St. Alban’s & Grace United Methodist

This is excerpted from an online article by Michelle Hiskey, March 3, 2025.  Read the full article here:  https://episcopalatlanta.org/news/albans-umc/

In June 2023, a pastor and a 60-member congregation in Elberton were left without a church home due to the upheaval in the United Methodist Church caused by differing beliefs about discriminatory language and bans related to ministry.

That pastor, Jim McCollough, and his leadership team met in homes to pray and discern next steps. McCollough then contacted Fr. Reid Hamilton, priest-in-charge at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church and asked if his congregation might have a temporary home at St. Alban’s.

Hamilton agreed without hesitation. The arrangement has worked so well that today, Grace United Methodist Church (80 members) is a permanent “resident congregation” at St. Alban’s and a vital co-participant in worship and ministry.

Sunday at St Alban’s, the Episcopal congregation worships at 9:00 am and Grace meets at 10:30 am. Every Thursday, the two congregations share Noonday Prayer, lunch, and Bible study. Additionally, they sometimes hold joint worship services, such as Christmas Eve, Easter Sunrise, and when each denomination’s Bishop came for visits, one in July 2024 and the other in November 2025.  

“Take away all hatred and prejudice and unite believers in one holy bond of truth and peace.”

Commonly Asked Questions

  • Yes. The word protestant began as a derogatory term used for those who were protesting abuses in the church of that day. The word also means “to witness for” and reminds us that our church witnesses for Jesus in the world around us. As a Protestant Church we are not in communion with the Roman Catholic Church, though we wish to work for greater unity among all Christians and churches. We believe that through a relationship with Jesus as our forgiver and leader we come to salvation. We also believe in the divine revelation of the Bible.

  • Yes. The word catholic was described hundreds of years ago as “that which has been believed in all places, at all times, by all people.”

    The word catholic means what has always been believed as the essentials of Christian faith and practice. We are not a part of the Roman Catholic Church, but we welcome their members into full communion with us.

    As a catholic church, we believe there is a great value to the long-standing traditions and practices of Christians throughout time. Among the central practices of a catholic church are the Sacraments.

  • Yes. A sacrament is an outward and visible sign of the inward and spiritual gifts God offers us. We accept as most important the sacraments of Baptism and the Holy Eucharist (also called Communion or The Lord’s Supper).

    In Baptism we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and are adopted into God’s family called the Church.

    In Eucharist, we receive the bread and wine of communion which we believe is the body and blood of Jesus — a way of knowing by faith that Jesus is truly with us and in union (communion) with us at that point in time.

  • Yes. The Bible is a book that allows us to hear God’s words to his people and their response to him.

    We believe that all the things you need for faith and salvation are in the Bible. There’s no secret knowledge you need outside of the Bible, and no additional truth that came later that is of the same value as the words of the Bible.

    We also believe God has given us a mind and wants us to use it, as we struggle to interpret, understand, and apply the stories and teachings in the Bible.