Oh Come All Ye Faithful

BY Staff

The decision to put Mount Lebanon Chapel on our December cover was easy enough; it’s hard to think of an image that says “Christmas” with any more tradition and eloquence. But the Wrightsville Beach area is blessed with churches such as St. Andrews on the Sound above that continue to awe and inspire us with their beauty   their community spirit and their commitment to leading the way to a better life one parishioner at a time.


 


Wrightsville United Methodist Church


4 Live Oak Drive Wrightsville Beach
The Rev. Tim Russell • 1 500 members • Sunday services at 8:30 9:45 and 11:15 a.m.
Established in 1947. Moved to its present location in 1954.


Wrightsville United Methodist Church has grown from a small beach church to one of the largest United Methodist Churches in eastern North Carolina.As we have grown and expanded wehave seen many changes in the last 60 years. What hasn’t changed is the warm spirit of a loving church family. While we celebrate our past we look forward to an even morewonderful future as we continue to write our own chapter in the glorious history of Wrightsville United Methodist Church.


— The Rev. Tim Russell


 


Wrightsville Beach Baptist Church


601 Causeway Drive Wrightsville Beach
Pastor Danny Hawkins • 726 members
Sunday services at 10:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.
with Sunday School/Bible study at 9:30 a.m.


Established in 1955. Moved into present church building in 1985.


The congregation at Wrightsville Beach Baptist Church is as welcoming to guests and new friends as any people I have ever served in any church. Our desire is to provide opportunities for all people to experience God through creative worship small group Bible studies prayer groups retreatsand fellowship with others in similar life situations.We believe that the church is a helping place for people searching for truth about God the Bible and God’s purpose for their lives. We also believe the church is a place of healing for the broken-hearted a place to find acceptance and unconditional love. Our hope is to be a community of believers who are making an impact for Jesus Christ in Wrightsville Beach and throughout the world.


— Pastor Danny Hawkins


 


The Little Chapel on the Boardwalk


2 West Fayetteville Street Wrightsville Beach
The Rev. Todd Wright • 540 members • Sunday services at 8:30 and 11 a.m. Sunday School in between.
Established in 1907. Moved into present facility and separated from Wilmington’s First Presbyterian Church in 1952.


Begun as a mission to beachgoers in a one-room clapboard sanctuary on the boardwalk with funds contributed by St. James Episcopal and First Presbyterian in Wilmington the Little Chapel on the Boardwalk has grown. Its mission now extends into the community with Second Loaf and Mother’s Morning Out ministries; across the bridge through involvement in the ministries of Habitat for Humanity Tileston and the Salvation Army; and across the globe through involvement in missions to Mexico and the Congo as well as hurricane relief on the Gulf Coast.


— The Rev. Todd Wright


 


St. Andrews on the Sound


201 Airlie Road Wilmington
The Rev. Richard Elliott • 780 members • Sunday services at 9 and 11 a.m. The church also holds a 7:30 a.m. service
at nearby Lebanon Chapel during the summer only. In winter that congregation gathers for a 7:45 a.m. service at the main church.
Established in 1923.


St. Andrews is a warm welcoming family-friendly church. Our worship style is rich and traditional leavened with the relaxed nature of a church near the beach. We welcome the faithful the seeker and the doubter for God’s embrace is wide and God’s good news is for all.


— The Rev. Richard Elliott


 


St. Therese Catholic Church


207 South Lumina Avenue Wrightsville Beach
Father Walter Ospina • 450 member families • Mass at 5:30 p.m. on Saturdays
and at 8 and 10:30 a.m. on Sundays
Established as St. Therese in 1944. Mass was celebrated on or near this site since early in the 20th century.


S t. Therese has come a long way from Sunday services in a summer cottage in the early ’30s to a year-round congregation of 450 families. The cottage has grown to four buildings and its facilities have endured significant hurricane damage on at least four occasions. Today as the property celebrates 111 years since its original acquisition it looks forward to continuing to serve a growing permanent congregation as well as the ever increasing number of Catholic beach visitors.


– Jim Welch deacon


 


Pilgrim Rest Missionary Baptist Church


6761 Wrightsville Avenue Wilmington
The Rev. Rickie Houston • 50 members • Sunday services at 11 a.m. (9 a.m. on third Sunday).
Sunday School is at 9:45 a.m. on first second and fourth Sundays
Established in 1908 in this building since 1935.


Pilgrim Rest Missionary Baptist Church has served the Wrightsville Sound community for 98 years and also reaches the city of Wilmington through its outreach efforts. Additionally the church volunteers to feed the homeless at the Good Shepherd House once per month.Pilgrim Rest is a small church but its motto says that “the size of our church is not determined by the size of our building but rather by the size of our hearts for Christ.” The Church is Christ-centered and believes in developing the whole person both physically and spiritually by providing preaching and teaching that fosters wholeness.


— The Rev. Rickie Houston


 


St. Matthew African Methodist Episcopal Church


6809 Wrightsville Avenue Wilmington
The Rev. Dewey Farmer • 40 members • Services on the first and third Sundays at 11 a.m. Sunday School at 10 a.m.
Organized in 1881. Moved and rebuilt on its present location in 1944.


This is a very friendly church very much a family church with its small congregation. Most of the members grew up together and know each other through generations. It is a welcoming place; we love to have visitors. It is a great place to come to feel the spirit of the Lord even from generations back.


— Maria Age steward