"No matter who you are or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome here."
A Collection of Stories About Our Church
Church of the Beatitudes is a community of faith-keeping and faith-seeking people grounded in stories and truths contained in the scriptures. We are open to insights and interpretations of God revealed to us through new experiences, different faiths, and diverse cultures.
Our purpose is to provide opportunities for the formation of Christian disciples through worship and spiritual enrichment, to offer the education and training for this discipleship and to encourage the practice of this discipleship in the world.
We are proud to be a community that welcomes all people - an open and affirming congregation!
Jesus was born in a barn and so were we!
Church of the Beatitudes has always had a history of caring for those who are on the edges of our culture and community, finding ways to bring service and hope to people who have been without. It is the bedrock upon which we stand.
During our first years, we worshiped at Bud Brown's Barn, a local landmark and gathering spot. Sunday morning at Bud Brown's Barn was really a riot; we had to move all the furniture into this small room that had a tin roof on it, and if it rained, you couldn't hear a word of the sermon.
The guys picked up the spinet organ each week, delivered it to the barn, moved tables, set up chairs and the alter and church was ready. After the service, we would have to dismantle everything, move the little portable organ, move all the chairs, clean up, and have it look as though we had never been there because Bob Brown was going to have another party that night.
It was the uniqueness of it that brought us all together faster than if we had met in some sterile hall. The fact is, a lot of us did not know each other before the beginning of the church, but we seemed to come together and have a wonderful time along with praising God.
About 110 people showed up that first Sunday morning.
Why Did the Church Begin The Beatitudes Campus?
Bill Nelson went to a nursing home where the head usher's mother was staying. He experienced conditions there that we absolutely mind-boggling. He told church members what he had seen and described how people living at the home were not being properly cared for. He added that as a church, if we were living in a Christian community we couldn't let things like this happen.
Who better than the church could provide affordable accommodations for the elderly and the many services they deserved at a price they could afford? We began investigating the possibility of building a retirement facility with the mission of building one that was comfortable, inviting, and aimed at providing care to people from middle and lower-middle class income. We broke ground in the early part of 1964.
The Beatitudes Campus is truly a ministry in the broad sense of the word. Members of Church of the Beatitudes were inspired to help the residents of the Beatitudes Campus. With support from the church and all of its members, the Beatitudes Campus and its residents have benefited from over one million hours of service work by the Beatitudes Auxiliary. These volunteer hours have been given steadily from the founding days of the Campus until the present. What dedication!
Trial by Fire
Shortly after our 25th year, we experienced a huge fire at our church. In fact, it was the largest fire in the city of Phoenix that year! Our fellowship hall burned to the ground, along with church offices and ancillary facilities. The fire created a huge fireball which set the church's roof on fire and sent flames leaping wildly in the air. The fire station was right across the street, but it was 2:00 a.m. and no one was at the church. The fire was reported by an airline pilot preparing to land at Sky Harbor Airport! Firefighters from all over the city were sent to fight the blaze. While they kept the fire contained, they were unable to save many of the church's main buildings.
Life at church was disrupted for a good length of time, but money was raised for a new facility.The silver lining is that we now have a new, beautiful fellowship building — Nelson Hall.
