On Sunday, November 10, 2018, our church family voted to change our church name from Bethel-St. On Sunday, May 5th, 2019, the church embraced that new name: CrossRoads Christian Church of St. The new name was chosen as our church anticipates the direction in which God is leading. We possess a vision for a church that is dynamic and growing--a church that is truly making a difference in our community and for the Kingdom of God—a church that is committed to embracing one another so that "no one walks alone". Our door is open to all those share our vision and desire to covenant with us in seeing that dream become a reality. Paul Church was founded on December 10,1995. The church was formed by way of a merger between St. Paul Evangelical United Church of Christ and Bethel United Church of Christ. Saint Paul Evangelical was established by German immigrants in downtown Louisville in 1836. It was the founding congregation of the United Church of Christ in the Greater Louisville area. After enjoying many fruitful years of ministry and mission, the church experienced several decades of declining membership. In the early 1990’s, the congregation decided that merger with a sister church was the best way to continue its one hundred fifty year mission. Bethel Church was established on the eastern edge of Louisville in 1923. Affectionately Bethel was known to the community as the Turtle Soup Church by virtue of a sixty-nine year-old tradition of preparing and serving turtle soup that began in 1929. Through her seventy-two year history, and especially in the last decade, this congregation was also outwardly focused in touching lives for the sake of the gospel. Thus, the once strong image of Turtle soup has given way to such outreach ministries as our annual Living Nativity project, a comprehensive Vacation Bible School program, a generous emergency financial assistance ministry, and servant evangelism projects. After a year of discussions beginning in January of 1995, both congregations voted affirmation of A Proposed Plan of Merger on October 8, 1995. The final worship service was held in the St. Paul facility on December 3rd of that year, followed by Merger Sunday on December 10th at the former Bethel Church facility (where the church now gathers). As one, truly united church, Bethel-St. Paul is committed to reaching the community for Jesus Christ.
