The church was formed in 1956 and met for the first 4 years in the US Navy
Chapel in San Bruno. The building on Rosewood was completed in 1959 with a great
deal of work by its charter members and was occupied in 1960. The congregation
has added members all
through its history and though some have moved away there is still a very active
membership. The church is part of the San Francisco Presbytery and the
Presbyterian Church USA denomination. There are 69 churches in our presbytery
and over 2 million Presbyterians in the US.
We are part of the reformed tradition of the Protestant church with roots in Scotland and the earliest reformers including John Calvin. We are always learning more about our relationship to God and Christ and are reforming our understanding of what it is to be a Christian in the world.
Bethany is a loving, hard-working congregation committed to serving our community and the world. Worship is the cornerstone of life at Bethany where the weekly message, prayers of intercession, hymns and choir music are focal points. Our CE program includes a weekly children's Sunday school, a mid-week Youth Club for teens, an adult Bible Study, a Martha Circle, a Ruth Covenant Group and a yearly intergenerational VBS.
Bethany is involved in local and international outreach programs. At a local shelter we organize and serve meals one weekend a month, and help with laundry, food and money donations. We have supplied school kits for the children in Afghanistan and Iraq. Our children are raising money for a Heifer Project Ark, and our youth had their first "30 Hour Famine" this year. The Board of Deacons provides congregational support in times of need.
Community celebrations include an annual picnic, a Thanksgiving dinner, Hanging of the Greens, Mardi Gras, a summer social, and services for Christmas Eve, Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter sunrise as well as a regular Easter service complete with choral and instrumental music. The Mohk Yang Korean Presbyterian Church meets in our facility, and we are building a strong working relationship with them. Bethany continues to seek ways to invite and welcome the surrounding community to be a part of the good news of Christ’s kingdom that our congregation knows and shares.
