About Our Church
Uptown Church of Christ is a diverse community seeking to serve God in Uptown Chicago. We are a warm and inviting Church sincerely committed to ministry among all of God’s people. Uptown Church of Christ offers the opportunity to use your gifts to the fullest and is a place where you can belong and grow in Christ.
Meet Pastor Walter
Greetings!
My name is Walter Pierce and I am the minister of the Uptown Church of Christ in Chicago, IL. I’ve served here since July 2019. I’m originally from West Palm Beach, FL. I have been married to Christa since 2004. We have two children, Elizabeth and Sean.
I received my bachelor’s from Morehouse College and my Master’s in Theological Studies from Covenant Theological Seminary. I have served in Christian ministry since 2002 in Missouri, Florida and now here in Chicago. My desire is to see Uptown COC be a community dedicated to reflecting the glory of the triune God.
I enjoy spending time with my family, movies, music, and suffering with the professional sports teams of South Florida!
May God send his richest blessings toward you! Email me at minister@uptownchurchofchrist.com.
In Christ’s love,
Walter
Ministry Groups
We have many ways to volunteer through expressing faith: teaching a Bible class, leading singing and worship, preparing and dispensing communion are ways you can let your light shine!
Grounds Beautification
Our church is a place of worship, fellowship, and community—and we need your helping hands to keep it looking its best! We’re currently seeking volunteers to assist with general maintenance, yard work, and caring for our church garden.
Whether you have a green thumb, a knack for fixing things, or simply a heart for service, there’s a place for you on our team. Tasks include mowing, trimming, weeding, planting flowers and vegetables, and basic upkeep around the property. No experience is necessary—just a willingness to pitch in and help out.
Volunteering even an hour or two makes a big difference. Join us in nurturing not just the beauty of our grounds, but the spirit of community that grows when we work together.
Contact office@uptowncofc.org to learn more.
Children’s Ministry
Let the children come unto me! We have multiple opportunities for those that want to help a child grow in faith and character! You can volunteer by providing:
- Care and supervise during Cradle Roll, a class for ages 0-3.
- Prepare crafts or teaching materials and implement a lesson for children’s Bible hour.
A background check is required for all volunteers in this ministry.
Contact office@uptowncofc.org to learn more.
Audiovisual Tech
Already an AV expert, or want to learn a new skill? We livestream services every week, and we’d love your help running sound and recording the services. Training will be provided.
Volunteer as your schedule allows—whether it’s once a month or twice a quarter. By volunteering you help those who can’t make it to service stay connected with our church.
Contact office@uptowncofc.org to learn more.
At Uptown we believe in unity in essentials and diversity in non-essentials.
We believe Christians can unite around a core of common beliefs while maintaining a diversity of opinions on other issues.
Our Common Beliefs
We acknowledge Jesus as the Way, the Truth and the Life; through His death, burial, resurrection, and enthronement, God acted for His people in fulfillment of His promises.
We have publicly proclaimed our acceptance of that grace through water baptism by immersion and we have been raised up to walk through life as a new people, empowered by God’s Holy Spirit.
We are committed to seeking a deeper relationship with God, we recognize the Bible as God’s authoritative word, and we look forward to the day of Jesus’ return.
Though redeemed as a result of God’s action for us through His Son, we are not perfect. In obedient response to God’s grace, we lead lives of service by actively engaging in fellowship with the family and working in the city of Chicago to influence all people of every background for God’s Kingdom.
Our Values
We are a loving church.
Matthew 22:37-40
We strive to love God and our neighbors, both in our city and throughout the world. We strive to love God by worshipping, obeying his commands and cultivating our relationships with him through spiritual disciplines like prayer. We strive to love our neighbors by practicing justice and seeking our neighbors’ welfare. We strive to love one another by sharing our lives throughout the week to grow in our love.
We are an inclusive church.
1 Corinthians 12:12-13
We strive to reflect the inclusion and diversity of the kingdom of God and our city. We believe, as Jesus did, that all are welcomed into the body of Christ, . We believe the body of Christ is enhanced by the inclusion of people from a wide variety of backgrounds and identities. As an inclusive church, we also believe that God has gifted all of his children, male and female, with the Holy Spirit for the benefit of the entire body of Christ. We strive to be, as the apostle Paul wrote, “one body (in Christ) with many members.”
We are a serving church.
Matthew 25:31-46
We strive to spread the love of Christ through service to others. In Jesus ,we see service to others take the form of helping to meet physical needs like food and clothing. In Jesus, we also see service to others take the form of helping to meet spiritual needs like forgiveness, community, and salvation. We also encourage one another to serve every day in our homes, our schools or our workplaces.
We are an urban church.
Jeremiah 29:7
We are shaped by our location in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago, a global city with urban blessings, like vibrant and diverse culture, and urban challenges, like stark inequalities in access to opportunity. We love Chicago and we believe God is at work in Chicago and other urban environments like it. We are committed to being faithful followers of Jesus Christ as he moves in Uptown Chicago.
We affirm that Black lives matter.
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
Micah 6:8
At Lakeview we believe that if we endeavor to act justly, we must not turn a blind eye to injustice in our society. As Martin Luther King said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”. The Servant Leadership Team wants to briefly address recent events that have highlighted the long-standing problem of racial injustice in our society.