Woodland Park UMC

our message
of welcome

Woodland Park United Methodist Church (wpumc) is a century-old congregation with strong ties to the Phinney and Greenwood neighborhoods in Seattle. Tradition and newness come together at WPUMC to provide a relaxed, safe, easy-going atmosphere that also retains spiritual depth and meaning. We sing music from centuries long past and music written this year. We pray in the traditions of the church mothers and fathers and we pray from our hearts. We use rituals as ancient as the christian faith and we create them as needed. Here you will find people in their eighties and some just a few months old. The noise of babies is welcome in our worship and the questions of those seeking deeper meaning with the divine -- the one we call god -- are welcome anytime.

Each of us walks a very unique spiritual path. But these paths are made much smoother and a bit less scary when others travel with us. that is the power of community. To belong at WPUMC you do not need to have all the answers figured out, or think that anyone else has them figured out. Rather, we invite you to join hands with us and walk with us toward greater fulfillment, deeper connection, and stronger faith challenging the taken for granted and embracing community -- knowing that we are all rooted and grounded in love through the one who connects us all with one another and with non-human creation God.

As a Christian community, we believe that the ministry of Jesus was audacious and compelling. while each of us who is drawn to WPUMC comes for different reasons, each of us is called to continue the ministry of Jesus. This is what we call being the “body of Christ” in the world today.

If you have shied away from religion, especially Christianity, because of hurtful or unwelcome experiences or because you’ve made assumptions about what Christianity entails and yet you still feel a yearning to touch the divine, to be touched by the divine, and to allow yourself to be transformed into something new, fully connected to creation and burning with a desire to work for a just and merciful society, don’t give up yet. We especially invite you if you have felt forced from community because you are GLBT or a family or friend of a person who identifies as such. God is not bound by the narrowness of religion; nor is all religion bound by the prejudices of the masses. Places exist where you are safe and free to explore and discover God. Communities exist that are powerfully committed to justice-seeking, peace-making, and compassion-sharing. We strive to be one of these. If you’d like to join our path and have us join yours, come be rooted and grounded in love with us. If you’re still just searching, explore this site and drop us an email or do the old fashioned thing and call.