A Home for ALL!
Welcome to St. James Presbyterian Church! We are a profoundly welcoming, open and affirming Christian community, located in the South Hill neighborhood of Bellingham. From our hillside perch overlooking historic Fairhaven and Bellingham Bay, we gather together each Sunday to worship God and find ways to respond to the needs of those around us. With 130 years in Bellingham, we have a long tradition of social justice and earth care engagement. We don’t pretend to have all the answers to the injustices surrounding us, but we work hard to listen, learn, be an ally, and be present to how God is leading us to respond as Christians. At St. James, we want everyone who enters our doors to feel welcome—just as you are—and to feel like you have a home in our community.
We invite you to join us for our weekly Sunday worship service at 10:30 a.m. Our weekly worship service is also live-streamed via our website at www.saintjamespres.org/live and the St. James Facebook page at www.facebook.com/saintjamespres.
Welcome! God is moving in our city, in the neighborhood, and in our gathered life together. We are a group of people seeking to follow after God, looking for ways to serve and partner with the work of God’s reign already at work all around us. We hope you’ll join us, to worship, to serve, to be peacemakers and people of hope! We don’t have it all figured out, but we are journeying together, sharing loving presence in the neighborhood and faithfully serving in the world.
– Pastor Seth J. Thomas
News & Updates
SESSION NOTES – AUGUST 2025 (linked PDF) Approved at meeting on September 13, 2025 FINANCE UPDATE – SEPTEMBER 2025 (linked PDF) Updated October 8, 2025
CHRISTIAN FAITH FORMATION Submitted by Tracy Caruso, Children & Family Ministry Director Greetings from the Director of Children and Family Ministries! Fall is officially here, and we are looking at a very busy one indeed. Our Godly Play classroom is following the sermon series, and it’s been fun to dive a little deeper into some…
Time, Talents, and Treasure Our reminder to steward God’s gifts The Word of God does not return void, but is planted as a seed that grows into a mighty tree. This is the promise of God’s faithfulness to us. We respond in faithfulness to God. I write this note today to bring our attention to…
Accompaniment The accompanist lingers in the background among a musical ensemble, supporting soloists and other instruments in their melodic expressions. But there are moments when the accompanist emerges, unifying the entire ensemble and leading through with a strong voice. This unifying presence draws on leadership, empathy, and experience. This past week, I spent time on…
Oscar Romero and “Liberating Lent” In the Spring of 2005, I completed my History 499 capstone paper, the writing proficiency portion of my undergraduate degree at Western Washington University. I focused on Latin American History during this program and, gratefully, was introduced to Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador and Liberation Theology through this process.