What We Offer
Union Memorial offers congregants a place of comfort, hope, and a peace of mind for all their worshipping needs. We are dedicated to spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ, and our goal is to inspire you through the holiness of our dwelling and our services. We invite you to become a part of our growing congregation, and look forward to meeting you!
Union in the Community
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Pierre Laclede Junior Academy – Pk-8. St. Louis Public Schools. Engaged in student mentoring, Afro-Centric Book Giveaways and social services support for identified high risk kids.
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Better Family Life – St. Louis, MO. Partnering in a variety of targeted community outreach initiatives in high risk north St. Louis areas.
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The Haven of Grace – St. Louis, MO. Partnering by providing newborn and infant supplies for the women served by The Haven of Grace.
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Fathers United To Raise Awareness (FUTRA) – St. Louis, MO. Partnering by providing space for programming occurring with FUTRA’s men as they work on acquiring life transforming skills.
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Thomas Dunn Food Giveaway
FREE FOOD - Sundays, 11:00 – 12:00 p.m. @ Union Memorial Enrichment Center (across the street from the church) on the corner of Bartmer & Belt Avenues. -
Family & Friends Food Drive – occurring November and December each year, Union comes alive with receiving donations of non-perishable food items and then distributes them to high risk and need families in north St. Louis neighborhoods.
UNITED METHODISTS
OUR COMMON CHRISTIAN HERITAGE
United Methodists share a common heritage with all Christians. According to our foundational statement of beliefs in The Book of Discipline, we share the following basic affirmations in common with all Christian communities:
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God, who is one, is revealed in three distinct persons. Read More
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We believe in the mystery of salvation through Jesus Christ. God became human in Jesus of Nazareth; and his life, death and resurrection demonstrates God's redeeming love. Read More
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Our Christian Roots: The Holy Spirit
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The Holy Spirit is God's present activity in our midst. When we sense God's leading, God's challenge, or God's support or comfort, it's the Holy Spirit at work. Read More
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Our Christian Roots: Human Beings
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Genesis 1:27 asserts that we've been made in the image of the Creator. Like God we have the capacity to love and care, to communicate, and to create. The church is the body of Christ, an extension of Christ’s life and ministry in the world today.
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Our Christian Roots: The Bible
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We believe that the Bible is God’s Word and is the primary authority for our faith and practice.
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Our Christian Roots: God’s Reign
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The kingdom or reign of God is both a present reality and future hope.
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Grace
Grace is central to our understanding of Christian faith and life.
Grace can be defined as the love and mercy given to us by God because God wants us to have it, not because of anything we have done to earn it.
We read in the Letter to the Ephesians: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God — not the result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Our United Methodist heritage is rooted in a deep and profound understanding of God’s grace. This incredible grace flows from God’s great love for us. Did you have to memorize John 3:16 in Sunday school when you were a child? There was a good reason. This one verse summarizes the gospel: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” The ability to call to mind God’s love and God’s gift of Jesus Christ is a rich resource for theology and faith.” 1
Faith and Good Works
United Methodists insist that faith and good works belong together. What we believe must be confirmed by what we do. Personal salvation must be expressed in ministry and mission in the world. We believe that Christian doctrine and Christian ethics are inseparable, that faith should inspire service. The integration of personal piety and social holiness has been a hallmark of our tradition. We affirm the biblical precept that "faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead” (James 2:17).4
Mission and Service
Because of what God has done for us, we offer our lives back to God through a life of service. As disciples, we become active participants in God’s activity in the world through mission and service. Love of God is always linked to love of neighbor and to a passionate commitment to seeking justice and renewal in the world.
Nurture and Mission of the Church
For Wesley, there was no religion but social religion, no holiness but social holiness. In other words, faith always includes a social dimension. One cannot be a solitary Christian. As we grow in faith through our participation in the church community, we are also nourished and equipped for mission and service to the world.
“From Wesley’s time to the present, Methodism has sought to be both a nurturing community and a servant community. Members of Methodist Societies and class meetings met for personal nurture through giving to the poor, visiting the imprisoned, and working for justice and peace in the community. They sought not only to receive the fullness of God’s grace for themselves; but...they saw themselves as existing ‘to reform the nation...and to spread scriptural holiness over the land.’” 3
1 Excerpted from Teachers as Spiritual Leaders and Theologians. Used by permission.
2 Excerpted from “The United Methodist Member’s Handbook,” George E. Koehler (Discipleship Resources, 2006), pp. 78-79. Used by permission.