St. Pauls History

“With God’s help, walking the spiritual journey of faith, we will be, and lead others to be, committed followers of Jesus Christ.”

You might be wondering, “Who are St. Paul’s?” The giant cross in the sanctuary will answer the question. No matter where you come from, whoever you are, whatever the past you may have, we embrace you in your search for God’s love. Our giant cross in the sanctuary symbolizes the many paths we cross as we develop relationships. The color signifies the presence of Christ in every aspect of our lives–good, bad, and ugly. No matter what differences we may have among us, we embrace our diversity as a gift and not a hindrance. As we gather and break bread, we pray for and love one another as Christ loved us. We have been carrying God’s love story since 1834!

Our parish has stayed strong since the beginning. The original site was on the west side of 6th Street and the north side of Walnut (now called Mohammed Ali), where the State Office Building is currently located. The impressively designed Gothic edifice was completed in 1839. A fire destroyed St. Paul’s building on The Feast of the Conversion of Apostle Paul —January 25, 1894.

The second location for St. Paul’s was built on the corner of Fourth and Victoria Place (now called Magnolia). This location in the St. James Court area was considered suburban and the center of the population where most of the families of St. Paul’s lived. The new building completed in 1895 was of Tudor-English Gothic design. St. Paul’s continued to grow and prosper for many years, and in the 1950s, membership started to decline as members began moving out to the east end of Jefferson County.

Because of the migration, St. Paul’s moved the parish to the suburbs. The present location of St. Paul’s is 4700 Lowe Road. The first worship service was held in 1957. In 2017, St. Alban Church in Fern Creek joined us after a long prayerful discernment. The beautiful sound of our bell tower reminds us of our faithful union every hour.

Throughout the years, we have actively ministered to the community’s needs. The women of St. Paul’s founded Norton Hospital, and our members were instrumental in creating The Home of the Innocents. Our Preschool has been serving young families for over fifty years. A dedicated core group of women has quilted the “Prayer Blankets,” given to Norton Hospital patients and all our preschool graduates. We are a community of Good Ol’ Faithful, Artistic, Resilient, Thoughtful, and Spiritual bunch.

When you join the St. Paul family, you will feel the solidity of our Christian love from the rich history, courage, and adventurous minds in which God continues to reveal His Love. This is how we love God and God’s people. This is how we embrace YOU. So many faith journeys have been authored here, and we’d love for you to be part of it as we continue to serve Christ.