OUR HISTORY | Beulah Church

OUR STORY THUS FAR...

In 1883 Beulah started in a Brush Arbor, a shelter from surrounding brush.
In 1888 members were being officially recorded.
In 1890 the church was formally organized as Beulah Methodist Episcopal church, South. Mr. and Mrs. T. Marion Winfree donated two acres of property to build a sanctuary. Marion and his brother, Rupert, donated the lumber for the building.

By 1895 the little white church located across Hopkins from the where the Brush Arbor stood had 54 members on it’s roll.
In 1929 Beulah School (then located behind the church) burned down. Beulah Methodist was used temporarily as the school until another could be built.
In 1928/1930 the building was enlarged to include a wing. The remodeling added a portico on the front, new pews, a communion rail, five classrooms, and a kitchen.
In 1950 this was further enlarged by adding a north wing and porch.
In 1952 the Education building was completed adding classrooms and a pastor’s study connecting to the back of the sanctuary.
The Baldwin organ was installed in the sanctuary.
In order to accommodate a growing membership, a brick structure was erected in 1958. The brick building currently serves as the Korean Baptist church.
In 1961 the original sanctuary in the little white church was divided into six classrooms. With continued growth called for additional construction and a brick education wing was completed in 1970.
In 1976 two church services began due to ever expanding attendance.
By the start of the 1980’s Beulah had once again outgrown it’s building. Land was purchased across the street to start a new education building.
In 1980 The New educational building was completed. Beulah members had to cross Hopkins road to go to Sunday School.

After 100 years the church membership reached 1000 and a new sanctuary was needed.
In 1989 the steeple was placed on top of the new sanctuary.
In 1999 a new facility housing a Fellowship Hall and classrooms was completed.

In 2019 when many churches were shutting down due to the COVID-19 pandemic Beulah sought out fresh ideas. Worship was broadcasted online, weekly devotions, music programs, and studies started. From May of 2021 to May of 2022, 9,858.50 hours of streaming have been viewed. From June of 2022 to May of 2023 58,817 hours of streaming have been viewed. Devotionals, studies, and worship services are now reaching people worldwide.
On May 01, 2023, the church lead by a special disaffiliation team went into a 30 days of Prayer and Discernment to deicide what God's will was for the church and everyone individually around the idea of leaving the United Methodist Church.
On April 11, 2023 At the end of the Discernment process Beulah UMC held a straw poll to see if they would enter the disaffiliation process. The results where are as follows: 132 Yes, continue the process of disaffiliation from the United Methodist Church and 32 No, do not continue the process of disaffiliation from the United Methodist Church. The vote to start the process carried by 80%.
On Sunday, July 23rd, members of Beulah UMC, by a vote of 156 (yes) to 26 (no), prayerfully decided to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church (UMC) denomination. The guidelines for disaffiliation established by the General Conference of the UMC, as well as the Virginia Conference of the UMC, were followed and District Superintendent, Dr. Hyo Lee, confirmed the results both verbally and with his signature. Achieving a vote of 86% surpassed the requirement necessary (2/3 or 66%) and Beulah’s Disaffiliation Agreement will be ratified on October 7th at the special- called session of the Virginia Annual Conference.
On October 7, 2023, at 9:00 am, the Virginia Conference Special Called Annual Conference was held, via Zoom, to vote on the churches slated for Disaffiliation. All the churches, including Beulah, were approved for disaffiliation. The closing date, at which time deeds of property will be transferred to Beulah Church, Inc., will take place on Tuesday, December 5, 2023. The total cost of funds to cover the cost of Disaffiliation is $585,858.00.
On December 5, 2023 Beulah disaffiliated from the United Methodist Church and officially became Beulah Church Inc.