About Us

The people who gather together as Second Baptist Church have been doing so for a long time. In 1833, after the very first Baptist Church in St. Louis disbanded, a few brave souls founded Second Baptist Church. For more than 180 years, through various and sundry pastors, in several buildings, Second Baptist Church has remained faithful to its original calling - to be people of faith in this place.


We are open. We are open in our membership. We are open in our communion. And we are open in our acceptance. We believe that all people are children of God, and it is our privilege to accept anyone who comes into our fellowship. Jesus said, “Come to me,” and we extend the same invitation. You are welcome at Second Baptist Church if you are rich or poor, married or single, gay or straight, black, brown or white, uptown or downtown, insider or outsider, conservative or liberal, together or a mess. 


We are progressive. Second Baptist Church chooses to look forward with confidence that God is indeed building a Kingdom wherein we are citizens who practice grace, love and mercy. As one person has said, “The currency of the Kingdom is love. Spend it freely.”


At Second Baptist Church we are not as concerned that we all agree as that we all love each other and challenge each other and care for each other.


We have no litmus test at Second Baptist Church. Rather, we practice a generous orthodoxy that encourages folks to seek Jesus and His Kingdom.

We are historically Baptist. The word “Baptist” means a lot of different things these days, and the word can have some negative connotations. We believe that we are Baptists in the best way- grounded in the historical distinctions that have made Baptists champions of individual rights, freedom of religion, freedom of conscience and separation of church and state. We have long associated with American Baptist Churches, U.S.A. 


We are bound to each other by love. The people of Second Baptist have chosen to follow Jesus by coming together to love and care for each other. We really do enjoy each other as we serve together. The Apostle Paul's reminder to “Mourn with those who mourn and rejoice with those who rejoice” is an apt description of the people of Second Baptist. And as a community of faith, we yearn to invite others to join us as we journey together.


We are committed to serve our world. We believe that our purpose includes caring for the poor, reaching the lost, and challenging systems that neglect the least among us.


We are a community of faith in which Jesus Christ is Lord. We believe that Jesus not only died for us, but lived for us as well. We believe that Jesus' teachings are significant and that we are called to follow Him as He leads us to live lives that reflect His love and grace.