What We Believe
At Pleasant Street United Methodist Church, we follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ—leading with kindness, welcoming all, and putting love into action. We believe that faith is not just a belief system, but a daily commitment to compassion, service, and inclusion.
We are a church that opens hearts, minds, and doors. As part of the 11-million-member global United Methodist Church, we continue the legacy of John Wesley and the early Methodists, who emphasized “practical divinity”—a faith lived out through acts of justice, mercy, and grace.
Our mission is simple but powerful: To make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. At Pleasant Street, we live this out through ministries of witness, nurture, and outreach. We strive to be a place of welcome and warmth, where everyone—regardless of age, race, background, identity, or ability—is invited to grow in faith and service.
We believe in the future. We believe in a church without discrimination or hatred. We believe that the church should be a sanctuary from judgment, not a platform for political division. We affirm the separation of church and state, and we do not align ourselves with any political party or ideology.
We are a theologically diverse congregation—some of us hold traditional beliefs, while others bring progressive perspectives. We don’t always agree, but we walk together in respect, humility, and Christian love, trusting that unity does not require uniformity.
We also take seriously our “theological task”—continually reflecting on our faith using the lenses of Scripture, tradition, experience, and reason. These tools help us interpret the Bible in today’s world and guide us through the moral and spiritual questions of modern life.
At Pleasant Street UMC, we don’t just go to church—we are the church. And we’re always learning, growing, and striving to become more Christ-like in how we serve, how we love, and how we live.
For more about what United Methodists believe, please visit the official UMC website: www.umc.org
WS John Wesley 6-30-25
Who Was John Wesley—and Why Is He So Important to the United Methodist Church?
John Wesley (1703–1791) was an Anglican priest, theologian, and evangelist whose spiritual movement in 18th-century England sparked what we now know as the Methodist tradition. Along with his brother Charles Wesley—a prolific hymn writer—John Wesley helped ignite a revival that emphasized personal faith, social action, and practical Christianity.
Wesley believed that faith was not just a private matter but something to be lived out in everyday life. He preached in churches, fields, prisons, and town squares, reaching out to those who felt forgotten by the institutional church. His message centered on God’s grace, the importance of personal transformation, and the call to love your neighbor through acts of justice and mercy.
What made Wesley’s approach unique—and why it still matters today—is his belief in “practical divinity”. He taught that holiness wasn’t just about personal piety, but about how we treat others: feeding the hungry, visiting the sick, educating the poor, and working for social reform.
He also organized small accountability groups called “class meetings,” where people could grow in faith together—a model that laid the foundation for Methodist churches around the world.
Wesley never intended to start a new denomination, but the movement he sparked eventually became The United Methodist Church, one of the largest Protestant denominations today. His legacy lives on in our commitment to scripture, reason, tradition, and experience—four pillars of how we understand and live out our faith.
At Pleasant Street UMC, we honor John Wesley’s legacy by striving to be a church that not only believes deeply, but also lives boldly, just as he did.