to us about accepting all people unconditionally, especially in the face of historical injustice. The church adopted its Open and Affirming covenant in June 2019.

When the COVID-19 pandemic began, Adam and the rest of the program staff quickly adapted by producing pre-recorded online worship and maintaining connections as the Body of Christ in the midst of suffering and isolation. As the pandemic evolved and became less severe, Adam led efforts to bring the congregation into its new normal, including holding in-person worship that is also livestreamed and archived online. 

Adam leads worship; offers pastoral care and faith formation opportunities; works with Trustees in maintaining the church's finances and facilities; leads the staff; interprets and articulates God's call to the church and the congregation's vision and faith; and helps equip the church to be the body of Christ in 21st century Connecticut.  

As the church's primary preacher, Rev. Adam often uses humor, drama, and music to engage the congregation in lively sermons. Adam preaches with one foot in the biblical story and the other in today's world with all its complications, brokenness, and humor.

In his spare time, Adam jogs, hikes, solves crossword puzzles, eats bratwurst, and roots for the Chicago Cubs (not all at the same time). He and Associate Pastor Rev. M. Ashley Grant are married and together raise their four exuberant children.

His writings have been published in Feasting on the Word and Feasting on the Gospels commentaries. His theological interests include the ethics of relationships and language; sacred ecology; the writings of Soren Kierkegaard; the impact of technology on community; and neighborliness. He has been active in U.C.C. churches his entire life.

Adam graduated from Yale Divinity School with his Master of Divinity degree three years after receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies from Yale College. Adam was raised, along with his older brother, by two wonderful parents who now reside in southern Wisconsin.

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