How it all started...
St. John’s Methodist Church is known for honoring the past while being poised for the future.
We were founded in 1856 as a mission church to a new community and that attitude of
welcoming change is still with us. When the Department of Energy chose Aiken as the location
of the Savannah River National Laboratory back during the Cold War, St. John’s decided to tear down its historic sanctuary and build a bigger one to house the influx of thousands of
newcomers. That says a lot! We have been adding on ever since. We have three Sunday
morning services, with two that are traditional, and we have a state-of-the-art building for a
large contemporary service with an excellent praise band. St. John’s has adapted to the needs
of the community and congregation with vision and enthusiasm throughout its history. Our
facilities are excellent and debt-free which frees up abundant resources for ministry!
The church occupies a whole city block in downtown Aiken, South Carolina, a city that has been voted by Southern Living magazine as one of “The Top Ten Small Towns in the South.” The
public has voted St. John’s, three out of the last 4 years, as “Aiken’s Best Place to Worship.”
With 2,300 members, we’re known as “The Smallest Big Church in America” through the
warmth and friendliness of the congregation. We are the place that community groups use for
their many programs. We welcome people through our Recovery Programs, multiple indoor
pickleball courts, use of our gym for AAU Basketball, practices for the annual Aiken Heart Board Show which have been held for 40 years running, and two Lions Clubs plus two D.A.R. chapters meet here. We host Red Cross Drives, and the Community July Fourth Extravaganza at which we offer a picnic for the city! We are the go-to place for All-County Chorus presentations as well as high school and community concerts featuring the Julliard School, The University of South Carolina Chorus and Symphony, and our Chancel Choir has just received an auditioned invitation to perform at Carnegie Hall in January 2026 in tribute to Sir Karl Jenkins and his Stabat Mater.
St. John’s is a vibrant church.
We are a creedal orthodox Arminian church that believes that the “method” in Methodism is a personal relationship with Jesus that works itself out in mutual love and accountability. Our proclamation and teaching reflect a practical application of the Wesleyan emphasis on sanctifying grace as our most distinctive doctrine; i.e., “We don’t believe God saved us through Jesus to leave us the way He found us but to transform us and the world.” We live into this orthodox faith as an independent Methodist congregation. St. John’s voted in 2024 to separate from the UMC by a vote of 88% to 12% and have been thriving.
We are hugely missional.
St. John’s has many mission-partners around the world and dozens locally. Between our Methodist Men and their wheelchair-ramp ministry and the Methodist Women’s Apple Fest plus our Mission Impact Celebration we give close to $500,000 above and beyond our budget to missions! We also host Grace Kitchen every Saturday to minister to our homeless population. We also host and manage a large teen summer program for rehabbing homes that draws people state-wide. We are like a church mall with a few anchor stores and numerous boutiques. Anchors would be Worship, Missions, Music and Discipleship Ministries. Ancillary boutiques would be Sunday School, D-Groups, Children, Youth, Young Adults, Senior Adults, Stephens Ministry, Shepherd of Love visitation ministry, Methodist Women, Methodist Men, Prayer Shawl Ministry, Kairos Prison Ministry, Joseph’s Coat Ministry, Guy’s Night Out, GriefShare, Dementia Support, Youth Band, Handbells, Youth and Children’s Choirs, Sunday Morning Bus Ministry, as well as numerous Bible Studies. Between anchor store and boutique is a superb pre-school that ministers to 138 students, six weeks to kindergarten. We want you to help us grow and expand all our ministries!
We were founded in 1856 as a mission church to a new community and that attitude of
welcoming change is still with us. When the Department of Energy chose Aiken as the location
of the Savannah River National Laboratory back during the Cold War, St. John’s decided to tear down its historic sanctuary and build a bigger one to house the influx of thousands of
newcomers. That says a lot! We have been adding on ever since. We have three Sunday
morning services, with two that are traditional, and we have a state-of-the-art building for a
large contemporary service with an excellent praise band. St. John’s has adapted to the needs
of the community and congregation with vision and enthusiasm throughout its history. Our
facilities are excellent and debt-free which frees up abundant resources for ministry!
