Our History

On October 17, 1937, fifty-nine dedicated worshipers gathered in the old Beach Theater in Jacksonville Beach to form Rising Tide Methodist Church – the forerunner to today's Beach United Methodist.  The original church Sanctuary is today's Chapel and it remains a popular site of weddings, teaching events and weekly church activities.  This unique and historic structure of undersea mined coquina rock stands as the first house of worship built after the reunification of the Methodist Church in the late 1930s, and is a stately reminder of the former rural beaches community. 

Today's Beach United Methodist (BUMC) is a vibrant and active arm of Christ in the greater Beaches communities – serving Mayport, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach, as well as Jacksonville Beach and the area of Jacksonville just west of the intercostal waterway.  The church averages 1,500 in worship attendance each weekend on it's two and a half square block campus, and lists over 2,400 on the church roll. 

An aggressive and active building program has just completed, and includes a new education & learning center as well as a new 30,000 sq. ft. Family Life Center. 

One of the largest United Methodist churches in the Florida Conference, Beach UMC has more than 55 ministries serving the community and in 2005 sent mission teams to Jamaica, Costa Rica and the Bahamas. 

In 2000, BUMC started a daughter church just ten miles south in Ponte Vedra Beach, now known as Ponte Vedra United Methodist. 

Beach United Methodist today serves hundreds of young children, students (both Middle & High school), young adults, singles, families, and seniors in their walk of Faith and knowledge of Christ.