Schedule of Services

SUNDAYS:

9:15-9:30 AM - Passing of the Peace (Welcome!)

9:30-10:30 a.m. - Morning Worship

10:30-10:45 a.m. - Fellowship Time

10:45-11:30 a.m. - Sunday School

4:00-5:00 p.m. - Choir Practice

WEDNESDAYS:

6:15 -   Wednesday Night Supper
All are Welcome!

STAFF:

Pastor: Rob Gulledge

 

Location

We're located on Grand Bay Wilmer road, just past Tanner-Williams School - Directions

 

About Tanner-Williams UMC

 

Our Vision

Our vision at Tanner-Williams United Methodist Church is to reach our community for Christ by sharing the Good News about His love for them and His offer of forgiveness and salvation to them when they repent of their sins and accept Him as personal Lord and Savior. We define our community as beginning at Tanner-Williams, Alabama, and extending to the uttermost parts of the earth. In the words of John Wesley, "The world is my [and our] parish."

As the western side of Mobile, Alabama, edges toward us, we will adapt our ministries to meet the varied spiritual, emotional, and physical needs of our new neighbors. We will do this by providing spiritual nurture and development and pastoral care to people of all ages, from birth to death.

 

What We Believe

Like any other group of Christians, we struggle to define our beliefs in the context of a world-wide membership and in the face of the major moral and ethical questions of contemporary society. This statement of faith is taken from our official website. For more information please consult that site as listed below. Also, we pride ourselves on welcoming into our services any and all who will come and worship with us. Please do not feel that you must agree with every point of this statement of faith in order to join us.

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:

Trinity

We describe God in three persons. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are commonly used to refer to the threefold nature of God. Sometimes we use other terms, such as Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer.

God

  • We believe in one God, who created the world and all that is in it.
  • We believe that God is sovereign; that is, God is the ruler of the universe.
  • We believe that God is loving. We can experience God's love and grace.

Jesus

  • We believe that Jesus was human. He lived as a man and died when he was crucified.
  • We believe that Jesus is divine. He is the Son of God.
  • We believe that God raised Jesus from the dead and that the risen Christ lives today. (Christ and messiah mean the same thing - God's anointed.)
  • We believe that Jesus is our Savior. In Christ we receive abundant life and forgiveness of sins.
  • We believe that Jesus is our Lord and that we are called to pattern our lives after his.

The Holy Spirit

  • We believe that the Holy Spirit is God with us.
  • We believe that the Holy Spirit comforts us when we are in need and convicts us when we stray from God.
  • We believe that the Holy Spirit awakens us to God's will and empowers us to live obediently.

Human Beings

  • We believe that God created human beings in God's image.
  • We believe that humans can choose to accept or reject a relationship with God.
  • We believe that all humans need to be in relationship with God in order to be fully human.

The Church

  • We believe that the church is the body of Christ, an extension of Christ's life and ministry in the world today.
  • We believe that the mission of the church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ.
  • We believe that the church is "the communion of saints," a community made up of all past, present, and future disciples of Christ.
  • We believe that the church is called to worship God and to support those who participate in its life as they grow in faith.

The Bible

  • We believe that the Bible is God's Word.
  • We believe that the Bible is the primary authority for our faith and practice.
  • We believe that Christians need to know and study the Old Testament and the New Testament (the Hebrew Scriptures and the Christian Scriptures).

The Reign of God

  • We believe that the kingdom or reign of God is both a present reality and future hope.
  • We believe that wherever God's will is done, the kingdom or reign of God is present. It was present in Jesus' ministry, and it is also present in our world whenever persons and communities experience reconciliation, restoration, and healing.
  • We believe that although the fulfillment of God's kingdom--the complete restoration of creation--is still to come.
  • We believe that the church is called to be both witness to the vision of what God's kingdom will be like and a participant in helping to bring it to completion.
  • We believe that the reign of God is both personal and social. Personally, we display the kingdom of God as our hearts and minds are transformed and we become more Christ-like. Socially, God's vision for the kingdom includes the restoration and transformation of all of creation.

Sacraments

With many other Protestants, we recognize the two sacraments in which Christ himself participated: Baptism and the Lord's Supper.

Baptism

  • Through baptism we are joined with the church and with Christians everywhere.
  • Baptism is a symbol of new life and a sign of God's love and forgiveness of our sins.
  • Persons of any age can be baptized.
  • We baptize by sprinkling, immersion or pouring.
  • A person receives the sacrament of baptism only once in his or her life.

The Lord's Supper (Communion, Eucharist)

  • The Lord's Supper is a holy meal of bread and wine that symbolizes the body and blood of Christ.
  • The Lord's Supper recalls the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and celebrates the unity of all the members of God's family.
  • By sharing this meal, we give thanks for Christ's sacrifice and are nourished and empowered to go into the world in mission and ministry.
  • We practice "open Communion," welcoming all who love Christ, repent of their sin, and seek to live in peace with one another.

Read more about our Christian roots

 

Our History

The Tanner-Williams United Methodist Church was founded in 1918 as the New Hope Methodist Episcopal Church, South with 21 charter members. The fledgling congregation met first in the community's Baptist Church building and later relocated to the old Tanner Williams School building. Rev. A. B. Brown was the first pastor.

In 1922, our trustees purchased one and one-half acres of land for $25.00 and built the first sanctuary for the congregation. By 1956, however, we had outgrown that facility, so we built a new sanctuary and added Sunday School space. The former sanctuary was converted into a fellowship hall, and the new sanctuary and Sunday School rooms were added to its front. These two historic buildings remain in use as our church fellowship hall to this day.

In 1962, we changed our name to Tanner-Williams Methodist Church to reflect the community in which we live and serve. After the merger of the former Evangelical United Brethren denomination with the Methodist Church in 1968, our name changed again to Tanner-Williams United Methodist Church.

In 1964, we added more Sunday School space, with further renovations as needed during the 1970s. In 1980, we built a parsonage on one acre of land located approximately one mile from the church location for the pastor to reside in. This enabled us to obtain our first full-time pastor, Rev. Alva E. Beers.

We added more Sunday School space in 1982, and we constructed a new wing to house the Pastor's Study, Secretary's Office, Church Library, Choir Room, and a nursery in 1989. In 1993, we built a basketball and volleyball court for the children and youth to enjoy.

In 1999, we completed another new sanctuary that accommodates up to 250 worshipers, with a built-in design to expand and accommodate even more as our numbers grow. The external style is a picture of Southern elegance and Christian hospitality. The internal layout is a fan-shaped arrangement of the pews, allowing comfort and visibility to all who worship here. It is a truly beautiful facility which we can scarcely describe, so you will simply have to come visit us in person to see it for yourself!

The Tanner-Williams United Methodist Church has completed eight different building projects in our history, and we expect to begin another in a few years to accommodate the continual growth in our ever-changing community. We welcome any and all who seek a vital relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Come, join us for worship in an atmosphere of loving acceptance and caring.