The church occupies a whole city block in downtown Aiken, South Carolina, a city that has been voted by Southern Living magazine as one of “The Top Ten Small Towns in the South.” The
public has voted St. John’s, three out of the last 4 years, as “Aiken’s Best Place to Worship.”
With 2,300 members, we’re known as “The Smallest Big Church in America” through the
warmth and friendliness of the congregation. We are the place that community groups use for
their many programs. We welcome people through our Recovery Programs, multiple indoor
pickleball courts, use of our gym for AAU Basketball, practices for the annual Aiken Heart Board Show which have been held for 40 years running, and two Lions Clubs plus two D.A.R. chapters meet here. We host Red Cross Drives, and the Community July Fourth Extravaganza at which we offer a picnic for the city! We are the go-to place for All-County Chorus presentations as well as high school and community concerts featuring the Julliard School, The University of South Carolina Chorus and Symphony, and our Chancel Choir has just received an auditioned invitation to perform at Carnegie Hall in January 2026 in tribute to Sir Karl Jenkins and his Stabat Mater.
St. John’s is a vibrant church.
We are a creedal orthodox Arminian church that believes that the “method” in Methodism is a personal relationship with Jesus that works itself out in mutual love and accountability. Our proclamation and teaching reflect a practical application of the Wesleyan emphasis on sanctifying grace as our most distinctive doctrine; i.e., “We don’t believe God saved us through Jesus to leave us the way He found us but to transform us and the world.” We live into this orthodox faith as an independent Methodist congregation. St. John’s voted in 2024 to separate from the UMC by a vote of 88% to 12% and have been thriving.
We are hugely missional.
St. John’s has many mission-partners around the world and dozens locally. Between our Methodist Men and their wheelchair-ramp ministry and the Methodist Women’s Apple Fest plus our Mission Impact Celebration we give close to $500,000 above and beyond our budget to missions! We also host Grace Kitchen every Saturday to minister to our homeless population. We also host and manage a large teen summer program for rehabbing homes that draws people state-wide. We are like a church mall with a few anchor stores and numerous boutiques. Anchors would be Worship, Missions, Music and Discipleship Ministries. Ancillary boutiques would be Sunday School, D-Groups, Children, Youth, Young Adults, Senior Adults, Stephens Ministry, Shepherd of Love visitation ministry, Methodist Women, Methodist Men, Prayer Shawl Ministry, Kairos Prison Ministry, Joseph’s Coat Ministry, Guy’s Night Out, GriefShare, Dementia Support, Youth Band, Handbells, Youth and Children’s Choirs, Sunday Morning Bus Ministry, as well as numerous Bible Studies. Between anchor store and boutique is a superb pre-school that ministers to 138 students, six weeks to kindergarten. We want you to help us grow and expand all our ministries!
Who We Are...
Our Mission is to make disciples of Jesus Christ who love, serve, learn, and worship.
Our mission is based in the Great Commission which says in Matthew 28:19-20, "to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything He has commanded of us."
At St. John's, our vision to make disciples is through love, service, learning, and worshiping with passion. The best way to see the vision is to get involved in one of our many ministries: SEED, Children, Students, Young Adults, Adults 55+, Music, Missions, and Support Ministries.
Our mission is based in the Great Commission which says in Matthew 28:19-20, "to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything He has commanded of us."
At St. John's, our vision to make disciples is through love, service, learning, and worshiping with passion. The best way to see the vision is to get involved in one of our many ministries: SEED, Children, Students, Young Adults, Adults 55+, Music, Missions, and Support Ministries.
What You Will Find...
St. John's is a warm, friendly, multi-generational church that has much to offer to children, youth, and adults of all ages. We invite you to join us at any of our five dynamic worship experiences and grow with us through involvement in any of our numerous Bible Studies or Sunday School classes.
You will find a wonderful place to call your spiritual home and many brothers and sisters in Christ with whom to worship! St. John's offers a sense of community and belonging to all who choose to join us.
You will find a wonderful place to call your spiritual home and many brothers and sisters in Christ with whom to worship! St. John's offers a sense of community and belonging to all who choose to join us.
